Meath 2-14 Laois 0-6

The Meath minor camogie girls took to the field against Laois, at Clonad GAA grounds, on Sunday Sept 20th in the Leinster Championship Final and emerged as comprehensive winners. The young Royals had already won the All Ireland Minor C title earlier in the year.

The game was played at a frenetic, yet controlled, pace by Meath.  Within two minutes of the starting whistle, with what was going to be her trademark runs for the day, Amy Gaffney captured a ball 45m out, close to side line,  and with a burst of pace was through to the 13m line from where she slotted the ball between the posts for the first score of the game. Meath had a two wide within the next two minutes, one from a long range free, and one from play. A determined opposition made a number of advances into the Meath half of the field in the first five minutes, but a very steady goalie, Siobhan Whitty, and an equally focused  full back line of  Blathnaid Keyes, Maeve Clince and Laura Reilly repelled every advance that Laois made. One such rebutted attack say the ball delivered through the Meath mid-field pairing of Aoife Minogue and Amy Coyne, onwards to Gaffney who again obliged with a well taken point on the sixth minute. A minute later, Nadine Dolye popped over a point from about 30m out. The pressure was maintained on the Laois backs and on the eight minute the ball was deflected over the end line by one of the Laois players for a Meath 45 which was slotted over by Aoife Minogue. During the tenth to fifteenth minute of the half, Laois had a number of scoring chances, one from a free and three from play, but pressure from the Meath defence ensured the opposition remained scoreless.

The reliable Siobhan Whitty, delivered her púc outs with accuracy to the halfback line of Tara Scanlon, Emma Coffey and Fia O'Brien. One such delivery, on the sixteenth minute, was captured by O'Brien who delivered to Megan Thynne, who pushed the button on her rocket burner and within seconds cut across the entire Laois back line to blast a low shot across the goal keeper to find the Laois net. From  their púc out, the sloitar was collected by Niamh McLoughlin, who burst down the right wing and from an acute angle slotted the ball between the uprights. Within three minutes, Aoife Minogue pointed from distance and over the next two minutes Meath maintained the pressure only to register two further wides. During these three minutes, Laois had an attacking movement but failed to capitalise on the move when they drove the ball wide.

On the stroke of the twenty-first minute another lightening run by Gaffney had the sloitar over the bar. Over the next three minutes, Meath has three more attacks but no score resulted. On the twenty-seventh minute of the first half Laois got a free inside the Meath 40m line and slotted the ball over the crossbar for their first score of the game. One minute later, Laois made an attacking run and got their first point from play.  There was no further score in the first half and the teams went into the break with Meath leading on a score line of 1.07 to 0.02.

From the restart of the second half Meath maintained the pressure but recorded a wide within the first minute. But then Laois has a dominant spell and had two points from play within two minutes. Over the next eight minutes Meath soaked up the pressure imposed by a determined opposition. The entire Meath full back line of Keyes, Clince and Reilly and goal keeper, Whitty, had to be at their best. With O'Brien, Coffey and Scanlon in scintillating form, the Laois pressure brought out the best in these players, and with gritty determination and skill repelled attack after attack. The short-term siege by Laois was finally lifted and, in a series of passes that would grace any TV highlights,  a ball was cleared by Clince, onwards to the industrious O'Brien, forward to the hard working Thynne and onwards to the equally busy Gaffney who pointed on the tenth minute of the second half.

The equally hard working full forward combination of  Niamh Gallogly, Nadine Doyle and Niamh McLoughlin in combination with centre forward Labaoise Martin worked hard and on the eleventh minute of the second half saw their hard work repaid by a another smashing point by Gaffney. One minute later, Thynne captured the ball on the 65m line and with an astonishing burst of pace split the Laois defence and slotted the ball over the bar. Three minutes later, in what looked like a déjà vu moment for Thynne, the ball again travelled over the crossbar. On the twentieth minute Aoife Minogue collected a ball from a Laois púc out  and returned it with accuracy over the bar. Shortly afterwards Thynne and Gaffeny were on the score board again.

Mid-way through the second half, Meath started to refresh the team by calling on their substitutes. With Dani O'Suillivan replacing Keyes, and Ciara Jones replacing Scanlon and Anna Stenson replacing Coyne, the Meath back line remained strong and determined. In the forward line Chloe Mahon replaced McLoughlin and Ruth Fagan replaced Gallogly,  and the girls in green powered on.

In a five minute spell from the twenty-second minute Laois staged another resurgence and while four frees were awarded no score resulted. To their credit the opposition stuck to their task and pointed on the twenty-fifth and twenty-seventh minute. However, the Meath response was emphatic, and with immense pressure on the Laois full back line, a ball dropped into the large rectangle and when their back line failed to deal with it, Labhaoise Martyn with swiftness of pace seized  the opportunity and put the ball in the Laois net.

Laois had one final attach with a free granted on the thirtieth minute, but failed to score. So Laois finished the second half having scored 0.04 to Meath's 1.07.

At the end Meath finished on a winning score line of 1.14 to 0.06.   The trophy was presented to the Meath winning captain, Aoife Minogue by the chair of the Leinster Camogie Board Official

This Leinster final win brings a close to a very successful year for this very talented Meath minor squad who earlier in the year won the All Ireland Championship.

The Meath panel was Siobhan Whitty, Blathnaid Keyes, Maeve Clince, Laura Reilly, Fia O'Brien, Emma Coffey, Tara Scanlon, Aoife Minogue (captain), Amy Coyne, Amy Gaffney, Labhaoise Martyn, Megan Thynne, Niamh McLoughlin, Nadine Doyle, Niamh Gallogly, Ciara Jones, Dani O'Sullivan, Ruth Fagan, Chloe Mahon, Maeve Burke, Juliette Wall, Niamh Costello, Rhiannon Hoey, Catriona Murphy, Liadain O'Riordain, Alannah Chalkey,Anna Stenson

The Meath minor team is managed by Teresa Clince with the support of Paul Fitzharris, Gillian Reilly, G T Troy, Mary Keegan and Ed O'Riordan

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