O’Donovan Rossa 0-3

Aghada 3-15

MAIREAD COURTNEY REPORTS

AS Aghada showed they will be a force to be reckoned with in the county senior football championship, it left O’Donovan Rossa in need of results to get their campaign up and running.

2024 Senior A champions and last year’s beaten county finalists Aghada made the long trip to a rain-soaked Rossa Park for this Group 2 clash worthwhile.

With this dominant display they showed again why they are contenders for the top spot this season.

Just four days after their bruising defeat to Castlehaven, and lining out without Cork senior footballer Laura O’Mahony and midfielder Mallaidh O’Neill, this young Skibbereen outfit battled throughout but were outclassed by their experienced East Cork opposition.

The visitors almost had a dream start from the throw-in but Rachel Leahy’s shot on goal was blocked by Skibb’s Shauna Hourihan, and cleared out of defence.

Aghada, playing a slick brand of quick passing football throughout, registered their first point after three minutes, from Kaitlin Smith.

The immense pressure from the Aghada forwards made it difficult for Tara O’Regan to get her kick-outs cleanly away.

O'Donovan Rossa's Sharon Stout in control against Sarah Leahy of Aghada. (Photo: Paddy Feen)

Points from Róisin Phelan, Ali Smith and Abigail Ring (two) followed before a Mary Leahy kick pass found Phelan behind the Skibb full-back line. The five-time All-Ireland winner made no mistake and blasted the ball to the roof of the net.

Skibb continued to work tirelessly in defence, crowding the Aghada attack and although they did force a number of turnovers they struggled to transition quickly and get the ball up to their forward unit.

Skibb sharpshooter Éabha O’Donovan, who looked dangerous when on the ball but starved of possession in attack, got her side’s first score in the 21st minute. An impressive passing move between Triona Murphy and Ellen Healy found O’Donovan who neatly slotted the ball over the bar.

From here to half time it was all one-way traffic with Aghada spreading the ball excellently, and pulling the compact Skibb defence out of shape.

The visitors added five more points before the break, two each for Claire Walsh and Ring and one for Rachel Leahy. They would have added another goal if it hadn’t been for a heroic O’Regan save, leaving the scoreline at 1-10 to 0-1 at half time.

Aghada's Maisie McRae pushing forward against Sinead Farrell of O'Donovan Rossa. (Photo: Paddy Feen)

The second half couldn’t have started worse for the home side as the first attack resulted in a Rachel Leahy goal for the visitors. A clinical kick pass from Claire Walsh split the defence and Leahy made no mistake from close range.

This was followed by points for Smith and substitute Emma Farmer before Skibb registered their second point with an O’Donovan free. Although they were now getting more possession of the ball they could not break through the opposition defence.

Aghada’s Ava Coughlan was a commanding presence at centre back, shutting down many of Skibb’s attacking efforts while also providing the platform for Aghada to launch theirs.

Another goal followed for Aghada, this time after Rachel Leahy’s shot for a point fell short was fortuitously flicked to the net by Farmer. The Skibb defence, led by captain Sarah Healy and Allie Tobin, continued to battle hard as Aghada added three more points, two for Farmer and one for Ring.

O’Donovan Rossa finished brightly with a well-taken Éabha O’Donovan 45 finding Ellen Healy, who turned sharply to raise a third white flag for the home side, the final scoring action of the night.

Aghada were fully deserving of this emphatic victory and maintained their unbeaten record, the only team in either group without a loss this season. Such a resounding victory shows why they will be in the shake-up for the top prize. They next face Castlehaven this Sunday in Rostellan, and will be confident of overcoming another West Cork side.

O'Donovan Rossa's Orla McCarthy battling with Aghada's Ava Coughlan. (Photo: Paddy Feen)

This is a game that the Skibb side will be keen to put behind them, but it does provide them with valuable insight into the standard required to be considered one of the top teams in the Cork senior LGFA.

In their second year at this grade, they now face 2025 senior B champions Glanmire this Sunday in a repeat of last year’s decider.

Glanmire are also yet to register a win this season, so both sides will be targeting this game as a crucial opportunity to register some points and avoid a spot in the dreaded relegation final.

OUR STAR: Ava Coughlan for Aghada effectively stopped most of Skibb’s attacks, and also made darting runs into her opponents’ half. Allie Tobin was best for O’Donovan Rossa on a night where they were up against the toughest of opposition.

Scorers

O’Donovan Rossa: É O’ Donovan 0-2 (1f) E Healy 0-1.

Aghada: E Farmer 1-3 (1f); A Ring 0-5 (2f); R Phelan, R Leahy 1-1 each; C Walsh, K Smith 0-2 each; A Smith 0-1.

O’Donovan Rossa: T O’Regan, A Bohane, A Whooley, E Fitzgerald, S Hourihan, A Tobin, S Hurley, S Stout, C O’Donovan, T Murphy, F Leonard, O McCarthy, É O’Donovan, E Healy, S Farrell.

Sub: L Hogan for F Leonard (46).

Aghada: S Walsh, K O’Farrell, S McAllister, Y Burgoyne, M McRae, A Coughlan, A Smith, S Leahy, R Phelan, B Smith, A Ring, C Walsh, K Smith.

Subs: E Farmer for A Smith (ht), A Cooper for Y Burgoyne (ht), M Collins for M McRae (ht), J Conroy for R Phelan (51).