Villa’s superb start to the League season continued against St Saviour’s. | Photo: Noel Browne
The Villa recorded their first ever Premier League victory in Clonard Park on Sunday last and in doing so they made it four wins on the bounce.
Their one hundred per cent record means that they still sit proudly at the top of the League table.
The Connor’s Park outfit got off to the perfect start when they were awarded a penalty inside the opening minute when defender Philip Penkert brought down Niall McCabe inside the area and Conor Coad scored his fourth goal of the campaign from the spot when firing past keeper Graham Cleary.
Villa continued their impressive start when adding a second goal on six minutes. Danny Walsh released McCabe down the left channel and when he beat the offside trap to square the ball to Ian Cantwell, he made no mistake with a simple finish to an unguarded net.
A third goal for the visitors to the rain soaked Ballybeg venue arrived on 13 minutes when Conor McDonald broke free down the right channel and after the home side failed to clear his cross to the back post, Cantwell was on hand to drill a low right-footed shot to the corner of the net past the dive of keeper Cleary.
McDonald and McCabe had further chances to extend their sides advantage before Danny Walsh was also guilty of missing a decent opportunity to find the back of the Saints’ net but he fired wide of the near post after getting on the end of a McDonald delivery.
Ian Cantwell was denied by an excellent Graham Cleary save on 34 minutes before a fourth Villa goal arrived in the final minute of the first half.
Niall McCabe was fouled on the left-side of the penalty area and Conor McDonald found the top left-hand corner of the net past a stranded home netminder.
The second half was less than 60 seconds old when the visitors really put any chance of a remarkable comeback to bed when Kevin Kelly sent over a cross from the right to the back post where Dylan McGuire was on hand to turn provider for Niall McCabe to finish to the net from close range.
It got even better for Villa as they found the back of the net for the sixth time on 47 minutes when McCabe took possession of the ball on the right-side of the area before slipping into the path of Danny Walsh, who applied the left-footed finish past a helpless Graham Cleary.
With the home side missing a number of key players for this game due to suspension and holidays, it became a case of trying to keep the score down.
However, a seventh goal arrived on 63 minutes when McCabe finished to the net after Ian Cantwell’s angled effort from the right came crashing back off the near post
St Saviour’s: Graham Cleary; Pat Kiely, Stephen O’Donoghue, Philip Penkert, Daniel Murphy; Clive Prendergast, Stephen McLawrence, Brian O’Donoghue, Shane O’Connor; Stephen Dalton, David Osorio.
Substitutes: Dale Sheridan for Stephen Dalton and Thomas Crowley for Stephen O’Donoghue (both 74 mins).
Villa: Brandon O’Callaghan; Kevin Kelly, Dylan McGuire, Gavin O’Donovan, Eoin Ginnity; Daniel Aherne, Ian Cantwell, Conor Coad, Danny Walsh; Conor McDonald Niall McCabe.
Substitutes: Jeff De Silva for Danny Walsh (57 mins), Jamie Cross for Dylan McGuire (63) and Tadhg Whelan for Conor McDonald (69).
Referee: Noel Purcell.
Assistants: Christopher Maher and Noel Ryan.
