The Galway senior camogie team bounced back from their defeat to Tipperary to record a 1-17 1-13 win over Kilkenny in Saurday's Very Division 1A Camogie League fixture.
After a bright start in UPMC Nowlan Park, Galway kept their composure throughout to ensure they claimed their first points of the campaign.
Ailish O’Reilly, capitalising on a mistake in the Kilkenny defence, produced Galway’s opening score in the first minute. O’Reilly was on the ball a minute later before laying off a lovely ball to Carrie Dolan to score the first of her 10 points on the day.
Although Denise Gaule missed a simple free for Kilkenny in the fifth minute, Julianne Malone opened their account a minute later. However, O’Reilly was proving a real threat in the inside line and when fouled in the seventh minute, Dolan made no mistake with the resulting free.
Malone responded for Kilkenny, but Galway delivered three unanswered points in a row through Aoife Donohue and Dolan to leave Galway 0-6 to 0-2 ahead with 16 minutes.
Gaule ended Galway’s scoring streak with a point from play on the 17th minute, but Aine Keane responded for Galway from the puck out, and when Asha McHardy and Gaule added to Kilkenny’s tally, there was two between the sides heading into the final few minutes of the opening half.
Sabina Rabbitte added her name on the scorecard on the 26th minute before Michaela Kenneally and Katie Power replied with two quick-fire points for Kilkenny to leave the minimum between the sides. However, Galway finished the half the strongest as they headed nto the half time break.
Galway enjoyed a perfect start after the interval with Donohue taking on the Kilkenny defence and O’Reilly delivered the ball into the back of the Kilkenny net.
Kilkenny responded with a free through Gaule and a McHardy point from play, but Dolan with another free put five between the sdes.
Kilkenny pressure continued with 1-3 without reply to give them the lead for the first time with Malone bagging the goal, Galway maintained their composure with four points without reply through Dolan, two frees and one from play, and O’Reilly to give Galway a three-point lead again.
Gaule produced Kilkenny’s final score of the game, before Niamh Hanniffy and Dolan completed the added another free to her tally at the end to leave it Galway 1-17 Kilkenny 1-13.
Up next for Galway will be a game against Clare at home on Saturday in Kilbeacanty at 3pm. The game will be part of a double header with the intermediate team as they take on Wexford in the opening game at 1pm.
Galway: F Ryan, S Healy (c ), R Black, D Higgins, R Hanniffy, E Helebert, S Gardiner, A Donohue (0-1 ), C Hickey, C Dolan(0-10, 0-7F ), N Hanniffy (0-1 ), A Keane (0-1 ), A O’Reilly (1-3 ), S Rabbitte (0-1 ), N McPeake. Substitutes:J Hughes for Helebert (46mins ), J Hughes for McPeake (46 ), N McInerny for O’Reilly (blood Sub 54 ), A O’Reilly for McInerny (blood sub reversal 56 ) KA Porter for Healy (63 ).
Kilkenny: E Kavanagh, C O’Keeffe, G Walsh C Phelan, S Fitzgerald, N Deely, T Fitzgerald, D Gaule (0-5, 0-4F ), A Prendergast, J Malone (1-2 ), K Power (0-1 ), M Kenneally (0-1 ), L Murphy, A McHardy (0-3 ), J Clifford (0-1 ) Substitutes: Miriam Bambrick for A Prendergast (42 ) Michelle Teehan for Phelan (43 ), Sophie O’Dwyer for Kenneally (54 ).
