On Sunday October 3rd Connacht U21s travelled to the Sport Ireland Complex in Abbotstown to face Ulster in the second of their interprovincial games of the season.
Having narrowly lost 1-0 to Leinster in September, the Connacht girls were out to make their mark on the tournament and get points on the board.
Ulster typically dominate interprovincial games at all age groups and are an incredibly tough opposition. Sunda'ys team were no different and the game got off to a cracking start.
After the first quarter the sides were equal at nil all. Early in the second quarter Connacht won a penalty corner. Enter University Galway player Hannah Kelly who stepped up to strike at the top of the circle and she didn't disappoint, hammering the ball into the bottom corner.
Against the odds Connacht were 1 nil up and dominating. A momentary lapse in communication gave Ulster the opportunity to break even and they did just that placing the ball in the back of the Connacht net just 5 minutes after taking the lead.
Halftime came and gave both sides a welcome reprieve. Ulster are coached by Irelands most capped female player Shirley McCay and Connacht knew the Ulster girls would come out fighting.
The opportunity to regroup paid off and Connacht got off to a strong start once again. Aoife Quinn, Ciara Dunne and Megan Clinton worked tirelessly in midfield to turnover possession closing down Ulster and winning the advantage.
The midfield trio are all just 18 years of age and showed experience beyond their years. As did Camille Keane who at just 18 also made her mark on the game dominating Ulster physically.
Towards the end of the third quarter, Connacht vice captain Sarah Holmes picked up the ball on the halfway line. She made a strong run through the heart of the Ulster defence and sent a crash ball in to forward Ailbhe Folan who made no mistake in punishing Ulster. Another of Connacht's young players Ailbhe is also only 18 but showed no signs of nerves.
Connacht went ahead for the second time. Quarter time came and it gave the players and management a couple of minutes to gather their thoughts.
Head Coach Jennifer Hyde stating that "whilst nobody else expected us to be 2-1 up going into the final quarter we always had the self belief that we could do it."
The Connacht side on the verge of making history now had something to fight for. The score remained at 2-1 for much of the final quarter. The Connacht defensive unit of Mary Rooney, Emma Dillon, Robyn Heatherington, Isolde Moran and Amy Keenan were clinical. They faced an enslaught of Ulster attacking short corners and protected the Connacht goal at all costs.
Some harsh umpiring in the dying minutes of the game saw two Connacht players sin binned meaning Connacht had 8 outfield players versus Ulster's 10 for period of time.
Unfortunately this gave Ulster an opportunity to equalise and at full time the game was to go to penalty shuttles.Unlike other sports a pentaly shuttle in hockey is a one on one with the goalkeeper where the outfield player has 8 seconds to score.
A much harder task than it sounds particularly when it's in an interpro game with so much on the line. Five players from each team step forward and as with penalties in other sports they take in turns.
Holly Comer had the unenviable task of being in goals for Connacht. She too is just 18 but for someone so young she has been on the hockey scene for quite a while and was a stand out goalkeeper at U18 level.
The five penalty takers for Connacht were team Captain Robyn Heatherington, Ciara Dunne, Allie Heatherington, Hannah Kelly and Ailbhe Folan. It came down to the final penalty. Holly Comer stayed on her feet biding her time and forcing the Ulster player wide of the target. Connacht U21s had beaten Ulster for the first time in the history of the U21 tournament.
After the game head coach Jennifer Hyde stated, "I'm so unbelievably proud to coach these girls for a second year running. To see them come together as a squad embracing new players and everything we're working on is just so rewarding. In sport the only person who can tell you you can't win is yourself but you don't have to listen and these girls have proven that anything is possible. They have minimal training facilities and no sponsorship unlike other provinces. They even contribute towards the cost of their own training sessions. For their hard work to be rewarded with wins like this makes it all worth while. We play Munster next month in Limerick and that'll be another tough game but we're here to win and not make up the numbers so we're ready for it".
