Antrim Camogie TeamKit Senior Championship 31st August 2024
Loughgiel 2-18 Ballycastle 2-13
Match report and photo album from Michael Corcoran at Fr. Healy Park, Loughgiel
On a fine summer’s afternoon with temperatures topping 19 or maybe 20 degrees Celsius out of the wind, Ballycastle travelled with their game head focussed on a win that would lift them both spiritually and up the group table at the half way stage.
A first half that delivered four sizzling goals between sides and a second half performance from the cup holders that showed signs of composure and confidence, despite the onslaught from Ballycastle in the dying stages of the game, in their attempt to carve out a goal and open up options for ending the game.
Loughgiel won the toss and a strategic decision from Captain Christine McCloskey had the Shamrocks’ playing into the summer breeze, pushing up from the clubhouse end towards the road. Mark O’Neill tossed in the sliotar down to the low side of Fr. Healy Park on the hour and it would be Loughgiel’s Anna McKillop’s pass to Marie Laverty in the opening minutes that would mark the first point in the game.
Two minutes later, Loughgiel would be back to collect another point, this time from Anna McKillop as Amy Boyle figured in the assist, starting from the half way line. Just a minute had elapsed and O’Neill declared a swipe during a two-player throw-in. Ballycastle’s Elen McIntosh would get her point from the free, putting Ballycastle on the scoreboard and establishing an early sign of what would follow.
An industrious Amy Boyle with her trade mark win from a ruck, picked up a spilt ball from another throw-in and delivered to Annie Lynn running towards the 13m square. Lynn paused to offload to Roisin McCormick and that split second pause narrowed McCormick’s chances of finding the net and Ballycastle ensured the threat was swept away.
McCormick would seek some satisfaction from her subsequent point to tally up Loughgiel’s third compared to Ballycastle’s one, and a point from Annie Lynn from a well-earned piece of possession from Anna Connelly as she held onto the sliotar despite going to ground, had Loughgiel easing ahead by three.
Ballycastle though were able to reply and four solid points on the trot from Fionnuala Kelly, Fay McIntosh and the two from Elen McIntosh had the Town ease ahead for the first time in almost twelve minutes of play, but there wasn’t a moment to rest on your laurels as a minute later, Anna McKillop slammed the sliotar into the back of Becky Ellis’ net from a seriously well placed pass from Emma McFadden playing in a mid-field position.
Loughgiel’s 1-04 would now become 1-05 as Anna Connolly delivered into a running McCormick but Ballycastle had an answer already in the making. Running deep behind Loughgiels half back line, Fionnuala Kelly cleverly avoided the full back movement bearing down on her by offloading a diagonal ball off an elevated stick in a twisting movement to a waiting Elen McIntosh that wouldn’t miss on her goal opportunity. The Town were right back in the game and although Loughgiel would point from Anna McKillop, Ballycastle made good use of the extra puck out carry from the wind and an air mailed delivery straight to Maeve Kelly had the Shamrocks’ net rippling from another sliotar.
Ballycastle looked promising at this stage, a Fay McIntosh pass to a running Enya McShane opting to hand pass onto Janey McIntosh for a point had supporters cheering with delight. The Town would make that 2-07 to 1-06 from a free by Elen McIntosh but Loughgiel were building a reply as Annie Lynn dropped in a dangerous sliotar, Ballycastle diffusing the threat with around twenty-eight minutes gone on the clock.
Loughgiel kept their composure, despite the prospect of going in at half time a goal and a point down, a well placed pass from an Emma McFadden free to Marie Laverty closed that to just the goal and on the half hour, Annie Lynn delivered into Becky Ellis’ net to go all square. With two minutes of added time, Elen McIntosh rolled over a free from the high side of the pitch and as O’Neill blew for the break, Ballycastle would be buoyed up with their measure at this point in the game.
With less than a minute gone in the second half, Loughgiel’s Marie Laverty would be disappointed with missing an early goal opportunity but Anna McKillop pointed from that attempt to salvage a score to bring the sides all square. And they wouldn’t remain square for long, as Amy Boyle intercepted a pass on the dugout side and took her point to see Loughgiel nose in front for the first time in the game.
It was Ballycastle’s turn to endure the effects of the breeze and on occasions this would prove to be unexpectedly beneficial, as a high sliotar drifted wide towards the terrace clubhouse steps, it was errantly kept in, won back by the Town and delivered for a point by Elen McIntosh.
The second half had more than its fair share of physical rucks and with three minutes elapsed on the clock, Amy Boyle hoovered up yet another sliotar out of a densely packed ruck for her second point of the afternoon. And Loughgiel would move the score on another two points, as Shanna Deery went on a long solo run from a Ciara Laverty assist and Katie Lynn delivered, using the breeze well, out to Roisin McCormick from the dugout side.
Nine minutes had rolled by and Ballycastle were denied a goal but five minutes later, Nuala Devlin would close the gap to two points just as Loughgiel started to roll out key substitutes. Back from a hand injury, Caitrin Dobbin would, pardon the pun, prove a handful. Attracting two back to back fouls within minutes of each other, one from a charge that O’Neill felt warranted a yellow card for Fay McIntosh and a trip on Dobbin as she was moving out of the box to create space to swing for her point. McCormick placed both of those frees accurately over the bar before Elen McIntosh played a beautifully weighted sliotar to bounce off the ground and up onto the stick of Maeve Kelly. Kelly would make the most of that and a fine point closed the gap to three and the Town were still every bit locked into the game with ten minutes left plus injury time.
Loughgiel’s Dobbin would be in the thick of it again, whenever a Megan McGarry steal from a two player ball worked its way up via Anna McKillop, Dobbin cruised that over and again at twenty-four minutes out, McCormick would stitch another point onto that from a free stemming from a foul on Annie Lynn.
With Loughgiel 2-17 Ballycastle 2-11, the Town would march again in Loughgiel’s danger zone but not before Janey McIntosh pointed from the dugout side from a Fay McIntosh pass.
As the tension and pressure mounted on Ballycastle to score a goal and pull the Shamrocks back, Elen McIntosh stepped up to take a free, dropping that into Fionnuala Kelly who found Shannagh Hegarty firing from short range but the Shamrocks’ keeper, Eimear Boyle got her stick on the sliotar and out it went shortly for another free. In that came, dropping dangerously and clanged off the post and pushed out for a forty-five. This time, McIntosh delivered the sliotar high over the bar for the point.
With five points the difference in favour of Loughgiel, Boyle’s puck out found Dobbin who pointed for an economical score. Despite Ballycastle’s Catherine McShane dropping in one last free for a holding offence, that was turned out and found the long whistle from referee O’Neill.
With the championship now at its half way stage, Loughgiel face Dunloy next and Ballycastle face Cushendall, both matches on home turf for today’s teams.
Loughgiel Starting Panel and Scorers
Eimear Boyle, Clare McKillop, Katie Lynn, Finvola McVeigh, Maria Lynn, Ciara Laverty, Shauna Devlin, Amy Boyle 0-02, Emma McFadden, Shanna Deery 0-01, Annie Lynn 1-01, Anna Connolly, Marie Laverty 0-02, Roisin McCormick 0-06 (3f), Anna McKillop 1-03, Caitrin Dobbin 0-03
Ballycastle Starting Panel and Scorers
Becky Ellis, Maria Donnelly, Kathryn Donnelly, Aoife Toner, Catherine McShane, Maebh O’Neill, Niamh Ann Donnelly, Shannagh Hegarty, Fay McIntosh 0-01, Janey McIntosh 0-02, Enya McShane, Fionnuala Kelly 0-01, Elen McIntosh 1-07 (3f 1×45), Nuala Devlin 0-01, Maeve Kelly 1-01
Photos from Saturday’s game can be found in the photo album by clicking on the link here:
https://myalbum.com/album/Aa5FMxJNTQvzu3/?invite=d039c82c-5629-4b21-9d07-c484e839bd5a
Follow Michael G Corcoran @keep_clickin on X (formerly Twitter) for match Gifs when available.
Follow The Saffron Gael @TheSaffronGael on X for links to match reports.
