Author: crusadersafc

Azzurri Division 2B | 26th April 2025

Saturday afternoon saw our 2B team travel to our home-from-home at the RSC, where we took on a high-flying Kilbarry Rangers team, sitting unbeaten before kick-off in joint first place in the table. Missing Stephen Pollard, Odhran O’Donnell and Joe Barry from last time out, Manager Murphy’s squad was buoyed by the return of Patrick O’Neill, Andrew Richards, Ben Brophy and David Cheasty, not to mention the much-anticipated competitive debut in the blue and red for James Clarke.

From the first minute, it was easy to see that the Rangers unit are a serious team, with well-drilled approach play causing the Crusaders midfield no-end of problems early on. A couple of last-ditch tackles by Jordan Wall and Cian O’Neill, and bravery at the feet of an incoming striker by Patrick O’Neill were all that prevented Kilbarry going ahead inside the first ten minutes. However, once we found our rhythm after 15 minutes or so, we eased our way into the game, starting to dictate the play through the mercurial Sean Halpin and the boundless Andrew Richards in the middle.

On 18 minutes, after some great chasing down by Tommy Smyth to win the ball in a dangerous position, James Clarke squared to top-scorer Zak O’Connor, who was ruthless from 20 yards, rifling the ball high to the Rangers’ keeper’s left, leaving him with no chance. Less than ten minutes later, Rangers were down to 10 men following the dismissal of their number 9. Smelling blood, the Crusaders Ultras turned up the decibels on the sideline, and were soon celebrating a competitive debut goal for Clarke, who latched onto Zak’s through-ball on 36 minutes and deftly lobbed the retreating Rangers keeper from 25 yards with the confidence of a man who knows he has a huge part to play this season.

The 2nd half continued where the first had left off, with Zak once again the tip of the sword, piercing the Kilbarry defence again on 50 minutes and drilling a daisy cutter into the bottom corner to make it 3-0. Murphy introduced Cheasty to the game on 57 minutes, a long awaited return from injury from the first game of the season, and the big man didn’t disappoint, slotting into Halpin’s position in midfield with ease, taking control of the tempo and nipping any ideas Rangers may have had in the bud. Indeed, the return of DC20 and the masterful display of Richards might just give Murphy a selection headache next time out, with Halpin, Tommy and Odhran the current incumbents in the middle. Great problems to have!

As it stands, a bench of 8 or 9 substitutes greatly added to the options open to Murphy. Cheasty’s arrival on 57 minutes had allowed Halpin to rest his busy feet, and later changes to replace Ben, Zak and James with Eoin Daly, Alex Kavanagh and Conor Brennan introduced fresh legs and new problems for Kilbarry to solve. The final change saw Harry Ryan come in for Tommy, and he was unlucky to see a classic poacher’s attempt stopped on the line by Rangers, despite his protestations. In the final ten minutes, play moved out to the wings as Rangers sought to limit the damage. Jim and Devin both saw space open for them​ on the wings, with Devin almost bringing us to 4-0, only for the Rangers keeper and crossbar to combine to keep him out.

​All-in-all, a powerful performance from the Whitfield men, and one that sees them draw level with Rangers in the early table standings.

No jackpot winner again this time around, so the next draw will be on 6th May when a huge €5,600 will be on offer.

Please support our fortnightly participation in the Waterford Sports Lotto. So much of the ongoing work at Whitfield Park is supported by your participation.

Club legend Willie Power keeps a batch of tickets behind the bar at Geoffs for those who are interested!

Alternatively, buy online at https://bit.ly/waterfordsportslotto and remember to select “Crusaders AFC” from the list.

4th Division – Whitfield Park

“Rome wasn’t built in a day. And neither is anything worth building—be it a team, a dream, or a legacy. Day by day, brick by brick, we lay the foundations for something greater than ourselves.” – Jonathan Moran – Manager

Channelling Pacino, these words were delivered with emotion by a man, stripped to the waist, proud of his charges’ progress but equally aware of the size of the task as they progress through upcoming fixtures. The message was still ringing around the heads of the squad after a midweek fixture against Park Rangers saw Crusaders succumb to a goal in each half, both of which can be attributed to a rustiness in terms of positioning and surroundings. Disappointing, but still progressive, with a matchday squad of 17 players, a new shirt sponsor deal signed (press conference next week) and the promise of better days this season through regular training and a group membership to the Pioneers.

Team: Paul Lawrence, Andrew Titley, Karl Barnaville (Capt.), John Rockett, Shane Hunt, Walter Power, Patrick Egan, Austin Hanrahan, Paul O’Neill, David Power, Paul Kelly. Subs: Gary Kent, Niall Kelly, Peter O’Byrne, Brendan Byrne, Brian Scott, Mark Kennedy

Star Player: Mark Kennedy rolled back the years with a powerful game, after an early introduction for David Power, who departed after 2 minutes to walk the dog (not a euphemism).

“Me knees are f..$£€..d with that astro” – Austin Hanrahan

Considering that the concept of training midweek was foreign to this team a short few months ago, it’s encouraging to see them progress from the couch to a “handy 5-a-side” and now onto the Whitfield Park training surface from next week. The passing has improved during this time, the scanning of the park in receipt of the ball has been rediscovered, but this team know that they need to be playing, training, stretching, talking to each other whilst on grass as a precursor to delivering results.

“I’m going home to bed” – Niall Kelly

The last time Niall donned the famous blue and red stripes, the Millenium Bug was still only a concept, Fiat Puntos were the best selling cars in Ireland and Dooly’s was still Cunningham’s. As he took to the field in the 46th minute, resplendent in his new haircut (Shades Hair Studio, Ferrybank – ask for the Crusaders Cut!), more nervous than the day he got married, the youngest, smartest and most gorgeous of the three Killotteran Kelly brothers was thinking “don’t let them see the tears”. He put in a performance thereafter which can only bode well for the remainder of his rookie Junior League season, slotting into the inside right channel in a manner that belied his youth. Clearly the after-dinner speech anecdotes referencing Rathgormack 1997 will need to be updated, but one step at a time Niall – keep those new boots cleaned, aired and polished, you’ll get your chance! One for the future, without doubt.

Special mention also to other recent newcomers Shane Hunt, Brendan Byrne, Brian Scott and Paul Kelly who have found their feet quickly and will help bring the team onwards in the coming weeks.

Division 2B – Match Report

Looking to return to winning ways after a disappointing result last time out, the Crusaders 2B team showed up to Whitfield Park on Saturday determined and ready for action. Training in recent weeks has switched from running the slopes of Train Hill to ball work, and Devin was busy an hour before kick off with his new Temu pump to make sure the leather was at regulation pressure.

Gaffer Murphy elected to switch things around this week, opting for Big Joe Barry to lead the line, a testament to his performance last time out. Top scorer Zak O’Connor moved out to the left, a bold move for the manager in his fourth game but one which ultimately would bear fruit.

Stephen Pollard stepped into the goal, the fullbacks were as the previous games this season with Jim Brennan and Dev, and captain Cian O’Neill returned to partner Jordan Wall in the centre. Also returning was Odhran O’Donnell, who anchored the middle alongside Tommy Smyth and Big Sean Halpin, with Luke McCarthy geared to raid down the right.

It didn’t take long for the big man up front to make his presence felt, winning a penalty on 4 minutes, and lucky to escape without a serious injury following a last-ditch tackle. Zak duly slotted home from the spot, low to the left. Soon after, the big striker laid off a deft glancing header for Tommy to run onto but his shot was saved. The game was evenly matched for much of the first half after that, with both sides shot-shy and much of the play focused on the flanks. In fact, it took until the 75th minute for the game to really spring into life. As the sun finally made an appearance, Dungarvan equalised courtesy of a fine finish which gave Pollard no chance.

However, the Crusaders were up to the challenge, with Zak getting his second just 3 minutes later, finding space from a Tommy Smyth through ball and burying it into the bottom corner. Four minutes later, the “Zak-trick hat-trick” was complete as he won the ball from just inside the halfway line, beating four players and finishing with a cracker.

Dungarvan did manage a consolation near the end. A spectacular save from Pollard came back off the crossbar and the Dungarvan striker reacted quickest to toe over the line. However, this result was never in doubt, and a well-deserved three points sees the boys sitting in fourth in the table, with an away trip to second placed Kilbarry Rangers next on the cards.

Jordan Daniels, Eoin Daly, Conor Brennan and Alex Cowman came into the game in the final quarter and played their part in re-energising the team. And a special mention goes to Harry Ryan who caused no end of problems for the Dungarvan back line when he came on.

4th Division – Match Report

With high pressure in the south-east promised by Met Eireann for Friday, Manager Moran cancelled training in the run up to Friday night’s trip to Newtown for fear that many older ankles wouldn’t hold up to the scrutinous hard surface at the Orchard. As it turned out, the bigger challenge to his players’ ability to deliver came down to the toss of a coin and the blinding sun which caused League of Ireland poster boy Paul Lawrence to wear his favourite team’s cap in an effort to see the game (#YNWA Lawro).

Rangers sought to capitalise on the sun’s debilitating impact on the Crusaders backline straight from kick off and to good effect, with only their wayward shooting and the Crusaders’ keeper’s cat-like reflexes keeping the score to 1-0 in the first quarter. Speaking afterwards, Lawro exclaimed “I was like Grobelaar out there this evening wasn’t I, awwww, Brucie Brucie Brucie, bang bang bang!”.

However, in a move from the training grounds (8pm Tuesdays, “no pressure, very enjoyable”) Titley’s throw-in on 22 minutes was met by Egan’s forehead and onto Hunt’s trusty right peg to whip the ball across the box for David Power to conjure a majestic finish, lobbing the Rangers keeper, rippling the net and pirouetting with satisfaction. Power has shown huge promise in this, his rookie year at this level, having moved up from last year’s youth setup, bringing an innocence and an enthusiasm which has infected the entire squad.

The second half was a test of fortitude and resilience, and with Elon Musk switching the sun off at half time, was played on a more even setting. Titley and Hanrahan were rock solid at the back, Barney and Rockett gave as good as they got in the middle, Egan and debutant Hunt ran and harried the Rangers defence all game, and the Power brothers (Trevor, Walter and David) were inspirational with their efforts. Having lost centre half Pat Heffernan earlier in the game after he and the Rangers striker had a fit of the giggles, Crusaders were thankful of a large bench as Brian Scott, Deano Dean, Mark Kennedy and Frank Frampton (who got lost en route to Tramore, having last travelled south by train) were able to keep the legs fresh and the momentum forward.

On this occasion however, a rearguard action in the final quarter eventually succumbed to a second Rangers goal, which slipped past Lawrence and his favourite Dudek gloves. A 2-1 defeat by the sea, but one which inspires hope in a squad brimming with talent.

Injuries and niggles haven’t been kind to Crusaders so far this season. Indeed, only before the game the squad were informed that Paul “Duckie” McDonnell isn’t expected to recover from his latest knock for 10-12 years. But with the enigmatic Peter O’Byrne expected to return for next Wednesday’s home fixture, with Paul O’Neill expected to return from Vegas as soon as his bank manager gets in touch, with Noel Slattery due back from a residency in Madison Square Garden in the coming weeks and new signings and former Crusaders Paul and Niall Kelly due to agree on a boot contract with Aldi by Monday, the future looks bright for this team.

So bright in fact, Lawrence says he’ll need his Jamie Redknapp Ray-Bans for Wednesday.