Last weekend was a great celebration of Juvenile Camogie in the capital with more than 600 girls taking part. .30 fiinals were contested. All 15 Championships were decided while we had 13 winners in the Shield finals. St. Annes and Fingallians meet again in the under 15C Shield final while Naomh Mearnog and Kilmacud Crokes do battle again in the under 15A Shield final. Best of luck to all 4 teams.
Congratulations to all the players. A big thank you to parents, mentors and supporters. Well done to the officials. Sincere thanks to the hosting clubs.
Photos from various finals
Reports from the finals
Lucan v Kilmacud Crokes Under 13A
Under 13 A Championship Final 2014 Lucan Sarsfields v Kilmacud Crokes
After winning the toss Lucan chose to play with the wind and the sun on their backs in the first half. This paid dividends as they opened the scoring in the first minute with a fine goal from Carla Delmar. This was quickly followed by a point from a well-taken free by Aoife Mahon. Kilmacud then got 2 points, 1 from a free. Faye O’Reilly was dependable in goals, and the Lucan fullback line of Aoife Byrne, Heather Kenny and Caoimhe Morris rebuffed the Kilmacud attack. With Aoife Mahon and Siofra Byrne controlling midfield, Lucan continued to pile on the pressure and started to dominate the first half with another goal from Carla Delmar, a point from Ciara Crosbie, and goals from Aoife Coffey, Laura Quinn, Laura Lawless and Aoife Mahon, making the half-time scoreline 6-2 to 0-2.
Carla Delmar opened the scoring again in the second half with a point, then a well-worked point from Laura Quinn, before Kilmacud, with a strong wind behind them, fought back with 2 goals from play and a point from a free. Laura Quinn took another point which was followed by a goal and a point from Kilmacud. The Lucan defence of Chloe O’Connor, Hannah Brady, Willow Byrne and Ciara McDonagh held strong, while the forwards of Rachel Feighery, Maria Crowley, Laura Boland, and Aisling Gray were a constant threat on the Crokes goal. Ciara Crosbie rounded off the scoring with a fine goal and a point – final score 7-6 to 3-4 to Lucan Sarsfields.
This was a fine display of Camogie by both teams, Kilmacud never gave up and tested Lucan to the utmost. The cup was accepted by Aoife Mahon, captain of the Lucan team from Eoin Reynolds.
Player of the match Aoife Mahon.
Faye O’Reilly, Aoife Byrne, Heather Kenny, Willow Byrne, Chloe O’Connor, Hannah Brady, Caoimhe Morris, Aoife Mahon (Capt.) (1-1), Siofra Byrne, Carla Delmar (2-1), Ciara Crosbie (1-2), Laura Quinn (1-2), Aoife Coffey (1-0), Laura Lawless (1-0), Rachel Feighery, Aisling Gray, Laura Boland, Maria Crowley, Ciara McDonagh.
Under 13A Shield final Good Counsel 8-8 Cuala 0-0
Good Counsel were never in trouble in this match ! Bouyed on by their U14A championship win the previous day they played with fantistic skill and determination, they were a joy to watch, in particular their first touch and striking. The number of strikes taken by players on their left side was phenomenal and the beauty of it all was the ease with which they were taken. Unfortunately for Cuala this was not to be their day as no matter what they tried Counsel stood in the way. A very deserved win for Good Counsel
Under 13E Shield Faughs 5-2 Raheny 0-0
Faughs were in a very determined mood and put huge pressure on Raheny from the start. Raheny's defence had to dig deep to keep the scores at bay. Raheny's goalkeeper had a fantastic first half keeping her team in the match as Faughs had only posted 2 points by half time. In the second half Faughs continued the pressure and eventually scored that much needed goal to put distance between the teams. Raheny continued to fight to try to get their own first score however instead Faughs scored another 4 goals. The Raheny girls were heart broken, some of them having only started playing this season. The day belonged to Faughs
Report From U14 A Naomh Mearnog v Faughs Celtic
Naomh Meanòg played host to the U14 Div 1 final on Sat between great rivals Faughs Celtic and Good Counsel, last year’s U13 Div 1 championship finalists. A damp blustery day and a wet soggy pitch, presented less than ideal conditions for camogie, with each team managing just 6 scores each in the course of the sixty minutes.
The closeness of the rivalry between these two powerful teams is reflected in the fact that in the 29th minute of the second half the sides remained tied in a draw. 2 late scores in the dying minutes saw Good Counsel seal the win, over a heartbroken Faughs Celtic team. This represented a first Division 1 juvenile championship title for the Drimnagh club, under the astute stewardship of the Dublin Camogie Dynamo Liz Baker.
The game began at a frantic pace with first blood drawn by the Templeogue outfit with a flowing move finished to the net by Holly Finnegan. Faughs Celtic had a good hold of the game for the first 15 minutes, driven on by the dynamic Chloe Mullen with Faughs establishing a 1-2 to 0-0 lead before Sarah White found some space to expertly score a brilliant goal for Good Counsel. Good Counsel dominated the ten minutes up to half time with their midfield settling in, but the scores would not come. Half time score Faughs Celtic 1-3 Good Counsel 1-1.
The second half produced a dour battle, with scores at a premium in the prevailing wet & windy conditions. Faughs Celtic were clinging on to a lead with Good Counsel being unable to secure the scores. Good Counsels half back line began to dominate the game and they formed the basis of the Drimnagh sides victory. Sarah White pounced again to score another goal to give Good Counsel a lead with 5 minutes left. 2 points from the excellent Chloe Mullen gave Faughs Celtic some hope, tying up the game in the 29th minute. But a late point from the puck out, followed by a last-puck goal secured a very late but deserved four point win for Good Counsel.
Best for Faughs Celtic were Goalie Catherine Reynolds, the Full Back line of Kate Clarke, Emer O'Toole, and the really excellent Jennifer O Sullivan at full back. Aileen Nagle at wing back and the dynamic Chloe Mullen were others to catch the eye. Gita Bacacan produced a player-of-the-match performance for Good Counsel at wing back, well supported by Siun Keating and Erin Kennedy. Ciara Kelly, Sophie Malone and the top-scoring Sarah White were others to catch the eye for the Drimnagh outfit.
Final Score Faughs Celtic 1-5, Good Counsel 3-3.
Under 14B Shield Raheny 3-2 Cuala 2-3
This was the first match of the weekend in Nh Olaf and was a thriller. Raheny played with the wind in the first half and got their early goals however in the second half Cuala came back and played some great camogie to keep the sidelines glued on the action. There were some great clearances on both sides. Cuala's last point of the match looked like it was heading for the top corner of the net but somehow the wind carried it over the bar giving victory to Raheny. Raheny headed back on their long trip home very happy while Cuala will have to look for a win on another day in the future.
Under 14D championship final
Round Towers 3- 1 Ballinteer St Johns 2 - 2
Playing with the wind in the first half Round Towers scored a quick goal which they followed up with 2 more. Ballinteer took time to settle. With the conditions getting worse Ballinteer scored a point of their own towards the end of the half. The rain was now pelting down and Towers had to defend their lead all the way to the final whistle. Ballinteer scored 2 fine goals and a point of their of own to put Round Towers defence under immense pressure. Towers then scored a point however Ballinteer still pressurised and had a goal disallowed in the dying minute for overcarrying. A tight win for a club who need juvenile success to keep the girls involved.
Player of the match : Hannah Clarke (Round Towers)
Under 15C Championship Thomas Davis 7-4 Cuala 2-3
Thomas Davis got off to a great start scoring 3 goals before Cuala managed a score. The Kiltipper girls were playing some great first touch camogie and were physically stronger in the first half. However Cuala were not giving up and when they scored their second goal thoughts of a come back surfaced but Thomas Davis were having none of it and straight away replied with a goal and a point. They then went on to score a further 3 goals. Cuala had a number of misses for goals and points however they finished with some well taken points.
Today belonged to Thomas Davis and hopefully this win is the catalyst that will keep these girls playing camogie.
Player of Match : Orla McGuigan Thomas Davis