A good draw could a win was there for the taking for Tipperary

Though Tipperary’s hard-earned draw against a fancied Armagh side in the All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football Championship at FBD Semple Stadium on Saturday upset the pundits’ predictions, the point earned was richly deserved and will be crucial in determining if the Premier girls qualify for the quarter-finals.

By Michael Dundon

Armagh went into the game with a division 1 league title under their belt and they also had a win over Meath in the first round. Their form suggested that Tipperary would not be able to contain them and that they would secure the points to top the three-team group, thereby ensuring their place in the All-Ireland quarter-finals, but they hadn’t reckoned on a gutsy Tipperary reaction to the challenge.

Tipp’s point from the fixture was an achievement for substance over style. Armagh’s pace and movement were superior to the home sides, and it took some heroic defending to prevent them scoring, tenacious tackling and energy-sapping closing down denying the Northern shooters the time and scope to pick off their scores. In particular the threat of the Armagh defenders surging forward at full tilt posed problems for the home side, but they stuck to their game plan and were duly rewarded for their effort.

It wasn’t that Tipp did not enjoy their fair share of possession. When they had the ball however, too much of their football was played going backwards or sideways to retain possession. This allowed Armagh the time to regroup defensively to deal with the Tipp offensive and for too long Tipp did not have the power to break the tackle to create the scoring opportunity.

This all changed when Aisling Moloney returned to the fray early in the second half having incurred a ten minute sin-binning just before half-time. Tipp manager Peter Creedon played a master-stroke when sending her to full-forward where the Cahir girl’s pace, ball-playing skills, and strength in the air exposed frailties in the Armagh rearguard that weren’t apparent earlier. And it resulted in the two goals in three minutes and the possibility of a shock home win.

She got the first herself in the 44th minute. It brought Tipp level (1-4 to 0-7) just when Armagh appeared to be pulling clear having hit three points without reply. And she had a hand in Anna Rose Kennedy’s great individual goal three minutes later, distracting the Armagh defence with her movement as the Aherlow girl soloed right through to find the net.

The Moloney move was doubly beneficial in that it also released full forward Angela McGuigan for an outfield role. The drive and energy the Sliabh na mBan club-player added to the Tipp game at that stage was inspiring and crucial to the home side rally that produced the two goals and then in defending their three points advantage in a tense finish.

Tipp’s resolve in those closing minutes was admirable. Armagh threw everything into attack as they saw their challenge for top spot in the group begin to unravel. Inevitably frees were conceded and Armagh pointed two to be just a point behind (0-9 to 2-4) with five minutes to play. Tipp held their nerve in the face of continuous pressure, but Niamh Henderson levelled for the visitors in the 59th minute.

Further evidence of the mettle of the Tipp girls came in injury time as they had goalie Lauren Fitzpatrick sin-binned when, after a handling error she hauled down an Armagh attacker, leaving the Tipp girls a player short for those hectic closing minutes of injury time. But their courage was rewarded, and they held on for a draw, a result that puts them on the front foot for qualification from this group for the All-Ireland quarter-finals.

Barring Tipp’s passage to the last eight is Meath. A draw would be sufficient to see the Tipp girls through and that is going to take another mighty effort. Saturday’s result should give them a tremendous boost in confidence and the belief to know that they are not out of their depth at this level.

Peter Creedon and his backroom team have done a marvellous job in bringing Tipp to this level of performance, and the girls themselves have bought in to the demands placed on them with an enthusiasm and honesty that is paying dividends.

Creedon said after the Armagh game that it would be magic if Tipp were to make the quarter finals. Perhaps he will have a trick or two up his sleeve to bamboozle the girls from the Royal County.