National Camogie League Division 1A: Clare 1-10 – Cork 2-19
John Carmody’s Clare side shipped a heavy defeat in the second round of their National Camogie League campaign in Division one in Páirc Uí Rinn this afternoon.
Playing with the aid of a stiff first half breeze, it was the Rebelettes who hit the ground running on Leeside, registering five different scorers across the opening period , and carving out an 0-08 to 0-02 lead by the 20th minute.
Caoimhe Carmody & Lorna McNamara led the charge for Clare, while a superb early save from netminder Doireann Murphy curtailed the deficit in the opening half, before three more converted frees in a row without reply from McNamara saw the Banner trailing by just 0-08 to 0-05, by the 25th minute mark.
With a strong wind awaiting them in the second half, Clare looked in a healthy position to pursue the beaten All-Ireland finalists of 2022, however a late surge of scores from Amy O’Connor and Saoirse McCarthy saw Cork lead at the interval on a score-line of 0-12 to 0-05.
On the restart, the home side came out of the traps with a relentless appetite led by scorer in chief, corner-forward Amy O’Connor whose goal midway through the second half, brought her personal tally for the day to 1-08 and effectively ended the fixture as a contest.
To their credit Clare rallied intensely in the final quarter, adding some much deserved respectability to the scoreboard, culminating in Truagh-Clonlara’s Áine O’Loughlin rattling the back of the Cork net on 57 minutes.
However a moment of misfortune in the Banner rear guard would see Cork raise one last green flag deep into additional time as the Rebeletes emerged decisively victorious in Páirc Uí Rinn on a full time score of Cork 2-19 to Clare’s 1-10.
The Banner will be hoping to return to winning ways when they make the trip to Galway to take on the tribeswomen on Saturday, March 4th.