Ahane started their defence of their County title on Monday evening as they played Granagh/Ballingarry in Mackey Park Ahane. Both sides are no strangers to each other and you knew from the get go this game was going to be a cracker, and it definitely did not disappoint. Judith Mulcahy got Ahane off the mark within the first 30 seconds as she scored a point, not to be outdone Granagh responded with a point of their own. Ahane showed some serious team play and from this team play they scored some wonderful scores. Niamh Mulcahy got on the end of one of these passages of play and buried the ball in the back of the Granagh net in the 3rd minute. She then followed it up with a point from a free. Granagh got their next score from a free in the 6th minute as corner forward Rebecca Noonan put it over the bar. Ahane got a free in the 7th minute which Niamh promptly slotted over the bar. Ahane's next score came from their full forward Susie McGovern from a tight angle out near the sideline. Ahane got a penalty in the 12th minute of the game as Niamh was fouled inside the square, Niamh stepped up to take the penalty but it deflected off the Granagh goalkeeper's hurley and went over the bar. Granagh tacked on two more points and at 15 minutes into the 1st half the scoreboard had it as Ahane 1-05 Granagh/Ballingarry 0-4. There was barely time to catch your breath in this end to end half and in the 17th minute Granagh's midfielder Sarah Carey was fouled inside the square and the referee signaled for a penalty. Granagh buried the penalty in the back of the Ahane net meaning Granagh were now only a point behind.
The defending all over the field was top class from both teams and no ball was won easy. Granagh pushed on and got their second goal in the 19th minute after Ahane keeper Aoife Quinn saved the first shot, but Granagh put the rebound into the net. Ahane never let their heads drop though and responded to the goal by getting a point from Niamh. Susie popped up again with another outrageous point a minute before half time. The teams went in at half time on a scoreline of Ahane 1-07 Granagh/Ballingarry 2-07
The teams came back out for the second half and Ahane got off the mark first with a fantastic long range score from Niamh. 2 minutes into the second half and Niamh got on the end of a great passage of play from her teammates outside her and she put the ball over the bar. The standard of camogie on display on Monday evening was incredible, some of the sideline cuts and points that were scored were unbelievable. One of these great scores was Ahane's 2nd goal which came from wing forward Shauna D'Arcy. Shauna got a pin point perfect ball from Noreen Flanagan in centre back and she ran straight through the heart of the Granagh defence and smashed it into the net, which delighted the large crowd of Ahane supporters. Niamh tapped over another point after she made a blistering run through the middle which left the scores at Ahane 2-10 Granagh 2-07. Sarah Carey stood up for Granagh and got their next score to close the gap to two points. Susie got her third point from another ridiculous angle and Niamh stuck over another free. In the 17th minute Granagh got the first and only 45 of the game as the ball came off Ahane's full back Rose Collins after some great defending by the six Ahane backs. Granagh's Rebecca Noonan slotted over the 45 with ease. Niamh and Judith Mulcahy got Ahane's next four points with Niamh scoring two from frees and a beauty from play. Judith scored a wonderful point from play after she ran from the middle of the field. Rebecca Noonan kept Granagh's scores ticking over as she scored two points from frees. Susie added to her three points tally with a cracker of a goal in the 32nd minute after corner forwards Aine Reynolds and Sarah Cosgrave did some fantastic defending in the Ahane full forward line to insure the ball was not cleared. The game ended on a scoreline of Ahane 3-16 Granagh/ Ballingarry 2-13. Ahane have gotten their campaign off to a positive start, they now play Kileedy in their next game. Keep an eye out on the Ahane Camogie Club social media pages for all details of this fixture.
Ahane Team:
Aoife Quinn; Caoimhe Macken, Rose Collins, Sarah Crotty, Kate Herbert, Noreen Flanagan, Aisling Herbert; Judith Mulcahy, Ann Kennedy; Roisin O'Mara, Niamh Mulcahy, Aine Reynolds, Shauna D'Arcy, Susie McGovern, Ailish Reynolds.
Substitutions: Laura Nash for Caoimhe Macken (25 minutes 1st half), Sarah Cosgrove for Ailish Reynolds (19 minutes 2nd half), Nora Moloney for Roisin O'Mara (24 minutes 2nd half)
