Westmeath ladies denied All-Ireland glory by late Cavan rally

A fit and skilful Westmeath ladies intermediate football side came oh so close to being crowned All-Ireland champions for the first time at Croke Park last Sunday. But a late rally by Cavan means that two evenly-matched teams must meet again to decide where the Mary Quinn Memorial Cup will rest for the next 12 months. There was a very significant Westmeath contingent in the 20,061 crowd in GAA headquarters for Sunday's Cumann Peil Gael na mBan triple-header. And they got tremendous value for money on the day, albeit tinged with disappointment that the ladies in maroon and white could not hold on, having led by three points with eight minutes of normal time remaining. Indeed, the very hard working Laura Walsh (the Glasson native and former Garrycastle player) came close to scoring what would definitely have been the winner with the countdown clock showing just ten seconds to go. Overall, however, the Breffni girls (who had the most accomplished footballer on show in corner forward Aisling Doonan) probably deserve a second chance, having looked the more likely winners for long periods. A superbly-produced programme, the presence of the Artane Boys Band and a pre-match parade gave this eagerly-awaited match the status it deserved. The action which followed undoubtedly matched the occasion. Westmeath started somewhat nervously, albeit the ladies in blue and white were unable to score from two early '45's. When the Lake County girls settled they pounced for a brace of quickfire points from Ruth Kearney (a low-trajectory shot) and Johanna Maher (a fine individual effort) in the sixth and seventh minutes respectively. A terrific free from Aisling Doonan from 35 metres soon halved the deficit. Cavan goalie Christine McCutchon did well to keep out Elaine Finn's goal attempt at the end of a flowing Westmeath move, before Maud Annie Foley shot her side's first wide of the afternoon in the 13th minute from a scoreable free. Westmeath had a lucky break at the midpoint of the first moiety when Aisling Doonan's shot was well smothered by Gemma Leahy and the Cavan captain hit a powerful shot from the rebound off the crossbar. The sides were soon on level terms, midfielder Rosie Crowe finding the range in style. A great interception by Kelly Boyce Jordan led to Westmeath's third point from Ruth Kearney, but points by Aisling Doonan (from a fantastic Maurice Fitzgerald-like lineball, left-footed from the left hand side) and Reneé Murphy (rounding off a terrific move) had Cavan ahead by the 23rd minute. A dipping shot from the latter player then brought the best out of Gemma Leahy in the Westmeath goal at the expense of an unconverted '45'. However, Cavan doubled their lead in the 27th minute, that girl Aisling Doonan again excelling with a left-footed finish. The same player struck the crossbar from a 50-metre free in the last meaningful action of the first half, leaving the Breffni County ladies ahead by 0-5 to 0-3 at the interval. Cavan stretched their lead courtesy of a point apiece from Brónagh Sheridan (a 20-metre free) and Aisling Doonan (a superb score from 35 metres) within five minutes of the resumption of play. However, Westmeath came right back into contention in the 40th minute when Ruth Kearney picked out Johanna Maher and the Tyrrellspass lady rifled the ball low to the back of the net. Untypically loose defending at the other end then allowed Claire Kearns in for her side's eighth point, but Westmeath hit a purple patch between the 50th and 52nd minutes. Ironically, it was a pair of substitutes who contributed 1-2 between them, with Karen Hegarty following up her wonderful individual point with a first-time shot to the net (after Ruth Kearney's effort had been saved) and Emma Morris sensibly fisting a point after spurning a goal chance moments earlier. When Brónagh Sheridan proceeded to miss a scoreable free it looked like it would be Westmeath's day. But a fine point under pressure from substitute Darna Clerkin and a converted 20-metre free from Aisling Doonan had the gap down to the bare minimum as the game entered added-time. Westmeath then appeared to be retaining possession satisfactorily until a Cavan breakaway ended with a foul on Aisling Doonan. The Templeport lady dusted herself down and, showing Stephen Cluxton-like coolness, duly kicked the equaliser from the resultant free. With literally a matter of seconds to go, Laura Walsh was wide with a shot from a tight angle, leaving two totally committed sides set to fight another day, possibly October 8, at a venue to be decided. It promises to be another thriller. SCORERS Westmeath: J Maher and K Hegarty 1-1 each, R Kearney 0-2, E Morris 0-1. Cavan: A Doonan 0-6 (3 frees, 1 lineball), C Kearns, R Murphy, R Crowe, B Sheridan (free) and D Clerkin 0-1 each. WESTMEATH: Gemma Leahy; Aileen Martin, Grace Kearney, Triona Durkan; Kelly Boyce Jordan, Jennifer Rogers, Michelle Malone; Maud Annie Foley, Laura Walsh; Fiona Claffey, Ruth Kearney, Laura Brennan; Elaine Finn (capt), Katie Somers, Johanna Maher. Subs: Karen Hegarty for Somers (half-time), Emma Morris for Brennan (44 mins), Aoife Brady for Jordan (44). CAVAN: Christine McCutchon; Ciara O'Reilly, Gráinne McGlade, Claire Kearns; Reneé Murphy, Pamela Crowe, Donna English; Rosie Crowe, Ailish Cornyn; Róisín O'Keeffe, Brónagh Sheridan, Elaine Costin O'Connor; Bríd Boylan, Claragh O'Reilly, Aisling Doonan (capt). Subs: Sinéad Greene for Cornyn (37 mins), Gráinne Smith for O'Keeffe (47), Darna Clerkin for Boylan (50), Ciara Gray for R. Crowe (60 + 1), Aisling Traynor for O'Connor (60 + 3). REFEREE: Gavin Corrigan (Down).