Nenagh Celtic serve season notice with Shield success

North Tipperary & District League Season Preview

 

By Padraig Hogan

 

Nenagh Celtic continued their strong start to the new campaign with a 3-0 victory over last season’s Division 1 champions Moneygall FC in the Premier Division Shield final on Friday evening.

Celtic are under the management of Henry Newman this season and the former BT Harps man will be hoping that his new side can put the inconsistency of last season’s performances behind them. With that in mind, victory in the pre-season Shield competition is a great start to the season and gives the Nenagh side something to build on for the coming weeks.

The first half was a tight affair but Celtic enjoyed the majority of the possession and they took the lead from the penalty spot through Szymon Popiela. In the second half Celtic’s lead was doubled when Michael Hynes found the net and the win was secured later in the half when Brian Mitchell scored his side’s third. That goal was a deserved reward for Mitchell who was outstanding on the day and Newman will hope he can continue this form for the foreseeable future.

Moneygall will be as disappointed as any side to lose a final but can be buoyed by the competitive nature of their performance here. The newly promoted side have suffered some losses in the close season with the retirement of club veteran Billy Hayes and, in a more surprising development, last season’s top scorer Joe Callaghan joining Cloughjordan FC. However, Gerry Larkin’s side look well equipped for the top division and will cause plenty of problems for the more established sides.

Battling Celtic for the top spot in the league will likely be last year’s champions Killavilla United and runners-up BT Harps. 

 

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