Clare Intermediate Football Championship

Kilmihil Ladies Football

2008 was a great year for the Kilmihil Ladies, in the first round of the Intermediate Championship they met Liscannor and ran out comprehensive winner on the score of 5-10 to 1-05.
Scorers: Eimear Considine 2-4, Una Downes 2-02, Ailish Considine 0-3, Joan O’Halloran 1-0 & Sarah Cahill 0-1.
Next up were Wolfe Tones and once again Kilmihil showed that they were in a different class with a score of 5-15 to 1-04.
Scorers: Ailish Considine 3-3, Eimear Considine 2-5, Denise O’Halloran 0-3, Dympna Walsh & Sarah Cahill 0-2 each.

The Final
Having contested the Intermediate Finals in 2006 & 2007 Kilmihil were determined to make it third time lucky when they took to the field in Cooraclare on 13th September 2008 against Shannon Gaels.
Kilmihil settled early and got down to business scoring 2-2 before the Gaels got on the scoreboard.
At the break Kilmihil led 3-7 to 2-3. Shannon Gaels made a determined start to the second half but Ailish Considine scored a goal followed by points from Sarah Cahill & Joan O’Halloran. The Gaels responded with a point but then a string of goals from Colette Downes, Denise O’Halloran, Mairead Nugent & Una Downes sealed a memorable victory.
Final Score: Kilmihil 7-12 Shannon Gaels 3-6

Team Lineout: Edel Mc Mahon, Colette Downes (1-0), Yvonne Downes, Linda Russell, Miriam Frawley, Fiona O’Neill (Capt.) Elaine O’Halloran, Dympna Walsh, Una Downes (1-0), Mairead Nugent (2-1), Sarah Cahill (0-2), Joan O’Halloran (0-2), Eimear Considine, Denise O’Halloran (2-1) & Ailish Considine (2-5).


Player of the Match – Ailish Considine
Manager: Thomas Mc Mahon, Trainer: Damien Devine

Munster Junior Club Championship

In winning the Clare Intermediate Championship Kilmihil qualified for the Munster Junior Club Championship.
On 4th October they met Cork Junior Champions, Liscarroll in the Munster Semi Final in Parteen in atrocious weather conditions. Torrential rain meant that scores were hard to come by and open play was rare. The game was evenly contested and at half time Liscarroll held a one-point lead. Kilmihil started the second half well and following good work involving a number of players Sarah Cahill scored a great goal. This was followed by points from Ailish Considine and one from Mairead Nugent. Liscarroll refused to give up and fought their way back and when the final whistle sounded there was just the minimum between the sides.
Final Score: Kilmihil 1-6 Liscarroll 1-5.
Scorers: Sarah Cahill 1-0, Ailish Considine 0-3, Eimear Considine 0-1, Mairead Nugent 0-1 & Joan O’Halloran 0-1.

Munster Junior Club Final V Na Gaeil of Kerry, 19th October.

“Kilmihil Girls win thrilling Munster Final”

“Kilmihil are Queens of Munster”

These were the headlines in the Clare Champion & Clare People following a historic victory over Kerry Champions Na Gaeil in the Munster Junior Club Final at Newcastle West on 19th October.
Kilmihil were first to score with points from Denise O’Halloran & Ailish Considine. Na Gaeil dominated for a period scoring 2-1 however Mairead Nugent & Ailish Considine scored points to leave the half time score at: Kilmihil 0-4 Na Gaeil 2-1. Although Kilmihil had wind advantage in the second half Na Gaeil were first to score. Kilmihil settled and began to dominate all over the field.
The comeback started when Eimear Considine moved to the full forward position, her first goal came from a speculative lob which ended in the net. Three minutes later she cut through the Kerry defense and finished with a sublime shot to the roof of the net to give Kilmihil a 2-6 to 2-4 lead. Na Gaeil responded with three points to take the lead once again. It was at this stage that the character of the team came to the fore with every player showing grit and determination. Dympna Walsh epitomized this determination with a mammoth point in the 54th minute to level the score and with two minutes remaining Eimear Considine scored the match winning point.
Final Score: Kilmihil 2-8 Na Gaeil 2-7
Scorers: Eimear Considine 2-2, Ailish Considine 0-3, Dypmna Walsh, Mairead Nugent & Denise O’Halloran, 0-1 each.


Player of the Match – Eimear Considine

All Ireland Junior Club Semi Final v Maynooth, 9th November 2008 in Maynooth.

Kilmihil had to travel to Maynooth to contest the All Ireland Semi Final against Maynooth, on the same day the Kilmihil men’s team were competing in the Munster Club Intermediate Championship against Ballysteen from Limerick.
With home advantage Maynooth settled early and dominated the first half, Kilmihil’s only score was a goal from Ailish Considine and at half time Maynooth led 2-3 to 1-0. On the resumption Eimear Considine moved to full forward and she scored three points in quick succession. With 14 minutes to go Kilmihil were awarded a penalty and Ailish Considine shot to the corner of the net to level the score at 2-3 apiece. Maynooth responded with a point from a free and in the 53rd minute scored a goal from a penalty to stretch their lead to four points. They had little time to celebrate when a move involving seven players was finished to the met by Denise O’Halloran. Spurred on by this Dympna Walsh passed to Denise O’Halloran who leveled the match. Ailish Considine put Kilmihil ahead for the first time in the 56th minute with a free from 40 yards and this proved to be the winning score.
Final Score: Kilmihil 3-5 Maynooth 3-4
Scorers: Ailish Considine 2-1, Denise O’Halloran 1-1 & Eimear Considine 0-3.

All Ireland Junior Club Final V Knockmore (Mayo) at Tuam on 29th November 2008

Knockmore entered the final as favorites and this was evident in their body language when they came out for the warm up before the game. After all, ladies football in Mayo was on a different level to Clare and they fully expected that they would have no trouble from a small club in West Clare. When you approach a game with the wrong mental attitude you pay the price. Three minutes into the game and Knockmore had conceded two goals. The first came inside a minute when Eimear Considine was pulled down, Ailish dispatched the penalty to the net. One minute later Eimear cut through the defense to score number two. Eight minutes before the interval Denise O’Halloran scored number three.
Half time score: Kilmihil 3-3 Knockmore – No score
Kilmihil resumed where they had left off scoring 1-2 inside the first seven minutes of the second half, 1-1 from Eimear Considine and a point from Joan O’Halloran. To add to Knockmore’s frustration Edel Mc Mahon made a magnificent save from a penalty. It took the all of 41 minutes for them to register their first score and by this stage the game was well and truly over.
Edel Mc Mahon in goals, Linda Russell, Yvonne Downes & Fiona O’Neill excelled in defense. Dympna Walsh worked hard in midfield and Una Downes did likewise in both the half forward line and subsequently when she moved to supplement the defense in the second half. Up front the Considine sisters caused consternation in the Knockmore defense every time they got possession as between them they accounted for 3-4 of Kilmihil’s total of 4-6.
Final Score: Kilmihil 4-6 Knockmore 1-4
Team Lineout: Edel Mc Mahon, Linda Russell, Yvonne Downes, Colette Downes, Miriam Frawley, Fiona O’Neill (Capt.), Elaine O’Halloran, Dympna Walsh, Mairead Nugent, Joan O’Halloran, Sarah Cahill, Una Downes, Denise O’Halloran, Eimear Considine & Ailish Considine.
Scorers: Eimear Considine 2-1, Ailish Considine 1-3, Denise O’Halloran 1-0, Mairead Nugent & Joan O’Halloran, 0-1 each.

Player of the Match – Una Downes