Hurling & Camogie

Armagh girls could prove too strong for St Killian's

TOP SCORER: St Catherine’s, Armagh’s Leanne Donnelly
TOP SCORER: St Catherine’s, Armagh’s Leanne Donnelly TOP SCORER: St Catherine’s, Armagh’s Leanne Donnelly

St Catherine’s, Armagh and St Killian’s, Garron Tower lost Ulster U16 finals at Halloween, but many of those same players have pushed on into their school’s senior team to reach a second provincial decider this afternoon.

Indeed, the path for both schools to this Fr Davies Cup final has been quite smooth.

St Catherine’s have been very impressive with high-scoring wins all the way through to reaching only their second senior final, 13 years after they lost a derby decider to St Patrick’s, Keady, coincidentally the school that St Killian’s beattwo years ago to take their second title.

St Catherine’s star has been rising rapidly in the last couple of years under the watch of current Eglish, Armagh and Ulster forward Ciara Donnelly.

Donnelly is coaching a teamthat includes three of her Eglish team-mates already preparing for an All-Ireland club semi-final and now hoping for a second All-Ireland run in the new year at schools’ level.

Those three are forwards Amy Barrett, Catherine Muldoon and Ciara’s sister Leanne who is top scorer after their four games run to the final.

Leanne, who picked up her second schools’ Allstar award last month, hit five goals in the semi-final encounter with last season’s beaten finalists St Pius X, Magherafelt two weeks ago.

St Catherine’s picked up two other Allstars in Catherine Muldoon and Katie Convie, while full-back Caella Casey has been a regular with Armagh seniors last season.

Overall it is a very strong St Catherine’s team.

Seven of the starting team have played in the U16 final a month ago and they includes half-backs Ellen Lavery and Aislinn McMahon, while Caoimhe Donnelly and Casey Mullan scored 3-6 of their total of 4-7 that day.

Although St Killian’s have made it through undefeated from their side of the draw, they were less than comfortable in a league game with St Pius X that was only decided by goals in the last three minutes from Méabh Allen and Shauna McDonnell for a 3-5 to 1-4 victory.

They have five players, defenders Gemma Black, Megan McKillop and captain Ellen Hynds as well as midfielder Ellen Leech and forward Siobhan McKillop, from their last success this weekend two years ago, but the team from the Antrim coast is still very young.

St Killian’s draw from just two clubs, Brídíní Óga Glenravel and Cushendall Ruairí Óg, and have done extremely well over the years to compete at this level.

Seven of the probable starting team also started for the U16s at Halloween in the final they lost to OLSP’s Knock.

They will put it up to St Catherine’s, but the Armagh girls should be the one training for the All-Ireland series in February.