Primary schools football finals 2010
Kilkenny ladies football primary schools finals took place in Nowlan Park last week and in the fifth year of the competition the young participants served up two action packed afternoons.
Twenty three schools entered this year’s competition with the teams divided into four groups and the top two in each group met in a final. In Group A’ defending champions Piltown faced St John of God who had reached the final for the first time. Group B finalists were Thomastown and Kilmanagh, both of whom have won their finals in recent years as have Skeough and Ballyragget who contested the C’ final. Group D saw the meeting of Galmoy and first time entrants Owning/Templeorum.
‘A’ Final- Piltown v St John of God
The ‘A’ final saw reigning champions Piltown going for three titles in a row against one of the newcomers St John of God who had caused a stir in the group by claiming some notable scalps. The city side got the first score when Orlaith Conlon pointed in the opening minute but Aislinn Carroll went one better for Piltown when she grabbed her side’s first goal.
Conlon pointed her second for St John of God but the Piltown girls responded with a second goal from Shauna Coady. The southern side were winning most exchanges and had a number of attempts blocked by Sara Kiely in the St John of God goal. Niamh Ayres hit the net for the city school in the tenth minute but again Piltown replied with a point from Ellie Cooney before Eva Flanagan who was a constant threat grabbed a goal and a point just before half time to put her side 3-2 to 1-2 ahead at the break. The young Piltown girl added her second goal immediately after the break and despite some great defending by Shannon Holohan and Sara McGrath, Piltown netted again when Ellie Cooney scored her second goal. St John of God never gave up with Sophie Dwyer going close on two occasions. Niamh Ayres scored an excellent point but time had run out for the city girls and Piltown had reclaimed their crown on a 5-2 to 1-3 scoreline. There were several contenders for Player of the Match but Eva Flanagan’s swashbuckling performance for Piltown caught the eye and she accepted her award from county chairperson John Gorey. St John of God were worthy finalists and the scoreline did not reflect the performance of a very young side who should expect to claim silverware in the near future.
‘B’ Final- Thomastown v Kilmanagh
Thomastown have gained good experience at schools level in recent years and have contested the A’ final every year since the competition began in 2006. Kilmanagh made their debut in 2009 and claimed the B’ title at the first time of asking.
The girls from the south of the county put that experience to good use and took charge of the game from early on with Aoife Farrell hitting the net in the opening minute. Orla Cahill, Aisling Kelly and Jessie Dunne defended bravely for Kilmanagh and kept Thomastown’s dangerous forward line at bay until the fifth minute when Rebecca Walsh broke through for a goal. Aoife Farrell added a point and Rebecca Walsh grabbed her second goal for Thomastown to give them a commanding 3-1 to 0-0 half time lead. Kilmanagh started the second half well with good attempts by Emma Wall and Hannah Quigley, but Thomastown’s Caitlin Skehan and Maeve Egan were dominant in defence. Aoife Farrell grabbed her second goal five minutes after the restart and despite a brace of goals from Kilmanagh’s Ciara Murphy Thomastown’s experience and strength proved the difference between the teams. Farrell and Rebecca Walsh added further scores for the winners and Sara Walsh capped a fine display at centre back when she tapped over a great point in the closing minutes to see Thomastown claim a 5-4 to 2-0 win. There were many great performances on both sides with special mention given to Kilmanagh’s Ciara Murphy who was superb throughout. The craft and skill of Rebecca Walsh saw the Thomastown forward awarded Player of the Match.
‘C’ Final-Ballyragget v Skeaghvasteen
The most exciting final of the four was no doubt the meeting of Skeough and Ballyragget with a nailbiting game keeping the large crowd of spectators on the edge of their seats. Ballyragget who won the ‘C’ title in 2008 came through a tough play off last week against neighbours Freshford and this extra game proved invaluable when they faced a Skeough side who were hoping to retain the title they won last year.
Skeough have contested three out of the past four finals and showed their experience from the start when their first two attacks yielded two early goals for Mary Lennon before Ballyragget had time to settle. Kelly Dowling replied for Ballyragget with two like scores before the Skeough girls went a point ahead in the tenth minute. An excellent block by Aoife Moore for Skeough broke down a Ballyragget attack and Enya Foley capitalised by breaking upfield and sending an unstoppable shot to the Ballyragget net to put her side 3-1 to 2-0 ahead. As half time approached Lauren Dermody left the minimum between the sides when she netted from close range for Ballyragget to leave the scores 3-1 to 3-0 in favour of Skeough. Both sides played some tremendous football in the second half and with time ticking away the next score would prove crucial. Kelly Dowling made several attempts to break through the Ballyragget defence but was met with stern resistance by Aisling Cullen who was superb at full back, while Kate Drennan in goals for Skeough pulled off a string of saves to keep her side ahead by the minimum. Dowling was fouled on another scorching run towards goal and she calmly launched a huge free over the bar to level the match at 3-1 apiece before Paul Whelan sounded the final whistle. The large crowd were looking forward to extra time but neither side deserved to lose on the day and the decision was made to let both sides have another day out with a replay to be fixed for the coming weeks. If the replay is half as good as the drawn match supporters can expect another thriller between two well trained and talented sides.
‘D’ Final- Galmoy v Owning/Templeorum
In the D final newcomers Owning /Templeorum faced Galmoy. Galmoy have always performed well at schools level and are no strangers to finals day having won their final in 2008. However the primary schools campaigns do not always run to form with panels changing every year and in their first year taking part Owning/Templeorum gave a great performance to claim the title.
Catherine Hearne and Chloe Holden got their side off the mark with two early points and Kelly Anne Doyle who was superb throughout hit the net in the fifth minute. Doyle and Holden were causing havoc in the Galmoy defence but ‘keeper Celine Cullinane was in great form for Galmoy blocking several shots on goal. She was ably assisted by Caoimhe Glendon and Laura Whelan who defended well but the Owning/Templeorum girls showed some great skill by taking their points from distance. Kelly Anne Doyle, Chloe Holden, Niamh Foley and Eimear Long added a point apiece before a Doyle free from twenty metres went all the way to the net and the girls from the south were well in command. Galmoy came out fighting in the second half and grabbed two goals through Mapleflower Doyle-Ryan but three superb points from Chloe Holden and a brace from Caoimhe O’Callaghan who had started in goals but joined the action outfield in the closing minutes saw Owning/Templeorum build up an unassailable lead going on to win their first schools ladies football title 2-13 to 2-0. Pat O’Gorman and Gay Doyle have done tremendous work with the girls in Owning and Templeorum schools and they could well be back to defend their title next year. Many stars of the future were unearthed with Chloe Holden and Kelly Anne Doyle giving outstanding performances for the winners and Chloe Holden was named as Player of the Match after a superb haul of five points.
Leinster under 14 semi final
Kilkenny under 14 girls got a bit of a scare against neighbours Carlow in the Leinster under 14 semi final played at Askea on Wednesday last. In the opening round of the championship the Cats had a huge win over their neighbours but Carlow were better prepared this time round and for much of the game very little separated the sides.
However Kilkenny upped the tempo in the closing quarter and came away with an 8-5 to 5-6 win. Kilkenny’s goals were scored by Roisin Breen (3 ), Sinead Whelan (2 ), Emer Donnelly, Aoife Farrell and Mary O’Connell (1-0 each ) The kittens hope to continue their unbeaten run when they face Louth in the Leinster final on May 23. Kilkenny had a narrow 0-6 to 0-4 win over Louth three weeks ago and will have to make use of all scoring opportunities to overcome the wee county in the final.
Leinster Under 18 C Shield final
A depleted Kilkenny side travelled to Athy on Monday to face Carlow in the under 18 ‘C’ Shield final. The cats were lacking in preparation for this game but played very well as a unit nonetheless. Some excellent passages of play saw the sides well matched in the first half and Carlow led 1-6 to 1-4 at half time.
The second half however belonged to Carlow who were accurate from all angles, shooting over a string of points to see them retain the minor shield which Kilkenny won in 2008 and Carlow claimed in 2009. Carlow captain and player of the match Margaret Murphy was a thorn in Kilkenny’s side throughout and although the cats opened the scoring with a Nora Daly point, the Carlow girls responded well and were 1-3 to 0-1 ahead in the fifteenth minute. Kilkenny came to life and added two points before Emily Ryan of James Stephens brought the Cats right back into the game when she hit the net from close range in the twentieth minute. Carlow found their stride again with three quick points before Freshford’s Yvonne McGrath scored an excellent point from distance to narrow the gap at half time, Carlow 1-6, Kilkenny 1-4. Kilkenny defended well in the second half with Rachel O’Carroll, Mairead Daly and Megan Hayes keeping the Carlow forwards at bay for much of the half. With no path through the Kilkenny defence Carlow’s Margaret Murphy, Elaine Ware and Lauren McGrath showed their shooting ability scoring 0-5 before Kilkenny had time to respond. Megan Hayes well struck penalty in the fiftieth minute was brilliantly palmed over the bar by Carlow keeper Alison Kearns and Nora Daly added a point to keep Kilkenny in touch. Kilkenny were in hard luck when attempts by Maeve Mansfield and Deirdre Phelan came back off the post and Carlow took the momentum adding a further 1-2 in the dying minutes to ease to a 2-13 to 1-6 win and retain the under 18 minor shield.
The Kilkenny girls were at a disadvantage in not having club competition within the county at this level but this is set to change after the exam break with the start of a new under 16 and under 18 league and 7 a side tournament. Clubs interested in entering either competition are asked to contact the county secretary in the coming weeks with a view to amalgamating clubs at underage level to ensure all clubs are involved.
