Mayo take giant step toward All-Ireland semi-final with thumping victory
The Mayo minor camogie team enjoyed a big win over Donegal.
It began in a deluge but ended in delight for the home side as Mayo swept away the challenge of Donegal in this round four encounter played at a gale-forced wind atmosphere in Tooreen on Sunday afternoon.
In truth, this game will not find a place in the list of great games played at this illustrious venue, but the heavy showers and powerful gusts made handling and the general skills of camogie very difficult indeed.
With Mayo having made an unbeaten start in their previous two games, they lined out with a lot of their younger minors as a place in the knockout rounds was virtually assured before throw-in but still delivered a solid performance.
Donegal did compete with Mayo in the opening half and trailed by just seven at the break, 1-6 to 0-2, but their challenge fell away after the restart and Mayo upped their performance somewhat, to run out easy winners.
Mayo’s best displays came in their forward division, especially Áine Gallagher, Hannah Hauttman and Rebecca Hastings while both midfielders Laoise Greally and Méabh Tunney were dominant throughout.
Donegal opted to play with the gale-force wind to their backs for the opening thirty minutes, but it was still Mayo who made the better start and led 1-2 to 0-0 after 11 minutes. Points by Hannah Hauttman and Áine Gallagher arrived before a terrific solo effort goal up the centre of the pitch by Laoise Greally resulted in her crashing the ball to the Donegal net, despite the best efforts of Cassie Lambe in the Donegal goal.
But the remainder of the half saw Mayo edge it by four points to two, with Áine Gallagher adding two from play, a ’45 by Méabh Tunney and Rebecca Hastings kicking over a point for good measure. Meanwhile, at the other end, Allison Tourish from play and Sarah Lambe from a free kept the visitors in touch at the interval.
Donegal competed well for the opening stages of the second half, adding a third point by Lambe from a free but once Mayo introduced a raft of substitutes seven minutes in, the pattern changed significantly. Ella Fallon, Rebekah Monaghan and Ava Dooley upped the whole energy levels around the field after being introduced, and it was all one-way traffic from here.
Rebecca Hastings kicked home her first and Mayo’s second goal nine minutes into the second half, and that was followed by a string of points with Hannah Hauttman being outstanding in her centre-forward role. The way she drove forward with pace and punched holes in the Donegal defence time after time was inspirational, to say the least.
The Castlebar native had hit over two from play just after the resumption, but it was following Hastings goal, that she became a standout figure. She then added three quickfire points, two from play and a free, taking great advantage of the wind that was now to her back in this second half. Molly Farrell and Laoise Greally also got on the score sheet for Mayo throughout this third quarter with only a Paige Rushe effort from play being the response at the other end.
This game was over as a contest long before the final whistle sounded but there was still enough time for a further five late points – all for Mayo. Westport’s Méabh Tunney hit three of these, two from play and one a free, while it was none other than Player of the Match Hannah Hauttman who added two more, a free and from play, to round of a terrific display and finished top scorer with 0-7 to her name.
It was 'job done' and the next stop is Wicklow on the east coast next Sunday to conclude their group fixtures before the knockout rounds commence.
