Ladies an hour away from promotion

The way that the ladies national football league Division 3 has panned out, the semi-final is more important than the final. On Saturday at 2pm in Templetuohy, Tipperary, Clare play Wicklow for promotion to Division 2 and a crack at winning the Division 3 league title.
Clare finished top of the group after six wins and a draw with Fermanagh in their last league game two weeks ago in Clarecastle.
They recorded wins over Down, Leitrim, Wicklow, Limerick, Wexford and Longford.
They played Wicklow in Bray on February 20, winning 1-17 to 2-10. Kilmihil’s Eimear Considine scored 1-6 that day, with Louise Henchy kicking 0-5 and Niamh O’Dea 0-4.
Clare manager David O’Brien says that game was one that his team were quite lucky to win.
“I thought it was probably the toughest match we had in the whole league. We were hoping to avoid them if we could. We think we’ve improved a lot since then but I’ve no doubt they’ll have improved as well,” he believes.
O’Brien feels Clare were not fully focused when they last played the girls from the Garden County.
“We felt that the attitude wasn’t right. It was the first time that we turned up to a game not tuned in fully. For years we had a kind of a siege mentality where we were never really expected to win games.
“We were playing teams that were probably turning up expecting to beat us. We used to always play off that. But that game against Wicklow was probably the first time that we turned up expecting to win rather than trying to win,” he said, hoping that Clare head to Templetuohy on Saturday fully focused.
On the injury front, Clare may have goalkeeper Emma O’Driscoll and Kilmihil forward Ailish Considine back from injury this weekend, while Sineád Eustace could be available after returning from honeymoon.
“Everyone is fighting for a place and everyone is back as early as I’ve seen. The hardest job we’ve had to do yet this year is pick this team for Sunday,” O’Brien commented.
In drawing with Fermanagh two weeks ago, Clare conceded 4-9 so surely they will be intent on tightening up defensively against Wicklow. Niamh O’Dea scored 1-8 that day and Clare will be hoping that the Kilfenora forward maintains that form, while they will also look to Lorraine Kelly, Louise Woods, Marie Considine, team captain Niamh Keane, Louise Henchy and Eimear Considine for top-class performances.
The winners will play in the Division 3 league final on the weekend of May 7. Fermanagh play Down in the second semi-final. Extra time will be played on Saturday if the teams are level after 60 minutes.

Kerry dominant in minor A championship

Kerry                3-12
Clare                 1-6

Kerry came to Cooraclare for the first round of the Munster Minor A Ladies Football Championship last Saturday and walked away with a comfortable win. Kerry were 1-11 to 0-1 ahead at half time, but scored just 2-1 into the wind in the second period.
Sinead Sexton pointed Clare’s only point of the half. At the end of the first quarter, Kerry had kicked four points, three from frees conceded by a harried Clare defence. Increasing pressure from Kerry saw Maria Quirke rifle a bullet into the top of the net to put them 1-4 to 0-1 ahead.
Clare’s full-back line of Aoife Martin, Laurie Ryan and Edel McMahon had their hands full but spoiled a lot of the Kerry attack, while Aoife Clohessy, Ellie O’Gorman and Shauna Harvey worked hard to drive ball into the Banner half-forwards Niamh O’Dea, Sinead Sexton and county U-16 sharpshooter, Aoife O’Gorman.
Aoife Clohessy was sin-binned when Tipperary ref Mike Duffy blew for a trip on a Kerry player, a harsh decision given that she was travelling at speed.
Kerry’s Quirke scored two more points and two more from Rehanne O’Shea and captain Maeve Barry had Clare pulled totally out of shape as 24 players crowded into the Clare half for the next 10 minutes.
Even Clohessy’s return couldn’t dampen the head of steam Kerry had built up and three more points split the Clare posts in the five minutes before half-time. The Clare revival began when Aoife O’Gorman pointed within a minute of the restart and team captain Niamh O’Dea pointed twice soon after. An Ellie O’Gorman converted free brought the score to Kerry 1-11 Clare 0-5.
A lapse in concentration let Rehanne O’Shea goal for the Kingdom minutes before referee Duffy awarded them a penalty for a rash tackle at the Kilrush end, which was converted. Rehanne O’Shea then scored Kerry’s only point of the second-half. In the remaining 15 minutes, Clare tried desperately to penetrate the defensive line of Dillon, Murphy and Galvin. Captain O’Dea pointed and Sinead Sexton goaled from a penalty for an illegal foot-pass.
Clare will feel they could have done better with a little luck and turned a comprehensive loss into a competitive battle.

Clare: Ciara O’Malley (Fergus Rovers); Aoife Martin (Banner Ladies), Laurie Ryan (Banner Ladies), Edel McMahon (Kilmihil); Aoife Clohessy (Fergus Rovers), Ellie O’Gorman (Kilmihil), Shauna Harvey (West Clare Gaels); Kayleigh McCormack (Burren Gaels), Róisín Looney (Cooraclare); Alana O’Brien (Éire Óg), Sinéad Sexton (Miltown), captain Niamh O’Dea (Banner Ladies); Aoife O’Gorman (Cooraclare), Niamh Pender (Miltown), Niamh Walsh (Banner Ladies).
Subs used: Eimear O’Shea (Fergus Rovers), Megan Byrne (Burren Gaels), Orlaith Lynch (Banner Ladies) and Eleanor Carey (Banner Ladies). 
Kerry: Laura Fitzgerald (Na Gaeil); Barbara Brown (Desmonds), Sinéad Guiney (Desmonds), Maura O’Connor (Firies); Eibhlis Dillon (Duagh), Ciara Murphy (Chorca Dhuibhne), Megan Galvin (Listowel); Laura Sheeran (Duagh), Laura Rodgers (Austin Stacks); Claire O’Sullivan (Sneem/Kenmare), Rehanne O’Shea (Dr Croke’s), Norma O’Sullivan (Listowel); Maria Quirke (Na Gaeil), captain Maeve Barry (Na Gaeil), Sabrina Sheehan (Laune Rangers).

One Féile semi-finalist yet to be decided

Three of the four preliminary rounds of the Féile Peil na mBán were played last Sunday. Doora-Barefield, Kilmurry Ibrickane and West Clare Gaels emerged as semi-finalists.
In an exciting blitz between Barefield, Burren Gaels and Éire Óg, Barefield narrowly missed a play-off with Burren Gaels as the North Clare girls drew with Éire Óg , their second of the day. A win would have levelled them with The Parish on points but Doora Barefield go through, winning the event by a point.
At the Cricket Field, the Shamrocks ran West Clare Gaels the closest but a further win over Cooraclare sends the girls from the peninsula through, just ahead of the townies, who hosted the event.
At the Kilmihil event, Kilmurry Ibrickane almost let Fergus Rovers get the upper hand in their opening game but they were never contested after that. A great battle between Kilmihil and Fergus Rovers yielded a draw. Doonbeg, who had a young but determined team, made their opposition fight all the way.
Twelve games were played in an action-packed day. The last preliminary round involving Banner Ladies, Crusheen, Newmarket and Wolfe Tones takes place this Sunday at 10am at St Flannan’s fields.
The Féile Peil na mBán semi-finals and final will be played on Sunday, April 24, at a venue to be announced. The winners of the final will represent Clare in the All-Ireland Féile finals in Cork in July.