Mayo SFC quarter-final: Garrymore: 0-5 Knockmore: 3-8 The annals of club championships are littered with shattered dreams. For Garrymore, an alluring Saturday night lights home quarter-final fixture quickly became a nightmare as Knockmore ran out comfortable 12 points victors. As a matchup it had all the components to be a cracker.
Knockout football featuring two rural clubs in front of a packed crowd on a sublime surface. Instead, it served as a reminder of just how vital it is to take crucial chances. The final missed shots tally saw Knockmore’s total add up to four, Garrymore’s was 16.
Knockmore lined out without the injured Kevin McLoughlin yet still led 3-4 to 0-2 after a dramatic opening half. A superb score from the sideline by Mark Gibbons saw the home outfit strike first only for the ground to collapse beneath their feet shortly after. A driving run by Mayo senior Aidan Orme, marked by intercounty team-mate Enda Hession, yielded Darren McHale’s first goal of the contest with six minutes on the clock.
McHale struck again fortuitously when his long delivery was missed by goalkeeper Ciaran McGrath. The former Galway footballer and Corofin All-Ireland winner took over as Garrymore’s number one due to injury earlier this year. A short kickout malfunction allowed Keith Ruttledge to capitalise and deliver goal number three.
Rubbing salt into the wound for Garrymore was the fact they squandered three goal chances of their own. A goal-line save by McHale denied Conor .