Spartak Dynamo FC

28.2.15
Rush Athletic 4, Spartak 1

With injuries an issue, Tony Kavanagh was pressed into action in this game and rolled back the decades in a solid display.
Overall the performance was satisfactory, but Spartak were holed under the waterline late in the first half by two poor refereeing decisions, just after Evans Sarpong had a “goal” ruled out for offside, and Ciaran Keane had eschewed a close range chance by blazing wildly over from a great position.

Ushering the ball over the end line, Tony Kavanagh was blatantly pushed over with the forward allowed to run in and score. Almost immediately a high tackle was ignored as the home winger drove in number 2.

Steven Harris was pressed into action and made some good saves, while controlling his area well, despite carrying a troublesome injury. Joe McCarthy played the 90 for the first time and put in an impressive performance. Overall the work rate could not be faulted.

The Sky Blues who came strongly into the game in the second period and Kevin Loftus and Ciaran Keane gave Jeff Gamble a good chance, but his close range effort was saved. ten minutes after the break Ciaran Keane got a touch to Mick Greene’s corner and Jeff Gamble fired in to reduce arrears.

Just past the hour mark and Mick Greene had a nightmare couple of minutes; deflecting in a corner to make it 3-1 to the home side, and almost immediately missing a penalty, and the rebound, when Jeff Gamble was tumbled in the box.

When Ciaran Keane was caught in possession with 10 to go, the home side got number 4 to clinch the points. Mick Leslie fired over as he Sk Blues continued to attack, but the gap could not be closed.

It did bot feel like a 4-1 game; those crucial, late, first half goals proved decisive.

Form Report
Steven Harris 7 Mick Greene 6 Mick Leslie 7 Tony Kavanagh 7 Joe McCarthy 8 Ciaran Keane 6 Shane McInerney 6 Niall Lennon 7 Evans Sarpong 7 Jeff Gamble 8 Niall Quinn 6 . Sub Kevin Loftus 6

22.2.15
Spartak 5, Woods Utd 0

In the end a comprehensive victory in tiring conditions in Marlay, with the pitch made heavy by overnight rain which continued throughout the match, making it a test of stamina for both sides.

Woods had a great early chance, but fired across goal and just wide, and it took quite a while for the sky Blues to work up a head of steam.

On 22 minutes the breakthrough came when Steve Grier poked home from ten yards, showing good feet in a crowded penalty area. Ten minutes later a fine run to the bye line gave Stuart Love to finish from 6 yards, and then Steve Walsh raced onto to a Stuart Love header to fire in number 3.

Keith Kelly and man of the match Karl McCullough marshalled the defence and secured the very welcome clean sheet.

Spartak added number four when Dave Kernan fired in after a good move by Steve Grier and Steve Walsh.

Keith Kelly, sent down the right by Neil Mcgowan, crossed for Stuart Love to add number 5 from his customary range.

Form Report
Jason Northey 6 Dave Kernan 7 Aodhan McCahill 6 Keith Kelly 7 Karl McCullough 8 Stuart Love 7 Neil McGowan 7 Ken Buckley 7 Steve Grier 7 Martin Costello 6 Steve Walsh 7
Subs: Dave Browne 7 Mick Leslie 6

21.2.15
Spartak 0, Tymon Bawn 2

A 2 goal salvo on the half hour mark gave the visitors full points on the best surface Marlay has seen since the summer. The Sky Blues have little to complain about as their goalscoring efforts and approach play fell way short.

A scrappy start by the Sky Blues saw Chris Hogan repeatedly caught in possession and stand in keeper had to make a couple of smart saves.

Spartak broke repeatedly, but Ciaran Keane was wayward with a succession of crosses while Mick Leslie looked livelier than of late in a centre forward role, working hard for his team. Lee Malone found himself in a good shooting position, but failed to get power in his effort.

A bad foul on Daniel Sage caused disruption, and the visitors took advantage to fire in number 1, and Tymon added number 2 five minutes later.

The second half saw Spartak attack, but without conviction in the final ball.

Mick Leslie, racing in from the left, fired just wide as the second period got under way. Then a couple of poor free kick efforts by Mck Leslie and Daniel Sage saw Spartak spurn the opportunity to test the Tymon keeper.

A disappointing performance.

Form Report
Mick Greene 6 Chris Hogan 5 John Hanratty 6 Daniel Sage 7 Dave O’Kelly 6 Niall Lennon 5 Lee Malone 5 Mick Leslie 6 Ciaran Keane 5 Conor Canavan 6 Jeff Gamble 6
Subs: Conor Callis 5 Joe McCarthy 5 Gavin Curtis 6

7.2.15
Earl Celtic 1, Spartak 0

Spartak crashed to defeat on a grassy and bumpy pitch in Brickfields, where the home team show a greater level of desire and urgency.

With Spartak on a good run, and Earl having won just once all season, this looked like an away win on paper. The way the game turned out could hardly have been more different. Earl, with decent finishing, could have been out of sight at the break. Spartak had the chance to regroup and work up a head of steam, but remained lifeless and listless.

A poor start by the Sky Blues proved a harbinger for things to come, and play never really improved.

An injury to an Earl player, who collapsed off the ball, held up proceedings mid match while an ambulance arrived. The player was, thankfully, later discharged from hospital.

Earl scored on the hour, and might have added one or two more, but it was their first half profligacy which cost them a greater margin of victory.

Among the few chances created by the Sky Blues were efforts by Mick Leslie, Ciaran Keane and Conor Callis, none of which carried the necessary conviction.

With the reverse fixture to follow next week, Spartak will need to improve greatly to get anything from the return fixture.

From Report
Bobby Hayes 4 Chris Hogan 4 Mick Greene 5 Daniel Sage 6 Dave O’Kelly 5 Ciaran Keane 5 Conor Canavan 5 Conor Callis 4 Niall Lennon 5 John Hanratty 5 Mick Leslie 4 .
Subs: Niall Hanratty 5 Gavin Curtis 4 Joe McCarthy 4.

31/1/15
Spartak 6, Peamount 1

It was with some level of trepidation that Spartak faced this fixture against an in form Peamount side. With five enforced changes from the previous game risking an unwanted level of disruption and might have justified some fall off in performance. However the visitors, apparently , were in the same boat, with players missing, and Spartak saw them off after a solid first half followed by some flamboyant attacking play in the second period.

Mick Greene, with some fine interceptions and passing, played really well in the first half; Niall Lennon, later to make a goal for Jeff Gamble with a sumptuous pass, took responsibility in the centre and tested the keeper early on with a long range effort. Conor Canavan showed good game intelligence with drilled passes to release the speedy Conor Callis on the right, who hit the post and also supplied a series of crosses. Ciaran Keane had the best of the first half chances, but did not take advantage.

Nil all at half time, and a satisfactory show so far. But nothing on what was to come!

Conor Callis, having lost the ball to the full back, won it back , closed in on goal and blasted the ball past the keeper from a narrow angle to give Spartak the lead; after Ciaran Keane had wasted a good chance made by Mick Greene, Peamount broke quickly to equalise.

Their joy was short lived. The Sky Blues then went on a spree, scoring four in a ten minute spell.

Ciaran Keane went on one of his mazy runs, this time opting to take the ball with him, and drilled a great low cross which went across the six yard box; Conor Callis passed the ball back inside to enable Shane McInerney to finish neatly from close range; Shane had only just come on as sub, having taken more time than a debutante to get ready!

Dave O’Kelly’s pass was then deflected into the path of Jeff Gamble, who lashed the ball inside the far post. McInerney and Lennon then combined to allow the latter to produce the pass of the game for Gamble to beat the keeper.

A Chris Hogan cross, which looked goalbound, was deflected to the net by Ciaran Keane’s chest, from all of half a yard out to make it 5-1.

Ross Kelly came on for his seasonal debut but lacked the sharpness to finish some promising opportunities.

As the game moved towards its inevitable conclusion, McInerney released Gamble down the right and he unselfishly laid on the easiest of finishes for Keane.

A highly satisfying second half.

Form Report:
Bobby Hayes 6 Chris Hogan 6 Mick Greene 7 Daniel Sage 7 Dave O’Kelly 6 Ciaran Keane 6 Conor Canavan 7 Jeff Gamble 8 Niall Lennon 8 Lee Malone 6 Conor Callis 8
Subs: Shane McInerney 7 Ross Kelly 5

25.1.15
Spartak 2, Beech Hill 0.

A tough cup tie against opponents who had won on their recent league visit to Marlay saw the Sky Blues maintain a clean sheet in a battling performance on a sticky surface with a tricky wind blowing across the pitch.

Some fine early work by Stuart Love set the tone and Spartak were up for the contest; a series of corners produce nothing as Martin Costello and Steve Walsh failed to deliver from the flag kicks.

On the half hour a forward burst by Steve Walsh was halted, but Dave Kernan retrieved the ball, raced forward before passing to Martin Costello, whose neat lay off was fired in by Walsh.

Steve Grier’s free was tipped over before Steve Walsh’s neat finish from Martin Costello’s pass gave Spartak the cushion of a two goal advantage.

The introduction of the substitutes gave Spartak an out ball as they sat deep and Keith Kelly’s cross almost provided fellow sub Thom O’Driscoll with a third goal.

Not the best performance but a safe passage through to the next round.

Form Report
Jason Northey 6 Dave Kernan 7 Aodhan McCahill 7 Paul Kinsella 6 Karl McCullough 6 Stuart Love 6 Neil McGowan 6 Ken Buckley 6 Steve Grier 7 Martin Costello 7 Steve Walsh 7
Subs: Keith Kelly 6 Thom O’Driscoll 6

18.1.15
Marks Celtic 1 , Spartak 5

With the Fettercairn pitch surprisingly declared playable, Spartak headed out to play the league leaders on a bitterly cold morning.

The pitch was grassy and very bumpy and did not lend itself to flowing football.

Spartak took the lead on 10 minutes a combination between Dave Kernan and Marcel Bajors saw the latter’s cross cleared for a corner; Steve Walsh’s flag kick saw Karl McCullough make the decisive challenge and Neil McGowan pounced to knock in from close range. All the good work was almost undone as a silly Stuart Love challenge conceded a soft penalty; Jason Northey got down to his right to parry the spot kick away, but minutes later was beaten by a long range effort for the equaliser.

Martin Costello drove in a loose ball on 35 minutes to restore the lead, and then Spartak opened the second period well; a Kernan/Steve Grier combination gave Costello a chance, and his blazed shot was touched over. Steve Grier headed in from the corner kick to make it 3-1.

Spartak then played some of their best stuff and created a succession of chances – Steve Grier had a driven effort just wide; Karl McCullough fired over from close range; Marcel Bajors had a fine header cleared off the line; Steve Walsh fired just over , from play, and then from a free. The local team’s frustration grew and the no. 7 was dismissed for a second bookable offence.

Dave Kernan’s run was halted illegally and Martin Costello fired home from the spot, and the win was capped when a Grier/ McGowan move saw Walsh fire home from a narrow angle.

A satisfactory morning’s work.

Form Report
Jason Northey 7 Dave Kernan 5 Aodhan McCahill 5 Paul Kinsella 6 Karl McCullough 8 Stuart Love 7 Neil McGowan 7 Steve Grier 9 Marcel Bajors 7 Martin Costello 8 Steve Walsh 5.
Subs: Mick Leslie 6 Dave Browne 6 Ken Buckley Niall Hanratty.

To mark the first anniversary of Dave’s untimely passing, a Mass will be held in St Attracta’s Church Ballinteer at 6.30 on Saturday 31st January.

13.12.14
Tymon Bawn 1, Spartak 3

It was with a huge sense of relief that Spartak departed Tymon’s pitch.

The goalmouth had to be sanded before the ref gave the go ahead on a heavy pitch. Few games were played on this bitterly cold Saturday, but finally this one got the go ahead.

The local side held the lead for a long time and as the final 15 minutes approached it seemed unlikely that Spartak would take anything from the game. Indeed the Sky Blues were indebted to Mick Greene and Conor Canavan for goal line clearances which prevented Tymon from adding to their 5th minute lead.

The home goal came when the wide man easily brushed aside Ciaran Keane’s challenge and crossed for the striker who got a run on Paul Kinsella to head home from 6 yards.

Spartak were poor in the first half. Distribution from the back was poor, midfielders dwelt on the ball, and the front three showed poor judgment and little in the way of hold up play. In contrast Tymon moved the ball swiftly on the sticky surface and created a few decent chances as well as forcing the play.

The second half saw more of the same; frustration began to set in and decision making suffered as a result.

Ciaran Keane, who in the first half had squandered Spartak’s only decent chance through a combination of drifting unnecessarily offside and then shooting high and wide; then followed by a frustratingly poor effort in the second half shooting wide from 6 yards when clear through on goal; suddenly underwent a remarkable metamorphosis from lumbering villain to cool clean hero in those final 12 minutes.

Firstly he stretched to meet Jeff Gamble’s cross to net from close range for the equaliser; and then , in injury time, with Tymon pressing for a late equaliser, he showed strength and speed in injury time to outpace the cover and add the third goal and clinch the points.

In between Conor Keegan and Mick Leslie combined for the latter to cross low; the goalkeeper fumbled the cross and Jeff Gamble was on hand to poke the loose ball home.

A cheery bunch of Sky Blues headed for a little pre Christmas refreshment.

Form Report
Bobby Hayes 7 Barry Maguire 5 Mick Greene 6 Paul Kinsella 7 Dave O’Kelly 7 Ciaran Keane 7 Conor Canavan 5 Jeff Gamble 5 Niall Lennon 5 Conor Keegan 6 Mick Leslie 5
Subs: Adam Doran 6 Chris Hogan 6 Shane McInerney 6

Results:

First Prize: De Luxe Christmas Hamper – James McClafferty – seller S McClafferty

Second Prize: Superior Drinks Hamper – L Fanning – seller N Bolger

Third Prize: €100 Turkey and Ham voucher – Philip Martin – seller Martin Costello

Fourth Prize: Wine and Goodies Hamper – Mick Costello – seller Mick Costello

Fifth Prize: Bumper Christmas Hamper – Peter Kiernan – seller Dave Kernan

Thanks to All who supported the raffle.