Ulster Club Ladies’ JFC final
Dungloe (Donegal) 1-13 Lavey (Derry) 2-11
CAITRIONA Toner played a captain’s role as Lavey won the Ulster junior title with a dramatic one-point victory over Dungloe.
The Derry champions trailed by five with nine minutes of the second half gone and it looked like Dungloe, also first-time finalists, were on course for victory.
However, Toner’s goal in the 45th minute brought them back to within a point and it was her point with three minutes remaining that gave them a lead they dramatically clung onto.
When Lavey needed their players to stand up, like they had done throughout this Ulster campaign, they did.
Goalkeeper Niamh McKenna produced a last-minute save to deny Bridin Walsh what would have been the winning score.; corner-back Maria Mulholland, midfielders Maria Rafferty and Sinead McGill, player-of-the-match Aoife Shaw, Carla Collins and captain Toner were all hugely influential.
The sides were level at the break, 0-9 to 1-6, Lavey going in slightly more content knowing they had not played to their potential, yet it was still all to play for.
Dungloe’s half-back line was causing a Lavey a lot of trouble, four of their first-half points coming from Ava Caulfield (2), captain Saskia Boyle and Eilisha Boyle.
They led 0-3 to 0-1 after nine minutes, corner-forward Tara Geoghean with two of those.
However, a fortunate Carla Collins goal, the ball dropping into the back of the net from a free in the 11th minute, very much against the run of play, had Lavey back in front 1-1 to 0-3.
Dungloe hit a couple of poor wides before midfielder Claire Diver tied it up and they missed further chances to extend their lead before wing half-forward Eilisha Boyle did double the advantage.
When Lavey did get the ball into the Dungloe half, Collins was on target and from the resulting kick-out, Aoife Shaw swung the lead back in their favour.
That became two points as once again, the Derry side overturned their opposition kick-out and Shaw added her second, 1-4 to 0-5.
It was a similar story at the other end. Dungloe kept Lavey camped in after a Geoghegan free had reduced the arrears to one and they moved 0-9 to 1-4 ahead through Caulfield again and Boyle, to ensure all three half-backs were on the scoresheet, and one from Katie Wallace.
Lavey though added two more Collins points, the latter a free, to level it up at the break.
Shaw put Lavey ahead shortly after the restart but 1-3 without reply – Ulitah Boyle with a 33rd-minute goal and points from Geoghegan, Diver and Patrice Boyle – left them well adrift.
Shaw’s frees kept them in it but they were still four down when Toner punched home a Collins free that dropped short and was not dealt with by the Dungloe defence.
Collins, with her fifth point of the day levelled the game for the fifth time with nine minutes remaining before Toner fired over the winner.
Dungloe E McGarvey; E Ward, S O’Boyle, S O’Donnell; A Caulfield (0-2), S Boyle (capt) (0-1), E Boyle (0-1); C Wallace, C Diver (0-2); K Wallace (0-1), J Gallagher, B Walsh; U Boyle (1-0), P Boyle (0-2), T Geoghegan (0-4, 0-1 free)
Subs J Oglesby for Gallagher (52)
Lavey N McKenna; C Diamond, L Scullion, M Mulholland; A Mulholland, A Rafferty, C Lynn; S McGill, M Rafferty; E Toner, A Shaw (0-5, 0-2 frees), C Toner (capt) (1-1), N McBride, C Collins (1-5, 1-3 frees), S Rafferty
Subs B Kelly for A Mulholland (27), A Conway for E Toner (49), E Murphy for Lynn (55), N Conway for S Rafferty (58), E Collins for McBride (62)
Referee Kathy Deery (Monaghan)
