Portlaoise ladies edge tough Tullamore to reach MABB Division One Cup Final
Catherine Ashe along with the four other Portlaoise Panthers ladies (l-r) Deirdre Tomlinson, Attracta Phelan, Ann-Marie Troy and Gráinne Tomlinson who were selected by Ireland last year for World Masters Championships
PORTLAOISE Panthers have set up a date with Clonaslee in this season’s MABB Ladies Division One Cup final, after they held firm to clinch a 47-44 victory over Tullamore in a hard-fought semi in Sacred Heart School on Sunday.
Having lost out by 13 points in the league to their Offaly rivals when they travelled out to Tullamore with a depleted squad back in November, Portlaoise were eager to exact revenge.
And they looked poised to do that quite comfortably, when, after edging their first half, they cut loose in the third to open up a 16-point advantage.
But Tullamore were not about to be so easily brushed aside and fought their way back to within a score of their opponents, although the visitors hung on to clinch the win, and with it, a place in this season’s decider.
Catherine Ashe led the way for the visitors on offence, hitting 23 points, while Amy Byrne, Sharon Melia and Cathy Mulhere turned in superb defensive displays.
Maeve Cahillane made her presence felt for Portlaoise when she was sprung from the bench, while Grainne O’Reilly also delivered a strong performance for the eventual winners.
“It got very physical in the last quarter, and there were a few intentional fouls thrown around,” remarked Ashe after Sunday’s victory.
“But it was great, because Tullamore had beaten us in the league earlier in the season, so we were all guns blazing for this game, and defensively, we did very well.
“They have some really good players, and they came into their own in the last quarter, when all rules go out the window and you just have to go for it. Their pace really showed in that last quarter, but thankfully, we managed to hold on,” she told the .
Clonaslee remain the only team now standing in the way of Panthers raising this season’s Division One Cup, and Ashe is anticipating a strong challenge from their Laois rivals.
Having edged out Portlaoise Masters in the penultimate rounds of last season’s MABB Top-Four competition, before eventually coming undone against Portlaoise Panthers Black in the decider, Clonaslee will, no doubt, be making a strong push for this piece of silverware themselves.
Indeed, the team has made a very impressive start to their Division One campaign this season, winning three of their opening four games to go second in the table behind Tullamore and with a game in hand, while in the Midlands Cup, they enjoyed a comfortable 64-37 triumph over Athlone in the semi-finals to secure another date with Portlaoise Masters next month.
“Clonaslee will fancy their chances against us because they beat us in the Top-Four semi-final last year,” warned Ashe. “They've been training hard during the summer and they’ll be very confident heading into that game.
“We're a change team ourselves this year. Half of our side went to Division Two, and the half that stayed up, combined with the other Division One team that was in Portlaoise last year.
“We’ve a nice combination of younger and older players, and I think it just took us a game or two to get into it this season,” she said.
Portlaoise Masters have, themselves, enjoyed a solid enough start in the top ranks of the Midlands League this season, recording wins over both Ballyroan Bluestars and Longford Phoenix, either side of their one reversal so far against Tullamore.
Certainly, the nice blend of youth and experience that makes up this season’s squad will serve them well, especially with a lot of the younger players having already tasted success last season when they raised the MABB Top-Four crown.
