Antrim Camogie Intermediate Championship Semi Final
Dunloy v Loughgiel 29th September 2024
Dunloy 0-10 Loughgiel 2-07
Dobbin’s overhead smash proves a hit and sends Loughgiel through to the Intermediate final
Match report and photo album from Michael Corcoran at Páirc Mhic Uilín
When two teams are evenly matched, tipping the balance of power can come down to the basics. Dunloy and Loughgiel didn’t have daylight between them and today’s elements brought the game to the ground for the most part and it became a battle of the rucks, winner takes all. Challenging conditions seen catching and point scoring skills at a premium and as sliotars dropped dangerously short of the bar, both goalkeepers were overworked and were a credit to their squads.
From the whistle, Dunloy took the lead and in a low scoring first half, it would be twenty five minutes before Loughgiel pulled up alongside Dunloy at four points apiece. The Shamrocks would take the break with a goal from Orlagh Laverty at the last minute but a second half start from the Cuchullians seen them close the gap in six minutes and it would take Loughgiel another fourteen minutes to draw level at ten points apiece before Ceala Dobbin’s overhead smash on the twenty eighth minute crossed the line for the win.
Referee, Paul O’Neill, commenced the semi final game at the top of the hour on 3 o’clock, with Dunloy winning the toss to play towards the clubhouse and arguably into the south easterly breeze.
Both sides would send their first attempts to point wide of the posts within the first few minutes, but it would be Dunloy to point first as Mary McArthur turned over a Loughgiel puck out. Three minutes later, Dunloy had their first attempt at Loughgiel’s goal but goalkeeper Shauna McKillop deflected the sliotar, which was carried wide for the 45 leaving Dunloy’s Erin McMullan to secure second prize with her point.
McMullan would prove instrumental in Dunloy’s semi final challenge and offered up the sliotar from a short tap to a waiting Lisa McGuickian to take Dunloy three points up on the scoreboard.
With ten minutes gone, Loughgiel mounted an offensive that had Dunloy’s Kirsty McFerran taking flak from all angles, saving two of those on target to goal and eventually Loughgiel would pull their third attempt wide.
The Shamrock’s would return again to cause chaos at short range but McFerran had the better of the sliotar and it fell to Carlina Sullivan to rescue the point and have Loughgiel’s challenge underway on the scoreboard. Five minutes later points would flow from Caitie Connolly and on the twentieth minute, Caela Dobbin would get her first score of the match from a Laverty assist.
Both sides were level by now on three points apiece and within the next five minutes both teams’ left wing half forwards would point apiece before the game was stopped, with Loughgiel in possession, to allow Dunloy to attend to an injured player.
On commencement of play, Loughgiel’s indirect free was followed by three more frees from fouls with nothing to show for either side until Orlagh Laverty broke through towards McFerran’s goals and tapped the sliotar into the keeper’s upper right-hand side for Loughgiel’s first goal to take the game up to the short whistle at thirty two minutes on the clock.
The second half started well for Dunloy as they set about using the small advantage from the wind to drop in longer pucks into Loughgiel’s half. One of those puck outs found Mary McArthur, offloading to Clara Elliott with a shot on target but Shauna McKillop had the makings of it, but Dunloy would loop back around, this time with four points on the trot, two from Clara Elliott and one each from Dearbhail Elliott and Erin McMullan to bring both sides level again on eight points.
Dunloy now had inertia and dropped two more points over McKillop’s bar, coming from Clara Elliott and Mary McArthur, only for that inertia to be broken when Loughgiel’s Carlina Sullivan was fouled and Orlagh Laverty sent the resulting free effortlessly over the bar before recycling the puck out from Dunloy’s dugout on a solo run to striking distance and sent the sliotar over the bar for back to back points.
Dunloy still had a one point lead with twenty four minutes gone but Laverty was on shooting form into the cross wind and coasted a 45 over the bar to draw sides, but you sensed Loughgiel were now starting to get more of the sliotar behind Dunloy’s full back line as Ceala Dobbin persisted deep on the right of the pitch. It was just a matter of time before Dobbin moved away from her marker and avoiding a hook, smashed the sliotar overhead past McFerran. Although the sliotar came bouncing out, the umpire declared the sliotar was over the goal line and raised the green flag.
With just three minutes left, including two for injury, Dunloy were kept at bay around the centre of the pitch until O’Neill signaled the end of the game with the large ‘Myenergie’ scoreboard recording Dunloy 0-10 Loughgiel 2-07, putting Loughgiel through to the final encounter with Ahoghill in Portglenone in two weeks’ time.
Dunloy starting panel and scorers
Kirsty McFerran, Carragh Boyle, Clare McGuckian, Aimee Johnston, Annie Laverty, Eimear McMullan, Kyra Doherty, Lisa McConville, Micha Cunning, Mary McArthur 0-02, Dearbhail Elliott 0-01, Erin McMullan 0-03 (1f, 2×45), Clara Elliott 0-03, Kerry Rose Drain, Lisa McGuckian 0-01
Loughgiel starting panel and scorers
Shauna McKillop, Erin Connolly, Aoife O’Mullan, Zoe Cassley, Ciara Dobbin, Ciara Connolly, Sarah Flavin, Louise McKillop, Cara Connolly, Therese McKinley, Kirsty McKendry, Orlagh Laverty 1-04 (1f, 1×45), Ceala Dobbin 1-01, Caitie Connolly 0-01, Carlina Sullivan 0-01
Don’t forget to enjoy all of our photos in the Saffron albums on a large screen such as a laptop or tablet. Click on a photo to see it larger, look at the album as either a photo book or web pages and you can order a copy online as a keep’s sake.
Photos from this evening’s game can be found by clicking on the album link here…
https://myalbum.com/album/aLg5DuhtW2QLxp/?invite=6abfb87d-23cc-4729-b3e5-70ea5e781eba
Follow Michael G Corcoran @keep_clickin on X (formerly Twitter) for match Gifs when available.
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