Drury makes chances count for the Jackie’s

Drury makes chances count for the Jackie’s

Dublin 2-17 Meath 1-08

Photos courtesy of GAApics.com – click here to view the photos http://gaapics.zenfolio.com/p983401482

A solid performance from former all Ireland winning Captain Shona Barrett at 6 was the catalyst for a terrific win for the Dublin ladies senior B team over near rivals Meath in the Aisling McGing Memorial Championship in Ballyboden on Friday night. Barrett who was directing operations from the backs has the honour of being the only Dublin lady to captain an All Ireland winning Adult side back in 2008, the St. Brigids lady was helped in her cause on Friday night from a hardworking unit around her which had been well drilled by former county star Angie McNally and her backroom staff, in truth the fitness of the dubs told from minute one as they blitzed the Meath half back line with penetrative runs that opened up Meath way too easily for the liking of the Meath management.

A bright start for Dublin set the tone for the game with referee awarding the first free of the game to Dublin after 20 seconds that was easily slotted over by Parnells woman Sinead Cumiskey, Cumiskey who lined out at left half forward was superb with her half forward colleague Edel Drury who pulled the strings from centre forward and picked up the player of the match award while doing so, her opposite number though was determined to drag her team back into it. Centre forward for Meath Alisha Jordan from Skryne impressed throughout with some fine frees and excellent points from play.

The Dublin fans on the line feared the worst when the Meath goalkeeper Monica McGurk brought her display of fine keeping to the meadows of Ballyboden, she pulled off saves that would make her male counterpart Paddy O’Rourke jealous and while doing so kept her side firmly in the game albeit it had become a tough task for the Royals because of the flowing moves that Drury and her teammates upfront were enacting, the battle at midfield then became paramount for the Dublin ladies to keep a stranglehold on the game, a late switch for the Dubs number 27 Suzanne Murray sent a message to her manager that she should have started her in the 15 with a display of high-fielding, Murray who was Dublin’s player of the year in 2008 displayed a midfield performance to push her right up there again for the gong.

Disaster though for the Meath ladies was the decision from Westmeath referee, Martin Seery, to award a penalty to the Dublin ladies for a foul on the flyer from Fingallians full forward Denise McKenna, the responsibility of taking the penalty fell on the young shoulders of St. Anne’s corner forward Sinead Deegan but she was unsuccessful in her attempt this time and it was saved again by the terrific McGurk who was trying to will her teammates on but they weren’t getting the message because the rest of the first half was mirroring the start for Dublin from which they had a further four goal chances but couldn’t capitalize on the massive possession they had in this game. The half backs for Dublin were trying to get in on the act for the ladies so they could try put this game beyond doubt before the break, wing back for Dublin the impressive Anne Clarke was central to these marauding runs from the back that caused so much hassle for the Meath backline who were circling the drain for most of this game.

The breakthrough for the Dubs came on the 27th minute mark from again the hard work of centre forward Edel Drury who was causing massive damage and was giving her marker a massive a headache with her intelligent play, she netted after collecting a pass which she took in her stride and blasted it past McGurk who could do nothing to stop it. This took the wind of Meath’s sails and they were more than happy to hear the half time whistle so they could regroup, a stern looking Dublin management team did not look happy presumably with the missed chances. The half time score looked 1-11 to the Jackie’s while the Royals had racked up a measly 0-4. The Meath faithful hoped for an improved second half.

This year the Dublin management team are hoping to enact their success at college level with DCU where they won the O’Connor Cup by bringing home the Aisling McGing cup, the county have never won the competition in its three year existence and to make it worse they were beaten by the same side, Cork, in the previous two finals. The ladies were therefore determined to make sure 2010 was the year of the Jackie’s.

The second half began well for the Royals with the three switches in the half back line they began to withstand the heavy pressure that they had suffered all day, the Dublin ladies however were not letting up on their first half tally and began to knock over more and more points with the other late switch number 25 Orla Scolard and Murray getting their names on the score sheet with a look at getting a starting place for the next round nobody for the Jackie’s were taking their foot off the gas, but the Meath ladies weren’t finished yet as the strong Shannon Ni Donnacha impressed also in her attempts to get her county back in the game by causing damage but the inability of the Meath full forward line top cause any sort of damage was to be Meath’s downfall, only the corner forward number 13 Hayley Lawton got on the score sheet with 1-1, Meath tried and tried with a 2 man full forward line to try squeeze Dublin out of midfield and to a certain degree it worked but the Dublin ladies had their formidable number 9 Sinead Tracy back in the full back line to sweep up anything that might go astray, the Meath management were soon becoming perplexed and were fast running out of ideas could only watch as the Dublin ladies put on an exhibition of foot passing as the game petered out as a contest.

But the Meath team did not stop trying which was a testament to their character, their defending seemed to improve as the game went on with the subs from eager to send a message to their bench as to say we are the best options you have, However despite the goal from Lawton the Meath cause was never going to be helped by the fact the Jackie’s superior fitness, the sin binning of Clarke for the Dublin ladies did not even boost the chances for Meath who never looked like they pull the massive lead the Dubs had built up back and that wasn’t helped from the goal from Cumiskey to wrap up the win for the Jackie’s.

The Dublin girls who now have recorded their second win of the competition will have tougher tests down the road but Angie and the management team know there is still alot of work to do to get there, however for Meath they go back to the drawing board. The final score was chalked down as 2-17 for the Jackie’s while 1-08 to the Royals.

Dublin: Hannah Tyrell(Round Towers Clondalkin), Meave Redmond(Naomh Mearnóg), Sinead Tracy(St Sylvester’s), Aisling Barrett(Clan Na Gael), Anne Clarke(Naomh Mearnóg, Shona Barrett(St Brigid’s), Grainne O Malley(Ballyboden St Enda’s), Sinead Finnegan(Fingallians), Suzanne Murray(Round Towers Clondalkin) 0-2, Orla Scolard (Ballyboden St Enda’s) 0-2, Edel Drury (Ballyboden St Enda’s)1-1, Sinead Cumiskey (Parnells) 1-4 (2 f’s), Sinead Deegan(St Anne’s) 0-1, Denise McKenna (Fingallians)0-2 (1f), Sarah Denvir (Ballyboden St Enda’s) 0-5.

Subs used: Teresa Molohan(Ballyboden St Enda’s) for McKenna, Louise Byrne(Kilmacud Crokes) for Denvir, McKenna for Murray, Niamh Keane(Clann Mhuire) for Barrett.

Subs: Emma Merrigan (Parnells),Norah Kirby (Thomas Davis), Rachel Newell (Thomas Davis), Sinead O Mahony (Skerries Harps), Ruth Kennedy (Parnells), Vickey Brown(Fingallians),Laura Mc Gahan(Fingallians)

Meath: Monica McGurk, Niamh Plunkett, Ciara Reilly, Aodhnait McAdam, Mary Foley, Aoife O Rourke, Mary Coyne, Maire O Shaughnessy, Niamh Broggan, Stephanie Caffery 0-1 (1f), Alisha Jordan 0-4 (2f’s), Shannon Ni Dhonncha 0-2(1f), Hayley Lawton 1-1, Ashling Doherty, Blathnaid Keogh.
Subs: Brenda O Sullivan for Broggan, Orla Byrne for Foley, Aine Keogh for O Rourke, Jane Farrelly for Reilly.