Beann Mhadaghain boss Billy Wylie hailed Saturday’s 6-5 win over title rivals Kelvin as the “best game of football” he’s ever been involved in.
In a pulsating, topsy-turvy nerve-jangler at the Valley, the visitors hit back from 2-0 down to lead 3-2, then 4-3, and finally 5-4 with just minutes to go.
But just as the game seemed to drift away from them, Fintan Marley popped up with a late equaliser, quickly followed by a last-gasp winner from Ben Mad’s talisman Piaras Donaghy who snatched victory from the jaws of defeat for the hosts, and kept Wylie’s men top of the pile in 2B.
“Unbelievable, it was the best game of football I’ve ever been involved in,” said Wylie.
"They were brilliant to be fair, and really good lads too. At 5-5 I was thinking I’d take a draw, and then up popped our main man at the very death.
“My heart rate on my watch was up to about 130.”
Over the course of the last few months, Wylie has been forced into changes after losing a few key players.
But he’s confident the injection of youth into what was an ageing squad will keep them in the hunt at the top of the table.
“Kelvin will be there, a brilliant team, big and strong.. You know some of them have played at a higher level,” said Wylie.
“Ravenhill and St Matt’s are always strong too, and apparently Castlewellan battered us the day they beat us, I wasn’t there.
“So there are a few teams in 2B going for it. I hope we’ll be there or thereabouts too. I don’t want to be that guy who plays it down, we’ve made a few changes and lost a few players but we’ll be disappointed if we’re not challenging at the end of the season.”
