Strong second half sees Birr retain Offaly senior camogie crown

BIRR 1-15

ST CILLIAN'S 0-11

A STRONG start to the second half helped Birr on the road to victory as they retained the Offaly Senior camogie title for the first time and claimed their third title in all with a seven point victory over St Cillian's at Grant Heating St Brendan's Park, Birr on Sunday.

Only a point separated the teams at half time but Birr came storming out of the blocks at the start of the second half and scored five points in the first six minutes and St Cillian's were unable to claw the game back from there.

This was a very good game of camogie between these two neighbouring clubs and the good sized crowd which turned up for the climax of the Offaly camogie championship weren't disappointed. Both sides did finish the game with 14 players with a player on each side picking up two yellows but that was more a measure of the competitiveness of the encounter than anything else.

St Cillian's played their part in the contest and pushed all the way to the end but ultimately came up short in the scoring stakes. They did get off to a great start scoring three unanswered points inside the first five minutes and they looked the sharper team in those early stages. Birr's goal after eight minutes settled them down and they led by three points on a couple of occasions in the first half but St Cillian's finished the half well also and by half time the gap was down to a single point, 1-6 to 0-8.

However those five quickfire points at the start of the second half put Birr in the driving seat and they never really relinquished their grip after that. St Cillian's did manage to get the gap down to four at the start of the final quarter, just as Birr were reduced to 14 players, but the champions showed their resilience after that as they kept St Cillian's scoreless for the remainder of the game while adding three more points themselves to ensure they held on to the title they won last year and their third since 2014.

Birr weathered the early storm and gradually grew into the game. They did have a first half goal disallowed for a square ball that could really have given them a grip on the game at that stage but even after the second half sending off they didn't panic and took their scores at one end while defending heroically at the other end.

St Cillian's looked very sharp early on and were very competitive throughout the first half but their challenge faded after the break, particularly in the third quarter. They failed to score from play in the second half but to their credit did keep putting pressure on in the late stages in search of a goal that might have inspired a comeback but their best efforts were rebuffed by the Birr defence, which stood firm until the final whistle.

Deirdre Cashen, Sheila Sullivan and Roisin Kinsella all impressed in a strong Birr defence, Ellen Regan had a super second half in the middle of the field while in attack Sarah Harding, Kate Pilkington and Mairead Jennings picked off the scores which ensured the title returned to Birr.

Lisa Hoctor, Cathy Fogarty and Megan King battled hard in the St Cillian's backline, Ciara Brennan put in a good hour in the middle of the field while in attack Clare Hogan and Aisling Brennan were best.

St Cillian's were ahead inside a minute when Clare Hogan pointed a free from midfield. Elizabeth Harding quickly added a second and Rachel Brennan made it 0-3 to 0-0 inside five minutes. Sarah Harding scored Birr's first point but Clare Hogan replied with a fine point from the right hand side after seven minutes.

A minute later came the game's only goal. Mairead Jennings dropped a long range free into the goalmouth and Sarah Harding connected in the air to send the ball flashing into the net. Mairead Jennings pointed a free to put Birr in front for the first time but Aisling Brennan quickly restored parity again.

St Cillian's had a bit of a let off when Ciara Ryan;'s long ball from midfield bounced in the square and over the bar and Mairead Jennings added two frees to put Birr a goal clear as the game entered the second quarter. They thought they had a second goal when Orlagh Kirwan's effort was batted out by Dara Hanany but Sarah Harding returned it to the net but she was deemed to be in the square and it was disallowed.

Nine minutes passed without a score before Clare Hogan pointed a Cillian's free but Sarah Harding quickly replied with a good point for Birr. Aisling Brennan then scored a great point from the right sideline and Clare Hogan added a free and the gap was down to a single point at half time, 1-6 to 0-8.

St Cillian's almost got the perfect start to the second half when Clare Hogan picked out Aisling Brennan close to goal but just when it looked as if she was about to goal, a Birr defender got a brilliant block in and the danger was cleared. Birr made the most of that let off and Kate Pilkington scored two points in quick succession and as they upped the pressure, Mairead Jennings pointed three frees in succession to put Birr six points up six minutes into the second half.

The lead went out to seven when Mairead Jennings pointed a '45' after 11 minutes but St Cillian's replied with their first point of the half a minute later from a Clare Hogan free. She added two more after 14 and 17 minutes, the latter coming after Alana Roddy picked up her second yellow card for Birr and was sent off, but with the gap down to four and an extra player on the field, St Cillian's failed to score again.

Birr got the next score after 21 minutes when Faye Mulrooney gathered from Orlagh Kirwan and playing with the advantage after being fouled she blasted the ball goalwards but Dara Hanamy pulled off a sensational save to divert the ball over the crossbar. Three minutes later Faye Mulrooney gathered again from Ellen Regan's delivery and was fouled again, resulting in Siobhan Killeen picking up her second yellow card and being sent off. Mairead Jennings pointed the free and Birr were six up again.

St Cillian's kept pushing and Aisling Brennan had a goalbound effort blocked, Clare Hogan's 20m free was saved by Rebecca Ryan, while in another goalmouth scramble, Roisin Pinches fired goalwards but the ball went wide of the posts. A free from Mairead Jennings at the other end stretched the Birr lead out to seven and they held on for victory,

MATCH ANALYSIS

THE TEAMS

BIRR: Caoimhe Kinsella; Rebecca Ryan, Deirdre Cashen, Hannah Feenane; Sheila Sullivan, Alana Roddy, Roisin Kinsella; Ciara Ryan, Ellen Regan; Mairead Jennings, Orlagh Kirwan, Kate Pilkington; Faye Mulrooney, Sarah Harding, Eimear Mooney. Subs. Hannah Riley (for Eimear Mooney, half time), Denise Connor (for Faye Mulrooney, 59 mins).

ST CILLIAN'S: Dara Hanamy; Lisa Hoctor, Siobhan Killeen, Cathy Fogarty; Aoife O'Donovan, Megan King, Niamh Killeen; Ciara Brennan, Aoife Hoctor; Rachel Brennan, Clare Hogan, Elizabeth Harding; Caoimhe O'Donovan, Aisling Brennan, Sarah Freeman. Subs. Caoimhe Ginty (for Niamh Killeen, 38 mins), Roisin Pinches (for Aoife Hoctor, 48 mins), Aine Kennedy (for Caoimhe O'Donovan, 56 mins), Elaine Hanlon (for Sarah Freeman, 58 mins).

REFEREE: Kyle Waters.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH

Sheila Sullivan picked up the official player of the match award and it is difficult to argue with that. She gave another outstanding display in defence, showing assurance and using all her experience to help her side to victory. She had strong contenders in Sarah Harding, particularly in the first half, and Ellen Regan, who did a huge amount of work in the second half.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

Those minutes immediately after half time were decisive. Aisling Brennan had a sniff of a goal chance for St Cillian's but a great Birr block denied her the chance and within minutes Birr had fired over five points and suddenly the gap was out to six points and they were able to manage the game from there.

REFEREE WATCH

Kyle Waters did a good job throughout. He was up with the play at all times and was consistent, penalising both sides for overcarrying on occasions. He also worked well with his umpires. He initially booked the wrong St Cillian's defender in the second half but his umpires quickly intervened to point out the error and ultimately the correct player was booked. He did show eight yellow cards and two reds and it was hard to argue with any of the decisions but it is worth pointing out that it wasn't in any way a dirty game but just a good competitive encounter.

WHAT’S NEXT

Birr move on to represent Offaly in the Leinster Club Championship while it's the end of the year for St Cillian's.

VENUE WATCH

St Brendan's Park hosted the game well. There were plenty of stewards on duty to cater for the crowd. The pitch was soft but in fairly good condition and they will be hoping that they can get a dry week to ensure everything is in top order for the senior hurling final next Sunday.

STATISTICS

Wides; Birr 8 (6 in first half) St Cillian's 5 (4 in first half)

Yellow Cards: Birr 5 (Alana Roddy x 2, Sheila Sullivan, Orlagh Kirwan, Roisin Kinsella) St Cillian's 3 (Megan King, Siobhan Killeen x 2)

Red Cards: Birr 1 (Alana Roddy – two yellows), St Cillian's 1 (Siobhan Killeen – two yellows)

THE SCORERS

Birr; Mairead Jennings (0-9, 0-8 frees, 0-1 '45'), Sarah Harding (1-2), Kate Pilkington (0-2), Ciara Ryan, Faye Mulrooney (0-1 each).

St Cillian's; Clare Hogan (0-7, 0-6 frees), Aisling Brennan (0-2), Elizabeth Harding, Rachel Brennan (0-1 each).