Glen Dimplex All-Ireland Intermediate Championship quarter-finals: Derry 1-23 Dublin 1-10
AFTER a sluggish opening half, Derry moved up through the gears to comfortably dispose of Dublin in the opening game of the Glen Dimplex All-Ireland quarter-final double-header on Saturday at MW Hire O’Moore Park, Portlaoise.
They were a point down at the break, but out-scored Dublin by 1-15 to 1-1 in the second half and could well have added a few more scores during that second 30 minutes such was their dominance.
But what a contrast that was to the opening half-hour when they looked as if they were going through the motions, second to a lot of ball, misplacing passes and chasing Dublin on the scoreboard. Indeed had it not been for an excellent save from Swatragh’s Niamh McQuillan in the 12th minute they might well have been in real bother.
Dublin had started strongly and led by 0-5 to 0-1 when Aoife Deegan sent a dipping shot at the Derry goals. McQuillan stretched to take it down and won a free-out. The sliotar was worked down-field and Sinéad McGill fired over from 40 metres. It was a turning point.
That score seemed to bring Derry to life and they added six of the next seven points to take a 0-8 to 0-6 lead going into the added time. Amazingly though they were a point down going in at half time after conceding three points inside two minutes, all of them the result of basic errors.
However it was a different performance during the second half and the change in attitude was evident from the throw-in with Máiréad McNicholl firing over after just ten seconds. Points from Aoife Shaw and Shannon O’Doherty put them into the lead and a flowing team movement in the 38th minute moved Dublin decisively on to the back foot.
Áine McAllister won the sliotar in her own half and burst forward. The sliotar was hand-passed through Máiréad McNicholl and Dervla O’Kane and back to McAllister who had continued her run. The ‘Screen forward drew the defender and left Shaw with a tap in goal and a lead of 1-11 to 0-9.
Derry quickly pulled away with quality scores from Sinéad Mellon, McNicholl, O’Kane and three beautiful points from McAllister on the right wing, the first off a solo run when she played the sliotar off the ground and into her hand once more.
By the 45th minute the Oak Leaf were 1-17 to 0-9 ahead. There was a brief response from Dublin with their best forward Ciara Holland scoring a goal and a point over the next three minutes. There was also another slight scare when two forwards converged on the Derry goal, but McQuillan was brave in charging the sliotar down and Gráinne McNicholl got in the clearance.
Normal second half service resumed from that point until the end with six unanswered points that included two each from McAllister and Shaw.
Derry’s first half performance would not have troubled any of the teams remaining in the competition. Their second, while not perfect, was pretty impressive and something that the girls will look to replicate in the semi-final on July 23rd in Nowlan Park, Kilkenny.
Derry: N McQuillan; R Kirkpatrick, M Mooney, S McGill (0-1); R Bradley, G McNicholl, M Kerr; D O’Kane (0-1), C Glass; Á McAllister (0-8, 0-3 frees), M McNicholl (0-4), M Rafferty; A Shaw (1-4), S O’Doherty (0-3), S O’Connor.
Subs: S Mellon (0-2) for S O’Connor (22),
Dublin: D Cooke; E Young, C Clohessy (0-1), R Seri; E Baker, S Keogh (0-1 frees), J Moore; A Ryan, E Kennedy; E Dunphy (0-2), S Fenlon, C Holland (1-5, 0-2 frees); S Daly, A Deegan, G Skelton (0-1).
Subs: C O’Connor for C Clohessy (25), L Quinn for E Kennedy (36), N McCormick for A Deegan (49), L Pepper for J Moore (58)
Referee: A Hogg
