Newport/Ballinahinch grind out Intermediate final success

CAMOGIE: County Intermediate League Final

Newport/Ballinahinch 0-11

Cahir 0-8

Report: Joe Scully at the County Camogie Grounds

MATCH DIGEST

Player of the Match: Shauna Curtin (Newport/Ballinahinch)

SCORERS – Newport/Ballinahinch: Grace O’Toole 0-7 (6 frees); Shauna Curtin 0-3; Thea Curtin 0-1.

Cahir: Aoife Corcoran 0-4 frees; Emma Buckley 0-3 frees; Jessica Davis 0-1.

Newport/Ballinahinch picked up a much needed piece of silverware when they were crowned County Intermediate League champions, following a low scoring final with Cahir on Sunday.

Despite the low-scoring nature of the game, the crowd were treated to an exciting contest where every score was hard earned, as both sides defended excellently throughout. Newport/Ballinahinch, over the course of the hour, were deserving winners, as they just had too much for their South opponents and had a better spread in the forward division.

Cahir lacked a bit of qualit, leaving a few chances behind them, only managing one score from play over the hour.

The North outfit opened the scoring in the second minute through a Grace O’Toole free, and added to their lead when Shauna Curtin pointed from play.

Cahir got off the mark in the tenth minute thanks to an Emma Buckley 45. Newport/Ballinahinch had a great goal chance in the fourteenth minute, but Curtin saw her close range effort saved, an effort that lacked any real power.

Two Grace O’Toole points, one free, and the other after a fine team move after an advantage had been played had Newport 0-4 to 0-1 ahead after fifteen minutes.

The same player had the gap out to four eight minutes later from another dead-ball, before Jessica Davis hit Cahir’s second score in the 25th minute from play.

O’Toole had the gap back at five with a free, before Shauna Curtin hit her second of the half to put her side six ahead in the last minute. The final say of the half went to Emma Buckley who pointed from a free out near the sideline as Newport/Ballinahinch went in leading 0-7 to 0-3 at the break.

The second-half scoring took a while to get going, but Newport had a couple of goal chances, firstly when Isabel Eivers saw her effort saved out for a 45. Then Grace O’Toole saw her effort flash off the post.

The first score of the half came in the 39th minute and it went to the South outfit through an Aoife Corcoran free, and it was the same player two minutes later who added another free.

Grace O’Toole and Corcoran exchanged frees before Newport/Ballinahinch added another with a superb score from Thea Curtin. Corcoran and O’Toole again swapped frees to leave it 0-10 to 0-7 entering added time.

Cahir pushed for a goal to level, and came close, but Lauren Moloney saw her effort saved by Amy Healy. The score of the game came in the 62nd minute when Shauna Curtin caught a superb ball and turned her marker and finished superbly to put her side four ahead.

Cahir came close to a goal in the 64th minute when an Emma Buckley bullet of a free from close range was kept out on the line. Cahir continued to push for a way back into the game but only managed an Emma Buckley 45, as Newport/Ballinahinch held out to be crowned league champions.

TEAMS – Newport/Ballinahinch: Amy Healy (7); Chloe Quigley (6), Eimer Carey (7), Nadine Stokes (6); Laura Parsons (7), Abbie Lenihan (8), Saoirse McGrath (7); Ruth Allen (7), Thea Curtin (7); Emma Flanagan (6), Grace O’Toole (8), Isabel Eivers (6); Sinead O’Riordan (6), Shauna Curtin (8), Amy Quigley (6).

Sub: Muirne Ryan (NR) for Eivers (60+2).

Cahir: Orla McEniry (6); Alannah Donaghy (6), Anika Moloney (6), Claire Gubbins (6); Laura Keating (7), Laura Dillon (7), Leah Flannery (6); Emma Buckley (8), Roisin Finnane (6); Jessica Davis (7), Aoife Corcoran (7), Emily Coffey (6); Fiona McEniry (6), Shauna O’Donnell (6), Kate Lonergan (6).

Subs: Lucy Caplice (6) for McEniry (47); Lauren Moloney (7) for O’Donnell (47); Elma Casey (6) for Dillon (55 inj), Donna Casey (NR) for Donaghy (60+3).

Referee: Joe Kearney (Clonoulty/Rossmore).