Irish ladies too strong for U.S.

By Mike Fitzpatrick

It can’t be such a bad feeling traveling more than 3,000 miles from home to visit the world’s most exciting city and then go on to beat that city’s camogie selection by a whopping 19 points. But that’s what the ladies of Kildare-Cork did last weekend.

Selected from various camogie clubs throughout Cork and Kildare, the visitors really proved far too superior for their American counterparts. It’s not that the U.S. selection played inadequately, but almost every time the Irish selection moved forward, they seemed to score.

Despite an outstanding performance in midfield from Ger Mahon, the U.S. side found themselves behind early in the second half after having scored two points themselves courtesy of Mahon. In reply to Mahon’s fabulous point taking, one a cheeky catch and strike straight from the puc of Kildare-Cork’s goalkeeper Miriam McCarthy, Deirdre Healy and Bernie Kennedy struck a goal each to begin the onslaught upon the New York goal.

Mahon scored a goal quickly afterward to keep her side in the hunt, but with the Irish side’s forwards in such hot form, it was obvious that a solitary goal would not be enough. Deirdre Healy had a hat-trick of goals before half-time and Bernie Kennedy joined her with two of her own. At half-time the visitors were ahead 5-7 to 1-6, suggesting that perhaps a huge victory was on the cards.

Good running from Yvonne Corkery led to Healy’s first goal for the Cork/Kildare side, and a dogged performance from Bernie Kennedy, who refused to give up even when she’d lost the ball, resulted in more shots over the bar.

After half-time, it was much the same as it was before, with Cork-Kildare scoring another three goals from Kennedy, and points from Helen Walsh, Nora Egan and Miriam Mullen. A towering performance from Kildare/Cork’s veteran goalkeeper Miriam McCarthy kept the scores down at her end, but at the opposite side, Sonya O’Reilly though making many brave saves, found it difficult against the rampant visiting attack of Healy, Kennedy, Ellen Herlihy and co.

The Kildare-Cork panel travel on to Cape Cod for the next leg of their tour.

Kildare-Cork team: Miriam McCarthy, Claire Kerrigan, Anna Daregan, Yvonne Corkery, Yvonne O’Leary, Nuala Kerrigan, Emily Foley, Miriam Mahon, Liz Doran, Nora Egan, Bernie Kennedy, Helen Walsh, Ellen O’Herlihy, Deirdre Healy, Sheena Malone. Subs: Claire Sheehan, Gillian Barry, Alana McKenna, Sandra Reck, Yvonne Malone, Louise O’Leary, Siobhan Foley.

Scorers: Healy 3-9, Kennedy 4-5, Herlihy 1-3, Mahon 0-2, Walsh 0-1, Egan 0-1.

NY Selection: Sonya O’Reilly, Sharon McCarthy, Helen Campion, Trish Guinan, Fiona Egan, Ita Farrelly, Marie Flood, Ger McCluskey, Fiona Kennedy, Pauline Boylan, Ger Mahon, Ann Ryan, Eilis Dooley, Ellen Grogan, Emer Conneely.

Scorers: Ger Mahon 2-, Emer Conneely 0-1, McCluskey 0-2.