Karl Joseph Molloy stars as Ardara overcome Cloughaneely 

Karl Joseph Molloy, with a spectacular contribution of 1-8, was the star of the show as Ardara overcame the challenge of Cloughaneely by nine points to advance outright to the quarter-finals of the SFC. 

Ardara 2-13 Cloughaneely 0-10 

In a game they went into as slight underdogs, the manner in which they dealt with the 2021 IFC winners was impressive to say the least. 

They took a 2-7 to 0-5 lead in with them at the break with John Ross Molloy and the scintillating Karl Joseph Molloy supplying those crucial pair of three-pointers. 

But with no kitchen sink to hand in the second stanza, Cloughaneely just couldn’t peg back that interval deficit of eight points. And with Ardara more or less matching Dan Doogan’s men’s efforts on the scoreboard from then on, it’s the south west outfit that deservingly progress. 

Blake McGarvey had gotten Cloughaneely off the mark early on but a brilliant CJ Molloy fetch and off load, which teed up John Ross Molloy to his right, allowed Ardara to hammer in an opening goal from their very first attack.  

CJ Molloy then won and converted a mark as Ardara went 1-1 to 0-1 clear. Karl Joseph Molloy quickly added a smart over as his side went four up. Things got even better for Damien Devaney’s team thanks to a brilliant Kevin Whyte point. 

A Paul Walsh ‘45 was then tipped onto a post by John Ross Molloy as Ardara almost raised a second green flag. Up the other side, Cloughaneely also gained sight of the net when Ethan Friel cut in from the left but his blazed effort went high and well wide of the target. 

McGarvey though would quickly add a third point for his team to leave it 1-4 to 0-3, ten minutes out from the midpoint. Jason McGee then landed a big score from the stand side and just that single three-pointer now split the sides. 

Cloughaneely temporarily lost Shaun Curran and Darren McGeever to two blood injuries as Karl Joseph Molloy launched over another mighty effort as Ardara moved onto 1-5 for the day. 

Ardara’s high-octane approach was causing Cloughaneely all sorts of trouble and more of that direct running, this time from Paul Walsh, again prised a huge hole in the Falcarragh rearguard. 

And cutting in from the right, he slipped Karl Joseph Molloy in once more and even though Cloughaneely seemed to regroup the Ardara attacker somehow swept the grounded ball home from close range. 

Now 2-5 to 0-4 in arrears, Ciaran Coll landed a free for a rattled Cloughaneely. But with Ardara closing out matters at the end of the first half with another pair of Karl Joseph Molloy clips, it was the Pearse Memorial Park men that headed for the dressing rooms in a commanding eight-point lead. 

Darren Ferry got Cloughaneely off the mark first on the resumption but that man again, Karl Joseph Molloy, pegged a successive pair of frees as Ardara purposefully moved 2-9 to 0-6 up. 

Ferry then added his second free of the contest and the difference was eight nearing the fourth and final quarter. 

But again, that minimal headway was instantly stroked out as Shane Whyte - all the way from full-back - dissected the posts to leave it 2-10 to 0-8. 

Conor Coyle and Molloy were next to trade scoring blows but, crucially, from an Ardara point of view, they held a nine-point upper hand going into the last ten minutes. 

Before the end, Shaun McClafferty landed a long-distance free for Cloughaneely and replacement Sean Maguire was also on target. But with Kevin Whyte and John Ross Molloy also responding down the stretch, it’s Ardara that deservingly marches onto the last eight. 

Ardara scorers: John Ross Molloy 1-1; CJ Molloy 0-1,1m; Karl Joseph Molloy 1-8,4f; Kevin Whyte 0-2; Shane Whyte 0-1 

Cloughaneely scorers: Blake McGarvey 0-2; Shaun Curran 0-1; Jason McGee 0-1; Ciaran Coll 0-1,1f; Darren Ferry 0-2,2f; Conor Coyle 0-1; Shaun McClafferty 0-1,1’45; Sean Maguire 0-1. 

Ardara: Gareth Concarr; Charlie Bennett, Shane Whyte, Shane Mooney; Danny Walsh, Paddy McGrath, Joe Melly; John Ross Molloy, Conor Classon; Cailum Malley, Paul Walsh, Ronan Breslin; Karl Joseph Molloy, CJ Molloy, Kevin Whyte. 

Subs: Nicolas Breslin and Niall McCrossan for P Walsh and J Melly (both 58), Nicolas Maguire for D Walsh (60), Oisin O’Donnell for McGrath (60+2). 

Cloughaneely: Shaun McClafferty; Cian McFadden, Ciaran Scanlon, Michael Fitzgerald; Daire Ferry, Shaun Curran, Ethan Friel; Jason McGee, Darren McGeever; Conor Coyle, Darren Ferry, Ciaran McGeady; Mark Harley, Ciaran Coll, Blake McGarvey.

Subs: Sean Geeney for C McGeady (40), Padraig Coyle for D Ferry (52), Sean Maguire for Daire Ferry (58).

Referee: James Connors (St Eunan's).