St Peter's, Dunboyne (Meath)...0-12

St Lazarian's Abbeyleix (Laois)...1-08

Some days things occur in sport which convince you that there are spectators in the stadium for away that have your back. Today was certainly one of those days for the camogie faithful in Dunboyne. The ball bobbled in and out around their goalmouth in the dying embers of this one and nobody in black and amber would need convincing there were a few extra defenders on the field in spirit repelling the best the lively Laois side could throw at them.

Thus the records will show that it was the lady on the '40', Laura Reilly, who bookended this historic day, hitting the first and last scores of the day from play as the Royal County representatives claimed their first ever provincial title in the small ball code at the SETU Campus in Carlow on Sunday evening. The 3:15 throw in time ensuring that the floodlights were indeed going to be needed, but in those closing moments it appeared it was going to be a longer night still as extra time loomed large on the horizon but Reilly's 57th minute strike transpired to be enough to ensure history was made.

County star Ellen Burke opened the scoring inside two minutes and even though her comrade in green and gold, Maeve Clince (2, frees), the aforementioned Reilly, Sinead Hackett, Amy O'Hara and Erin Mangan (two) also splitting the posts, the Laois side showed they too had plenty of their own armoury and the eventual winners were possibly a shade fortunate to go in leading by 0-07 to 0-05 at the break. A combination of profligacy and fine defending meant the ladies from Abbeyleix were nowhere near as efficient as might have been the case.

Hackett tacked on her second point at the beginning of the second half before Erin Mangan went on to register the next three Dunboyne scores which gave Donal Cashin's charges leads of 0-09 to 0-05, 0-10 to 0-07 and 0-11 to 0-07. However, then the outstanding Hollie Brennan rifled a bullet to the Meath side's net to leave the minimum between the sides. Reilly's 58th minute strike - after brilliant approach play by substitute Tara Watters and superb corner forward Mangan placed the No. 11 to clip over her second point of the day to put two between the sides.

Brennan then flashed over another score at the other end - which could quite easily have dipped under the crossbar and prompted a flag of a different colour - meaning that finger nails of anybody of a Dunboyne persuasion came under sustained assault but an outstanding batted save from Sinead Clince typified a truly heroic defensive effort. lifted the siege and  ensured another chapter of history was written. Which prompted scenes of delirium as Sinead Hackett accepted the silverware. Continuing the fine tradition of herself and her brother Neil being lucky captains.

St Peter's, Dunboyne - B. Moran; N. Boyce, S. Synan, D. Curran; C. Maher, M. Clince (0-2F), E. McGovern; E. Burke (0-1F), A. Kane; S. Hackett (0-2), L. Reilly (0-2), N. O'Connor; E. Mangan (0-4), A. O'Hara (0-1), E. Cunningham. Subs - T. Watters for Cunningham.

Referee - Shane Phelan (Carlow)

Tweet

Most Read Stories