Jan 23 Defeat for Academy side after bright start
Lar Mahony’s U12 Academy side played only their second game together in Coolock earlier this afternoon, putting in a very encouraging performance for three quarters of the game before running out of steam in the last ten minutes.  The Academy side consisted of five of the U11A squad and ten of the U12A squad and they looked the more accomplished of the two teams in the opening 15 minutes, passing the ball very well and creating a number of half chances.  Their early dominance paid off in the 15th minute when Morgan Harris played a good through ball to fellow striker Dáire O'Conchubhair and he ran 25 yards before coolly slotting the ball home.  Town should have gone in ahead at the break but North Dublin scored a somewhat fortuitous goal in the 23rd minute when William Horsman superbly batted away a shot from outside the box only for the rebound to be prodded home by the home sides centre forward.  The game was more even in the second half and although impressive left winger Liam Scales almost scored when he chipped the keeper in the 38th minute, North Dublin began to exert a higher degree of pressure that the Academy struggled to cope with at times.  North Dublin’s greater degree of fitness appeared to tell in the last 10 minutes when they scored three goals in the 50th, 55th and 58th minutes respectively.  The 4-1 scoreline does not do justice to the Academy side's performance and they will be looking to build on this good start as they face other such Academy teams during the second half of the season.

Squad:  William Horsman, Darragh Fitzgerald, David Boddy, Jack Somers, Leslie Sharpe, Darren Furlong, Patrick Dempsey, Mikey Quigley, Liam Scales, Daniel O'Hare, Morgan Harris, Dáire O'Conchubhair, Darren Beevor, Joshua Moody, Aaron Healy.