Donegal got off to a perfect start in less than ideal weather conditions, as their Lidl Ladies Football League Division 2 campaign got off to a winner with a four-point victory over Laois at the Laois Centre of Excellence in Portlaoise today.
Donegal 0-7 Laois 0-3
Managed by new boss John McNulty, the visitors quickly settled into their groove, and with a host of new faces on the pitch also, beat a relatively young Laois side who found it hard to break down their Donegal counterparts.
By Cóilín Duffy
The full brunt of Storm Isha was felt in the opening stages, with driving wind and rain conditions hampering play, especially in the opening 25 minutes of this match.
Aided by a gale force wind, Donegal used it to their advantage, firing all four scores of the opening half.
Laois lorded possession early on, but were laborious in their moves, and failed to convert this to scores.
In contrast Donegal were able to find the target and done so initially through Susanne White, as she opened her tally in the 8th minute, for the first of three first half scores from the Killybegs woman.
Just under 11 minutes was gone on the clock when Ava Gallagher grabbed Donegal’s second point, and five minutes later Donegal had doubled their lead, with White firstly on target from a close range free, after Laois were penalised for not getting the kick-out away quickly enough; and then a fine effort from play arrived.
Leading by 0-4 to 0-0 after 16 minutes, Donegal were looking good, but they wouldn’t add to their tally again until early in the second half.
At the opposite end Donegal defended strongly, with Laois finding it increasingly difficult to penetrate a resolute green and gold rear-guard.
Laois were given a life-line, but failed to capitalise after a Mo Nerney free dropped short, with keeper Clare Friel safely clearing the ball.
Donegal were wracking up the wides themselves though, and by the interval they had seven missed chances – something that potentially could have come back to bite them in the second half, with a gale force wind now in their faces.
That four-point interval lead was reduced to three points, three minutes after the restart when Laois’s Emily Lacey eventually got the hosts on the score-board, with a fine point from play.
Laois quickly had a chance to build on this but fired wide, before Donegal gained composure with a Susanne White pointed free.
By now the Donegal defence was finding themselves under a lot of pressure, and were forced to concede a free which Nerney slotted over to ensure a 0-5 to 0-2 score-line on 40 minutes.
Donegal went in search of scores from play, but it was frees that would keep them ticking over.
Firstly Katy Herron on 49 minutes, and then another from Susanne White two minutes later, to ensure a five-point gap.
White’s effort was Donegal’s final score of the hour, but they still looked very much in command, and although Nerney added another pointed free for Laois, the visitors had done enough to travel home with a full set of league points.
Next up for Donegal are Westmeath next Sunday at 12noon in O’Donnell Park, Letterkenny as part of a double-header with the men’s footballers League opener against Cork.
Scorers for Donegal: Susanne White (3f) 0-5; Katy Herron (1f) Ava Gallagher 0-1 each.
Scorers for Laois: Mo Nerney (2f) 0-2; Emily Lacey 0-1.
DONEGAL: Clare Friel; Shannon McLaughlin, Abigail Temple Asokuh, Katie Long; Shauna McFadden, Nicole Gordon, Tara Hegarty; Roisin Rodger’s, Niamh Boyle; Eva Gallagher, Niamh McLaughlin, Katie Dowds; Susanne White, Katy Herron, Amy Boyle Carr. Subs: Caoimhe Keon (Blood 12-15); Evelyn McGinley for McFadden (52).
LAOIS: Eimear Barry; Sinead Farrelly, Clodagh Dunne, Aoife Cummins; Susie Delaney; Andrea Moran, Ciara Malone; Anna Moore, Anna Lalor; Roisin Allen, Emily Lacey, Katie Donoghue; Mo Nerney, Aisling Fitzpatrick, Orla Hennessy. Subs: Mary Cotter for Cummins (HT); Alice Walsh for Allen (HT); Grainne Moran for Lalor (38); Aerin Ryle for Lacey (59).
REFEREE: Anthony Marren (Monaghan)
