Kilkenny women maintain 100% record in Leinster League with home win

The Kilkenny Women welcomed the South East Lions to Foulkstown for their first home game of the Leinster League campaign.

Following on from their impressive victory over Roscrea RFC, the team were eager to claim a second feather in their cap on home turf.

The South East Lions, however, didn’t bring much of the ‘sunny South East’ with them on this overcast and grey afternoon.

From the opening kick-off, Kilkenny carried strongly into the Lions’ defence, immediately earning a penalty.

The first scrum of the day saw the home side assert their dominance, pushing the Lions back and keeping them pinned deep in their own 22.

Megan Callanan kicked confidently for the corner, but soon a game of kick tennis developed as both sides traded territory.

Kilkenny’s defensive effort was relentless, with Leah O’Brien putting in low, hard tackles to halt any Lions progress past halfway.

Isla Mosse challenged well at the lineout, putting pressure on the visitors.

However, a string of penalties against Kilkenny allowed the Lions to creep into the home side’s half.

A lapse in tackling opened the door for the Lions to dive under the posts for the first score of the match - 7-0 to the visitors.

After the restart, Kilkenny refocused and fought back with determination. Strong carries saw the “black wall” advancing towards the Lions’ 22.

It was a tight, back-and-forth battle.

Mosse once again proved her worth in the lineout, stealing possession and dropping the ball neatly into Jenny Kirwan’s hands, but the Lions managed to turn it over shortly after.

Rachel Brickell made a crucial try-saving tackle and forced a penalty, giving Kilkenny a chance to reset.

The second half continued much as the first - a true cat-and-mouse contest.

Then, when the game seemed to settle into a pattern, Tina Wright powered through several defenders and was unstoppable as she dotted down in the corner.

The score tightened to 7-5 in favour of the Lions.

Momentum swung again as Kelly Comerford made a big carry and crunching tackle, forcing a turnover and keeping Kilkenny in contention.

Unfortunately, a series of infringements saw the home side reduced to 14 with a yellow card.

The Lions took advantage and crossed the line again soon after, making it 12-5 to the visitors.

With time ticking away, Caroline Quirke spotted a gap and darted through to score a well- worked try.

Emily Kenny calmly slotted the conversion to level the game at 12-12.

Both sides fought fiercely for the winning score in the closing minutes, but it was Kenny who held her nerve, sending a penalty straight through the posts to edge Kilkenny ahead 15-12.

The final whistle brought huge cheers from the home crowd as Kilkenny secured a hard- fought win.

Many thanks to the supporters who braved the weather to cheer on the team.

The Kilkenny Women now look forward to their next challenge - an away fixture against old rivals Navan RFC on Sun - which promises to be another thrilling encounter.