Intermediate Ladies Gaelic Football (LGFA) Division 2 League Final - Sunday May 8th, 2022.

Eire Og 2-7 Fergus Rover 2-5

The Eire Og ladies had to dig deep and show grit and determination allied with great skill to defeat a very good Fergus Rovers team. The pre-match prediction was that there would be nothing between these two teams as there was earlier in the year when the two sides met earlier in the league.

The Eire Og ladies took the game to their fancied rivals from the throw-in with Alana McInerney driving forward on a solo run deep into the Rovers defense. This set the tone for the early exchanges with the Townie ladies winning those 2nd balls that provided the platform for surges into the opposition defense by the likes of Orla Devitt and Sarah Redmond. These drives eventually resulted in the 1st goal by Eva White followed by 2 points from Orla Devitt (one from a free). Amy Russell then blasted an unstoppable shot to the net to establish an 8-point lead for the Townies.

Fergus Rovers are a quality side and slowly but surely, they got their game going by adding 2 points from frees. They then enjoyed a period of dominance where the Eire Og goal was under pressure with captain, Sophie Hanna, brilliantly clearing off the line twice in a row. Both sides added 2 points a piece before the break to leave the scores 2-4 to 0-4 at halftime. This included a great point by the ever-industrious Sara Redmond. Advantage Eire Og at this stage.

Ger Keane, the former inter-county star, and coach of the Fergus Rovers side vigorously reminded the Rovers team that they only had 30 mins to get anything out of this game. But from the resumption, the Eire Og ladies led by Orla Devitt, Alana McInerney and Sarah Redmond ran at the Rovers defense. A harsh yellow card for McInerney resulted in the Townie ladies playing for 10 mins a player down. This allowed Rovers to pile forward, they pulled back a goal with a pile up in the Eire Og goal that resulted in stalwart goalkeeper, Noreen Vaughan, being concussed and had to be replaced by Rae Wall. The Fergus Rovers ladies then piled on the pressure and the Eire Og defence was under siege. After a sustained period of pressure, a bullet of a shot left goalie, Rae Wall, without any chance that resulted in a 2nd goal for the Rovers, this brought the Eire Og lead down to 2 points with time ebbing away.

At this stage, the Eire Og fans in the crowd were looking for the final whistle but the referee added on 7 minutes of added time to prolong the anxiety. Restored to the full complement and with the introduction of a few key subs with fresh legs, the Eire Og ladies dug deep and contested every ball and tackle with a vim and vigour that some of the men’s hurlers and footballers could learn from. They fought, hassled, and harried without the ball and retained possession to draw the foul when in possession. Through this work-rate, they wound down the clock and everyone seem surprised when the referee blew the final whistle that declared the Eire Og ladies the Intermediate Division 2 League Winners for 2022!

This was a great victory for the Eire Og ladies where they displayed great determination and skill against a fine Fergus Rovers team. This victory was a testament to the fine coaching of Shane Daniels and Alan Malone but as captain, Sophie Hanna, said in her victory speech to the Fergus Rovers team while accepting the league cup from the Clare LGFA chairman; “I’m sure we’ll meet ye again the championship” - you can put your money on it.

Finally, it was great to see the 3 sets of sisters that featured on the Eire Og team – Alana & Maeve McInerney, Sarah & Maria Redmond, and the Russell trio – Jodie, Amy & Elizabeth. Truly a family club!

Match photos to follow on Facebook.