Queens of Munster

          I have said it many times and will say it many more times these are very interesting times for the game of Camogie in Waterford.

          There sadly is some who will not go and see the game being played for whatever reason, but if they were to back off and come down off whatever horse they are on and take the time to go and see the game being played they might be pleasantly surprised by the standard the game is at within the county.

On Sunday afternoon the game got another boost when Gailltir won a second Munster Intermediate Club Championship beating Cork Champions Éire Óg at Leahy Park in Cahir.

For any club to win a first such title is always going to be special and remembered by those that saw the game or who enjoyed the celebrations for a long time. This second win for Gailltir is also going to be special, as from the side which won the first title just two years (three seasons) ago there was wholesale changes to the starting team, many of those coming in no doubt spurred on by what they say the girls of 2016 do.

This year is a special one for Gailltir as they are celebrating the 60^th Anniversary of their formation back in 1958 and this win as the years draws closer to an end is the perfect way to round off a year of celebration.

The side in sky blue will now go on to represent both Waterford and Munster now in the All-Ireland series of games and no doubt with so many players in their ranks who have played on the big stage for Club, County or College in the last few years will be looking to do what Lismore did back in the spring of 2014 and win the All-Ireland Final, and will be hoping to become the first Camogie Club and the second Waterford Club (Ardmore earlier this year were the first, winning the All-Ireland Junior Club Final) to win on All-Ireland Final Day at Croke Park.  

But before that can happen Gailltir will have another hurdle to get over, and no doubt while they will celebrate yesterday’s win they will be back on the training field once more in the coming weeks preparing for what would be a Fairy Tale finish to a significant anniversary in the clubs history.

The weather conditions did not allow for the game to be played as most would have liked, but sometimes you have to battle the elements as hard as you battle the opposition and this is exactly what Gailltir did.

They played with the first use of a stiff breeze behind them in the opening half on a field that was hard to play on after a heavy shower which fell before the game started.

With the elements at their backs in the opening half, Gailltir used them to their advantage as best they could and they turned around with a 1-7 to 0-2 advantage showing on the score board. And such was the dominance of Gailltir in the opening half they escaped with shooting seven wides, something on another day could have proved costly. At the other end of the field playing into the breeze Éire Óg scored just two points and no wide, and seldom got into the Gailltir half of the field to cause the winners any worrying moments.

The Cork side did however open the scoring with a Meadbh Ellen Desmond effort in the first minute, but once Gailltir got into their stride there was only going to be one winner of this game.

All-Star nominee Áine Lyng hit her sides first score on three minutes before Annie Fitzgerald hit a brace of scores between the fourth and the twelfth minutes to open up a two point lead.

Player of the Match landed her second of the game on thirteen minutes from a long range free and Annie Fitzgerald hit her third of the game on twenty-one minutes to open up a favourable lead for Gailltir.

Gailltir hit their first goal on twenty two minutes. Áine Lyng following a brilliant run picked out Aoife Fitzgerald on the edge of the square and in such a position she had only one thing on her mind and made no mistake in beating Rachel Murray to open up a 1-5 to 0-1 lead.

Áine Lyng and Margaret O’Herlihy swapped scores inside sixty seconds and the act of hitting the last score of the opening half fell to Clodagh Carroll who helped her side to a 1-7 to 0-2 lead at the break.

The question on the lips of those present was if the lead built up by Gailltir would be enough now that the Cork side would have the elements behind them in the second half. Those with such questions need to have no fears.

Although Éire Óg came out a more determined side in the second half they found it hard to get past what was a strong Gailltir defence.

With eight minutes of the second half played the Cork side had not put any further scores on the board and when the ball was at the other end Gailltir’s next score proved decisive as Annie Fitzgerald, one of a number of players we have to keep an eye on in the coming years finished to the net to extend the side in sky blue shirts half time lead by three.

          Éire Óg responded with a brace of Margaret O’Herlihy scores both from frees in the 38 and 40 minutes.

          These scores were cancelled with points from Shauna and Annie Fitzgerald to keep Gailltir well in front.

          Margaret O’Herlihy pulled a point back for Éire Óg with five minutes remaining but it was cancelled out with a sweat effort by Áine Lyng one of a number of players in Sky Blue including Ciara O’Sullivan, Annie and Aoife Fitzgerald, Leah Sheridan, Emma Roche and Hannah Flynn, three minutes later.

          The Cork side through Margaret O’Herlihy, who along with Meadbh Ellen Desmond and Isobel Sheehan, brought the days scoring to a close in added time at the end of the sixty minutes.

Gaultier: Ciara Jackman; Emily Mahony, Margo Heffernan, Claire Dunne; Leah Sheridan, Emma Roche, Hannah Flynn; Kate Lynch, Shauna Fitzgerald; Aine Lyng, Ciara O’Sullivan, Annie Fitzgerald; Emer Walsh, Aoife Fitzgerald, Clodagh Carroll. 

Subs: Anne Corcoran for Shauna Fitzgerald, Róisín Flood for Emer Walsh, Emma Flynn for Emily Mahony, Eilish Cullinane for Hannah Flynn, Hannah Hutchinson for Clodagh Carroll.

Scorers: Annie Fitzgerald 1-3, Áine Lyng 0-4, Aoife Fitzgerald 1-1, Clodagh Carroll, Shauna Fitzgerald 0-1 each.

Eire Óg: Rachel Murray; Katie McCarthy, Aileen Hennessy, Aine Barry; Emma Quigley, Marie Gleeson, Aoife O’Callaghan; Emma Crowley, Isobel Sheehan; Ruth Murphy, Siobhan Hutchinson, Meadbh Ellen Desmond; Grace Collins,  Margaret O’Herlihy, Gillian Murphy.

Subs; Niamh Twomey for  Grace Collins, Orla Meaney for Emma Crowley, Aideen Buckley for  Katie McCarthy, Ciara Sheehan for Gillian Murphy.

Scorers: Margaret O’Herlihy 0-5, Meadbh Ellen Desmond 0-1

Referee: Kevin O'Brien (Limerick)