Edenderry goals knock Shanahoe out of Leinster
Mary Fitzpatrick (Shanahoe) breaking from Lily Murphy (Edenderry) during their Leinster LGFA Club IC quarter-final on Saturday Photo: Denis Byrne
SHANAHOE’S Leinster Club Intermediate Ladies Football Championship journey came to an end in the quarter-finals on Saturday afternoon as Edenderry came through a difficult contest played in miserable conditions.
Persistent rain and a strong wind made life extremely challenging for both teams at Shanahoe, with the weather preventing the game from developing into a flowing contest.
Ultimately, Edenderry’s ability to find the net proved decisive, with the Offaly side scoring a goal in each half to book their place in the semi-finals.
The visitors needed less than a minute to open the scoring. Moya Cummins’ effort dipped beneath the crossbar and beyond the reach of Niamh Stackpool before finding the net.
Shanahoe responded when Mary Fitzpatrick converted a free after Maya Donoghue had been fouled.
Edenderry then added their first points through Rebecca McDonnell and Maria Doyle, although Fitzpatrick responded with another free at the opposite end.
With the wind behind them during the opening half, Edenderry made good use of the conditions and scored the next three points. Doyle, McDonnell and Grace Foran all found the target to put the visitors eight points clear after 15 minutes.
Shanahoe’s defence did produce some important moments, with Leanne Hyland making an excellent intervention when she dispossessed Cummins as the Edenderry forward looked set to score her second goal.
The home side finished the half strongly and Martha Guilfoyle kicked two points, including one from a free, to reduce the deficit to four. Edenderry went into the interval leading 1-5 to 0-4.
Shanahoe reduced the gap further immediately after the restart when Noirin Butler kicked a point, but Doyle responded with a free before Edenderry struck for their second goal.
Hazel O’Brien provided the opening with a well-weighted pass into the path of McDonnell, who calmly finished to the net.
Fitzpatrick converted her third free to keep Shanahoe within two goals, but the worsening weather then contributed to a lengthy scoreless spell of around 23 minutes.
Doyle eventually ended the drought with another free, while Shanahoe pushed for a goal to revive their hopes. Fitzpatrick was denied by an excellent save from Aoife O’Neill, before Megan Walsh did manage to register a score for the home side.
Edenderry, though, held firm during the closing stages to secure a six-point victory and progress to the provincial semi-finals.
Edenderry: Rebecca McDonnell 1-2, Maria Doyle 0-4 (0-2fs), Moya Cummins 1-0, Grace Foran 0-1.
Shanahoe: Mary Fitzpatrick 0-3 (fs), Martha Guilfoyle 0-2, Megan Walsh and Noirin Butler 0-1 each.
Aoife O'Neill; Shauna Farrelly, Lily Murphy, Aoife Tyrrell; Kiah Farrelly, Emma Maher, Aimee Dunne; Tara Tyrrell, Hazel O'Brien; Grace Foran, Maria Doyle, Emer Lawless; Isabelle Liu Lyons, Rebecca McDonnell, Moya Cummins.
Subs: Niamh Byrne for Farrelly (42m), Saoirse Hoey for Farrelly (43m).
Niamh Stackpool; Isabel Finlay, Marian Ferns, Ruth McDermott; Hannah Bailey, Leanne Hyland, Sarah Bergin; Maeve Hennessy, Megan Walsh; Molly Cassin, Paige Hyland, Jane Madden; Martha Guilfoyle, Mary Fitzpatrick, Maya Donoghue.
Subs: Noirin Butler for Donoghue (26m), Ava Tynan for Madden (29m), Aoife Bergin for L Hyland (45m), Katie Kavanagh for Cassin (48m), Mary Griffin for Guilfoyle (58m).
Paul McCaughey (Westmeath)
