The Galway Senior Ladies were forced to exit this year's All Ireand championship, losing their quarter-final to reigning champions Meath.
It was a heartbreaking result for the women who were pipped by a single point, 1-12 to 1-11, on Saturday evening.
After she traded early points with Galway defender Nicola Ward, Dunboyne youngster Duggan rounded off a seventh-minute move by rattling the opposition net. Orlagh Lally subsequently split the uprights to extend their lead, but despite some early hesitation, Galway slowly came to terms with Meath’s rigid defensive system.
Following successive efforts from Olivia Divilly, Ailish Morrissey and Leanne Coen, Galway cut the deficit to a single point on 19 minutes.
Vikki Wall broke free for a Meath score, but a Tracey Leonard free meant the title holders held a slender 1-3 to 0-5 interval lead.
The advantage was wiped out by Divilly within 30 seconds of the restart, but two points without reply from Stacey Grimes (free ) and Aoibheann Leahy created some daylight between them and the westerners.
While a Tracey Leonard free kept Galway in touch, Meath appeared on course for the penultimate round when Kelsey Nesbitt (two ), Aoibhin Cleary and Grimes combined for four points in the space of five minutes.
While Divilly and substitute Roisin Leonard kept the scoreboard ticking over for the Connacht champions, Meath did likewise through the reliable boots of Nesbitt and Grime
Trailing 1-11 to 0-9 in the 50th minute, Galway began to launch a comeback. A free from Tracey Leonard was soon followed by a superb Eva Noone goal from a difficult angle to put one point between the teams.
Róisín Leonard, who had been a nuisance for the Meath defence after coming on, levelled the scores with her second point with just two minutes left.
However, when Meath superstar Emma Duggan delivered a ridiculous point with just 15 seconds left on the buzzer, it was the champions who prevailed.
This was a tough result for Galway who never got a chance to equalise.
This was a game that could have gone either way. Galway were good on the day with impressive performances by Olivia Divilly, Ailish Morrissey and Leanne Coen. Unfortunately they were denied a place in the semi-final as Meath just got over the line.
Scorers - Meath: E Duggan 1-2, S Grimes (3f ), K Nesbitt 0-3 each, A Leahy, A Cleary, O Lally, V Wall 0-1 each. Galway: T Leonard (3f ), O Divilly 0-3 each, E Noone 1-0, R Leonard 0-2, N Ward, L Coen, A Morrissey 0-1 each.
