Clonduff camogs miss out narrowly on Ulster title
Clonduff camogs narrowly missed out on the Ulster title after a closely contested final against Dunloy, with the Antrim side winning by two points.
Ulster Senior Camogie Championship Final
Dunloy 1-10 Clonduff 0-11
The ‘margins are so fine’ said Clonduff senior camogie manager Sylvester McConnell after his side were beaten in 2026 Ulster Senior Camogie Championship final by Dunloy on Saturday.
And while that’s true in any sport it’s even more so with the small ball, as a goal at one end and a hook and block at the other denied Clonduff the title.
Dunloy won by two in the end in Stewartstown on Saturday afternoon and while the Antrim side led for most of the game it was by narrow margins and after their second-half goal a comeback from the Yellas fell just short.
The incredible Paula O'Hagan led that charge just weeks back on the field after having a baby, and while captain Sara Louise Graffin wasn't firing on all cylinders in the free department, she contributed nonetheless and almost had a goal late on that would likely have changed the result.
It was hard-fought from start to finish with scores at a premium, and while Dunloy kept their noses in front from throw-in, it was Clonduff who led by a point at the break - three of their four from the dead ball.
Early battle for possession epitomised how the first half would proceed, with Katie Molloy hitting a wide for Dunloy in the third minute before sending her next effort between the sticks two minutes later.
Graffin's first free attempt fell short and the scramble trying to stick the sliother in the net was thwarted by the Dunloy defenders. Graffin did score with her next free in the tenth minute but her teammate O'Hagan took over free-taking duties after that following a couple of shots off target by the former.
Before that Aine Magill gave the Antrim side a 0-2 to 0-1 lead with scores continuing to prove hard to come-by and when O'Hagan levelled proceedings again Eobha McAllister nudged Dunloy in front once more with 23 minutes on the clock.
Caoimhe Molloy made it 0-4 to 0-2 but the Yellas finished the half strongly with another O'Hagan free and points from play from Graffin and Ciar McGilligan with a beauty to lead 0-5 to 0-4 at the break.
Top scorer McAlister hit a brace of frees after the re-start to give Dunloy a narrow lead once again and traded frees between her and O'Hagan kept the margin intact. Midway through the half however the pattern changed. Caitlin Crawford had given the Antrim champions an 0-8 to 0-6 lead when some terrific Clonduff defending denied them a goal with McAlister about to shoot.
After a frantic scramble Clonduff half-cleared the danger but only as far as McAlister again who found a gap and fired into the net opening up a five-point advantage. Plumes of green smoke were released by the young Dunloy supporters behind the Clonduff goal and while that might have been premature, that score proved crucial.
Five points may not be a big advantage generally, but scores were hard to come by in this final with battles fought for every ball. Clonduff weren't going down without a fight however, and after O'Hagan scored a brace of frees either side of a point from Dunloy sub Sarah McIllhatton, the Yellas almost scored a maximum from a short puc out. Graffin picked up the ball and got past two defenders with the goal at her mercy, but on the last awkward bounce the defenders swooped in and hooked it away to deny her the shot. McAlister made t 1-10 to 0-8 with another converted free and while O'Hagan was immense scoring three frees on the trot, it just wasn't enough in the end with the final score reading 1-10 to 0-11.
While it was a deeply disappointing day for the Hilltown side and their manager agreed that it’s been a good season overall, he too was disappointed, albeit a step up from last year when they were well beaten by Loughgiel after a Bye to the final.
“As always, when you win your county title, it's always a good year. I suppose maybe the Swatragh game last week played a little bit of an advantage to us, but we got beaten in the Ulster final again,” lamented McConnell.
"Many people questioned last year when we got to the Ulster final without playing anybody. This year, we created another little bit of history within the club in terms of winning that semi-final and qualifying for the final. So, as I say, it's more and more progress. We're still maybe one step short in terms of winning the Ulster, but who knows? If you keep knocking on the door, you never know.”
Dunloy: C O'Kane; K Boyle, B Magill, K Mullan; E Kearns, K Laverty, C Conlon; B Magill, E Johnston; N O'Neill, C Crawford (0-1), C Molloy; A Magil (0-1)l, K Molloy (0-1), E McAllister (1-5)
Subs: S McIllhatton (0-1) for Boyle (h-t), E McMullan for Magill (45mins), A McManus for C Molloy (55mins)
Clonduff: C Kelly; E Rafferty, J Boden, A McDowell; C McGilligan (0-1), B Fitzpatrick, N McConville; E Shields, C Cowan; O McCuskar, S L Graffin (0-2,1f), P O'Hagan (0-8, 7f); O Gribben, K McGilligan, C Byrne
Subs: T Cowan for K McGilligan (36mins), C Fitzpatrick for Shields (38mins), C Savage for Byrne (55mins)
Referee: Sean Curran.