Kilkenny under 14s retain their Leinster Title

 Kilkenny's under 14 team retained their Leinster Title on Sunday 5^th July when they defeated Dublin in Craobh Chiarain GAA grounds outscoring their opponents by 3-14 to 3-0 and in the process they set a new record winning their 7^th consecutive u14A Leinster Title. The match was played in weather conditions usually associated with winter with teeming rain and a strong wind facing both teams but credit  to the girls on both teams who serve up a final worthy of the occasion with skill, fitness, passion and commitment being evident in both teams who fought to claim the 2009 Leinster Title.  Dublin started the better and with only 4 minutes gone they went into the lead with a well taken goal which rocked the Kilkenny kittens as they usually impose themselves on the opposition from the start.  However, Kilkenny didn't panic and responded with a well taken point from the impressive Ciara Byrne from 30 metres.  Then Kilkenny's forward Ciara Holden ran at the Dublin defence and put the sliotar over the bar but it could easily have crept under into the net as her shot scraped over the bar. It was all Kilkenny now and captain Lydia Fitzpatrick powered from midfield and struck the sliotar over the bar to level the score at 0-3 to 1-0. Dublin with the benefit of a strong wind at their backs constantly poured forward but resolute defending from the kittens full-back line stemmed the flow assisted by the Kilkenny half-line who provided support at every occasion they helped play Kilkenny out trouble on numerous occasions. Kilkenny were on a scoring spree now which was all the more impressive given the strong wind they were playing against and they racked up points from the hardworking corner forward Jessie Ryan with a well-taken point and two well taken frees from Lydia Fitzpatrick. Dublin showed their mettle and they continued to attack with intent and tried to swing the momentum back their way.  Dublin won a free 40 metres from Kilkenny's goal and Dublin's most dangerous forward Ciara Berkley took the free and with the wind assisting her strike her shot troubled Kilkenny's keeper who lost control and the sliotar was pounced on by a Dublin forward and it ended up in the Kilkenny net. This score brought Dublin back into the match and levelled the score at Kilkenny 0-6 to Dublin's 2-0.  For all Kilkenny's good play the match was now level and just before half-time Kilkenny's commanding corner-back Catherine Foley picked up an arm injury and had to be replaced by Thomastown's Meghan Farrell.  Kilkenny just edged in front before half-time when full forward Ciara Holden put over a super point to leave the score at half-time Kilkenny 0-7 to Dublin 2-0.

For the first time in this Leinster campaign Kilkenny were under serious pressure as Dublin took the game to them and Dublin were in a confident mood as they felt this Leinster title was within their grasp for the first time since 1991 which was the last time Dublin lifted the u14 trophy. Kilkenny came out in a determined mood for the second half and the partnership of Ciara Holden and Jessie Ryan were to torment the Dublin fullback line in the 2^nd half with their movement and guile and it was Jessie Ryan who pounced in front of goal after good work from Ciara Byrne and Ciara Holden who set up the chance. Jessie Ryan then scored her second goal when she ghosted into the area and put the sliotar into the Dublin net to leave the score 2-7 to 2-0.  Kilkenny added on points from Ciara Byrne, Lydia Fitzpatrick and a brace from Ciara Holden extending Kilkenny's lead. Dublin tried to respond but Julie Ann Malone, Deirdre Walsh, Miriam Walsh and Amy Bryan kept them at bay defending stoutly throughout.  Siobhan Corcoran entered the fray when she replaced the hardworking Edel Long who had picked up a knee injury and Siobhan's running style of play unsettled the Dublin halfback line. Dublin came back into the running when a fiercely struck shot was well saved by Noelle Murphy but a Dublin forward pounced on the rebound and drive the ball to the Kilkenny net to leave the score Kilkenny 2-11 to Dublin 3-0. Kilkenny went up the field and Michaela Kenneally added a point to extended Kilkenny's lead. Niamh Donnelly replaced star corner forward Jessie Ryan and Niamh's first contribution was to put the sliotar over the bar. Ciara Holden then put result beyond doubt when she scored a goal to underline her performance on the day which was immense. Substitutes Lauren Barcoe and Aisling Nolan came on for Michaela Kenneally and Ciara Byrne and were very lively, feeding ball to Ciara Holden who tagged on another 2 points.  In the finish Kilkenny ran out impressive winners at the final whistle with the final score reading Kilkenny 3-14 to Dublin's 3-0.  Players, parents and supporters were delighted with this win as Dublin had pushed the team all way but Kilkenny's strong work ethic and support play was a deciding factor in this victory.  In addition Kilkenny's ability to take points in such adverse weather conditions was a pleasing factor for the Kilkenny management team.  It was left to Kilkenny captain Lydia Fitzpatrick to collect the Leinster Cup and in her speech; she thanked her team-mates for the effort they put in all through this Leinster campaign. She thanked the Kilkenny county camogie board for the back-up and support for the under 14 camogie squad and she also thanked Kilkenny new camogie sponsor Iverk Produce who supplied the new Kilkenny jerseys for the match and got the new sponsorship off to a winning start. She also thanked the management team of Paddy Kelly, T.J Bryan, Ann Donnelly, Tony Byrne and Niamh Kelly who put in a tremendous effort to have these kittens ready for the final. She also thanked the Dublin team for a tough, sporting and hard fought final during which Kilkenny were pushed all the way. Lydia thanked the match officials and Craobh Chiarain's club for the use of the grounds and facilities which were impressive and a credit to them. Kilkenny had many heroes on the day with forwards Jessie Ryan, Ciara Holden and Ciara Byrne being at the heart of everything good in this display. Niamh Dermody who does a lot of the hard grafting without getting the plaudits and the midfield duo of captain Lydia Fitzpatrick and Rachel Lynch who dominated the midfield and were instrumental in setting up attacks from which the forwards reaped the dividends. The half-back line of the steady Deirdre Walsh, hardworking. Miriam Walsh and the sparkling Julie Ann Malone were the rock for Kilkenny all season. The fullback was solid as usual with Catherine Foley having blossomed into a steady and reliable corner-back over the campaign.  Amy Bryan a tough and resolute full-back who no opposing forward got the better of throughout this campaign and she was ably assisted by Kate Doheny at corner back who is one of the tightest markers in the game. Substitutes Meghan Farrell, Niamh Donnelly, Siobhan Corcoran, Aisling Nolan and Lauren Barcoe who came on during the match were superb and their performance shows how high the standard is throughout the squad as any of this 33 strong panel could easily have started on the day.
This victory on Sunday in the u14A Leinster final set a new record of 7 consecutive Leinster titles.  The management team have given the squad a month off training and will resume later in the season when they will contest the u14 blitzes in Waterford and Tipperary later in the season

Scorers for Kilkenny: Ciara Holden 1-5, Jessie Ryan 2-1, Lydia Fitzpatrick 0-4 (3F), Ciara Byrne 0-2, Michaela Kenneally 0-1,Niamh Donnelly 0-1

Subs used: Meghan Farrell for Catherine Foley, Siobhan Corcoran for Edel Long, Niamh Donnelly
for Jessie Ryan, Lauren Barcoe for Michaela Kenneally, Aisling Nolan for Ciara Byrne

Kilkenny Panel
Noelle Murphy (Naomh Brid), Catherine Foley (Windgap), Amy Bryan (O'Loughlin Gaels), Kate Doheny (St.Lachtains), Deirdre Walsh (Mooncoin), Julie Ann Malone (Mullinavat), Miriam Walsh (Tullaroan), Lydia Fitzpatrick (Capt.) (St.Lachtains). Rachel lLnch (Dicksboro), Edel Long (Piltown),  Niamh Dermody (Piltown), Michaela Kenneally (Windgap), Ciara Byrne (Clara), Ciara Holden (Mullinavat), Jessie Ryan (Emeralds), Niamh Donnelly (Thomastown), Meghan Farrell (Thomastown) Siobhan Corcoran (St.Annes), Lauren Barcoe (Paulstown), Aisling Nolan (Clara),  Aisling Webster (Emeralds), Niamh Leahy (Emeralds), Megan Coogan (St.Lachtains), Clodagh Power (St.Lachtains), Clare Nolan (Clara), Mary O'Connell (Clara,) Rachel Buckley (John Lockes), Christine Lyng (Rower Instioge), Áine Gannon-Lyng (Rower Inistioge), Rebecca Haberlin (Mullinavat) Mandy Power (Windgap) Emily O'Dwyer (Ballyhale Shamrocks) Anna Buggy (St.Lactains)

Kilkenny u14 Camogie Team win the James Hurley Blitz for the First Time

Kilkenny u14 camogie team won the James Hurley U-14 camogie tournament in the Mallow Sports Complex on Saturday defeating a strong Tipperary team by the narrowest of margins on a final score of Kilkenny 0-8 points to 1-4.   These Kilkenny kittens came out of a tough group and had to overcome the tough opposition from strong Galway and Tipperary squads to win this tournament which is the highlight of the under 14 blitz's in the camogie calendar. Their first match in the tournament was against Tipperary and they started with a blistering opening salvo of points from the full forward line while limiting Tipperary to long range shots. Kilkenny went into the half time break leading 0-4 to 0-0. The second half saw the midfield and half-forward line supply the forwards with quality ball and they added another 3 points to the score line. Tipperary tried hard to register scores but the Kilkenny half-back line and full-back line worked hard with blocking and hooking to frustrate the Tipperary forwards and keeping a clean sheet. On full time the final score was Kilkenny 0-7 to Tipperary 0-0.

The next match was against Galway who are a strong physical side with many skilful players in their team and they proved to be more than a handful for the Kilkenny players. Kilkenny started well with the forwards racking up 2 goals and a point in the first few minutes and this put Galway on the backfoot. At half-time Kilkenny led but Galway came out fighting in the second half and scored some marvellous points from long range and two opportunist goals put them into the lead.  Kilkenny were under pressure with defeat looming, but midfielder Lydia Fitzpatrick pointed from all of seventy metres to leave Kilkenny only a point behind with a minute left. With time running out fast the Kilkenny half-back line launched a long ball into the Galway defence which full-forward Ciara Holden picked up and ran at goal and drove an unstoppable shot past the Galway goalkeeper to give Kilkenny the lead again by 2 points. This was the last passage of play in this match and Kilkenny secured victory on a score-line of 3-3 to 2-4.  This victory ensured that Kilkenny went straight into the semi-final and this was essential considering the hot and blazing sunshine in which these games were played and given that Kilkenny's style of play is based on a high work rate.  Credit must be given to the Kilkenny players whose fitness levels were exceptional; their skill level was of the highest order, particularly their first-touch and striking which was a very pleasing aspect and one which the management team must be happy with.

The winners of the quarter-final match between Galway and Cork were to provide the opposition for the waiting Kilkenny players and it was Galway who emerge victors as they took their chances against a hardworking Cork team. The semi-final match commenced with Kilkenny starting well with 3 quick points from their forwards.  The Kilkenny management team seemed to have learned from their earlier encounter with Galway as during this game Kilkenny managed to nullify Galway with close man-marking and kept Galway under wraps for most of the game. Kilkenny added a goal to give them a lead of 1-3 to 0-0 with seven minutes gone. However, Galway were not beaten yet and they came back into the game with a goal just before half-time and looked to be back in the game.  At the break Kilkenny led by 1-3 to 1-0.  In the second half it was Galway who scored first with a well taken point and they took the game to Kilkenny. Kilkenny soaked up the pressure and towards the end of the period sent over 4 unanswered points and won the game on a score-line of 1-7 to 1-1 and a place in the final where they would meet Tipperary who overcame a well-organised and spirited Limerick team in the semi-final.

The final was played on the main pitch which has a fine stand and the pitch was in immaculate condition and with the sun shining down, a better setting could not be asked for. Kilkenny started well and scored 3 points and had the vast majority of play in the opening 6 minutes and their movement and passing was a joy to behold. The Tipperary girls fought back and never gave up and were rewarded when the Tipperary centre-half forward drove in a fierce shot from 25 yards and even though the Kilkenny goalkeeper done well to stop it with her hand it trickled over the line to put Tipperary back in the game. With half-time looming it was Tipperary's turn to apply the pressure and they scored another 2 points to level the match at half-time with the score at Kilkenny 0-5 to Tipperary's 1-2. Questions were now being asked of this Kilkenny team but they had the heart for the battle.  At halftime the management team told the team to keep playing as they has in the whole tournament with tight marking, high work rate and to keep the ball moving as quick as possible into the forward line. The second half started with both teams trying to outmatch each other in the half-forward and half -back lines and this was were most of the play centred with both teams unable to take a backward step and both trying to gain the supremacy which would swing the result their way. Kilkenny got the first score when Edel Long picked up a breaking ball and ran 20 yards and put over a super point to restore Kilkenny's lead. Tipperary levelled the score with a well taken free.  Kilkenny forward Niamh Donnelly gave Kilkenny the lead when she never gave up on a ball and broke past two tackles and put over a super point from about 20 metres.  This left the score 0-7 to 1-3. Tipperary went up field and after some good passing got the ball out to their right-half forward who pointed from 40 metres to level the scores again at 1-4 to Kilkenny's 0-7. For the last few minutes both teams gave it their all trying to win the game as the action went from end to end with plenty of chances spurned by both teams. In the dying seconds with Kilkenny on the attack, their full forward Ciara Holden was fouled about 40 metres from goal and a free was awarded. Ciara was asked to take the free which was at a tricky enough angle and with time running out this was a pressure free, if she put it over Kilkenny would win the match, but if missed it would ensure extra-time in very hot conditions. Ciara drove the resultant free straight over the bar to give Kilkenny the lead by a single point with the score line now 0-8 to 1-4. Kilkenny won the puck out from the Tipperary goalkeeper and the referee blew the whistle for full time at which point   the whole Kilkenny squad ran on to the pitch and wildly celebrated with each other on winning such a tough and sporting match which was a credit to both teams.

These Kilkenny kittens can be proud of winning this Tournament and they displayed great skill, fitness, heart and conviction which is evident throughout the whole squad and has been instilled by the management team from the start of the season. So it was that captain Lydia Fitzpatrick stepped up to receive the James Hurley Cup on behalf of the Kilkenny team and in her speech thanked the Tipperary team for a tough and sporting final. She thanked and congratulated her Kilkenny squad of team mates on winning such a prestigious tournament in which every player had a part to play on the day. She also thanked the management team of T.J Bryan, Ann Donnelly, Tony Byrne Niamh Kelly and Paddy Kelly for all their work and effort in shaping this Kilkenny squad. She thanked the referee and the Mallow Sports Complex and grounds for the excellent facilities which were on show for the day.

This was Kilkenny's first victory in this tournament which has been running for the last 10 years.  Kilkenny's victory means that they join an elite club as there have been only two winners of their tournament in the past, Cork and Galway. Kilkenny's name will engraved on the cup as winners in 2009. At u14 level Kilkenny camogie has gone from strength to strength and this team now goes forward to contest the Leinster final against Dublin.   On the day the whole Kilkenny squad can be proud of the contribution they made in achieving this victory.

Kilkenny Panel: Noelle Murphy, Rachel Lynch, Amy Bryan, Kate Doheny, Deirdre Walsh, Julie Ann Malone, Miriam Walsh, Lydia Fitzpatrick (Capt), Siobhan Corcoran, Edel Long, Niamh Dermody, Michaela Kenneally, Niamh Donnelly, Ciara Holden, Jessie Ryan,, Lauren Barcoe, Clodagh Power, Anna Buggy, Niamh Leahy Áine Gannon-Lyng, Aislinn Nolan, Aisling Webster, Catherine Foley, Christine Lyng, Ciara Byrne, Clare Nolan, Emily O'Dwyer, Mandy Power, Mary O'Connell, Megan Coogan, Meighan Farrell, Niamh Donnelly, Rachel Buckley, Rebecca Haberlin