Match Report: Wayside Celtic 1-0 Seaford

Noel Ryan Cup

A late winner from substitute Colin Hayes saw Wayside Celtic into the next round of the Noel Ryan Cup in a closely fought encounter at Jackson Park.

Despite the hosts starting as the bookies' favourites, there was noting between the sides for large parts, in a game characterised by both teams' industry and some decent play, but few clear-cut chances.

Seaford's classy holding midfielder Tomo Murphy went closest for the Penguins, and it took him just two minutes to hit the crossbar with a long-range effort.

At the other end, Wayside's powerful striker Darragh O'Connor led a quick counter-attack, laying in Raef Aherne whose low shot was expertly saved by Oisin Geoghegan. Centre-back Donal Moriarty ought to have broken the deadlock before half-time but was unable to convert with a close-range header. 

Murphy rattled the woodwork again straight after  with an extraordinary lob from the halfway line which had Lukas Kelly-Voigt backpedaling frantically, but as the second half wore, it was Celtic who looked more likely to score. 

Their big midfielder Ultan Woods was to the fore, testing Geoghegan with an overhead kick before smashing 25-yarder against the bar. And it was from his shot that they ended the stalemate, as Hayes redirected it towards  net.

Seaford rallied in search of a late equaliser. Substitute Timi SIlva attempted a sensational bicycle kick which Kelly-Voigt was able to deal with, before the Wayside stopper made a brilliant full-length save to keep out Murphy's strike, and the same man went close with a curling strike that just missed the top corner deep into injury time, but the hosts held out to secure their place in the next round. 

​Seaford: Oisin Geoghegan, Zitian Xiang (Craig Conlon, 86), Darragh Roche Sam Browne, Al Kennedy, Thomas Murphy, Jack Keegan Fionn Nally (Garrett Connolly, 79), Michael Akingbade, (Timi SIlva, 66), , Jamie McCaul (Conor Fennell, 66), Ryan Scollard 

Wayside Celtic:  1 Lukas Kelly-Voigt, 2 Matt Farrell, 3 Aaron Farrell, 5 Donal Moriarty, 6 Gavin Doyle, 7 Raef Aherne, 8 Ultan Woods,9 Darragh O'Connor, 10 Cian-Mitchell Doyle, 11 Paulius Rutkauskas, 20 Christopher Roche. Subs: 12 Luke Condon, 13 Brandon Byrne, 14 Michael Roberts, 15 Sam Brown, 16 Colin Hayes, 18 Darragh Scanlon