Big chance for Galway ladies sides to secure final places
CONNACHT senior and intermediate ladies football champions – Kilkerrin/Clonberne and Clonbur – will look to keep the Galway flag flying high when they face Termon of Donegal and Monaghan Harps in their respective All-Ireland semi-finals on Sunday.
Kilkerrin/Clonberne will host Ulster champions Termon in their All-Ireland senior club semi-final in Clonberne (2pm) and they will no doubt be buoyed by their 0-12 to 2-5 victory over reigning national champions Carnacon of Mayo in the Connacht decider.
“The reaction has been positive, from everyone,” says manager Michael Divilly. “We have parked that now though and we are looking forward to the game this Sunday. There is no point looking back.”
That said, there will be a lot of elements of their play from the Connacht final that Kilkerrin/Clonberne will draw strength from, most notably their second half performance when, despite playing against a gale, they held Cora Staunton and Carnacon to just two points.
“We couldn’t have asked for more,” admits Divilly. “At half-time, it didn’t look good for us only being a point ahead having to play into the wind in the second half. It was a magnificent performance.”
Indeed it was, sprinkled with some fine individual displays from the likes of defenders Nicola Ward, Aoife McStay and Caoimhe Boyle, midfielders Louise Ward and captain Annette Clarke and forwards Lisa Gannon and Olivia Divilly, with the latter accounting for seven points (five frees) of her side’s total.
A similar showing – both from the team and their key players – could go a long way to seeing off Termon on Sunday. “That is the question,” says the Kilkerrin/Clonberne mentor. “You hope you could. Certainly, as I said, it has all been positive from the girls and they are looking forward to it.”
As for Termon, their marquee player is Donegal sharpshooter Geraldine McLaughlin – the ace forward tallying 4-4 in their 4-7 to 3-8 Ulster senior club final victory over 2012 All-Ireland champions Donaghmoyne of Monaghan.
Two goal in the opening period from the all-action full-forward saw Termon take a 2-6 to 1-5 half-time lead in that game and while the reigning Ulster champions did respond in the third quarter, two further goals from McLaughlin was enough to secure her side the victory.
McLaughlin, though, is just one of a plethora of Termon players to feature for Donegal – who lost to Kerry in a thrilling All-Ireland quarter-final – this year, including Laura Gallagher, Roisin McCaffrey, Shannon McGroddy, Nicole McLaughlin and NUI Galway student Emer Gallagher.
Indeed, Gallagher’s presence provides an interesting sub-plot to this tie as her manager at NUIG is none other than Kilkerrin/Clonberne midfielder Clarke while Olivia Divilly is one of her O’Connor Cup team-mates. Termon panellist Niamh Friel is also a NUIG squad member.
After securing the Donegal title, Termon began their Ulster campaign with a 10-9 to 1-2 victory over Newtownbutler (Fermanagh) before accounting for Down champions’ Castlewellian on a scoreline of 5-11 to 2-15 in the Ulster semi-final.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.