SCHOOLGIRLS CUP FINALS
Another 4 great Cup Finals at the Cross and it's nice to see our talented players getting a chance to show off their skills at this great venue.
Below are match reports courtesy of Peter McNamara of the Evening Echo.
Under 12 Cup Final - The Kay McGrath Cup
College Corinthians 3 Lakewood Athletic 0
It has been quite a special season to date for
Corinthians as they have amazingly achieved a 100% record in the U12
Premier league and on Saturday made the same apply to their cup
exploits compliments of a convincing display over a heart-broken
Lakewood.
It was always going to be tough for the girls
from Ovens but they battled admirably but inevitably just came up short
on the day.
It was apparent from the opening exchanges
that Corinthians were in no hurry give up that 100% and they took the
game by the scruff of the neck immediately. They made that positive
start count on 11 minutes when the ball broke to Kate Fitzpatrick on
the edge of the box and he drilled low across ‘keeper Aine Murphy into
the far corner of the net.
Ironically that goal had a more positive
effect on Lakewood then it did Corinthians and the Ovens outfit took
control of the game.
They thought they had levelled on 17 when
Lydia Looney picked out captain Siofra Daly to smash past Sheila
Kearney but Daly was deemed to be offside so the goal never stood.
Corinthians having weathered the storm came
back out in the second half and doubled their lead on 43. This time
Kate Fitzpatrick turned provider setting up Niamh McGreavey who
finished the move placing past Aine Murphy.
As Lakewood chased the game searching for an
equaliser to give them hope they got caught for a third goal right on
the full-time whistle as fittingly captain and Player of the Match
Megan Connolly put the icing on the cake for an ecstatic Corinthians.
COLLEGE CORINTHIANS: Sheila
Kearney, Michelle Murphy, Lydia Coveney, Sinead Roche, Taylor Webster,
Niamh McGreavey, Kelli Lynch, Megan Connolly (capt), Kate Fitzpatrick,
Megan Dennehy, Jessica Byrne.
Subs: Kim Dennehy, Kim O’Neill,
Stephanie O’Sullivan, Roisin O’Malley, Maeve Molloy, Faela Pottinger,
Amy Ahern, Clare Smith, Avril Burke.
LAKEWOOD ATHLETIC: Aine
Murphy, Siofra Daly (capt), Ali Brady, Ann-Marie Ryan, Ciara O’Leary,
Orlaith O’Driscoll, Molly Lambourn, Meg Fitzgerald, Ciara Nevin, Lydia
Looney, Evelyn Daly.
Subs: Leah Gallagher,
Lauren Elsey, Laura Cleary, Niamh O’Leary, Kelly Gleeson, Christine
Coffey, Maeve McCarthy, Emma Geaney, Niamh O’Leary, Sarah Lockhart,
Katie Coughlan, Aoife Murray, Leigh-Ann O’Shea, Sinead Corkery.
Referee: Denis Donovan.
Under 14 Cup Final - The Una Moore Cup
Wilton United 6 Douglas Hall 1
Wilton would have gone into the game as strong
favourites and just 12 minutes had elapsed when that tag was
emphatically justified as they effectively had the game wrapped up
leading 3-0.
By half-time it was four and by the time Brendan O’Regan blew the final whistle it was quite simply a rout.
Lesser teams would have given up the ghost
after those 12 devastating minutes but Douglas showed grit and
admirably determination to continue to fight to the death.
With three minutes played midfielder Lauren
Murphy scored her first of two on the night straight from the spot
after a Laura Lynch shot was handled in the box by Ashling Fox and the
penalty was awarded.
Just seven minutes later captain Denise
O’Sullivan also scored her first of two on the night drilling across
Diane Dowling into the far corner of the net.
Lauren Murphy then added a third on 12 with a
beautiful strike from outside the box and from that moment the
destination of the Una Moore Memorial Cup was never in doubt.
Amanda Budden then got in on the act on 24
when she burst through the Douglas defence from the right attempting to
cross but duly accepting when the ball actually flew into the net.
Just seven minutes into the second half Denise
O’Sullivan continued where she and her team-mates left off making it
5-0 after she intelligently chipped Dowling from just inside the box.
Arguably the biggest roar of the night greeted
one of the best goals of the night but this time it was Douglas who
were celebrating as Aoife Downey scored an excellent goal on 46.
Abby Oakes added to Wilton’s lead shortly after that.
Player of the Match Laura Lynch of Wilton and Claire Shine of ‘Hall were superb throughout
Beaten on the night but certainly not unbowed,
Douglas Hall can take numerous positives from this game and use it as a
part of a learning process in their development for the future.
WILTON UNITED: Ciara Barnes, Ciara
McNamara, Niamh O’Regan, Laura Lynch, Ciara O’Connell, Amanda Budden,
Lauren Muphy, Jenny Maguire, Amy O’Connor, Denise O’Sullivan (capt),
Brigid Walsh.
Subs: Siun O’Connell, Deirbhile Nic A Bhaird, Eleanor Stritch, Abby Oakes, Shannon Carson, Jessica Thompson.
DOUGLAS HALL: Diane Dowling, Shannon
O’Callaghan, Ashling Fox, Ciara O’Mahony, Rachel McCarthy, Lauren
Bourke, Laura Cooney (capt), Claire Shine, Jess Horgan, Sarah Deasy,
Chelsea Noonan.
Subs: Alison Bourke, Eimear Sisk, Laura Connolly, Shannon Keegan, Aoife Downey, Jess Casey, Avril Collins, Emma Barber.
Referee: Brendan O’Regan.
Under 16 Cup Final
Wilton United 6 Lakewood Athletic 2
Having been beaten 2-0 by the same opposition
in last year’s showpiece Wilton were hungry to repay the compliment to
the Ovens outfit. And from the very first whistle they meant business
taking the lead inside 60 seconds.
An impressive team performance culminated in a
four-goal victory with no fewer than five names on the score-sheet with
Denise O’Sullivan, one of seven Cork goals on the Irish U15 team,
notching a headed brace.
Straight from the kick-off Wilton went down
the field and took the lead. Captain Emma Farmer crashed a bullet of a
shot off the crossbar from all of 25 yards and Stephanie O’Sullivan was
on hand to turn in the rebound.
Eight minutes had only elapsed and Wilton were
two to the good. A corner from the right afforded Denise O’Sullivan the
time to head home her first of two goals.
Just three minutes later Lakewood were right
back in the hunt as Rebecca Kearney scored a wonderful goal slipping by
a number of defenders before finishing past Rachel Mullins.
But then it got worse for Lakewood as Wilton
regained their two-goal advantage on 25 as Lauren Murphy bustled her
way through the Lakewood rear-guard and slotting into the corner.
Six minutes after the restart Wilton
essentially killed off the Lakewood challenge as Natalie O’Brien hit a
wonder-strike from a 30-yard free into the roof of the net to leave it
4-1.
O’Sullivan’s second headed goal came on the hour mark in what was a carbon copy of her first from a corner.
Captain Emma Farmer then got in on the act for
Wilton’s sixth before Sinead Dilworth scored a consolation for Lakewood
at the death.
WILTON UNITED: Rachel
Mullins, Jenny Maguire, Emma Farmer (capt), Laura Lynch, Jamie Jones,
Lauren Murphy, Danielle Moynihan, Yvonne O’Byrne, Stephanie Shanahan,
Natalie O’Brien, Denise O’Sullivan.
Subs: Ciara Meehan,
Melissa Falvey, Roisin O’Connell, Hayley Mulcahy, Erica O’Sullivan,
Amanda Budden, Ciara O’Connell, Beth Walsh, Laura Ahern.
LAKEWOOD ATHLETIC: Niamh
Buckley, Alanna Murphy, Cliona Barrett, Niamh Foley, Aoife-Barry
Murphy, Yvonne Cahill, Kelly Sugrue, Kellie Tobin, Aoife Mullins
(capt), Rebecca Kearney, Sinead Dilworth.
Subs: Emer Murphy, Orla Murphy, Niamh O’Shea, Elaine Lynch, Danielle Lynch, Aoife Barrett.
Referee: Richard Bond.
Under 17 Cup Final - Evening Echo Cup
Lakewood Athletic 2 Wilton United 2 (Lakewood won 4 - 3 on penalties)
It was a fittingly dramatic ending to a
typical cup tie full of incident and some eye-catching displays
throughout the course of the game.
The rain may have poured but so did the
emotions when right-full Michelle McNally scored what was the winning
penalty for the Ovens club as substitutes, backroom staff and parents
alike spilled onto the pitch to celebrate a famous win in the clubs
history with it being their maiden victory in such a massive
competition.
The eventual winners Lakewood got off to the
best possible start striking the first blow of the night as Claire
Cooney put them in front after six minutes. An exquisite cross-field
pass from Olivia Lyons from left to right picked out Deirdre McAuliffe
who squared inside to Cooney whose first attempt came back off the post
but rebounded kindly to Cooney for a simple tap-in.
Irish U19 international Olivia Lyons came
close soon after curling a shot at goal from a ridiculous angle that
shaved the far post for Lakewood.
Wilton equalised on 20 minutes thanks to
captain Hayley Mulcahy. Wilton were adopting the route one option on
numerous occasions. in this instance it paid dividends as Mulcahy
collected a long ball, took on and beat the defender, and slotted
beyond Eilish Walsh.
Wilton nearly added to that goal as the
imperious centre-half Natalie O’Brien swung in a wonderful cross from
the right to the back-post where Wilton left-full Erica O’Sullivan,
also on the Irish U19 international team, had a free header but failed
to guide it to the corner and Walsh saved easily.
However, just four minutes later on 35,
O’Sullivan more than made up for it with arguably the goal of the game.
Having received the ball marginally inside the Lakewood half she opted
to take the responsibility of carrying the fight to Lakewood and ran at
their defence leaving several defenders in her wake before hitting a
wonderful shot across ‘keeper Walsh which nestled in the bottom corner.
Lakewood came close to drawing level just
before half-time when Claire Cooney had a header cleared off the line
by Natalie O’Brien and so they had to retire at the break a goal behind
despite the fact that they lead early doors.
Lakewood only had to wait three minutes into
the second half for the crucial leveller. Player of the Match Amy
McCarthy hit a speculative shot from 25 yards that caused Rachel
Mullins problems as the ball slipped though her grasp to the net.
For the remainder they continued to battle and cancel each other out.
110 minutes of football in normal and
extra-time failed to separate the sides and it was left to a penalty
shoot-out to decipher where exactly the Evening Echo Cup would reside for the year.
Wilton seeking their third success having won it in 2004 and 2008 and Lakewood looking for their first win in the tournament.
Emma Farmer began proceedings powering into the top corner followed by a carbon copy from Olivia Lyons for Lakewood.
Wilton missed their second while Yvonne Cahill scored for Athletic.
Then Danielle Moynihan stuck her penalty away for United before it was cancelled out by Kelly Sugrue.
Unfortunately Wilton missed their fourth as did Lakewood but the latter had a 3-2 lead with one penalty left each.
Erica O’Sullivan needed to score for Wilton
and despite the pressure, obliged. So it all came down to the final
attempt and Michelle McNally for Lakewood who placed into the corner
cool as a you like to the immense joy of all involved with Lakewood FC.
LAKEWOOD ATHLETIC: Eilish Walsh,
Michelle McNally, Cliona Barrett, Niamh Foley, Emma McCarthy, Yvonne
Cahill, Deirdre McAuliffe, Amy McCarthy (capt), Claire Cooney, Olivia
Lyons.
WILTON UNITED: Rachel Mullins, Emma
Farmer, Yvonne O’Byrne, Natalie O’Brien, Jamie Jones, Erica O’Sullivan,
Melissa Falvey, Danielle Moynihan, Stephanie Shanahan, Hayley Mulcahy
(capt), Beth Walsh.
Subs: Ciara Meehan for Falvey (68).
Referee: Larry Buckley.
