Thank goodness for Fryday as late equaliser shares to spoils between Kickhams and Rovers!

FBD Insurance Tipperary Senior Championship - Group 1 - Round 1

Shannon Rovers 1-12

Knockavilla Kickhams 0-15

A superb point from Ereena Fryday from near halfway as she was falling over earned Knockavilla-Donaskeigh Kickhams a share of the spoils against Shannon Rovers in the opening round of the Tipperary Senior Camogie Championship in Ballinderry on Saturday evening.

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It was a fitting end to a superb hour of camogie, with both sides going at it throughout, with no quarter asked or given, and a draw was probably the fairest result, after what was a tremendous advertisement for the game of camogie; the vast majority of the scores came from play with only seven points from dead balls throughout.

There were some fine individual performances on both sides, with the likes of Áine Cleary, Celine Guinan, Gillian McKenna, and Nicola Kelly in great form for the Rovers, while for the Kickhams, Ereena Fryday, Millie Kelly, and Tipperary duo Caoimhe McCarthy and Eimear Heffernan starred.

The home side raced out of the blocks and were three points to the good after just four minutes with a Nicola Kelly effort sandwiched in between two frees, the second after a Kickhams short puckout went awry.

The visitors finally got off the mark in the seventh minute through a fine finish from distance by Eimear Heffernan after a pass from Caoimhe McCarthy, and was added to with two more scores in the space of four minutes from Sarah Ryan and Millie Kelly, both after fine team moves.

Kelly added her third point in the thirteenth minute to put her side ahead, but from the resulting puckout, Eimear Heffernan won the ball and had the sides level. She had Knockavilla ahead for the first time after a strong run from Caoimhe McCarthy, before passing to Heffernan, who blasted just over the bar.

The West side had their lead out to two points in the 19th minute through a Mary Ellen Holmes score. The Rovers responded through a Laura Leenane free, before Eimear Heffernan, after some quick thinking from a free, played a pass short to Millie Kelly, who returned the ball to Heffernan, who finished from out by the sideline.

The North outfit responded straight from the resulting puckout through Gillian McKenna and were level in the 24th minute when Aine Slattery intercepted a Kickhams puckout and punished the mistake.

The Rovers were three points ahead in the 25th minute when Slattery played a ball across goal and Nicola Kelly who was oncoming, batted to the back of the net, much to the delight if the home support.

Kickhams finished out the half strongly and had the gap back to just a single point by the break, through two frees from Eimear Heffernan as the sides went in at the break with Rovers ahead 1-7 to 0-9.

The second half started off very evenly with the sides trading the first four scores, with Caoimhe McCarthy opening the scoring to level in the fifth minute, before half-time sub Clodagh Cahalan had Rovers back ahead with a fine finish on the turn after being set up with a superb pass from Eimear Fogarty.

Sarah Ryan had the sides level with a fine effort from distance before a great team move from Rovers ended with Tipp goalkeeper Laura Leenane pointing. A Gillian McKenna free in the 45th minute had Rovers two ahead, but Eimear Heffernan had the sides level by the 47th minute with two points, one from play.

With the game entering the final quarter, the excitement really picked up as both sides really went for it, and Rovers were back ahead in the 48th minute through a Laura Leenane point.

Eimear Heffernan added another to her own tally to level proceedings in the 50th minute from a free, before Leenane had Rovers back ahead four minutes later, also from a free.

The Rovers came close to adding a second goal in the 57th minute, but Gillian McKenna saw her shot flash across the goal and out wide.

As the game entered the final minute of normal time, and with Kickhams pushing for a leveller, Eimear Heffernan laid off a pass to Ereena Fryday, who, from halfway, while falling over, levelled with a superb finish, much to the delight of the Kickhams supporters.

So, both sides opened their championship campaign with a point each, which very much keeps both sides in the running to qualify out of the group.

Shannon Rovers: Rita Burke; Áine Cleary, Frances Bugler, Paula Hannigan; Emma Costello, Celine Guinan, Niamh Franks; Mackenzie Simmons Loughnane, Rachael Hannigan; Aine Slattery (0-1), Eimear Fogarty, Gillian McKenna (0-3); Bethany Slattery, Laura Leenane (0-4, 0-2f), Nicola Kelly (1-3).

Subs used: Clodagh Cahalan (0-1) for B Slattery (HT); Emma D’Arcy for R Hannigan (50); Clodagh Davis for Simmons Loughnane (57).

Knockavilla Kickhams: Sheena Ryan; Eimear Crowe, Emma Ryan, Orla Gleeson; Sarah Ryan (0-2), Ereena Fryday (0-1), Sinead Furlong; Sinead Hayes, Caoimhe McCarthy (0-1); Emma Daly, Eimear Heffernan (0-9, 0-4f), Emma O’Meara; Millie Kelly (0-1), Mary Ellen Holmes, Kerri Ann Walsh.

Subs used: Niamh Slattery for Holmes (44), Ruby Kelly for Walsh (44); Niamh Buckley for M Kelly (52).

Referee: David Kennedy (Toomevara)

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