MONEYGLASS sharpshooter Orlaith Prenter may have hit 1-6 of her side’s 2-8 haul to dethrone Ulster champions Donaghmoyne in Sunday’s senior club quarter-finals, but she heaped all the plaudits on her team-mates in a historic day for the club.
The full-forward scored all of her side’s first half total as they led 1-4 to 0-5 and she added another two points in the second half with Maria O’Neill grabbing the second goal and Cliona Griffin hitting two points.
“To be honest, I think I celebrated more when Maria’s goal went in and when Cliona’s two points went over. It’s always great to get on the scoresheet and being free-taker has its benefits of getting a score on the board and settling you into the game,” she said.
“I think I could talk for hours about everyone individually and the shift they put in against Donaghmoyne defensively and keeping them out during different points in the game.
"No one left anything on the pitch and that’s what it’s going to take to get over the line against a team like Donaghmoyne.”
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The win has blown the championship wide open and there are two mouthwatering semi-finals in two weeks’ time with Moneyglass facing Clann Eireann and Errigal Ciaran going head-to-head with Bredagh and any one of the four remaining teams will fancy their chances of lifting the Ulster club title.
For Moneyglass, the victory also made up for last year’s Ulster final defeat to Donaghmoyne and that made it more special, said Prenter.
“I think it’s more of a special feeling beating the current Ulster champions and probably the favourites for the competition," she said.
"I think it suited us well going down there to their own back garden to play them, it adds that little bit of bite to it.
“The atmosphere at the game itself was incredible. We’re fortunate in Moneyglass that no matter where we’re playing, half the parish turns out to support us, and that makes all the difference when it comes to getting over the line in tight games like that.”
It was a memorable day for the club as the minors who, just hours after the seniors' win, won the Antrim county title with a 2-11 to 4-3 victory over St Brigid’s in Belfast.
Not only was it a busy day for supporters taking in the two games in two different counties, but for 10 minor players who were also involved with the senior squad, with three starting and another one coming on as a substitute.
With those players involved in two crucial championship games within six hours of each other, the build-up to the games was marred by concerns over player welfare.
Prenter and fellow team-mate Bronagh Devlin are also the minor team managers, so they had to make the dash to Belfast as well after the game, with the whole situation far from ideal, said Prenter.
“There’s been a lot of unfortunate and unnecessary publicity surrounding the games over the last few days," she said.
"It certainly could have been avoided and caused a high level of stress for the younger players within our club on a huge weekend of football and camogie for them.
"We’re just relieved that there were no injuries on the night and coming away with a win was a bonus.
“A team in Portlaoise found themselves in a similar position and, unfortunately, their senior team had to withdraw from the competition, which should never be the solution to this kind of issue.
"It’s more disappointing from the point of view that this issue has happened twice in one weekend in ladies' football and is the kind of issue that would never happen in the men’s game. It takes away from the progress being made in ladies' football over recent years.
“I think there’s a lesson to be learned from the weekend. Our players' welfare and health should be at the forefront of resolutions to these kind of issues, and this should be a priority for county boards across the country.”
