Beth Points the Way for Waterford

Ray O’Brien’s Waterford Senior Camogie team won a first game in this year’s National League on Sunday afternoon when they overcame the challenge of Dublin at Coolock.

Having gone so close to beating a Wexford side that contested the All-Ireland Semi Finals last year in the opening round of games a week earlier this Waterford side travelled to the Capital in a confident mood.

For the second game running Beth Carton would finish as top scorer for the winners as she followed up the 1-8 which she scored against Wexford with nine points in this game.

The ability of the De La Salle Club player is well known to many that follow the game of Camogie in the county with a few years now, and while she has brought that form into the underage and Intermediate grade on the inter county scene, she is now beginning to make others who might not know of her unquestionable ability to sit up and take notice.

Great credit must go to the players involved on both sides for enduring the atrocious weather conditions on the day, as strong wind and heavy rain were to be found during the course of this game.

This made scoring for both sides very difficult but both sides braved the elements and all things considered served up a competitive battle.

When such elements are to be found the question is often asked what is best to do when a side wins the toss. It was the home side that won the toss and wisely played with the elements at their backs, hoping that as the game wore on that the pitch might get very heavy and make things hard for the visiting side in the second thirty minutes when they had the elements at their backs.

With the wind at their backs it was no real surprise to see the home side take the lead on five minutes through an Ali Maguire effort from a placed ball.

But the next ten minutes belonged to Waterford, as they hit the next four scores in a row, all coming off the stick of the hugely impressive Beth Carton.

Dublin however, refused to lie down and roll over and it was they that hit the next four scores, two from Ali Maguire frees and one each from Miriam Twomey and Siobhan Kehoe to take the lead once more, five points to four.

This is a Waterford side that will punish indiscipline, having done it many times in the past and they done it again here as before the break when Waterford won a free, Beth Carton put over her fifth point of the afternoon to send the sides to the dressing rooms five locked points each.

The second half began in a similar fashion to the first with the home side putting over the first score, another point from an Ali Maguire free, but it was quickly cancelled out with a long range Fiona Morrissey point from a placed ball.

Kate McMahon edged the visitors back in front, but her score was soon cancelled out with another Ali Maguire point from a free. But this was to prove to be her side’s last score of the game.

Discipline was to cost Dublin in the time that remained. Beth Carton put over a brace of frees to give Waterford an 0-9 to 0-7 advantage on the score board and then the home side were dealt another blow when Eva Marie Elliott was sent off on a straight red card by Eamon Cassidy after she collided with Niamh Rockett and from the resulting free Beth Carton again made no mistake in splitting the Dublin uprights.

Dublin before the end was somewhat fortunate not to have had their numbers cut even further. Niamh Rockett was a targeted woman and when she was fouled by Siobhan Kehoe some would argue that she was somewhat fortunate to be left off with a yellow card by the County Derry referee.

From the resulting free, Beth Carton made no mistake and the umpires reached for a white flag to signal a 0-11 to 0-7 victory for the visiting side.

Next up for Waterford is a very tricky home game against Cork on March 12, while on the same date Dublin made the journey down the M9 to play All-Ireland Champions Kilkenny.

Waterford: Brianna O’Regan; Aine Power, Emma Hannon-Roche, Clare Whyte; Aoife Landers, Jenny McCarthy, Mairead Power; Fiona Morrissey, Lorraine Bray; Niamh Rockett, Iona Heffernan, Kate McMahon; Catriona McGlone, Beth Carton, Marie Russell. Subs: Annie Glavey for Iona Heffernan, Valerie O Brien for Niamh Rockett

Scorers: Beth Carton 0-9 (7f) Fiona Morrissey 0-1(f), Kate McMahon 0-1.

Dublin: Grainne Quinn; Aine Woods, Aisling Carolan, Eva Marie Elliott; Leah Butler, Hannah Hegarty, Eve O’Brien; Doireann Mullaney, Siobhan Kehoe; Claire Donnelly, Aisling Maher, Emma Flanagan; Miriam Twomey, Mari Moynihan, Alison Maguire

Subs: Alex Griffin for Doireann Mullaney, Eimear McCarthy for Emma Flanagan, Sarah O’Donovan for Mari Moynihan, Ali Twomey for Claire Donnelly, Zoe O’Donoghue for Aisling Maher

Scorers: Alison Maguire 0-5 (5f) Miriam Twomey, Siobhan Kehoe 0-1 each

Referee: Eamonn Cassidy (Derry)