First half goals prove crucial for Kilkenny minors in win over Cork

Two first half goals gave Kilkenny the upper hand as a strong early wind helped them breeze past Cork at Castle Road.

The Cats were already through to the semi-finals following a series of impressive performances while the hosts were chasing the win they thought they needed.

Aoife O’Grady and Amy O’Shea split the posts to give the visitors an early lead but Cork were quickly back level through Manley (free, 45). It took an excellent save from Aoife Collins to deny Kilkenny their opening goal.

Level at 0-4 apiece after 10 minutes, Kilkenny hit the front with an O’Shea goal at the end of the opening quarter when her low shot from a free caught Cork and ended up in the net.

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Now piling on the pressure, Kilkenny extended their lead with an Emily Phelan point.  When Ruth Crowley first-timed a ground shot to the net, they opened up a six-point advantage. Manley kept Cork in touch with a free and Stephanie Dwyer added one from play, but three in a row from O’Shea made it 2-8 to 0-6 at the interval.

O’Shea maintained her accuracy from placed balls as Kilkenny stayed in front throughout the second half, despite being against the breeze. Cliona Harter and Manley had Cork points. 

With both sides working hard, scores came fast at either end. Phelan and Shauna Mahony were on target for Kilkenny and Manley hit four in between as Cork kept the pressure on, as they knew every score was vital.

As the clock ticked towards the 60th minute, Kilkenny led by nine points and Cork looked to be heading out of the championship, but a goal two minutes into injury time from a long-range Lexi Manley free, ended up being crucial for Cork.

The semi-final pairings were decided after the game. Kilkenny will play Cork again on Saturday, April 11, with a time and venue to be confirmed.

Teams and Scorers

Kilkenny - Amy O’Shea (1-8, 0-6 frees); Emily Phelan (0-5); Ruth Crowley (1-0); Shauna Mahony, Aoife O’Grady (0-1 each).

Cork - Lexi Manley (1-8, 1-5 frees, 0-1 45); Cliona Harte, Lauren O’Connor, Stephanie Dwyer, Leah Hannigan (0-1 each).

Kilkenny -  Ella Walton; Hannah Tennyson, Erin Morrissey, Mairead Duggan; Ciara Hickey, Ona Kennedy, Chloe Teehan; Shannon Doheny, Eleanor Doheny; Aoife O’Grady, Shauna Mahony, Hollie Ryan; Emily Phelan (joint captain), Ruth Crowley, Amy O’Shea.

Subs: Ellen Treacy for Ciara Hickey, Sadhbh Shefflin for Aoife O’Grady, Lucy Coomey for Shannon Doheny, Tara Cody for Emily Phelan.

Cork -  Aoife Collins; Sophie Donoghue, Ava Cashman, Tara O’Neill; Millie Lombard (captain), Caoimhe O’Donnell, Caoilainn Ryan; Orla Troy, Ciara Hayes; Cliona Harte, Lexi Manley, Lauren O’Connor; Lea Meillouin, Clara Murphy, Leah Hannigan.

Subs: Stephanie Dwyer for Ciara Hayes, Erin Healy for Orla Troy, Aoibhinn Halpin for Caoimhe O’Donnell, Caoimhe Foley for Clara Murphy.

Referee - Donnacha O’Callaghan (Limerick).