Our u14 ladies travelled to Pairc ui Chaoimh on Sunday afternoon last to play Midleton in their eagerly anticipated County final.
In what was a very competitive match from two very good sides it was the girls in blue who came away with a fantastic win on the day.
After winning the toss Midleton chose to play with the aid of a slight breeze for the first half and they got off to a flying start when a high ball in ended up in the back of the Bantry net after just one minute of play.
Midleton registered a point in the fifth minute before Bantry got off the mark with a Callie o Donoghue point a minute later.
Again Midleton replied with a point on seven minutes but Bantry were now starting to get to grips with this game and a cracking goal from the boot of Kacey Cotter in the fourteenth minute saw them close the gap to the minimum.Both teams were playing some lovely football but the Bantry defence were playing solidly and the full back line of Áine Courcey,Caragh McCarthy and Olivia Minehane were handling anything that Midleton could throw at them,in front of goalkeeper Layla Rose Kingston Fitzgerald who was also having a fine game.
Bantry's midfield pairing of Saoirse Cooke and Emma Harrington were now winning some great ball and the half forward line of Fia Russell,Callie o Donoghue and Lily Rose o Donovan were also starting to dominate possession.Quick ball into the full forward line of Anna o Connor,Sophie o Donnell and Kacey Cotter paid off handsomely when the latter struck her second goal of the game to push Bantry in front for the first time.A beautiful point from Sophie o Donnell rounded off the scoring for the first half and this saw Bantry leading at the break on a scoreline of 2.2 to 1.2.
The second half of this game proved to be just as exciting with both teams giving a great display.A point from the hard working Fia Russell on four minutes edged Bantry further ahead with Midleton replying with a point in the eleventh minute.Scores were proving hard to come by for both teams with Midleton failing to convert on several occasions thanks to some great defensive work by Alex Manning,Ruby Coleman,Kate Creedon and Megan o Neill.Bantry again were starting to dominate possession with Anna o Shea and Anna Russell supplying some good ball into the inside forwards.A Callie o Donoghue pointed free on nineteen minutes edged Bantry further ahead and when Kacey Cotter struck for another cracking goal to complete her hat trick the girls in Blue were well on their way.Fresh legs again proved important for Bantry with Erin Andrews and Saoirse Murphy both playing their part.
A fantastic team score in the thirty third minute where Bantry held possession until they opened up the Midleton defence saw Sophie o Donnell round off the scoring for the day with what was the score of the match.Two minutes later jubilation greeted the final whistle as Bantry ran out winners on a scoreline of 3.5 to 1.3.
There was great excitement as Bantry captain Sophie o Donnell was presented with the cup by referee AJ Cronin much to the delight of the Bantry supporters.Well done to each and every one of the girls and their coaches on a remarkable season where Sunday's win saw them complete a marvellous West Cork and County Championship double.
Team proudly sponsored by Bantry Bath and Tile.
In what was a very competitive match from two very good sides it was the girls in blue who came away with a fantastic win on the day.
After winning the toss Midleton chose to play with the aid of a slight breeze for the first half and they got off to a flying start when a high ball in ended up in the back of the Bantry net after just one minute of play.
Midleton registered a point in the fifth minute before Bantry got off the mark with a Callie o Donoghue point a minute later.
Again Midleton replied with a point on seven minutes but Bantry were now starting to get to grips with this game and a cracking goal from the boot of Kacey Cotter in the fourteenth minute saw them close the gap to the minimum.Both teams were playing some lovely football but the Bantry defence were playing solidly and the full back line of Áine Courcey,Caragh McCarthy and Olivia Minehane were handling anything that Midleton could throw at them,in front of goalkeeper Layla Rose Kingston Fitzgerald who was also having a fine game.
Bantry's midfield pairing of Saoirse Cooke and Emma Harrington were now winning some great ball and the half forward line of Fia Russell,Callie o Donoghue and Lily Rose o Donovan were also starting to dominate possession.Quick ball into the full forward line of Anna o Connor,Sophie o Donnell and Kacey Cotter paid off handsomely when the latter struck her second goal of the game to push Bantry in front for the first time.A beautiful point from Sophie o Donnell rounded off the scoring for the first half and this saw Bantry leading at the break on a scoreline of 2.2 to 1.2.
The second half of this game proved to be just as exciting with both teams giving a great display.A point from the hard working Fia Russell on four minutes edged Bantry further ahead with Midleton replying with a point in the eleventh minute.Scores were proving hard to come by for both teams with Midleton failing to convert on several occasions thanks to some great defensive work by Alex Manning,Ruby Coleman,Kate Creedon and Megan o Neill.Bantry again were starting to dominate possession with Anna o Shea and Anna Russell supplying some good ball into the inside forwards.A Callie o Donoghue pointed free on nineteen minutes edged Bantry further ahead and when Kacey Cotter struck for another cracking goal to complete her hat trick the girls in Blue were well on their way.Fresh legs again proved important for Bantry with Erin Andrews and Saoirse Murphy both playing their part.
A fantastic team score in the thirty third minute where Bantry held possession until they opened up the Midleton defence saw Sophie o Donnell round off the scoring for the day with what was the score of the match.Two minutes later jubilation greeted the final whistle as Bantry ran out winners on a scoreline of 3.5 to 1.3.
There was great excitement as Bantry captain Sophie o Donnell was presented with the cup by referee AJ Cronin much to the delight of the Bantry supporters.Well done to each and every one of the girls and their coaches on a remarkable season where Sunday's win saw them complete a marvellous West Cork and County Championship double.
Team proudly sponsored by Bantry Bath and Tile.
