Provincial glory for Tuam Cortoon ladies

Fallon, Casserly top score against Pádraig Pearses from Roscommon

Tuam Cortoon 1-14

Pádraig Pearses 0-8

By Martin Nally

At Tubbercurry

FOR the first time in their history, Tuam Cortoon were crowned Connacht Intermediate Club Football Championship winners after they overcame Pádraig Pearses from Roscommon at Kilcoyne Park, Tubbercurry on Sunday.

Kevin Reidy's side led by seven points at the break but an inspired third quarter by 17-year-old Laura Glennon cut the deficit to three. As they have done all season, however, Tuam Cortoon never let their work rate drop and finished strongly with Gemma Casserly sealing their victory with a fine goal.

The weather on Sunday afternoon bore resemblance to a day in summer rather than the first official day of winter. With clear skies and very little wind, which favoured Tuam Cortoon in the opening half, conditions were set up nicely for a good game of football and that is exactly what we got.

Clodagh Fallon and Aoife O'Rourke fired early points for Tuam Cortoon before O'Rourke's pointed effort in the eighth minute could easily have ended up in the back of the net, only to be tipped over the bar by Pádraig Pearses custodian Lily Finneran.

With the Galway champions leading by three points, Pádraig Pearses gradually got into the game. Bláthnaid Kelly shrugged off her markers to pop the ball over the bar before Laura Glennon's quickly taken free resulted in her first of the day. And the teams were level on 12 minutes after Katelyn Keogh ensured that all of the Pearses full-forward line had registered a point.

Having struck two points with her left boot, Aoife O'Rourke popped over one with her right as Tuam Cortoon side retook the lead. Pearses almost had a goal in the 14th minute when Katelyn Keogh's effort went just wide of the far post. Sarah Banks and Clodagh Fallon responded with points for Tuam Cortoon before Keogh got her second of the afternoon.

Keogh had an even better opportunity for a goal moments later when Laura Glennon's long pass inside found Keogh all alone, but Tuam Cortoon ‘keeper Aoife Higgins was quick off her line to smother her shot. Clodagh Fallon then struck the game's first point from a placed ball in the 18th minute before Éabha Smith added a lovely score on the run as Tuam Cortoon now led by four.

The Roscommon champions were dealt a blow in the 23rd minute when a late challenge by corner-back Clodagh Powell on her opponent saw referee Kevin Corcoran issue a yellow card. Tuam Cortoon made good use of their ten-minute numerical advantage as Smith from play, Fallon with a free, and Gemma Casserly with her first point of the afternoon, stretched their lead to seven. Tuam Cortoon led 0-11 to 0-4 at half-time.

The second half started frantically with a Sarah Banks pointed effort coming back off the post. Banks blasted the rebound of the crossbar and Éabha Smith struck the post as Tuam Cortoon somehow came away without a score.

Instead, it was Pearses who got their first score in 21 minutes through Laura Glennon. She then struck over a 41st minute free before adding her third of the half two minutes later. The momentum was now very much with the Roscommon side and Glennon capped their dominant third quarter by cutting the gap to three points.

Anyone following Tuam Cortoon's progress this year knows that they don't panic and a superb point by Casserly on the 50th minute ended their scoring drought. Fallon then converted a free before the result was put beyond doubt.

Tuam Cortoon worked the ball down the right wing before Casserly cut inside and rifled the ball to the corner of the net. The same player followed up with a late point as the Galway champions were crowned provincial champions.

Tuam Cortoon's supporters, who attended in big numbers, were in full voice as the cup was presented to captain Kate Geraghty by Connacht LGFA chairman Keith Gilroy.

TUAM CORTOON: A. Higgins; E. Fallon, S. Melia, L. O'Dea; I. Cunniffe, K. Geraghty (captain), J. Reidy; L. Finnegan, A. O'Rourke (0-3); C. Fallon (0-5, 0-3 frees), M. McGrath, S. Banks (0-1); É. Smith (0-2), G. Casserly (1-3), S. Devaney. Subs: E. Roche, for O'Dea, 57 mins; G. Gavin, for McGrath, 59 mins.

PÁDRAIG PEARSES: L. Finneran; E. McGreal, C. Lohan, C. Powell; R. O'Sullivan, G. Lohan, K. Malone; S. Dooley, Á. Ryan; K. Canning, E. Halpin, C. Mulryan; K. Keogh (0-2), B. Kelly (0-1), L. Glennon (0-5, 0-1 free). Subs: C. Malone, for Mulryan, half-time; S. Goode, for Kelly, 49 mins; I. Downey, for Dooley, 52 mins; S. Killeen, for Ryan, 56 mins.

REFEREE: Kevin Corcoran

HERALD SPORT PLAYER OF THE MATCH:

Clodagh Fallon (Tuam Cortoon).

GAME AT A GLANCE

KEY MOMENT

With the game finely poised at 0-6 to 0-4 in Tuam Cortoon's favour after a lively opening quarter, 'keeper Aoife Higgins did brilliantly to deny Katelyn Keogh a goal scoring opportunity when she saved the Pádraig Pearses corner-forward's effort. It prevented the Roscommon team from taking the lead for the first time. Instead, Tuam Cortoon went on to score the next five points to make it 0-11 to 0-4 at half-time. It was a lead they would never relinquish on the way to a nine-point victory.

STAR TURN

Eighteen-year-old Clodagh Fallon has been one of Tuam Cortoon's most consistent performers this season and she continued her fine form with another player of the match display. Fallon was a constant thorn in the Pádraig Pearses side and was often double marked. Despite that, she hit five points including two from play. A reliable free-kick taker, Tuam Cortoon's championship top scorer has been a key part of her team's success.

TALKING POINT

This was Tuam Cortoon's fourth championship outing in as many weeks. For some younger members of the team, it was their sixth weekend in-a-row of action due to their minor team's commitments. Tuam Cortoon showed no signs of tiring despite the demanding schedule and finished the game strongly, scoring 1-3 without reply in the final quarter. They'll now enjoy a three week break to their All-Ireland semi-final.

SIDELINE VIEW

Tuam Cortoon manager Kevin Reidy would have been delighted with the first half shift from his team as they led 0-11 to 0-4 at the break. He would have also been pleased with how his team responded to Pádraig Pearses fightback when they cut the deficit to three points. The Galway champions didn't panic and showed trust in his starting fifteen as he didn't make any substitution until three minutes from time when the result was beyond doubt. Reidy has leaders all over the field and is getting performances out of them that has so far brought Galway and Connacht silverware. They are now just one game away from an All-Ireland final.

WHAT'S NEXT

An All-Ireland Intermediate Club Football Championship semi-final awaits Tuam Cortoon. They will play whoever emerges from the quarter-final between British representatives in London's Holloway Gaels or Dunedin Connollys from Edinburgh and the winner of the Ulster final between Naomh Columba from Donegal and Monaghan's Truagh Gaels.

On the opposite side of the draw, Meath's Boardsmill and Clonee from Wexford contest the Leinster decider and Munster boils down to a final between Inch Rovers from Cork and Limerick's St. Ailbe's.

- Martin Nally