Very Div 1B National League Final, NGDC Abbotstown 29th March 2025
Antrim 3-10 Clare 1-11
Match report and photos from Antrim Camogie PRO Michael Corcoran
Today’s league final encounter proved to be everything camogie fans had hoped for. Windy conditions with just a light sprinkling of rain failed to dampen the intensity of today’s game. Clare chose to play with the wind in the first half, but it was Antrim that took charge from the whistle and the effective communications between Caitrin Dobbin and Katie Molloy had Clare on the ropes in the first quarter of the game as two goals wreaked havoc before Clare’s Ellen Casey restored some order with a goal on the eighteenth minute.
Dobbin ran her marker into the ground for her first goal as Clare’s Michelle Powell dropped her stick and let Dobbin through, staring down the eyes of keeper Rachael Daly and placing the sliotar far right of Daly’s reach.
Katie Molloy’s goal came from a Dobbin pass and looked too easy but that was simply a reflection on the quality of play from these two full forwards.
Dobbin was in superlative form and pulled on her second of the game and a third for Antrim, from a dropped in ball from player of the match, Nicole McAtamney, rolling out after a spill from the goalkeeper that would give Antrim a slender two-point lead at the break, Antrim 3-03 to Clare’s 1-07, but a distinct advantage from the elements in the second half.
Clare though had their chances as a nimble footed Ziyan Spillane wrong footed her marker, Caoimhe McNaughton but eventually drilled the sliotar wide and a rasping shot from Ellen Casey was bravely diverted over the bar for a point by Antrim’s alert goalkeeper, Caitriona Graham.
Today’s referee, Patrick Murphy, had little to do in the way of bookkeeping in the first half, with only six fouls but that was about to change as the second half increased in intensity and physicality. Antrim’s Cassie McArthur would stir the scoreboard into action with her point in the first four minutes, but Clare would now enter a period of domination for upwards of ten minutes, preventing Antrim from returning a score as they dropped three points over the bar before Roisin McCormick brought that to a halt with a fine point on the fifteenth minute.
Clare were frustrated once again by the adept goalkeeping skills of Graham and could only point three minutes later as Áine O’Loughlin found substitute Aisling Cooney but that’s when Antrim pulled the shutters down on Clare and for the remaining seven minutes plus four added on, clipped five points over Clare’s bar, one of those coming from Antrim’s Eavanne Martin as she picked up a ball from Cassie McArthur. McArthur would be justly rewarded for her unselfish play with her own fine point being the last of today’s final and stopping the scoreboard at Antrim 3-10 Clare 1-11.
Antrim will now enjoy promotion up into division 1A next year but in the meantime, a five-point difference in favour of Antrim at the end of a hard day’s work should give onlookers much to consider as this McCormick and Coulter developing team now look forward to an Ulster campaign in a couple of week’s time.
Antrim starting panel and scorers
Caitrin Graham, Clare McKillop, Katie Lynn, Caoimhe McNaughton, Erin Coulter, Sarah O’Neill, Shannagh Heggarty, Amy Boyle, Nicole McAtamney, Maeve Kelly, Roisin McCormick 0-03 (2f), Dervla Cosgrove 0-01, Cassie McArthur 0-03, Katie Molloy 1-01, Caitrin Dobbin 2-01.
Eavanne Martin 0-01
Clare starting panel and scorers
Rachael Daly, Susan Daly, Michelle Powell, Cliodhna Queally, Lynda Daly, Abby Walsh, Clare Hehir, Niamh Mulqueen, Grace Carmody 0-01, Aoife Anderson, Caoimhe Carmody 0-01, Áine O’Loughlin 0-01, Caoimhe Cahill 0-01, Ellen Casey, 1-00 Ziyan Spillane 0-05f
Jennifer Daly 0-01, Aisling Cooney 0-01
Photos from today’s play can be found in the album here…
https://myalbum.com/album/PgzCnApjHoEnFa/?invite=67979030-50a2-4b8b-93bc-2d12a923c4dd