Goals from Crinny, Paul Sadlier and Justin Reddin were enough to see Grazz through a difficult home tie against Glasnaoin. Stormy conditions played an important role in a game that was, at times, as scrappy as a soup kitchen queue.
Graham Fitzgerald was a late addition to the lineup coming in for Shane Fitzpatrick and Ross Murray returned to a place on the bench after a number of weeks sidelined through injury .
Wing-back Colin McCabe was also a surprise inclusion to the side having thought to be injured. Some in the camp felt his presence was, in part, due to favouritism from the coach.
The game was delayed due to the late arrival of the referee. Given that the weather conditions were so poor it was possible that he sat at home debating whether he wanted to subject himself the heavy rain and strong winds.
When the game finally did get underway it was a scrappy affair. Both sides loaded up their midfields and neither were coping very well with the wind. Glasnaion started the better of the two; holding more possession and looking more dangerous going forward.
They won two corners; one of which was wasted but the second almost resulted in a goal at the back-post. It was agonisingly close for the visitors but McCabe did appear to have it covered. Midfield Fitzgerald had said, when asked before the game whether Glasnaoin would be tough opponents, that 'their form suggested otherwise'. However, a decent volley on goal cemented the realisation that the visitors were by far the stronger team in the opening ten minutes.
Grazz were struggling to create anything with a wind that pushed against them harder than one of captain Ronan Farrelly's roars. This was until Crinny took control of the ball on the right wing, beat a man and put in a cross to pick hitman, Reddin. Unfortunately there was too much on the pass ad it sailed high and wide.
The home side were more confidently now and ,moments later, Fitzgerald and McCabe linked up well in midfield causing a penalty box confusion that led to a sweet stike from Crinny into the bottom left corner of the goal. Grazz were one up.
The increasingly impressive Fitzgerald had a wonderfully struck shot on goal turned over by the keeper. It was an excellent save to match Fitzgerald's effort. From the resulting corner Mick Murray had a glorious chance to widen the lead. He failed to get his header on target much to the aggravation of Edgeworth on the sidelines.
It looked like weather conditions could not get much worse. But they did. At one point centre- back Niall Cronin's goalkick flew in the air, was grabbed by the wind and bounced two yards behind the goal. Glasnaoin did nothing to capitalise from their freak-corner. They were, however, getting back into a game that was decreasing as a spectacle.
Shortly after the half-hour mark Glasnaoin were pressurising the Grazz defence intensely. A shot in the midst of a goalmouth scrabble, deflected of Farrelly and tricked passed the legs of goalkeeper, Barry Feenan. It was all-square.
There were no clear cut chances created in the rest of the half. Fionnan Gannon, Kev Kelleghan and Fitzgerald played excellently in the center and McCabe was involved in a couple of controversial incidents. The first was a Stephen Hunt-esque slide into the goalkeeper, luckily it was not necessary for him to order a black mask from Canterbury. The second saw McCabe challenge for the ball and, in turn, kick it into the defender's face. There was no foul on the part of McCabe but one's heart went out to the defender lying on the cold, wet ground with blood gushing from his nose.
Grazz greeted the half-time whistle content that they would have wind advantage in the second. Edgeworth remarked that 'We weathered the storm in the first-half but the boy will shine in the second' in a soundbite that would make Ian Holloway cringe.
The second-half started very even-handedly with both teams trying to break through. Fitzgerald saw an audacious shot from the half-way line fail to trouble the visitors' keeper. Glasnaoin had their chances too and Edgeworth was visible unhappy with his defence.
It was the ever-reiliant defender Cronin that had the best chance. His shot on the turn inside the box could have given Grazz the lead but he failed to wrap enough of his foot round the ball and it went wide for a goal-kick.
Glasnaoin always looked troublesome on the break and their striker was put through on goal for a great chance to lead the game for the first time. Sadlier lunged in at the legs of the defender who, promptly, h
it the deck. The ref waved away claims from the Grazz players that the foul had been made outside the box and awarded a penalty. This was to be the major turning point in the game.
The penalty kick was well-taken low to the right-hand side but Feenan guessed right, stretched his arms away and turn it wide of the post. A fantastic save and one which contributed to him being named Edgeworth's man-of-the-match.
Shortly after Robert Breslin was brought on for McCabe. Edgeworth must have felt Breslin's fresh legs would help his team claw all three points out of the game. Upon being asked about the weather conditions McCabe said it was 'fucking ridiculous' and that 'you can't play football out there'.
It was just after he said this that the greatest piece of skill in the game occurred. Sadlier, looking to make amends for giving away the penalty earlier, picked up the ball midway between the opponents box and the half-way line, beat one man, then another and let a rasping shot from his left foot into the top-left corner. It was a superb goal from the centre-back and Grazz had the lead once more.
Grazz had now taken hold of the game and there was no turning back. Gannon hit a breathtaking free-kick that the keeper did well to stop and, though the like of Fitzgerald in the midfield were feeling the fatigue, the home side never looked like they were going to leave with anything but a win.
Edgeworth rarely chooses to make tactical substitutes but there were a lot of soggy men out there that would have been relieved to rest their bones. So Peter Hegarty was brought on to replace Mick Murray and Ross Murray came on for Kelleghan.
Grazz were adequantly physical in closing out the game and were willing to put there heads were most would not put their feet. Breslin did exactly that on one occasion.
The tie was sealed went Reddin was put through on goal and finished with the ease and confidence of of striker on top of his game. Grazz came through victorious and have now gone five game without a loss.
Incidentally Glasnaoin is Glasnevin in Irish. I am not sure how Grazzmatazz would be best translated as Gaeilge.
Grazzmatazz F.C 3 - 1 Glasnaoin
Crinny 11 23
Sadlier 65
Reddin 82
