Pléimeann: We never talked about victory
DAIRE WALSH – 10 APRIL 2014 03:30 PM
There was high drama at Dr Cullen Park on Saturday afternoon, when late contributions by Isolt Ní Ríordáin and Hannah Ní Dhéa helped Colaiste Iosagain to seal a historic All-Ireland Schools Senior ‘A’ Ladies Football title at the expense of Coláiste Dún Iascaigh of Cahir.
In spite of the close nature of the contest, íosagáin manager Cathal Pléimeann was always confident that they would emerge victorious, even before substitute Ní Dhéa’s decisive injury-time goal.
“When it was so tight we really knew that the next score was going to be very important. If we conceded it, we would have been hopeful to get up the pitch and get a score,” a delighted Pléimeann remarked.
“When we were on top we took our chances, and when we were under pressure we didn’t give away anything soft after the first ten minutes.”
Having recovered from an early 0-1 to 1-3 deficit to lead by two points (1-6 to 1-4) at the interval, the gauntlet was once again thrown down to áby a 37th minute Caoimhe Condon goal for the Cahir outfit. However, Pléimeann felt that his side’s defence played a key role during this tricky period, and were pivotal towards their eventual success.
PRESSURE
“In the second half, the other crowd got a goal and a point back.
“It was level and we were under fierce pressure. Our goalie made two very good saves. Finally, we managed to break the deadlock with about three minutes to go.
“We were four points up then and we didn’t let it slip away. We didn’t play as well as maybe we could have, but the result is everything.”
Given that this victory was a first for a Dublin school, a national title wasn’t necessarily on the radar for Iosagain at the start of this year’s campaign.
There was a desire amongst the squad to claim provincial honours, however, and as a relative newcomer to the school, Pléimeann was impressed by this ambition.
“A lot of that team had won the U16 ‘B’ two years ago and lost the Leinster final last year in the ‘A’. The first thing they said to me was that they wanted to win the Leinster ‘A’, which showed me where they were aiming for. We never once talked about winning an All Ireland. We’re just delighted with the win,” added Pléimeann.