26 September 2007 Mayo v Cork All-Ireland Final Report Share this Article 0 0 0 Shares! 0 Shares! Mayo v Cork All-Ireland Final Report By Daragh Ó Conchúir Cork 2-11 Mayo 2-6 Cork completed the coveted three-in-a-row in the TG4 ladies SFC final by overpowering a very disappointing Mayo outfit at Croke Park. Most pundits had been predicting a pulsating battle for honours but the Rebelettes were dominant throughout with the final scoreline offering little indication of their superiority. Mayo scored two goals in the final minute from a thunderbolt Cora Staunton free and a Fiona McHale toe-poke after Elaine Harte had parried Helena Lohan’s drive to put a much more respectable reflection on the scoreline. There can be no hiding the control Cork had on proceedings however and it was perhaps best illustrated by the manner in which Staunton was completely eclipsed by Brid Stack and the rest of her defensive colleagues. The Carnacon powerhouse has been totting up some remarkable individual tallies over the summer but could never get into this game, and had only one point on the board with two minutes remaining, as the Leeside rearguard denied her time, space or free-taking opportunities. At the other end of the field, Valerie Mulcahy brought her tally of goals to seven for the campaign and if there was a turning point, it was her first from the penalty spot just before half time. The award was a questionable one by Eugene O’Hare as midfielder Norita Kelly’s knee seemed to buckle under her as she looked to step inside a Mayo defender on her way to goal, and indeed had to be replaced as a result of the injury suffered. In fairness to the Down referee, he did consult with his umpires before making his decision and Mulcahy finished with aplomb, just as she did from the spot in the 2005 final, to give her side a 1-6 to 0-3 half time lead. Cork began in whirlwind fashion and built up a five-point lead with five different scorers getting on the scoresheet: Amy Murphy, Deirdre O’Reilly, Juliet Murphy, Geraldine O’Flynn and Nollaig Cleary. Mayo and Staunton were struggling mightily with Cork defending in packs and it took defender Caroline McGing to get the Connacht champions off the mark 20 minutes in. With Claire O’Hara exerting a greater influence around midfield however, they had seemed to drag themselves back into the game with a wonderful point from 40m by Staunton and a Diane O’Hora free but Mulcahy’s penalty was a killer blow. The classy corner-forward finished emphatically within four minutes of the restart for her second goal of the game following a pass of vision by the prominent Laura McMahon and there was no way back for Frank Browne’s charges. O’Flynn, Amy Murphy and Nollaig Cleary were amongst the scorers as Cork pulled inexorably clear, leading by 12 points before Mayo’s late consolation burst. Scorers – Cork: V Mulcahy 2-1 (1-0 pen, 0-1f); A Murphy, G O’Flynn 0-3 each; N Cleary 0-2; D O’Reilly, J Murphy (f) 0-1 each. Mayo: C Staunton 1-2 (1-0f); F McHale 1-0; D O’Hora 0-2(fs); C McGing, M Kelly 0-1 each. Cork: E Harte; C Walsh, A Walsh, Rena Buckley; L Barrett, B Stack, B Corkery; J Murphy, N Kelly; G O Flynn, L McMahon, N Cleary; V Mulcahy, A Murphy, D O Reilly. Subs: Rhona Buckley for Kelly inj. (ht); M Kelly for McMahon (48); S O’Reilly for C Walsh (56); A O’Shea for Cleary (56). Mayo: Y Byrne; S McGing, H Lohan, N O’Shea; M Heffernan, M Carter, C McGing; C O’Hara, C McDermott; F McHale, C Staunton, C Egan; A Herbert, C Heffernan, D O’Hora. Subs: L Cafferkey for Herbert (28); M Kelly for O’Shea (ht); J Moran for McDermott (50). Referee: E O’Hare (Down) Share this Article 0 0