Two Outta Three Ain’t Bad

Gailltir Senior Ladies Camogie team won a second county championship in three years on Saturday afternoon last when they fought off the challenge of a gallant De La Salle side at the WIT Arena in what was a terrific County Final fought out between two excellent sides.

This was a game that was expected to go to the wire and so it proved to be with De La Salle goals from Beth Carton and rising star Abby Flynn to leave just the minimum between the sides despite the winners getting off to what was a fantastic start for them.

The winners made one change to the side which beat Saint Anne’s in their semi final at the same venue a week earlier, bringing in Ann Corcoran a young player that has made a big impact with the clubs underage teams in recent years in place of Clodagh Carroll who did manage to come on for the last quarter of an hour including time added on for stoppages at the end of the sixty and also made some positional changes from their semi final win, while De La Salle fielded the same fifteen which beat 2007 champions Lismore in their semi final again at the same venue a week earlier but like their opponents in this game made some positional changes.

Right now there is some brilliant young players coming through in the Déise County when it comes to Camogie and if they continue to improve as players over the coming years then Waterford could well become one of the giants of the modern era within the game if all were to gel.

Annie Fitzgerald is one such of these players and in this game she won for herself the award for the Player of the Match after she hit nine points for her side, five of which came from open play.

Her cousin Aoife also impressed in the light blue shirt hitting 1-3 while Kate Lynch and Ciara O’Sullivan also impressed while for De La Salle Beth Carton finished as the games top scorer finishing with 1-12 behind her name, while teenage sensation Abby Flynn also impressed.

In previewing this game last week I said that the side whose goalkeeper plays best would win this game. On the day Brianna O’Regan for De La Salle had a fantastic game in the white and red shirt making some fantastic saves to keep the Gailltir attackers at bay and she will be disappointed not to have finished on the winning side with her performance, but she will know that time is very much on her side and that there is plenty of time for her and for De La Salle to win a first senior title and to maybe even add a number of more honours within the game.

Gailltir started this game very brightly and opened the scoring with an Annie Fitzgerald ’45 which was followed with a score from Emer Walsh made for her by Áine Lyng who showed why she is nominated for an All-Star which will be presented next month.

Beth Carton pulled a point back for De La Salle but Gailltir would hit back with a goal on eight minutes when Emma Roche who did a terrific job curtailing the influence that Beth Carton could have had on this game if given the change, combined with Kate Lynch and Annie Fitzgerald before Aoife Fitzgerald beat the brilliant Brianna O’Regan.

 Both sides swapped a number of scores before three points in a row from Áine Lyng and the Fitzgerald cousins put Gailltir 1-9 to 0-5 with the break approaching but a penalty won for a foul on Megan O’Connor in added time at the end of the thirty was dispatched to the sliotar to the Gailltir net by Beth Carton to leave just four points between the sides at the break.

 De La Salle knew that a good start to the second half was an absolute must for them and they achieve this as Beth Carton put over two frees and Abby Flynn pointed from play with Annie Fitzgerald hitting one at the other end, De La Salle had Gailltir’s lead whittled down to a more manageable two points (1-10 to 1-8) with eight minutes of the second half played.

Annie Fitzgerald and Áine Lyng restored Gailltir’s four point advantage on the scoreboard with twenty minutes remaining.

De La Salle playing in their first County Senior Camogie Final hit back with a point from a Beth Carton free after Abby Flynn was fouled and moments later the sides were locked together when Niamh Murphy won the ball in the middle of the field and found Beth Carton who in turn played the perfect past to Abby Flynn who shot low past Ciara Jackman.

That goal was however was cancelled out with three points in a row, two from Annie Fitzgerald and the other from Aoife to put the eventual winners three up.

Points from Beth Carton and Abby Flynn followed to leave just the minimum between the sides with five minutes of normal time remaining

Shauna Fitzgerald and Áine Lyng combined to set up Annie Fitzgerald for another score and she scored again from a free after Brianna O’Regan did brilliant to keep an effort from Clodagh Carroll from entering her net.

Beth Carton put over two late scores to leave just the one between the sides and as De La Salle pressed hard for a score that would level the game or even win the game for them, Gailltir worked hard to keep them at bay.

Gailltir held on for a second win in three seasons and now go on to represent Waterford in the Munster Intermediate Club Championship where they have got a bye into the final.

Celebrations will have taken place in the Barony after this win, but they will not be overdone. Gailltir will be back preparing for a Munster Final in a few weeks time where they will be also looking to win a second title in three seasons and then to go on and hopefully achieve what Lismore did in the spring of 2014

Gailltir: Ciara Jackman; Emily Mahony, Margo Heffernan, Claire Dunne; Leah Sheridan, Emma Roche, Hannah Flynn; Aine Lyng, Shauna Fitzgerald; Ciara O'Sullivan, Kate Lynch, Annie Fitzgerald; Ann Corcoran, Aoife Fitzgerald, Emer Walsh.

Sub: Clodagh Carroll for Emer Walsh (51).

Scorers: Annie Fitzgerald 0-9 (2fs, 2 45s), Aoife Fitzgerald 1-3, Kate Lynch, Aine Lyng 0-2 each, Emer Walsh 0-1.

De La Salle: Brianna O’Regan; Siobhain Heylin, Taylor Healy, Jean Dooley; Lucy Hogan, Colette Hogan, Ciara Twomey; Courtney Healy, Niamh Murphy; Megan O'Connor, Beth Carton, Roisin Heylin; Holly Ryan, Abby Flynn, Chloe Dempsey.

Subs: Tonya Murray for Ciara Twomey (55), Hayley Cox for Holly Ryan (58).

Scorers: Beth Carton 1-12 (10fs, 1-0 pen), Abby Flynn 1-1.

Referee: Martin Quilty