Glen Dimplex All-Ireland Senior Camogie championship
Group 1, round one
Down 2-11 Clare 1-19
Galway 1-12 Cork 0-12
SO near, yet still so far for Down in Saturday’s Group 1 tie in Liatroim.
A rather fortunate goal from Saoirse Sands in the 47th minute was followed by a point from her Portaferry club-mate Niamh Mallon and Down had a 2-10 to 0-13 lead coming down the home straight.
Although Laura McNamara pointed twice, Mallon hit her ninth point in response with 55 minutes gone on the clock. An unlikely home win suddenly looked possible.
However, the more experienced Clare girls dug in and McNamara and sub Eimear Kelly each scored twice for them to go back into the lead and deep in added time Áine O’Loughlin sealed victory with their only goal.
It was a hugely disappointing end to an excellent effort from the Ulster champions and more than likely puts them into a relegation dog-fight. The remaining group games for both teams are against All-Ireland contenders Galway and Cork and a win highly unlikely – for either Clare or Down.
The Banner were the stronger team in the opening half of their first-ever senior championship visit to Down and they went 0-4 to 0-2 ahead after 10 minutes.
The home side fared better over the next 10 with two points from Niamh Mallon and a second from Sara Louise Graffin making it 0-5 each. In the 10 coming up to the break, however, three scores from Laura McNamara, two from Áine O’Loughlin and one each from Caoimhe Carmody and Ziyan Spillane gave Clare an interval lead of 0-11 to 0-7.
A Niamh Mallon goal after 36 minutes closed the gap slightly and midway through the second half Clare led by 0-13 to 1-8 when the home side earned a penalty. Mallon struck the shot well but it went over the bar.
Down’s second goal came just a minute later when a Saoirse Sands’ effort from well out the field bounced sharply in front of Doireann Murphy who took a step backwards to compensate. Unfortunately for her, that step took her and the sliotar over the line and Down were suddenly in front.
Although they stayed ahead for a while, points in each of the last four minutes and a goal in added time turned the result in favour of the Munster side.
In the other Group One game in Athenry, visitors Cork held an interval lead of 0-11 to 0-7, but were steamrolled by Galway in the second half, with Carrie Dolan running up eight points and a 55th-minute goal from Siobhán McGrath sealing a third successive victory this season for the league champions over last year’s beaten championship finalists.
Cork also lost their first outing in the intermediate championship, falling by 2-13 to 1-8 against a Kilkenny team that are well on course to top the group.
Scorers
Down N Mallon 1-9 (0-7f); S Sands 1-0; SL Graffin 0-2
Clare L McNamara 0-11 (0-10f); Á O’Loughlin 1-2; E Kelly 0-2; G Carmody, O Duggan, N O’Dea & C Carmody 0-1 each
