An Chárraig Mhór minor girls' secured their place in this years' county final in a determined win over close rivals Aodh Ruadh at Pairc Colmcille Carrickmore. In what was a titanic struggle between quality teams Carrickmore were able to hold onto a two point lead in the dying minutes under severe pressure from Aodh Ruadh. From the throw in Aodh Ruadh went on the attack and registered there first score within seconds with a point from Aoife Mc Gaughan. Carrickmore's answer was swift with Lisa Mc Crory tagging on two points in quick succession to put the home side a point in front. Meadhbha Ni Cheara added another from a free 2 minutes later and after a good build up involving Ciara Monroe and Ursula Mc Kernan. Denise Mc Cann got her name on the score-sheet with a fine point to leave it three points to one. In complete control at midfield Aoife Mc Guone supplied good passes into the full forward line but Carmen missed both point and goal opportunities within in a one minute spell. Aodh Ruadh responded with two points from frees to narrow the gap. Carrickmore won the resulting kickout and Ciara Monroe, an impressive performer for Carmen, found the livewire Arlene Fox with a good pass. Linking with her sister Aimee, Arlene then found Shannon Mc Callan who swung wide. The Aodh Ruadh kickout was again won by Carmen and a long ball back into Denise Mc Cann proved productive as she turned and drove it over to put her team three points in front once more. However Aodh Ruadh were in no form to surrender and they bombarded the Carrickmore rearguard with ball after ball in a five minute spell of relentless attacking. But the home side held out in a dogged display of defending with Aoife Mc Guone, Ciara Monroe, Shauneen Mc Aleer and the tenacious Alanagh Treanor all making timely blocks and interceptions. Finally they broke out when Emma Mullin, a sure pair of hands between the posts for the full hour, took a ball of the crossbar and fed to the steady full back Ursula Mc Gee. In sweeping move Ursula fed to Aoife Mc Guone who made a long clearance which resulted in a Meadhbha Ni Cheara free which she converted in her usual reliable style. Carmen moved into a commanding lead minute's later when a poor Aod Ruadh clearance went straight to a Carrickmore player who sent Shannon Mc Callan though on goal. She did not squander the opportunity and lifted the roof of the net with a well taken goal leaving Carrickmore 1-7 to 0-3 clear. Sensing the game was slipping from their grasp Aodh Ruadh's Sarah Jane Devlin pushed forward in search of a score to reduce the deficit before half time. They were rewarded with a good point and were back in the hunt minutes later with a well taken goal from Emma Jane Girvan. As the half time whistle sounded the game was a much more balanced affair with the scoreboard reading 1-7 t- 1-5 in favour of An Charraig Mhor. The second half saw Carrickmore rejuvenated after the break and in a sweeping series of hand-passes Ciara Monroe, Arlene Fox and Denise Mc Cann combined and Meadhbha Ni Cheara was sent through on goal but was denied by a great save from the Aodh Ruadh goalie. From the resulting forty five Aoife Mc Guone chipped short to Arlene Fox who slipped to Meadhbha who once more dissected the posts to push her team 3 points ahead. Carmen increased their lead again seconds later when Ursula Mc Kernan, lined out at half back, pushed forward to rifle over a well taken point. Again Aodh Ruadh responded and Emma Mullin was forced to make two excellent goal-line clearances to keep her team in front. However yet again Aodh Ruadh showed their resolve and refused to throw in the towel. Winning the ball at midfield Emma Jane Girvan drove the ball in long to find , Niamh Mc Nulty, whose shot found the roof of the Carmen net to pull them right back in the game. The resulting kickout was won by Aodh Ruadh again and only a superb Ciara Munroe block kept them from levelling matters at that stage. However it was not long before it was all square with Aodh Ruadh slotting over a point to bring the tension to a new high as the game entered the last ten. Carmen now had to dig deep to get the ball back up the field and in a rare attack had a goal ruled out for square ball. Aodh Ruadh's kickout saw them launch yet another assault on the Carrickmore defence but tireless work by Carmen's half back line of Shauneen Mc Aleer, Alanagh Treanor and Ursula Mc Kernan saw a defensive 'though shalt not pass' area in operation for the home girls. Aimee Fox also deserves great praise as she dropped back time and again to link with the half back line to carry the ball forward. With a renewed sense or urgency the Carrickmore girls kept the ball in the Aodh Ruadh half in what was a critical spell in the game. Continuous pressure reaped reward for them with Denise Mc Cann putting them into the narrowest of leads as the clock ticked towards the final whistle. Typical of the Aodh Ruadh girls on the night the again refused to go down without a fight and probed forward yet again and it was only resilient defending from Meave Mc Caughey, Ursula Mc Gee and Orlagh Begley in the full back line that kept the Aodh Ruadh girls from drawing the game yet again. Relentless pressure from Aodh Ruadh in the closing minutes only resulted in a number of wides. Aoife Mc Guone deep in her own defence made a great long clearance to Meadhbha Ni Chearra which culminated in a another point from Meadhbha to round of top class hour for her and to put Carmen into a tentative two point lead. From the kick out Aodh Ruadh yet again pushed forward in search of a match winning goal. A dangerous ball into the Carrickmore defence was again cut out by Aoife Mc Guone who worked unselfishly for her team throughout the hour. Aoife found Arlene Fox with her clearance who carried the ball deep in Aodh Ruadh defence only to be dispossessed by impressive centre half back for Aodh Ruadh and her namesake Aileen Fox. Making a dash forward she was pursued by Arlene who made a match winning block to bring matters to a close. This was a great display of football and on the balance of things a superior team performance saw Carrickmore go through on the night with all players contributing to a hard fought victory. The girls now advance to the championship final for the second year in a row and they will be anxious to make up for the disappointment of last years defeat to Ardboe. Tweet

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