This article is from page 64 of the 2011-05-24 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 64 JPG
Kilmaley 0-07 – Newmarket-on-Fergus 0-05 at Clareabbey
THE BIGGEST rivalry in Clare camogie took another turn on Sunday as Kilmaley overcame Newmarket and the extreme weather conditions to secure back-to-back league titles. The current kingpins of the domestic game have met in five out of the last major deciders, with Kilmaley exacting revenge for last October’s county final defeat at the hands of Newmarket who were denied a famous threein-a-row.
Arguably, that final defeat only sharpened Kilmaley’s hunger to get back to the top of the pile as unquestionably, they showed the greatest hunger for victory on Saturday despite an incessant downpour that threatened to wreck this showpiece event. Central to that appetite was a hardworking team ethic that never allowed Newmarket to get into their stride as was not the case in the drier sod of Cusack Park for the county final.
In addition, there was considerable leadership shown from their more experienced members, notably the McMahon sisters, Helen and Claire who were seemingly everywhere over the hour while Shonagh Enright also had an influential second half showing when the pressure was on.
Newmarket didn’t have such luxu- ries in that department although Joanne Walsh and Erica Minogue did their upmost to stem the tide while Niki Kaiser wasn’t supplied with enough ball in the forward division.
Therefore, with the conditions ensuring a low scoring affair and little separating the sides, it was all about which side wanted it more and was prepared to fight for the crown.
With the wind favouring Newmarket in the opening half, they dominated the early stages but allied to a greasy ball, they found the Kilmaley defence in stubborn form. Three early wides along with three potential goal chances went abegging and it was Kilmaley who literally weathered the storm to put up the first two scores of the half through Ashling Darcy and a Denise Lynch free.
A frustrated Newmarket slowly got into their stride in the second quarter however and in their best period of the game, they hit five points without reply in a nine minute spell, three from the stick of Aine O’Brien while Jenny Kelly and Sharon McMahon benefitted from breaking balls.
However, with Denise Lynch scoring the final point of the half to leave just two between the sides at the break (0-5 to 0-3), it didn’t seem enough for Newmarket to hold out against the breeze.
And so it proved as Kilmaley came out fighting on the restart and managed to keep their opponents scoreless for the latter half while just doing enough to secure victory at the other end. Claire McMahon got them started in the 32nd minute with a ’45 while she almost added a goal only minutes later only for goalkeeper Carol Toomey to pull off a stunning reflex save that was subsequently aided by the crossbar.
The equalising score came in the 36th minute when Aida Griffey fed Emma O’Driscoll and while Sharon McMahon roamed deep as an extra midfielder for Newmarket, the mo mentum was now firmly with the defending champions who took the lead in emphatic style when Shonagh Enright soloed down the left wing before firing an accurate shot between the uprights in the 45th minute.
That advantage was doubled when Emma O’Driscoll fired her second point of the afternoon but while Kilmaley were now evidently on top, they were unable to get the scores to make the game comfortable. Claire McMahon hit two frees wide while substitute Ailish Considine hit the side netting with a powerful shot and while the expected Newmarket fightback never materialsed, Kilmaley were still glad to hear the final whistle that maintained their impressive haul of silverware and reaffirms their championship credentials.