On Sunday afternoon 2 October our Boden U16 Ladies took to the Prunty pitch in Santa Maria to take on arch rivals from Foxrock Cabinteely looking to defeat them for the first time in 4 years and book a place in the U16 Division 1 Championship final.
With the cobwebs all wiped away from the previous day’s celebration of Dublin’s historic victory the 2 juvenile heavyweights collided in a much anticipated game watched by a very sizeable crowd. With both teams eager to get the upper hand early on, it was Bodens lightning quick corner forward Eva Cunningham who opened the scoring with a well taken point from the left hand side after a defensive splitting run from wing forward Aisling Byrne. From then on it was point for point with Fox Cab until the 17th minute when Sarah Moore put Boden 4-3 up and it was a lead that they would never surrender.
Points quickly followed from attacking half backs Hannah Murphy and Joanne Munnelly as Boden began to pass the ball with tremendous vision and accuracy. This enabled their now rampaging forwards to take control of the game with Eric Tobin and Bronagh Lynn dissecting the posts and the deadly finishing from Alanna McGarry who finished the half with 4 points leaving Boden with a 10-4 lead at halftime.
With the expected back lash from the opposition the home side knew the importance of starting the 2nd half as they had finished the 1st and that’s exactly what they did. Eva Cunningham now operating at centre forward took her chance after a lung bursting run to crash the ball into the Foxrock net and bring a deafening roar from the Boden supporters.
The goal seemed to light a fire under the away side and they responded with a goal 2 minutes later with an unstoppable shot flying into the top corner. From that moment it was backs to the wall but the Boden defenders stood tall against the onslaught that was coming their way with the fullback line of Hannah Molloy, Aisling Gargan and Aoife Allen showing why Boden have had the tightest defence in the competition.
As the game neared a finish it looked as though the Boden Belles might not be able to see it out but when they needed players to stand up and fight for the win they got it and midfielder Oliva Meagher was chief orchestrator in keeping Fox Cab at bay. She had the energy to start an attack that led to Bodens 2nd goal when a high ball was played across the square and again it was Cunningham who leapt for the sky and palm the ball into the net.
As Foxrock descend on the Boden goal the home side needed heroic defending from Aoife Dwyer and super sub Hannah Leddy to hold onto the lead. Our goalie Laura Smithers stood up to her Captains role on the day and made some super saves. While at the other end of the pitch Aisling Byrne again ghosted through the mesmerised Foxrock defence to give Boden a 2 point lead.
With the referee signalling 5 minutes of injury time the 2 sides again went point for point with Moore getting her 2nd point and full forward Bronagh Lynn smashing over her 3rd just as the final whistle went to leave Boden 2 point winners 2-14 to 3-9.
The management would like to sincerely thank all the parents and club members who have come out over the last couple of months and shown massive support for the girls and helped us get that extra edge. We do appreciate it. See ya at the final😀