Early goals propel The Downs to comfortable win

The Downs 3-10 Killucan 0-6

The home team from The Downs always looked the better-balanced side in last Wednesday evening’s Westmeath Ladies senior football championship tie against a gallant outfit from Killucan.

The visitors only managed three points in each half, while their opponents had two goals registered by the seventh minute en route to a comfortable victory against their neighbours and great rivals.

The black and amber-clad ladies were a goal to the good after just 20 seconds, Beth McGuire rounding off a fine move with a well-taken goal. Aided somewhat by a crossfield wind, the winners ought to have added to their tally in the ensuing five minutes before Killucan opened their account from a sixth-minute free, Cailin Raleigh making amends for a miss from a similar range moments earlier.

The Downs responded immediately in the best possible fashion, Niamh Nolan teeing up Francesca Walsh who buried the ball in the roof of the net, taking a knock in the process. Niamh Rowan and Meadbh Monaghan then traded points from frees. McGuire pointed in style (after a great surge from defence from Lucy Power), leaving The Downs ahead by 2-2 to 0-2 at the end of the opening quarter.

In the 17th minute, Sarah McGuire – who had a fine game from start to finish – pulled off a great point-blank save from Monaghan. Walsh soon pointed at the other end before goalkeeper McGuire’s acrobatics ensured that a Hannah Core piledriver for a goal merely resulted in a point.

A point apiece from Nolan (a tidy effort from play) and Beth McGuire (a fabulous left-footed free from an acute angle) put the home side eight points clear. Raleigh missed a scoreable free with the last kick of the first moiety (after a foul on the strong-running Aoife O’Malley), leaving The Downs ahead by 2-5 to 0-3 at the interval.

The winners were wasteful in the opening 11 minutes of the second half, spurning some good opportunities from open play and a 37th-minute '45’ (after Aoife O’Donnell had deflected a Beth McGuire shot over the endline). Following solid defending by The Downs, a counterattack yielded a delightful point from the boot of sub Niamh Keogh.

At the other end, when a shot from Raleigh came back off the upright, Aoife Darby was on hand to fire over the rebound. A brace of routine free conversions by Beth McGuire put her side 2-8 to 0-4 in front at the end of the third quarter.

The outcome was inevitable at this juncture and, unsurprisingly, the final quarter was devoid of intensity. Monaghan doubled her tally for the losers, but Beth McGuire replied with a well-taken team score. The same girl converted a 52nd-minute penalty with aplomb, after a fine delivery by sub Holly Dowdall had caused an element of panic in the Killucan goalmouth.

The latter player pointed neatly to wrap up her side’s tally, with the ladies in saffron and white having the small consolation of registering the final score of the contest when the last kick of the night from Maria Kelly dissected the posts.

Scorers - The Downs: B McGuire 2-5 (1-0pen, 0-3f), F Walsh 1-1, N Rowan (f), N Nolan, N Keogh, H Dowdall 0-1 each.

Killucan: M Monaghan 0-2 (1f), C Raleigh (f), H Core, A Darby, M Kelly 0-1 each.

The Downs: Sarah McGuire; Lauren Guilfoyle, Helen Walsh, Aisling Egerton; Aoife Rowan, Lucy Power, Róisín Scally; Niamh Rowan, Megan Dowdall; Olivia Glynn, Francesca Walsh, Mary Lynam; Kristabella Tamosiunaite, Beth McGuire, Niamh Nolan. Subs used: Holly Dowdall for Lynam (36), Niamh Keogh for Walsh (38), Michelle Bohan for N Rowan (54), Gillian Ferguson for Glynn (57), Georgina Crowley for A Rowan (57).

Killucan: Aoife O’Donnell; Caoimhe Brady, Jade McKeogh, Cathy Doyle; Aoife Darby, Mary Dunne, Aisling Doyle; Aoife O’Malley, Caoimhe McCrossan; Ruth O’Connor, Maria Kelly, Hannah Core; Cailin Raleigh, Amelia Shaw, Meadbh Monaghan. Sub used: Orla Quinn for O’Connor (h-t).

Ref: Ciaran Daly (Kilbeggan Shamrocks).