'It came down to fitness and strength in the end'

CAMOGIE

Provincial titles are rarely won easily and so it proved for Meath who had to dig deep to defeat Kildare in the Camogie Leinster Intermediate final at Aughrim on Sunday.

Meath probably chalked up some kind of record by firing over a point after just 13 seconds but Kildare weren't knocked off course. They stayed in the contest right to the end with Meath having to delve deep in their reservoir of character and resolve before clinching victory.

A difficult, uncompromising battle was exactly what player of the match Amy Gaffney had prepared herself to encounter.

"We expected Kildare to come out and and be really strong, we saw how the team had changed from when he played them in the league this year, they were a completely different team. We expected a good hard game today and that's exactly what we it was," she told LMFM following Sunday's final.

"It was such a tough game we really didn't know how it was going to go, conditions were good but it was so hot it was really hard to keep going but I suppose it came down to fitness and strength in the end."

As the engaging contest drew to a conclusion Gaffney began to wonder how the teams might be separated.

"I actually thought with just about 10 minutes to go what would happen if it ended up a draw. Will this go to penalties I wondered, but thank God it didn't."

The Ratoath player added that because Meath have strengthened their squad this year the team could make a very significant impact in league and championship.

"I can see us going very far this year," she added.

She spoke about how Meath could easily have added to their account. Frees were missed, passes went astray. Another source of her optimism is the fact that she now feels the panel has the depth required to go far.

"It's not about the 15 that started it's about the whole panel and those who come on and do a job and that's exactly what we have this year, really strong positive panel," she added.

The Leinster championship is sure to bolster the confidence of the players and the morale within the panel ahead of the forthcoming All-Ireland Intermediate Championship with Meath kicking off their campaign against Derry.

"We won't let this go to our heads but we'll definitely enjoy it and this will help us get ready for Derry in two weeks," she added.

Kristina Troy was another powerful, positive influence in the Meath side and she pointed out how the Meath defence came under some immense pressure at times.

"They really tried to open us up in the full-back line, they went for goals all the time, they really did test us but our backline was immense today. Our players their head in where you wouldn't put your hand in, they were fantastic and credit due to Kildare they pushed us to the pin our of collar it was not an easy win for us.

"There was a lot of us very nervous coming into this game. 2017 was our last final so we really wanted to lay down a marker with the championship in two weeks time. The nerves got the better of us in the first-half, we went in at half-time said 'let's not let Kildare into our heads' so we went out and expressed ourselves in the second-half," concluded the delighted Blackhall Gaels player.