Spartak Dynamo FC

Good session last night as pre-season started in earnest. Next week we are training with the rest of the lads on Tuesday 7pm Marley. Wednesday thereafter. Keep an eye on calendar for updates.

Balally Celtic 2, Spartak 2

Spartak fielded a more experienced side and started brightly with Ross Kelly, injury free, linking the attacking moves. On 9 minutes, a long throw by Steve Grier was powerfully headed home by Dave O’Kelly. Spartak continued to press and from Kelly’s corner O’Kelly’s flick was touched over by Rob Flanagan.

The locals then came back somewhat and Fintan Grace and Mick Greene were beaten down the left but the shot from the resulting cross was comfortably taken by an alert Peter O’Toole.

Niall Tilly then had a good chance and when his shot was saved, he recovered to cross and Ross Kelly’s overhead kick was just over.

Barry Maguire, unwisely switching with Dave O’Kelly, was caught napping by a through ball and O’Toole made a fine save.

Spartak had two more good attempts when Grier’s shot was well saved and Ross Kelly might have scored when well placed.

Balally started the second half strongly and O’Toole made a brilliant save touching the ball onto the bar. However a long ball saw Fintan Grace misjudge his header and cover was in short supply which allowed the striker to finish – 1-1.

Two minutes later, on 53 minutes, Steve Grier fastened onto Neill Bolger’s free to turn and score a fine goal. Jose Vargas had a good run but his left foot shot was off target.

Further injury disruption led to the Balally equaliser when Barry Maguire had to return to the fray out of position and was caught for pace and matters were levelled.

Barry after had a good shout for a penalty when his shot was blocked by a hand and Mick Plunkett troubled the defence with a couple of great set piece deliveries. Jose had a good effort saved when Neill Bolger’s quick free put him in.

A good move saw Jason Northey blaze wide of the near post when the sky blues had men over inside. Spartak almost got the winner after a good run by Ger Byrne set Jose free but he was closed down.

A surging late run and cross by Fintan Grace was just missed by Ger Byrne while at the other end loose marking by Jason Northey at a corner led to a shot from the no 7 which was blocked and then driven home but adjudged offside.

Form report:
Peter O’Toole 8 Dave O’Kelly 8 Mick Greene 6 Martin Costello 7 Fintan Grace 7 Rob Flanagan 5 Barry Maguire 5 Steve Grier 8 Ross Kelly 8 Niall Tilly 6 Ger Byrne 6 Neill Bolger 6 Mick Plunkett 5 Jason Northey 4 Jose Vargas 6

Park Celtic 1, Spartak 1

A late long range volley from Mick Costello endured Spartak earned a deserved draw against a strong home X1.

With Paul Kinsella giving an assured performance at the back Spartak looked solid from the start and Tom Flanagan and Seamus McCahill prompted some good midfield moves.

A good ball by Dave Browne put Ger Byrne in from the left but his lofted effort hit the post. When Seamus McCahill was fouled at the edge of the box, Tom Flanagan’s free was charged down and Stuart Love could not get the loose ball back in effectively.

A fine move saw Graham Breen’s shot scrambled away and Niall Lennon was grateful to be flagged offside after missing a good chance following a flowing move involving Stu, Seamus and Graham.

Further chances fell to Stu, who volleyed wide, and Niall Lennon who saw his shot saved.

An early second half error in distribution by Paul Kinsella saw Park in, but Peter O’Toole was on hand. A good pass by Tom Flanagan put Graham Breen in, but his shot was weak.

Dave Browne, strong in the challenge, was profligate with his free kicks and sold himself a couple of times.

With Spartak utilising their subs, Park came to the fore and Peter O’Toole made a sharp save. Park took the lead when Niall Hanratty’s poor free was knocked past him and he was beaten for pace. From the resultant cross Peter O’Toole made a good stop from the shot but was helpless to prevent the rebond being knocked in.

Stuart Love header just over from Niall Hanratty’s corner and then Hanratty chipped over when clear as Spartak pressed for the equaliser.

Park hit the post on the break and the game began to look beyond Spartak, despite the many chances, until Mick Costello volleyed a dropping ball powerfully to the net from 25 yards for a super goal.

A decent performance against a strong side.

Form Report

Peter O’Toole 7 DaveO’Kelly 7 Rob Mahon 6 Paul Kinsella 8 Dave Browne 6 Tom Flanagan 7 Seamus McCahill 7 Stuart Love 6 Niall Lennon 5 Graham Breen 7 Ger Byrne 6 Mick Costello 6 Neill Bolger 6 Shane Corrigan 6 Derek McGoldrick 6 Niall Hanratty 5

Sandyford Rovers 2, Spartak 0

A slightly lop sided Spartak selection (after early injuries to Mick Greene and Graham McEnroe) found it difficult to get fluid movement going forward as possession was too easily lost and more importantly not fought for. There was a distinct lack of hard running from most players and many took the easy option of lumping the ball.

Stephen Harris in goal had a fine game and covered for the inadequacies of some of his colleagues. Spartak created few chances, Mick Greene forcing a good save early on from a free and Derek McGoldrick was wildly over with his attempted lob when through.

Of the other new lads, Seamus McCahill did well at the back and later in midfield while Paul Kinsella was strong in the tackle. Aaron Ormerod and Shane Corrigan never really got into the game.

Of the more experienced lads, Dave Browne made a couple of vital tackles and interceptions while McGoldrick never stopped running.

Neill Bolger lacked his usual aggression and tired visibly in the second half, while Niall Hanratty was well off the pace, with his opponent out running him regularly and he was grateful to his keeper after a couple of errors.

Tom O’Driscoll is still lacking touch and sharpness, and even his usually good set piece delivery was poor. Cathal Clancy and Dermot Dooley both fought hard when they came on.

A worthwhile exercise, as players get to know both each other and their own state of preparedness for the coming season. Part of the process of shaking off summer cobwebs. The result will soon be forgotten but players wll need to step up sharpness over the coming weeks.

Form Report:
Stephen Harris 9 Dave Browne 6 Mick Greene 6 Paul Kinsella 7 Seamus McCahill 8 Neill Bolger 5 Graham McEnroe 5 Shane Corrigan 5 Aaron Ormerod 4 Derek McGoldrick 6 Tom O’Driscoll 5 Cathal Clancy 6 Dermot Dooley 5 Mike Hull 4 Niall Hanratty 5 Rob Deering 5

Change, they say, is inevitable. At Spartak it looks like a case of out with the old (sorry Anto!) and in with the new.

From the cup final squad quite a few men are missing.The men who missed the final through injury, Will and Neil, are recuperating from broken collar bone and knee surgery respectively. Gintaras is back in Lithuania. Dan O’Connell has been up training just once due to work commitments.

Of the winning squad on the night, Alex heads to Canada for a year next week, Anto is travelling the world getting fat with his new job and unlikely to play for a number of months. Adam and James are lost to the world of GAA and Brian Massey to rugby. Kevin O’Toole is doing well at Ken Buckley’s boot camp, but has done little football training so far.

There have been fleeting glimpses of Graham Breen, Glen Burke and Steve Grier. The latter emerged from his summer slumber to make and score goals in last night’s friendly.

Peter, Dave , Fintan, Rob, Stu, Ger , GMac, Tom are flying the flag at training at the moment.

Also missing are Niall Hanratty (suspended) Mark Bolger (rock stardom beckons!) Colum O’Sullivan

Good work by Mick Greene means we have an influx of lads who played under 18 for Firhouse Carmel last year.

Paul Kinsella, Seamus McCahill, Aaron Ormerod, Dillon and Ryan Burke, Keith Kelly, Steve Harris, Shane Corrigan and Niall Lennon
have all been up and are very welcome as they settle in and lowere the average age.

In the friendlies so far, the blending process is underway and the training attendances have been the highest for many years, so we look forward with confidence.

Thanks to Louise Byrne for the poster!

St Josephs (Kilmuckridge) 3, Spartak 2

Spartak had a rude awakening by the seaside when touch and sharpness were in short supply against a tidy footballing home side.

On a windy day and a bumpy pitch the home side moved the ball well, while the boys in claret and blue were so poor with their first touch that the second touch was often a tackle!

After a few scares when Julian made a good save following errors by Dave Mohan and Mick Greene, Spartak had a chance when newcomer Jose Vargas shot wide as Neill Bolger’s pass sent him in from the right.
On 32 minutes Spartak took the lead against the run of play; Dave O’Kelly lost possession, chased back to recover and launched a long clearance. Tom O’Driscoll took advantage of hesitancy in the home defence to score neatly.

On 41 minutes Dave Mohan and Alex Kenny were caught by a sharp attack and Alex’s clumsy challenge conceded a penalty – 1-1 at the break.

St Josephs took command of the game, against the wind in the second half, scoring in the 49th and 51st minutes, firstly when they exposed a lack of cover in Spartak’s rearguard, and then from Dave Mohan’s poor free the home side broke past a bemused McInerny and Costello to free the centre forward who rounded O’Toole to score, with Mohan unable to recover his position.

Vargas set up Derek McGoldrick for a chance which the keeper saved well. Earlier the same combination saw McGoldrick, stretching, shoot wide.

When Martin Costello’s free was spilled by the keeper, Neill Bolger’s brave diving header was just wide. Vargas then sent Costello away on the overlap, and his cross drifted in at the far post to reduce arrears, but the home side in their next attack struck the underside of the bar with O’Toole helpless.

Spartak had shown some element of brawn but little evidence of footballng brains and the scoreline flattered them somewhat.

Form Report
Julian (Dave Mohan’s nephew, guesting) 7 – confident handling and a couple of good saves
Peter O’Toole 6 – helpless for both goals he conceded and could only watch as the home side hit the bar.
Dave O’Kelly 4 -concentrated mainly on solo runs, was regularly dispossessed and caught out of position.
Mick Greene 4 Flat footed and slow to react; also set pieces poor.
Dave Mohan – 4 – implicated in concession of two goals. Few aerial duels as home side moved ball around him.
Alex Kenny 6 Conceded penalty for rash challenge , generally a reasonable outing.
Martin Costello 5 – energetic, but midfield role was out of his comfort zone. Passing and creativity proved beyond him.
Shane McInerney 4 – a sluggish outing for a player who relies on tackling and short passing;never got to the pitch of the ball and was by passed in midfield , particularly (along with Martin) for goal number 3 . Showed no forward initiative.
Chris Hogan 4 – out of touch and failed to link defence and attack
Neill Bolger 5 – won plenty of ball but often careless in distributing it.
Jose Vargas 5 showed a couple of good touches but out of condition
Tom O’Driscoll 4 Took his goal neatly but set pieces poor and lacking sharpness
Jason Northey 4 Tried in several outfield positions but fitness and workrate too low
Derek McGoldrick 5 a couple of early runs but then petered out. Had a couple of second half chances but poor in link up play
Mick Plunkett 4 Tackling with studs up and conceded some frees. Ring rusty and out of practice after a long absence from the game.

Appearances and Goal stats to end of 2009/10 have now been updated. Players who have made 25 or more appearances are included, while on the goalscoring chart those with 20 goals or more are listed.

Dave Mohan on 559 appearances, edged into fourth place on the all time table, just one ahead of Derek Keane (who is far too old to play).

Frank McNamee made it through the 200 appearances barrier while Brian Stafford is just 4 short of the milestone.

Mick Greene, at 174, might make the 200 next season with the help of some extended cup runs.

Glen Burke and Martin Costello topped the appearance chart for the season with 27 each.

On the goalscoring charts there are new entries from Graham Breen Graham McEnroe, Steve Grier, Gintaras Cibirka and Steve Browne as they broke the 20 barrier for total Spartak goals.

Jason Doyle holds the record for most games for an outfielder without a goal with 104 appearances while Dave Browne on 78 and Martin Costello with 45 are also prominent in this regard, although the latter pair are defenders. Chris Hogan broke his duck this year and both Mark and Neill Bolger maintained their habit of getting a goal a season.

Gintaras sent this email to to ask for help……

hi Paul. I started my preseason and taking part in juggling competition on National Lithuanian TV. Need some votes. Could you post this  link on
Spartak Dynamo website?
Thank You.
http://www.facebook.com/LRT.LT?v=app_2392950137#!/video/video.php?v=1405074498675

Lads,

A tenner a head.

Simply name the winners of the World Cup 2010 – 20 points
Name other semi finalists 10 points each.

And the top scorer 10 points.

And tie breaker – how many goals will England score in total (excluding penalty shoot outs).

Comment on this post with your choices.