Ladies hit self-destruct button

Editorial Department • Published 9 Feb 2012 13:00 0 Comments

A last gasp goal and a point for the Breffni ladies denied Fermanagh an opening league victory on Sunday afternoon in McManus Park, Kinawley. The Erne ladies had ample opportunity to win this match but wayward shooting and a lack of concentration at crucial times ultimately cost them the three league points.

Two sin bins for Fermanagh, the first for Aisling Moane in the 16th minute and the second for Tara Little in the 56th minute took its toll on Fermanagh's challenge against the Blues, over the course of the hour.

Fermanagh opened the scoring through Caroline Little before Cavan surged ahead with three consecutive points. Roisin O'Keefe, Aisling Doonan (45) and Niamh Daly all contributed scores. As the game neared the midway point in the first half Fermanagh were awarded a penalty by Tyrone referee Sean McIntyre after Sharon Little was upended in the square. Caroline Little took the resultant penalty and gave Fermanagh a one point lead.

Sharon Little added another point, after a fine solo run by Marcella Monahan, giving Fermanagh a 1-02 to 0-03 lead. As the game entered the final 10 minutes of the first half Cavan drew level once more through Grainne Smith and Roisin O'Keefe.

Fermanagh were still down to 14 players following Moane's yellow card and the defence were working especially hard to counteract this. Orla Rehill and Edel McGovern in the heart of the Fermanagh rear-guard kept tabs on the lively Cavan forwards and indeed it was the home side that had the pick of the chances.

Finally, on the 30th minute Fermanagh found the target, Caroline Little rattling the net once again. A minute later Moane who had re-entered the field of play picked out Caroline Little and she landed the final point of the half, giving Fermanagh a 2-03 to 0-05 lead at the break.

Cavan re-emerged in the second half showing grit and determination and they turned that into two quick scores. Aisling Doonan with the first before Roisin O'Keefe added another. Fermanagh had goal keeper Roisin Gleeson to thank after she pulled off a wonder save from the lively Doonan to keep them in the lead.

Cavan were then reduced to 14 players when Donna English received a yellow card. After a number of missed chances by Fermanagh they finally raised the white flag through Caroline Little. A minute later substitute Sarah McCausland fired over a fine point from an acute angle to restore Fermanagh's lead to four points again.

With Cavan back to full strength and the game entering the final five minutes it looked like Fermanagh would hold on for the victory, given that Cavan had not registered a score since the fourth minute. However, Fermanagh were thrown off course when Tara Little was sin binned in the 26th minute. Panic started to creep into the home side's play and Aisling Doonan kicked another point to reduce the deficit.

The Breffni ladies then introduced Clara O'Reilly, last year's full forward. Her presence was sorely felt for Fermanagh when she picked up a loose ball out of the Fermanagh defence and she fired an unstoppable shot past Roisin Gleeson to draw the side's level. In doing so the Cavan player unfortunately sustained a fractured ankle and had to be stretchered off.

The injury resulted in a considerable stoppage but when the game resumed it was well into injury time. In the fourth minute of added time Roisin O'Keefe dealt the final blow and chipped over the winning point for Cavan. There was still time for Fermanagh to attack but it wasn't to be and they were left to rue their missed chances.

It's a third successive defeat in a year to the Breffni ladies and three points that manager Darren Boyle believes they should have collected:

"We pressed the self-destruct button once again. We were four points up with seven minutes to go. We had them (Cavan) beat and were the better team on the day but we didn't put our chances away. I was speaking to the Cavan manager afterwards and he said it reminded him of their All Ireland final defeat a few months ago. They had the winning of that game but lost it in the end."

Fermanagh can't afford to let these opportunities pass them by if they are serious about maintaining their Division Two status. They have to play from the first whistle until the last, insists Boyle:

"We done okay but in patches we switched off. It wasn't a fitness issue it was just a lack of concentration. But you live and you learn. It's not going to be easy for us in this division. We've set our stall out that we want to stay in it and we'll be battling to do that."

This weekend Fermanagh will travel to Kerry for what will be a very difficult tie admits Darren:

"We know it's going to be tough down there but we'll be looking for a response from the girls after the weekend. We should have three points on the board. They (Kerry) are a senior championship team and it's a big ask but we'll have to get on with it."

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This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 09 Feb 12

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