League title for Newport/Ballinahinch

CAMOGIE: Tipperary Intermediate League Final 2020

 

Newport/Ballinahinch    3-14
Borris-Ileigh            3-11

Report: Thomas Conway at The Ragg

MATCH DIGEST
Player of the Match: Shauna Curtain (Newport/Ballinahinch)
SCORERS – Newport/Ballinahinch: Shauna Curtain 1-3; Nadine Stokes 1-2; Saoirse McGrath 0-4 (3 frees), Grace O’Toole 1-2 (1-0 free), Caroline Mullaney, Emma Flanagan 0-1 each. 
Borris-Ileigh: Nicole Walsh 0-9 (6 frees); Dani Ryan, Julie-Anne Bourke, Aedin Hogan 1-0 each; Avril Ryan, Katie Fitzgerald 0-1 each. 

It wasn’t the most coveted prize on offer in Tipperary camogie last weekend, but Newport/Ballinahinch will be more than satisfied with this Intermediate League title, and their victory was made considerably sweeter by the circumstances from which it emerged.

 
Six goals in a single game can either serve as a ringing endorsement of two teams’ attacking abilities, evidence of severe defensive frailties, or a combination of both – as is usually the case.

The spread of goal-scorers can certainly be considered a positive from a Borris-Ileigh perspective, but in reality it was their concession of goals at pivotal moments which determined the course of this game, enabling Newport/Ballinahinch to lead from the front and dictate the pace, while their opponents chased tirelessly. 

An over-reliance on Tipperary ace Nicole Walsh could be levelled as a natural criticism of this Borris side, and while Walsh was undoubtedly their most prominent player in attack, Newport’s physicality helped to temper her impact. Their half-back line trio of Emma Coleman, Keely Lenihan and Thea Curtain imposed themselves on the play right from the throw-in, wielding huge influence throughout and providing a constant ball-supply to inside forwards Nadine Stokes and Shauna Curtain. 

Curtain, who returned to action this year following a break from the game, had made her mark within the first two minutes, latching onto possession near the side square, turning sharply and burying an early Newport goal.

Borris-Ileigh refused to panic, responding calmly with points from Avril Ryan and Nicole Walsh, as the latter began to assert herself and show her inter-county credentials, hitting the target from both play and placed-balls. 

The sides were separated by a single point as the first water-break arrived, Newport leading 1-3 to 0-5, but following that juncture it was Borris which seized the initiative, with corner-forward Aoife Ryan rattling the net to push them three points in front. Frees from Saoirse McGrath helped Newport to regain a footing, before a Nadine Stokes goal pulled them back in front. 

By half-time, the margin stood at four points, Newport with a 2-8 to 1-7 advantage, and when Grace O’Toole landed a long-distance free into the danger-zone in the early moments of the second-half, it seemed like only one outcome was possible. It sparked confusion amongst the crowd, but whatever route the ball took, it managed to trickle into the net, completing Newport’s three goal total. 

Borris could have relented at the stage, given that the momentum was flowing in the other direction, but Julie-Anne Bourke demonstrated immense leadership and rekindled her team’s spirits with a goal just prior to the water-break. It reduced the deficit to three and set up an intense final quarter, but a combination of Caroline Mullaney’s work-ethic, Grace O’Toole’s composure, and the power of the Newport half-back line ensured that they remained dominant in the middle third. 

Katie Fitzgerald did manage a later Borris-Ileigh goal, but at that stage it served as little more than a consolation, as Newport had already cemented victory and secured some precious 2020 silverware.  

TEAMS - Newport/Ballinahinch: Sarah Carroll; Ciara Floyd, Eimear O’Brien, Caoimhe McGrath; Emma Coleman, Keely Lenihan, Thea Curtain; Caroline Mullaney, Grace O’Toole; Emma Flanagan, Saoirse McGrath, Amy Quigley; Allanah Mullaney, Shauna Curtain, Nadine Stokes. 
Sub: Ruth Allen (7) for Mullaney (43). 
Borris-Ileigh: Nora O’Brien; Emma Galvin, Niamh McGrath, Nóirín Stapleton; Sarah Costello, Julie-Anne Bourke, Emma Kelly; Avril Ryan, Tara Mockler; Katie Fitzgerald, Nicole Walsh, Jane McCormack; Emma Doolan, Aedin Hogan, Aoife Ryan. 
Subs: Maggie Bourke for Costello (38); Sarah Kinnane for McCormack (53). 
Referee: TP Sullivan (Nenagh Eire Og)