Tribeswomen make winning league start after surviving late Staunton scare

Mayo 1-10

THIS was too close for comfort. In the end, a bounce of the ball separated them. It never should have come to that but it did.

Six minutes into second-half injury time, Mayo were trailing this National Football League Division One tie by two points.

The hosts earned a free, which was dropped in around the house at the Tesco end. Star forward, Cora Staunton was lurking with intent and she rose tallest to connect to it with her fist. The flight of the ball had such pace it literally could have gone anywhere – luckily for Galway it ricochet over, rather than under, the crossbar.

That was last chance saloon for Mayo to snatch an unlikely victory, although they scarcely deserved anything from the game.

True, they battled admirably ‘til the finish but Galway should have been home and hosed long before then.

They were by far the better team and yet their dominance wasn’t even close to being reflected on the scoreboard. A good complaint, perhaps, but a worry nonetheless.

Added to their 11 wides in total, versus Mayo’s four, Galway also failed to convert several other clear-cut scoring chances in a game they dominated for the most part. Both sides will be disappointed with the concession of so many turnovers, too.

But there were many positives for Stephen Glennon, in this his first proper test since becoming Galway Ladies manager, and his new backroom team of Michael Comer, Ciara Moran, Noel Kelly, Richard McNicholas and Maura Burke.

Individually, in attack, Roisin Leonard gave a tour de force at full-forward, scoring 2-4, with 1-1 from play.

Collectively, the forwards unit at times really gelled with the likes of Megan Glynn, Olivia Divilly, Ailbhe Davoren and Leonard proving a threatening axis that caused all sorts of trouble for the Mayo backs.

Defensively, Galway weren’t found wanting either. As a unit, they proved difficult to breakdown, and in Sarah Conneally they had a real rock at full-back, who seemed to relish the tough task of marking Mayo’s marquee forward.

Though Cora Staunton scored 1-8 in all, including three points from play, Conneally did an excellent job of containment on Mayo’s go-to player.

And then there was the attitude. Galway, the underdogs, appeared more ‘up’ for the game, and they certainly brought more energy, enthusiasm and intensity to proceedings.

Galway enjoyed the better start. Davoren, Divilly, Leonard and Dora Gorman were all prominent in the early exchanges as Galway carved out a 1-3 to 0-1 lead midway through the half.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.