Milltown scrape draw in title defence opener against The Downs

Milltown rescued a point against The Downs with an injury-time equaliser as they began their title defence on home soil in Round 1 of the Ladies Senior Football Championship last Thursday evening.

It was a repeat of the league final just 11 days earlier, when Milltown earned the upper hand with a three-point win. The Downs looked set to reverse that result, leading for much of the contest until a late Clodagh Dillon equaliser.

Clodagh Dillon was the standout performer for her side, scoring 0-8 from frees, while cousin Tracey Dillon (1-1) also impressed.

The Downs looked to have been dealt an early blow when star midfielder Lucy Power hit the ground in the opening moments. She left the field twice for treatment but still found time to score a first-half goal that put her side five points clear.

Three well-struck frees from Clodagh Dillon reduced the deficit to two before the interval, with The Downs leading 1-5 to 0-6.

A lively second half began with Milltown going ahead when Tracey Dillon found the net before substitute Niamh Nolan restored The Downs’ lead by punching Olivia Glynn’s delivery to the net.

Scores continued to flow at both ends before Milltown snatched a share of the spoils with the final score of the game.

Britney McNamee opened the scoring after seven minutes with a free. A member of The Downs’ management team was yellow-carded after comments to referee Ken Gunning over a free, which was advanced for Clodagh Dillon to open Milltown’s account.

McNamee converted another close-range free to edge The Downs ahead, with Olivia Glynn adding further distance with a tidy point from play.

After Ciara Dolan shot narrowly wide, The Downs regained possession and Lucy Power burst through the centre before finishing to the left corner.

Clodagh Dillon was brought down in a dangerous area and converted the free herself, sending over another placed ball moments later before Lucy Power succumbed to her earlier injury and was taken off for treatment.

Mary Lynam added her name to the scoresheet with a tidy point from close range after good work by Dolan.

Gemma Keena won the resulting kick-out and split the posts before The Downs’ discipline began to slip, allowing Dillon to convert two more frees and reduce the deficit to two. Olivia Glynn and Clodagh Dillon exchanged points to leave the scores 1-5 to 0-6 at the half-time whistle.

Clodagh Dillon opened the second-half scoring with a free at 35 minutes, having sent an earlier effort at goal into the hands of Milltown goalkeeper Jillian Ballesty. It was cancelled out almost immediately by a powerful strike over the blackspot from Michelle Bohan.

Milltown worked the ball up the pitch, starting with full-back Gráinne Byrne and moving through Louise Kiernan and Tracey Dillon. Dillon exchanged passes with Sinéad Slevin before finishing emphatically into the net. It was an excellent team goal and was followed by another free from Clodagh Dillon to put Milltown two ahead.

Britney McNamee went searching down the other end, sending a high ball into the box for the onrushing Niamh Nolan to fist into the net and restore The Downs’ lead heading into the final ten minutes.

Tracey Dillon received possession around the 65-metre line and raced down the right wing before cutting inside with a quick turn of pace and fisting over from close range to level, not tempted by the goal chance.

Michelle Bohan added her second, another powerful strike, to edge The Downs ahead once more, but Aoife Kenny levelled the match again after some scrappy play around their opponents’ goal.

The Downs looked to keep possession and run down the clock to see out a one-point win, but they conceded a foul late on and Clodagh Dillon converted once again to level the match before the final whistle.

Milltown were relieved to escape with a draw, but their title defence remains on track. They will hope for the return of injured star forward Sarah Dillon.

The Downs had plenty of answers for Milltown and improved on their league final performance, but conceding frees allowed Clodagh Dillon to finish with eight points and ultimately proved costly.

Scorers - Milltown: Clodagh Dillon 0-8 (0-8f), Tracey Dillon 1-1, Gemma Keena 0-1, Aoife Kenny 0-1.

The Downs: Britney McNamee 0-3 (0-3f), Lucy Power 1-0, Niamh Nolan 1-0, Olivia Glynn 0-2, Michelle Bohan 0-2, Mary Lynam 0-1.

The Downs: Ellen Taite; Amy Dagg, Helen Joyce, Aisling Egerton; Francesca Walshe, Lauren Guilfoyle, Emily Rose McNamee; Ciara Dolan, Lucy Power; Cara Finnegan, Mary Lynam, Michelle Bohan; Sheila McGrath, Britney McNamee, Olivia Glynn. Subs: Niamh Nolan for L Power (inj ‘20), Ciara Faulkner for M Lynam (45’), Niamh Keogh for L Power (55’).

Milltown: Jillian Ballesty, Bronagh Beglan, Gráinne Byrne, Sinéad Byrne, Clodagh Dillon, Rachel Dillon, Tracey Dillon, Gemma Keena, Aoife Kenny, Henrietta Kiernan, Laura Kiernan, Louise Kiernan, Orlaith Sheerin, Sinéad Slevin, Kate Whyte. Subs: Lia Heduvan for S Slevin (45’).

Referee: Ken Gunning.