This article is from page 57 of the 2011-10-04 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 57 JPG
Banner Ladies 3-13 – Cappawhite 3-11 (after extra-time) at Sean Tracey Park, Tipperary Town
NOBODY said it was going to be easy. This proved to be the case on Saturday for Banner Ladies who won their first ever Munster club match in a pulsating Senior B semi-final. It took extra time to separate the sides for a finish and the feat was made all the more remarkable as for six of the Banner side, it was their second game in a matter of hours.
Earlier in Shannon, Emma O’Driscoll, Shonagh Enright, Katie Cahill and Sinead O’Keeffe played key roles in Kilmaley’s county senior championship camogie semi-final win over a Clooney/Quin side that included Louise Henchy while Naomi Carroll was a member of Limerick Institute’s Hockey side that defeated U.C.C. in a league match.
Back to football and in the third game of a triple header. a total of six goals and 24 points kept the small attendance on their toes right up to the final whistle.
Cappawhite full-forward Siobhan Costello had her first of eight points in the third minute while Niamh O’Dea equalised with her first score of what would be a whopping tally of 2-9. Sinead Buckley put the Tipperary side back in front with a goal but by the tenth minute, the Banner had responded with points from Rebecca Culligan and Louise Henchy. Two O’Dea frees put the Clare senior champions back in front but what O’Dea could do at one end, Costello could equally accomplish at the other. She also pointed two frees while also causing endless problems for the Banner rearguard. Another O’Dea free and a point from play from the outstanding Naomi Carroll put the Banner ahead again but Costello with two points from play, sent Cappawhite in with a point to spare at the interval at 1-5 to 0-7.
Banner resumed with Laurie Ryan at full-back marking Costello while Louise Woods and Shona Enright exchanged positions. And those switches appeared to have the desired effect as the Banner got the half off to a great start when full forward Niamh O’Dea goaled after Henchy picked her out from a ‘45 to put her side 1-7 to 1-5 in front in the 37th minute. Credit to Cappawhite though as within a minute Sinead Buckley struck for her second goal when she shot low to beat Emma O’Driscoll who had a fine hour. Another Costello point was cancelled out by Eva O’Dea who had been introduced just three minutes earlier. Her sister added two from frees and the scoreboard now read 2-9 to 2-7 in favour of the Clare champions. Costello again and Shauna Quirke with a point apiece levelled matters with 58 minutes played. And before the whistle sounded to complete the normal time, the game’s top scorer O’Dea had edged the Ennis side in front but during the additional time of which there was a justified six minutes, Quirke levelled for Cappawhite to send the game to extra-time as the evening closed in.
Cappawhite dominated the first half of extra-time. A goal from midfielder Sheelagh Carew and a point from Claire Mullins pushed them four ahead while the Banner failed to score in that ten minute period.
When Costello pointed her eighth score early in the second half, it looked like curtains for Banner Ladies who trailed by five with eight minutes remaining. 1-1 from the mighty Niamh O’Dea, who took a lot of punishment over the hour, brought them to within a point and with about a minute to go, centre-forward Naomi Carroll had the ball in the back of the Cappawhite net to crown an unbelievable Banner comeback and send them through to the Munster Senior B final against Kerry’s Sliabh Luachra next Saturday.
Apart from O’Dea and the outstanding Naomi Carroll, Banner had solid performances from Katie Cahill, Louise Woods, Sinead O’Keeffe, Laurie Ryan, Louise Henchy and Emma O’Driscoll.