Ruairi Og Cushendall v Portglenone Geraldines
Ruairi Og Cushendall secured an emphatic 0-15 to 0-01 victory over Geraldines Portglenone in the Antrim Minor A Camogie final at Pairc Pol, Belfast on Friday evening. Under a new set-up for the competition, the two semi-finals were played immediately before the final (seven and a half minutes each way) Cushendall booked their place by defeating Loughgiel at Rossa Park, while Portglenone advanced after beating St Paul’s at Pairc Pol. Ultimately, Cushendall proved unstoppable in the final, showing too much strength and firepower for a spirited Portglenone side.
Cushendall dominated the game from the opening whistle, operating on a completely different level. Aoife Molloy opened the scoring with a point from play just 30 seconds in, quickly followed by a strong individual point from Player of the match Eva McNeill. Cliodhna Thompson struck from play at the one-and-a-half-minute mark to keep the early momentum going, and Molloy found the target again shortly after to extend the lead. Erin McNaughton added to the tally with a well-taken point, and McNeill hit a massive long-range point from play at four and a half minutes. Portglenone threatened the target around the seven-minute mark, but a brilliant point blank save by Cushendall goalkeeper Ellen McAlister. A well-worked team move culminated in another point from McNeill, and Elena McQuillan added a point from play just before the break, to leave the half-time score at 0-10 to 0-00 in favour of Cushendall, with Eva McNeill establishing herself as the star of the show in the first period.
The second half saw Cushendall comfortably maintain their lead, utilizing accurate frees to keep the scoreboard ticking. Eva McNeill demonstrated her dead-ball accuracy, converting three consecutive long-range frees at the four-and-a-half, seven, and nine-minute marks. Cliodhna Thompson then slotted her second point of the day from play. Geraldines Portglenone successfully broke their duck ten and a half minutes into the half when Caoimhe Kelly scored a well-earned point from play. Finally, Emma Lynn registered the last point of the match for Cushendall at the 15-minute mark. The final whistle confirmed a highly one-sided 0-15 to 0-01 victory, crowning Ruairi Og Cushendall the Antrim Minor A Camogie champions.
Ruairi Og Cushendall: 1. Ellen McAlister, 2. Aibrean Campbell, 3. Laoise McCollam, 4. Emily Elliott, 5. Maeve McAlister, 6. Erin McNaughton, 7. Niamh McCollam, 8. Scarlett Kerr McKillop, 9. Tamara Black, 10. Anna Birt, 11. Eva McNeill, 12. Erin Mae Mitchell, 13. Aoife Molloy, 14. Cliodhna Thompson, 15. Laoiseach McNaughton,
16. Elena McQuillan, 17. Emma Lynn, 18. Lucia Trainor, 19. Eleyna Madden, 20. Amy McAlister, 21. Caragh McKinley, 22. Gabriella McNeill.
Geraldines Portglenone: 1. Emma Rose Diamond, 2. Niamh Martin, 3. Annie Convery, 4. Eira McTague, 5. Emily Scullion, 6. Gemma McAuley, 7. Aedin Vallely, 8. Ellen McAleer, 9. Cliodhna McKeever, 10. Aoife McGrogan, 11. Hollie Martin (C), 12. Eva McCann, 13. Caoimhe Kelly, 14. Caoimhe Doherty, 15.
Jojo Darragh, 16. Amy Addison, 17. Shannon McFall, 18. Olivia Marron, 19. Rose McVeigh, 20. Niamh McAleese.
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