Michael Lyng Motors Senior Championship First Round
St Brigids 3-10 Windgap 1-15
St Brigids rallied from five points down with fifteen minutes to go to record a narrow one point win over gallant Windgap in the first round match played in Dunnamaggin on a pleasant Sunday morning. This was a result that looked unlikely for long periods as Windgap led for most of the match and had chances to be further ahead particularly in the first half but St Brigids did produce a strong closing quarter which just got them over the line and into next week’s quarterfinal matches. For Windgap, it was a tough match to lose as they contributed hugely to a very entertaining match which swung either way on many occasions over the hour.
Both sides settled into the contest early and traded opening points from frees from Ciara O’Shea (W) and Tara Cody (SB) inside the opening four minutes. Windgap then enjoyed a period of dominance with three unanswered points from Molly Walsh, and two Ciara O’Shea frees and although Tara Cody replied with another St Brigids pointed free, they were further boosted by a fine finish to the net by Aisling O’Shea in the 12th minute to open up a 1-4 to 0-2 lead. St Brigids then thundered back into the contest led by the lively Claire Doheny and after two Tara Cody frees, Claire helped setup Tara for a well taken equalising goal in the 17th minute. Windgap then refused to buckle and edged the rest of this half to open up a 1-8 to 1-6 half time lead- however a number of missed goal chances during this period (some expertly saved by Miriam Walton in the St Brigids goal) would prove to be very costly later in the match.
Windgap continued to enjoy the ascendancy into the third quarter of the match and scores from the excellent Ciara O’Shea (two frees), Rachel O’Meara and Molly Walsh saw them stretch the lead to 1-12 to 1-7 by the 45th minute. St Brigids looked in real trouble at this stage with the Windgap rearguard led by Gillian Costello snuffing out many of their attacks; however led by the improving Ava Brett, they then went on a scoring spree of 1-3 in five minutes to take the lead for the first time (2-10 to 1-12) in the 50th minute – the goal being a smart finish to the net by Leah Brett. A temporary injury to Ciara O’Shea didn’t help Windgap during this period but they once again rallied with a fine point from Molly Walsh before an excellent Ciara O’Shea free from the sideline put them back in front (1-14 to 2-10) in the 55th minute. Excitement was high on the sidelines at this stage as both sides pushed for the victory and it was St Brigids who secured a crucial third goal in the 58th minute when poor tacking in the Windgap defence saw Tara Ronan evade some challenges and fire home their third goal. Windgap fought to the end and extra time looked a real possibility when Ciara O’Shea added a point approaching full time but time ran out in the frenetic closing minutes as they chased an equalising point. In summary, a very entertaining match played in a great spirit between two well matched sides and St Brigids just got over the line by being able to score key goals at crucial moments.
St Brigids: Miriam Walton, Roisin Foley, Moya O’Brien, Katie Brennan, Tara Ronan, Kate McCluskey, Chloe Teehan, Lauren Ronan, Ava Brett, Lauren East, Claire Doheny, Siobhan Kenny, Tara Cody, Leah Brett, Molly Conroy. Subs: Reece Delaney, Kitty Conroy, Ellie Lanigan, Kate Purcell, Ruth Purcell, Georgina Casey, Katie Ronan, Daisy Cleere, Margaret Maher, Katie Comerford.
Ella Cody
Windgap: Ali Kennedy, Sophie McGowan, Margaret Purcell, Nathania Jackson, Caoimhe Power, Gillian Costello, Moya Egan, Ciara O’Shea, Orlaith O’Shea, Molly Walsh, Rachel O’Meara, Sarah McCarthy, Aisling O’Shea, Megan Kenneally, Eimear Smith. Subs: Laura Doyle, Ava Lily O’Neill, Emer Moylan, Shonna King, Elena Saunders, Emer Barron, Kate O’Brien, Ava Phelan, Niamh Bambrick, Sarah Power, Denise Foley, Kate Kelleher, Abbie Vaughan, Emer Dunphy, Lucy Crowley, Aisling Foley.
Referee: Paul Cahill
By PRO Sat 26th Sep
