Kilkenny back in camogie race as Dubs are downed

The Kilkenny senior camogie side bounced back in style as they overcame a stubborn Dublin side by 1-19 to 1-14 in Parnell Park.

The Cats responded to their defeat to Waterford last time out with a crucial Group 2 win over the Dubs at Parnell Park.

Tommy Shefflin’s side laid the foundations for this win in the opening half. After the sides were deadlocked at 0-2 apiece after seven minutes, Dublin taking the lead first through Gaby Couch and then Aisling Gannon, Kilkenny outscored their foes by 1-9 to 0-4 from there until half-time.

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The Cats hit five on the spin after falling behind for the second time. Aoife Prendergast grabbed three of those scores while Sophie Holden and Mary O’Connell also added points.

Aoife Prendergast

Kilkenny struck a decisive blow when Prendergast latched on to Sophie Holden’s diagonal ball before coolly slotting to the net to bring her tally to 1-4. She struck for three more scores before the half ended and although Aoife McKearney hit back for Dublin, an eight-point interval lead looked daunting.

Their task became more manageable when Niamh Gannon found Aisling O’Neill, who duly spun inside a tackle and drove for goal, rattling the net just a minute into the final period. The Kilkenny response was emphatic however, as they bagged three of the next four scores via Steffi Fitzgerald and a brace from Prendergast.

Dublin’s effort was unrelenting with O’Neill, Sinéad Wylde and Áine Rafter cutting the gap to four points but Katie Power’s 62nd minute score saw Kilkenny home.

The battle for places in the knockout stages appears set to go down to the wire as Tipperary racked up a big win over Wexford to remain the frontrunners for second place behind All-Ireland champions Cork, who were idle this week.

Waterford also recorded a resounding win over Derry to keep their positive momentum going, moving level on points with Galway and Kilkenny.

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