Derry Senior Ladies fall to Wicklow at Owenbeg

Division 4 Lidl National Football League

Derry 1-01

Wicklow 4-10

Derry Ladies suffered a second defeat in their Division 4 Lidl National Football League game against Wicklow at Owenbeg yesterday, but it is all about taking small steps in the right direction for new manager James McGurk.

The Oakleafers came into their first home game of the season on the back of a humbling opening defeat to Leitrim, knowing full well they could have another tough day against a highly-talented opponent. And while that proved to be the case, McGurk will be happy with the determination and fight his players showed, particularly in the second half when heads could have gone down.

It is all about improvement and progress for Derry this season, with McGurk and his staff knowing that there is plenty to be done and more challenges ahead of them in the 2023 season.

Emphatic start

Wicklow manager Gavin Wynne took charge of the ladies team for the very first time, and named seven debutants amidst a squad blessed with talent and experience and the new boss watched on as his team roared out of the blocks.

For Derry, beaten well by Leitrim last week, it was a very difficult start as they conceded three goals in the first nine minutes before finally getting off the mark themselves. To their credit, the Oakleafers dug deep in difficult circumstances and difficult weather conditions at Owenbeg and made sure that they were not swept away in the remainder of the half, restricting their opponents to just a handful of points in the remainder.

Wicklow’s Player of the Year Sarah Delahunt got the Garden County off the mark with the first point of the game, this after Meadhbh Deeney had gone for goal from a free, only to be denied by Derry goalkeeper Thomasina Cassidy.

Derry struggled to get a foothold in the game with the team in blue setting the tone and they had their first goal within three minutes when Aimee Maher found Aoife Gorman who ran through to fire the ball into the net.

The second goal followed quickly as Wicklow began to dominate and Clodagh Fox turned and sent a bullet of a shot into the top corner of net to make it 0-0, 2-1 with less than seven minutes played.

Derry then made it worse on themselves by gifting Wicklow a third goal. Goalkeeper Cassidy sent a pass straight to Delahunt, who in turn found Meadhbh Deeney who kneed the ball into the open net to give the hosts a mountain to climb in the game with less than 10 minutes even played.

It was a tough opening for any team to take, but Derry, to their credit, responded well with a goal of their own. Just moments after Wicklow’s Lucy Dunne left the pitch after a yellow card, Eve Diamond dropped a free short, but Annie O’Loughlin was alert and managed to force it over the line for Derry.

Having that extra player for a few minutes helped Derry finally settle into the game, and Erin Doherty scored a free as the hosts showed that they were not going to go down without a fight.

But Wicklow were sharp and clinical when they needed to be, and a free from Meadhbh Deeney and two scores from the impressive Clodagh Fox ensured that they went into the half time break with a nine-point lead at 1-1, 3-4.

Half Time 1-1, 3-4

The weather continued to deteriorate in the second half, with a heavy rain joining the ferocious wind, making it more difficult for both sets of players.

It was Wicklow who started the strongest and added to their lead through Delahunt, Gorman and Cullen as the difference between the sides went into double figures.

Derry looked stronger after the break however, thanks to a number of substitutes, one of which, Katy Holly, worked a good pass into Clodagh Moore, who looked set to find the net only for a brave block from Dunne to turn it wide for a 45’.

There was certainly more fight from Derry in the second half despite the conditions and the scoreline, but the threat was always there from Wicklow, who now seemed content to break quickly on the counter-attack whenever a chance arose.

The score line could have read much harsher come the end, but Wicklow were denied two goals, first by a superb goal line block from Emma Connolly, and then a brilliant save from Cassidy to deny Sarah Evans, a save which had manager James McGurk punching the air on the sidelines.

In between those chances, Derry might have had a goal themselves with a crisp move which saw Emma Doherty lay the ball off for Megan Devine to run through, but her shot was just wide of the target.

Late scores from Maher, Fox and Delahunt came amidst a flurry of changes from both sides, and they final say went to the visitors, with Laci Jane Shannon scoring a goal in added time to round off  very good day for the Garden County.

For Derry, the hard work is only beginning now, withy each positive step a small victory in itself who McGurk, who knows full well the size of the task at hand in the coming months.

Teams

DERRY: Thomasina Cassidy, Hannah Mullan, Blaithin Donnelly, Joanne Corr, Dervla Stinson, Anna Frizelle, Orlaith McCloskey, Kate Hargan, Lea Casey, Anna Martin, Erin Doherty (0-1, 1f), Annie Crozier, Annie O’Loughlin (1-0), Eve Diamond, Aoife McGlone.

SUBS: Clodagh Moore for Eve Diamond 26’, Katie Holly for Dervla Stinson 30’, Emma Doherty for Lea Casey 37’, Kate Higgins for Annie Crozier 37’, Ciara Scullion for Nuala Browne 39’,  Aoife Boorman for Anna Martin 45’, Dara McKeever for Aoife McGlone 45’, Emma Connolly for Joanne Corr 45’, Anna Young for Erin Doherty 55’.  

WICKLOW: Ellen Griffin, Sarah Evans, Sarah Jane Winders, Roisin Byrne, Aimee Maher (0-1), Lucy Dunne, Laci Jane Shannon (1-0), Elizabeth Bourke, Aoife Gorman (1-1), Sarah Delahunt (0-3), Niamh Cullen (0-1), Eimear O’Sullivan, Clodagh Fox (1-3), Meadbh Deeney (1-1, 1f), Aobha Harmon.

YELLOW: Lucy Dunne (10)

SUBS: Helena Dowling for Eimear O’Sullivan 52’, Megan Healy for Aoife Gorman 58’, Grainne Flynn for Roisin Byrne 58’, Eimear Murphy for Niamh Cullen 60’, Erika Dagge for Clodagh Fox.

REFEREE: Christopher Morgan (Down)