Hughes takes chance to push Down forward

National Football League/Down 3-18 Kildare 1-13: This evolving Down team possess a resilience that can't be bought over the counter of the local store.at Newbridge

Yesterday, at St Conleth's Park, Newbridge, further hints that something good is being built by Paddy O'Rourke - who knows a thing or two about fortitude - were demonstrated as Down made it two league wins from two with the sort of gritty, never-say-die single point victory that can be worth its weight in gold.

"At all stages, I felt we'd win," remarked Down manager O'Rourke when the dust had settled, reflecting the sort of belief that has been instilled into his team.

For, in truth, Down were playing catch-up for much of the game; and, somewhat typical of Kildare football and for their exasperated supporters, a win that had seemed on the cards for such a long time somehow slipped from their grasp. Such is football.

Yet, the Lilywhites could have few complaints about the final outcome. When the crucial business was decided in the second-half, it was Down - who overcame the loss of talisman Brendan Coulter, who left the game with the recurrence of a hamstring injury in the opening half - who had most of the answers to the hard questions and steadfastly refused to let Kildare discover a way back, working and supporting each other in all areas of the pitch.

In a match that produced some fine scores and others of a more curious nature, Down's ability to create and take their chances in the second-half proved decisive.

Sometimes, teams make their own luck and, certainly, there was an element of good fortune about the most critical score of the game, Down's third goal, which came in the 56th minute after a move that started with goalkeeper Michael McVeigh on his own goal line.

When McVeigh cleared his lines, it set in motion a sequence that involved John Clarke soloing boldly from the defence, before bringing Mark Doran into the play.

Critically, the wing back's effort for a point rebounded off an upright only to fall into the hands of Daniel Hughes, a highly impressive forward, who crashed the ball to the net.

It was a score that put Down in front for the first time since Martin Cole's opening minute point.

On this occasion, though, it gave them a three point cushion that was further augmented by points from Liam Doyle and Ronan Murtagh.

So, with positions reversed, it was left to Kildare to attempt to fight back but their only response was three unanswered points from John Doyle, unquestionably their best forward, that left them a tad short of getting something out of the game.

For long stints, though, Kildare had looked the most likely winners. From the third minute when Adrian Kelly punched the ball from McVeigh's hands into the net for the opening goal, Kildare - with Dermot Earley performing heroics at centrefield to maintain some level of parity against Dan Gordan and Ambrose Rodgers - always seemed to have a slight edge.

Even when Coulter blasted home Down's first goal in the 14th minute, after Damian Rafferty's initial shot was superbly saved by Enda Murphy, Kildare seemed to have the upper hand and justly went in at the half-time break leading by 1-7 to 1-5.

And, when Pádraig Hurley increased that lead to three points with the opening gambit of the second-half, it seemed to signal Kildare's intent. It didn't last long, though. James Lonergan fouled Liam Doyle in the 46th minute as he headed goalwards, and corner back Rafferty made the journey from the other end of the pitch to fire home the penalty to level matters.

Doyle kicked Kildare ahead again with a free in the 52nd minute, only for his namesake Liam Doyle to equalise for Down. Then came that decisive goal, from Hughes, which changed the game in Down's favour. Not that the game was a foregone conclusion thereafter.

Down played a dangerous game of keep ball, even in defence, and John Doyle's accuracy from frees gradually brought new life back into Kildare's bid to redress the balance. But even injury-time that stretched to some five minutes wasn't enough for Kildare, with the best chance to salvage a draw falling to a long-range kick from Tommy O'Neill that went the wrong side of the upright.

DOWN: M McVeigh; M Cole (0-1), B Grant, D Rafferty (1-0, pen); P Murphy, J Clarke, M Doran; A Rodgers, D Gordon; R Sexton (0-1), M Walsh, D Hughes (1-1); L Doyle (0-4, three frees), B Coulter (1-0), E McCartan. Subs: R Murtagh (0-1) for Coulter (23 mins), D McCartan for Murphy (26 mins), C Laverty for Sexton (52 mins), A Carr for Murtagh (70 mins).

KILDARE: E Murphy; A McLoughlin, K O'Neill, J Lonergan; A Rainbow, G Ryan, D Lyons; D Earley, M Foley; D Jordan (0-1), D McCormack (0-1), J Doyle (0-8, six frees); P Brennan (0-1), A Kelly (1-0), E Callaghan. Subs: P Hurley (0-1) for Jordan (34 mins), T O'Neill for Callaghan (35 mins), T Fennin (0-1) for Brennan (41 mins), P O'Neill for Kelly (52 mins), P Mullarkey for Foley (64 mins).

Referee: J Geaney (Cork).