Cavan secure Senior status for 2020, but Westmeath face play-off to avoid the drop

TG4 ALL-IRELAND SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIP RELEGATION QUALIFIER

Cavan 3-12

Westmeath 1-7

 

By Gerry Buckley

 

Cavan secured their place in the TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship again next year with a decisive win against Kinnegad this afternoon, while the Lake County ladies now face a winner-takes-all Relegation Final with Monaghan next weekend.

Cavan, who had the aid of a slight breeze in the first half, raced into a four-point lead by the seventh minute, with two of the points coming from Donna English. However, a well-taken goal in the eighth minute by Grace Halligan brought Westmeath back into contention.

Cavan led by a point, 0-6 to 1-2, when Ciara Finnegan found the net in the 16^th minute after Shauna Lynch and Aishling Sheridan had been denied by Lauren McCormack and the crossbar respectively.

A terrific goal from Lauren McVeety put the Breffni ladies firmly in control and Westmeath’s woes were compounded when team captain Fiona Claffey was yellow-carded on the half-hour mark. Cavan led by 2-8 to 1-3 at the interval and they never looked like they would be overturned in the second-half, despite a yellow card for Shauna Lynch midway through the second-half.

The gap was eight points when Cavan sub Geraldine Sheridan was fouled close to the Westmeath goalmouth and Aishling Maguire coolly slotted home the resultant penalty in the 57^th minute. Rachel Doonan was yellow-carded with a matter of seconds remaining, but the result was secured at that stage and Cavan could celebrate.

 

Scorers – Cavan: A Maguire 1-5 (1-0pen, 4f), L McVeety 1-1, D English 0-3, C Finnegan 1-0, A Sheridan 0-2, S Lynch 0-1.

Westmeath: L Slevin 0-4 (4f), G Halligan 1-0, A Jones 0-1, N Feery 0-1, S Dolan 0-1.

Cavan: R O’Reilly; J Moore, R Doonan, S Reilly; S Greene, M Sheridan, S Lynch; N Byrd, S O’Sullivan; L McVeety, D English, C Finnegan; A Maguire, A Sheridan, L Fitzpatrick. Subs: G Sheridan for Finnegan (53), A Gilsenan for McVeety (57), N Daly for Maguire (59), N Keenaghan for Moore (60), K McIntyre for Fitzpatrick (60+4).

 

Westmeath: L McCormack; R Dillon, J Rogers, L Power; K Boyce Jordan, A Dolan, F Coyle; J Maher, MA Foley; G Halligan, A Jones, N Feery; L Slevin, F Claffey, V Carr. Subs: S Dolan for Halligan (36), K McDermott for Foley (43), L Brennan for Boyce Jordan (47, inj), J Hennessy for A Dolan (54), C Kelly for Maher (59).

Ref: Kevin Corcoran (Mayo).