Naomh Tresa Camogs win All-Ireland Junior crown

 Naomh Treasa 2-3  Ceann Creige 0-4

THE seasonal celebrations have begun in earnest for a Naomh Treasa side that pulled out all the stops in the second-half to ensure their ultimate supremacy in Saturday’s All-Ireland Junior B Championship final against Ceann Creige in Abbotstown.

Naomh Treasa’s Glasgow-based opposition had, rather ominously, totted up scorelines of 8-15, 7-14 and 3-11 en route to Saturday’s final but there would be no continuation of the theme (and if there had been, we likely wouldn’t be talking about a Naomh Treasa victory today).

Indeed the scoreboard operator wasn’t exactly rushed off his or her feet: at half-time it was 0-1 apiece, but in truth the opening period wasn’t quite as cagey as it sounds, Naomh Treasa coming agonisingly close to rattling the net on two occasions and both sides hitting a number of wides as they struggled to find their range.

Still, the game was going to open up eventually and it didn’t take long for Naomh Treasa to find their range in the second-half, the fantastic Roisin McErlean cracking an unstoppable shot to the net 26 seconds after the resumption.

Roisin would end up named as player of the match and with good reason, contributing exactly half of Naomh Treasa’s overall tally, but she was by no means the only one that delivered the goods when the game was there to be won.

Grainne Rafferty and Beth Jones were dynamic throughout, the defensive rearguard (we could nearly name the six of them) proved virtually impenetrable in the second-half, Eimear Colton was as assured as ever between the sticks, and really, they would’ve won by a fair bit more only for a commendable performance by Ceann Creige goalkeeper, Sarah O’Sullivan, who cleared her lines on umpteen occasions.

Early on it was actually Ceann Creige who looked the more threatening, Anna McKee and Nicole Nugent (who was just about everywhere) getting on plenty of ball and they belatedly got the first score of the game in the 10th minute through Nugent.

Naomh Treasa were creating opportunities of their own, however, and Roisin McErlean, who was closely watched by Katie McMahon, played in a probing pass that was eventually gathered up by Cara Little, whose shot was subject to a fine reaction save by O’Sullivan.

They eventually got their account up and running with 23 minutes on the clock, a ‘45’ from McErlean, and the very same player came oh-so close to scoring a goal on the stroke of half-time, her effort whistling just wide of the target. A reprieve for Ceann Creige, to say the least.

After 30 minutes of play, both sides only had a single point to show for their efforts, but it was evident from very early in the second-half that Naomh Treasa had upped the ante considerably.

McErlean pounced for a goal literally within the first minute of the restart, and that set the tone for a fiercely determined effort from the Dungannon side with an All-Ireland title at stake.

Try as they might, Ceann Creige could barely get out of their own half for large chunks of the season half as Naomh Treasa collectively came to grips with proceedings.

Roisin McErlean split the posts after showing some lovely stickwork, and then they applied the killer blow with a goal from Grainne Rafferty midway through the second-half, her effort at a point deemed to have crossed the line by the respective umpires. It was about the only mistake made by the opposition goalkeeper all afternoon.

To their credit, the Glasgow girls, spurred on by the tireless Nicole Nugent, didn’t give up the ghost and they landed three of the last four points of the game, Naomh Treasa keeping them at arm’s length however with a late point of their own from Clare Kelly.

The referee called for full-time with almost exactly 65 minutes on the clock prompting scenes of celebration among the Naomh Treasa team and their band of delighted supporters who had made the journey to Dublin. It had already been a brilliant season and now they have capped it off in the finest possible fashion – with an All-Ireland title, and a thoroughly deserved one at that.

Scorers

Naomh Treasa: Roisin McErlean (1-2, 1 ‘45’), Grainne Rafferty (1-0), Clare Kelly (0-1)

Ceann Creige: Nicole Nugent (0-2, 1f), Anna McKee (0-1), Sarah O’Sullivan (0-1)

Teams

Naomh Treasa: Eimear Colton, Cáitlin McNulty, Bronagh Barker, Caitriona Ferran, Marian Barker, Catherine Casey, Áine McNulty, Cora McGrath, Roisin McErlean, Grainne Rafferty, Laura Barker, Beth Jones, Cora McErlean, Clare Kelly, Cara Little. Subs: Becky Santos for C McErlean, Dearbhla O’Faolain for Little, Niamh Doran for Kelly

Ceann Creige: Sarah O’Sullivan, Helena McGough, Orla Donnelly, Caoimhe Doyle, Kate Dullea, Eimear Gavan, Ali McCarthy, Nicole Nugent, Katie McMahon, Bronagh Donaghy, Niamh Rice, Miriam Reynolds, Anna McKee, Orliath McArdle, Anna ClarkeSubs: Sarah McDonnell for McArdle, Ailís Keyes for Dullea

Referee: Ciaran Gough