Senior League 3: DLHC 1XI 0-3 Kilkeel
It was a tough start to the second half of the season for Donaghadee Ladies’ 1XI as Kilkeel sought revenge for the opening day 3-1 defeat at home back in September.
With a number of players reporting for duty either having been unwell in the week, or carrying injury, it felt as though the team was seemingly held together with Lemsip and sticking plasters!
A cagey first quarter, albeit played at a ferocious pace - kept up for much of the game – meant that neither side managed a shot on target, Donaghadee with one shot wide being the only clear effort in that period.
Donaghadee started quarter two with a flat out assault on the Kilkeel goal with the midfield of Jordan McWilliams, Kerry Kennedy and Helen Herron creating the platform for the forwards to get a couple of dangerous shots away.
A quick counter however saw Kilkeel win a sideline ball on the left. An aerial over the top caught the Dee defence unawares and the forward pounced as the ball landed to give Kilkeel the the lead in the 21st minute.
Both teams continued to play with pace and some excellent moves saw the shot count rise, with both keepers in action. Kerrie Turtle had a double effort well saved by the Kilkeel keeper, while Nicola Patton in the Dee goal was on her toes to clear for the home side.
With a couple of minutes left in the quarter, Kilkeel looked to double their lead but the shot from the top of the circle which was heading goalward was deflected wide by the attacker trying to force it home!
Then with seconds remaining the visitors were awarded a penalty corner and despite a heroic attempted block by Jodie Ingham, Kilkeel converted totake a 2-0 lead at half time.
The third quarter was a very tight affair, with few clear chances for either side. Kathryn Cunningham was a rock in the centre of the Donaghadee defence, helping to restrict the Kilkeel attack to outside the circle, and driving forward in support when she could.
Donaghadee’s two wide defenders, Rachel McClatchey and Row Moore also pushed up to help the attack and the extra bodies helped earn three penalty corners – unfortunately for Donaghadee, all unconverted.
Into the final quarter and it was more of the same. The game was largely played between the 23s with Donaghadee using Jess Moore and Vicky O’Neill as the runners in midfield.
Both sides only had a further couple of clear chances, with one break from Donaghadee seeing a 3 v 2 in the final quarter, but the Kilkeel keeper was off her line quickly to block Carolyn Scott’s rocket of a shot.
As the final five minutes approached, a break from the right from the visitors saw the ball fired across goal and a Kilkeel attacker just got the final touch to divert it past Nicola to secure a 3 goal advantage and the 3 points which, despite the scoreline, was in reality a very close game between two very evenly matched teams!
Helen was voted Star Player for her lung-busting runs from midfield and never-say-die attitude, and she thanked Deborah Gilmour for umpiring duties. The team travel to Newry on Friday night, pass back at 7.45pm.
Junior League 9A: DLHC 2XI 2-0 Newry
In the 1pm slot on Saturday, the Seconds welcomed Newry to BGS, hoping to repeat their away success of earlier in the season.
Due to a Spond Mummy/Daughter Hockey Team mix-up that worked in the 2s favour, returning Katie Donnelly looked like she’d never been away with a solid defensive performance. Alongside Katie D were Lisa Higgins, Vicky O’Neill and new to a defensive position, Lauren Niblock who rose well to the new challenge.
The first quarter was a cagey, tight affair with both teams only managing a single clear shot, both of which were off target.In the second quarter the hosts started to build into their game and both Molly and Katie McKee went close without success. However, as half time approached Donaghadee’s efforts were rewarded when Molly opened the scoring in the 27th minute, giving the Dee a 1-0 going in to half time.
During the third quarter it was very much one way traffic. The pace of Katie and Molly, well supported by Emily Morris, Dawn McDonald and Jordan McWilliams created a number of opportunities but Newry’s defence and keeper kept them out.
The visitors struggled to get out of their half with Dee’s midfield of Johneena Brown, Caroline Davison and Erin Hamilton working well together to keep the play away from their danger zone. Frustratingly, at the 3/4 mark it was still only 1-0.
For the final quarter the hosts shuffled the pack once more with Johneena and Erin moving into more defensive roles. Frustration continued when a couple of PCs were scrambled away and the keeper saved time again and time again.
With the clock marching on, Newry broke through into the Dee circle but thankfully was cleared by a solid defence. Finally, with just a couple of minutes remaining, the ball broke to Dawn in front of goal and she fired it high into the net to double the advantage.
Newry had one final chance at the other end but a super save from Faith McMillan allowed her to keep a clean sheet, and giving Donaghadee a 2-0 win; an excellent result in the end, with credit to the Newry keeper as the Dee ran up 10 shots on target!
The full-time score of 2-0 was reflective of a real team effort with members willingly trying out new positions they had not played before.
Big thanks to Row for umpiring and thank you to those who came down to support the team on Saturday. This week’s star player was well earned by Katie D. Hopefully this means she won’t pack her kit away and will be back again soon!
The next match is Saturday 3rd Feb 24 away to South Antrim.
Donaghadee LHC 