Malin come from behind to beat Buncrana in the IFC quarter-final

Malin went to the well in the second half to produce a storming finish to come from behind in the closing minutes to overcome Buncrana on Sunday afternoon. 

Not for the first time Terence Doherty and Brendan McLaughlin were the heroes for Malin on the day with the Inishowen men overseeing their peninsula rivals by one point.  

McLaughlin kicked the winner six minutes into injury time and two minutes earlier the veteran Doherty, a second-half substitute, tied up the game at 0-10 each.  

Malin led the Inishowen derby clash 0-6 to 0-3 at half-time after playing with the aid of a stiff breeze in the opening 30-plus minutes. 

Brendan McLaughlin, Christopher McLaughlin, John Gerard McLaughlin, and Sean O’Neill kicked the opening half points for Malin, while John Campbell, Dylan Mulholland, and Michael Bernard McLaughlin posted the Buncrana points.  

Buncrana who were without the injured county ace Caolan McGonagle began the second half in whirlwind fashion, and thanks to two long-range strikes from McLaughlin and a Mulholland free, they had drawn level at 0-6 each within five minutes of the start of the new half.  

And when McLaughlin floated over his third of the half, Buncrana were back in front at 0-7 to 0-6 for the first time since John Campbell’s first-minute opening point of the game.  

While Zach Conlon from a sweetly struck 45-metre free levelled the game again on 48 minutes, Buncrana were back in front again inside a couple of minutes.  

Andrew Davison, whose father hails from Malin, edged his side back in front with a well-struck point. 

And Gary Duffy’s men were two up shortly after when Odhran O’Kane, with his first touch after being sprung from the bench, made it a 0-9 to 0-7 game with just under five minutes of normal time remaining.  

Christopher McLaughlin tied up the game again on 55 minutes before Mulholland on the hour mark restored Bunrana’s lead 0-10 to 0-9. 

In a frantic finish, Buncrana lost Peter McLaughlin to a black card, while Brendan McLaughlin was denied by a point-blank double save by Adam Harrigan before Terence Doherty cooly slotted over to tie up the contest once more.  

And with a draw looming Darach O’Connor, a second-half substitute, was wide from a gilt-edge opportunity before Brendan McLaughlin worked the oracle to kick the winner. 

In the dying seconds, Malin finished with 14 men after Conor O’Neill was shown a black card.   

Malin scorers: Sean O’Neill 1f, Zach Conlon 2f, Brendan McLaughlin and Christopher McLaughlin 0-2 each; John Gerard McLaughlin, Josh Connolly, and Terence Doherty 0-1 each.  
Buncrana scorers: Peter McLaughlin 0-3; Dylan Mulholland 0-3, 2f; John Campbell, Bernard McLaughlin, Andrew Davison, and Odhran O’Kane 0-1 each. 

Malin: Zach Conlon; Taylor Bonner, Ciaran Doherty, Sean Byrne; Matthew Byrne, Oisin McGonagle, Paul McLaughlin; John G McLaughlin, Christopher McLaughlin; Darragh Douglas, Sean O’Neill, Stephen McLaughlin; Brendan McLaughlin, Conor O'Neill, Josh Conlon. Subs: Gary Farren for M Byrne (ht); Terence Doherty for S McLaughlin (58); Daniel Houghton for P McLaughlin (50); Luke Rudden for S Byrne (64).  

Buncrana: Adam Harrigan; Aedan Stokes, Sean Doherty, William McLaughlin; Andrew Davison, JP McKenna, Michael Bernard McLaughlin; Evan McCallion, Peter McLaughlin; Dylan Mulholland, Oisin Crawford, Darragh Corry; Oisin O’Flaherty, John Campbell, Billy Duffy. Subs: Odhran O’Kane for O O’Flaherty (47); Darach O’Connor for B Duffy (51). 

Referee: Stephen Doherty (Red Hughs)