Flick of a coin tells the tale as Termon overcome Burt

A flick of a coin made a telling difference on a day when Termon scored the last eight points of the game to continue their unbeaten sequence in the Intermediate Football Championship.

Burt 2-3
Termon 0-12

A game of two halves at Hibernian Park saw Termon overturn a 1-3 to 0-1 half-time deficit to overcome a dogged Burt.

Goals in either half by Christy McDermott and Jack O’Brien had Burt 2-3 to 0-4 in front by the midway point o the second half.

Termon, spurred by some splendid scoring off the boot of Daire McDaid, stayed patient and chipped away at the deficit.

Naomh Conaill come good in second half to see off Killyegs in Donegal SFC

Martin Regan's side were two down towards the end of the first half but regrouped and used the breeze and their experience to post a six-point win in the end

McDaid brought them level with a 55m free off the ground in the 56th minute. Termon forced a turnover soon after and Stephen Black chipped the loose ball over the bar for the lead.

Enda McCormick, who came in as a substitute for Termon, landed a free and Black made the win safe in a frenetic conclusion that saw a red card for Jack Alcorn, given his second booking of the afternoon by referee Sean McDaid.

At the outset of it all, Daire McDaid won the toss and elected to face the wind in the first half.

Termon curbed Burt for much of the opening half and were only 0-3 to 0-1 in arrears when McDermott brilliantly caught a pass from Mark McElhinney, spun and thundered past Termon goalkeeper David Russell.

Earlier in the day, Russell saved from Denver Kelly after he worked his way into position.

Steve McElwaine’s free, in the 24th minute, was the sole Termon point in part one. While O’Brien saw a lobbed effort deceive Russell and drop into the net in the 42nd minute, Termon, and McDaid in particularly, were able to make use of the elements.

“It’s been a breezy year,” Burt manager Ciaran Dowds said. “That’s only the second time we played with the wind in the first half. We were going to go the other way around, but we lost the toss.

“The flick of the coin can make a big difference. We’re always talking about games of inches and games naturally open up in the second half.”

Ryan McFadden posted a pair of rapid points early in the second half before McDaid wonderfully found the range from the right-hand side of the ’45.

O’Brien’s goal rocked Termon momentarily, but the arrival of McCormick and Bobby McGettigan from the bench bolstered the ranks considerably.

“We wanted to make them play with the breeze in the first half,” said Termon manager Francie Friel. “We were happy enough at half-time, but we still had to go out and make up the five points. Burt are very good at keeping the ball and playing that defensive system they have.”

McDaid hit four-in-a-row as Termon inched their way back. It was the 58th minute before they got the noses in front. Once they did, they were able to hold on, though the loss of Alcorn was hardly desired.

With five points from three outings, Termon can already look forward to the quarter-finals with Malin to arrive at The Burn Road next weekend in the concluding group game.

Scorers for Burt: Jack O’Brien, Christy McDermott 1-0 each; Mark McElhinney, Calvin Gaallagher 0-1 each; Sean McHugh 0-1, 1f

Scorers for Termon: Daire McDaid 0-5, 3f, 1 ’45; Stephen Black 0-3; Ryan McFadden 0-2; Steve McElwaine, Enda McCormick, 0-1, 1f each

Burt: Cathal McElhinney; Darren Bradley, Tom Doherty, Caolan McDermott; Daire Grant, Stephen O’Donnell, Ronan McDermott; Denver Kelly, Mark McElhinney; Calvin Gallagher, Sean McHugh, Sean O’Donnell; Jack O’Brien, Christy McDermott, Liam Óg McKinney. Subs: John Fitzpatrick for O’Donnell (19), Callum Porter for O’Brien (49).

Termon: David Russell; Conor O’Grady, Kevin McDaid, Oisin Cassidy; Stephen Black, Caolan Gallagher, Ricky Gallagher; Ryan McFadden, James McSharry; Anthony Grant, Conor Cassidy, Jack Alcorn; Kevin McGettigan, Daire McDaid, Steve McElwaine. Subs: Bobby McGettigan for Grant (38), Conor Black and Enda McCormick for K.McGettigan and McElwaine (44).

Referee: Sean McDaid (Urris).