Premier

Markets Field
02 Jun 2017

A whirlwind ten-minute period in the early part of the first half saw each side score twice.

Chiedozie Ogbene opened the target practice with a brace of good shots either side of the quarter hour mark.

Immediately after the second, Ryan Brennan opened the visitors' account, and Aaron Greene levelled matters midway through.

But Limerick had the better of the scoreline at the break, after Rodrigo Tosi put them ahead soon after the half hour.

Limerick lost their tactical edge when they had to use all three substitutions as a result of injury, losing both wings of a back three formation and withdrawing netminder Freddy Hall at the interval.

It was a penalty award midway through the second period that restored equality again, Gary McCabe making no error from the spot.

But any sense of relief for the Seagulls was misplaced, as the home side rattled home a final pair of goals in the closing minutes of the game.

Eight goals again in a League encounter between the teams, but no sharing the points this time.

Brennan had an early snap shot at Hall, but nothing to trouble him, and Rodrigo Tosi tried his luck but fired over Peter Cherrie's bar before the scoring began.

Then just short of the quarter hour Ogbene seemed initially to lose possession in slipping the ball behind Bray skipper Conor Kenna, who didn't have the best of nights.

The Nigerian recovered, however, and fired low past Cherrie.

It almost became two even earlier than the reality, as Tosi headed a cross from Lee-J Lynch down towards the line, but Cherrie did well to push it away. From the corner, Robbie Williams headed straight at the Bray keeper.

But the respite didn't last long. A fine ball up the right from Bastien Héry found Ogbene who turned inside Kevin Lynch and then dummied Kenna before taking a touch and firing a low drive into the Bray net.

Within a minute, however, Brennan received a cross at the back post after the Limerick defence failed to clear the ball, and curled it into the net with his left.

And five minutes later Bray went close when a good run from Connolly ended in a neat feed to Greene in the danger area, but Hall managed to turn it round the post.

Kevin Lynch's flag-kick fell between players, and in the crowded area Brennan did well to find Greene, whose header could hardly miss.

After a breathing spell, the home side went ahead again when Dean Clarke, just on for the injured Shaun Kelly, lofted a cross for Tosi from whom he had received, and the Brazilian headed home.

Only minutes later, Tosi went close again, clipping the bar with another good header, and Greene at the far end also looked dangerous, but he lost control at the last turn.

And just before the break, Lee-J Lynch volleyed Clarke's lay-back to Tosi, but this time his nod is too high.

With Brendan Clarke replacing Hall in the net, and Tommy Robson forced off five minutes into the second period, Neil McDonald's eleven began to look a little stretched - in theory.

In practice, both sides seemed to treat the resumption as an excuse for a kick-about, and there was little action that looked threatening until Lee-J Lynch played Tosi in again, but Cherrie got his feet in the way.

Midway through, Shane Tracy fired in a quick free that looked as if it might catch the Bray keeper napping, but Cherrie got across to claim.

And with just over twenty minutes left, Brennan was brought down in the area, and Gary McCabe took and converted the ensuing penalty.

Inside the final ten minutes, both Connolly, fed by Brennan and kept onside by Williams, and Brennan himself (twice) muffed chances to give the Seagulls the lead, which would prove costly within minutes.

After a Limerick corner was only half-cleared, Paul O'Conor's shot was blocked and fell out 18m to Héry, who powered low through a crowded area into the net.

And if that wasn't coup de grace enough, even the home side's errors were beginning to favour them, as Tosi overhit his pass for Lee-J Lynch, and Clarke reacted quickest to claim and fire home.

In time added, as Bray worked the corner route, Tim Clancy thought they were due a penalty, but it was wishful thinking, and not shared by Referee Anthony Buttimer.

Compiled by Mícheál Ó hUanacháin

Bray Wanderers: 1 Peter Cherrie; 6 Keith Buckley, 4 Conor Kenna (c) , 21 Tim Clancy, 19 Kevin Lynch; 8 Mark Salmon, 22 Darragh Noone ; 7 Ryan Brennan , 11 Gary McCabe , 16 Dylan Connolly ; 9 Aaron Greene
Subs: 2 Hugh Douglas, 3 John Sullivan (for Lynch 64), 5 Derek Foran, 10 Karl Moore (for Salmon 64), 17 Gerald Pender, 20 Anthony Flood, 93 Lee Steacy (gk)
Limerick: 1 Frederick Hall; 2 Shaun Kelly, 3 Robert Williams (c), 19 Thomas Robson; 5 David O'Connor, 15 Tony Whitehead; 6 Paul O’Conor, 32 Bastien Héry , 7 Lee-J Lynch; 21 Chiedozie Ogbene , 10 Rodrigo Tosi
Subs: 11 Shane Tracy (for Robson 50 inj), 12 Garbhán Coughlan, 14 Ian Turner, 16 Stephen Kenny, 18 Dean Clarke (for Kelly 33 inj) , 20 Chris Mulhall, 26 Brendan Clarke (for Hall H/T inj)
Referee: Anthony Buttimer