St Macs get their revenge on Errigal in Ladies SFC quarter-final

Errigal Ciaran 0-10  St Macartan’s 2-6

THE quality of last year’s Senior County Final may have been absent from Saturday night’s quarter final under lights at O’Neill’s Healy Park but the intensity of this meeting of Tyrone’s big two was certainly evident as St Macartan’s held off a spirited Errigal Ciaran fight back to open the exit door for the champions by two points.

The damage was done in a blistering five minute spell that saw the Macs crash home two goals that had Errigal chasing the game throughout. The champions had their chances but all too often they squandered them and were punished by their well organised and hungry opponents.

The win for St Macs came at a price with an injury to Chloe McCaffrey and the experienced attacker will be a doubt for the last four next weekend.

Errigal’s Aoife Horisk opened the scoring on the night within seconds of Shannon Cunningham winning the throw in but for the first ten minutes it was a Macartan’s whirlwind.

McCarroll levelled on the run before McCaffrey’s one on one with goalkeeper Ailise Coyle was saved. They kept the pressure on and an opportune long range effort from Cathy Maguire found its way to the top corner of the net on six minutes.

Within a minute McCaffrey beat Coyle at the second attempt after her initial shot was saved and by the eighth minute of dominance St Macartans were 2-2 to 0-1 ahead, Tara O’Hagan steering over a free. While it was end to end Errigal mustered a second point from the hard running Clare Canavan and that was the scoring until first half injury time.

Defences were in control. Errigal hit four wides as the game became tenacious and tactical with Macartan’s comfortable on the ball and Tara Meabh McCarroll calling the shots from full back. A late Donaghy point when McQuaid went down going through left seven points between the sides at the break.

Within twelve minutes of the resumption that gap was just three points as Errigal came out all guns blazing. Horisk led the charge tagging on three quick fire scores. Oonagh McAleer’s point from the right after a steady build up closed it out to three and St Macartan’s were rocking.

Again the champions squandered chances with three efforts dropping short and as they pressed they had Michaela Moore sinbinned. In her ten minute hiatus they conceded a brace of Donaghy frees including the Mac’s first score of the half on forty eight minutes. Maria Canavan and Horisk, teed up by Claire Canavan, replied going into the final ten.

Horisk saw a glorious goal chance spin across the face of goal and they closed the gap to two when Emille Loughran stole in from the kick out to fire over. Macartan’s veterans Maguire and Donaghy combined for an injury time point and Canavan again closed the game to two points in the closing stages but it remained a gap that could not be bridged and the champions were gone.

The Scorers
Errigal Ciaran
Aoife Horisk 0-5, Clare Canavan 0-2, Oonagh Mc Aleer, Maria Canavan and Emile Loughran 0-1each

St Macartan’s
Cathy Maguire 1-0, Chloe Mc Caffrey 1-0, Joline Donaghy 0-4, Slaine McCarroll and Tara O’Hagan 0-1 each.