Nenagh Hockey Club

Senior Ladies: Nenagh 5-3 UCC

Nenagh’s Ladies first team travelled to the Mardyke in UCC on Saturday to take on UCC in the Munster League.

When the two sides met in Thurles at the beginning of the season, Nenagh bested the Cork side in a tight game 1-0 so the scene was set for another tight clash but with Nenagh on the hunt for promotion the game was a must win for the Tipperary side.

Nenagh started well and any early nerves were settled when Celia Moreno worked her way up the wing and sent a perfectly weighted pass to Grace Mulrooney in the UCC ‘D’ and she struck the ball first time to score a super goal to put Nenagh ahead.

UCC counter-attacked on the restart and worked their way into good field-position where they eventually won a short corner and when it rebounded off a Nenagh players leg, a penalty stroke was awarded which the home side scored to bring them level at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter began at a high tempo with Nenagh moving the ball fluidly from the backline to midfield and into the opposition goal area. In a manoeuvre straight from the training ground, Mulrooney deflected a reverse stick strike into the UCC goal to score her second and put Nenagh in the lead again.

The visitors were dominant for the remainder of the quarter with another Moreno pass to Mulrooney, completing the forward's hat-trick. Captain Aoibhinn Murphy also scored with a powerful strike to give Nenagh a comfortable 4-1 lead heading into half time.

With Nenagh in control, UCC continued to look for gaps and opportunities to reduce the deficit. Their efforts were rewarded when they scored a great goal from play to bring the score to 4-2.

Nenagh never looked overly troubled however and looked threatening going forward where they continued to move the ball with control and precision. When they were awarded short corner due to a UCC infringement in the D, they executed it superbly. Following a powerful injection, the Nenagh players made several switch passes before Tara McTiernan bunted the ball into the top of the net to bring the score to 5-2.

To their credit, UCC never dropped off the pace and continued to make multiple substitutions to bring fresh legs and energy to the proceedings. The Cork side were relentless in their attacks and kept pressing forward where they were met with strong defence by Nenagh. A harsh tackle on Ruby Benn and the altercation that ensued saw both the UCC and Nenagh player sin-binned for two minutes.

Play resumed and UCC won a penalty stroke for a foul in the Nenagh D. The Nenagh player was also binned leaving the side with nine players. It made little difference as the penalty awarded became the last play of the game. UCC converted the stroke to bring the final score to 5-3.

“That was an exciting game”, said coach Colin Stanley.

“Mostly we were very controlled in possession but to their credit UCC never let us get complacent and we couldn't shake them off. I’m delighted for Grace and her hat- trick, it's great to see what we work on at training yield such great results on the field of play. We break now for the few weeks over Christmas and will be really looking forward to getting back into it in the New Year.”

Nenagh’s Men were due to travel to Ballincollig on Sunday to play against Bandon HC in the Munster League. The fixture was postponed due to the Orange weather warning and will be rescheduled for the New Year.

Fundraiser:

With no more games at any age level before the Christmas break, the club are looking forward to our Fundraiser Draw on Friday night where the Club will raffle an YSL Designer handbag worth €950 .

All proceeds go to the running of the Club and the ongoing fundraising for the multisport pitch at Nenagh College. Tickets €10 can still be purchased at www.itsplainsailing.com/org/nhc.