Winning AIL start for Young Munster women

OLIVIA O'SULLIVAN reports:

MUNSTER Women’s XV opened their season last weekend with a win over Nenagh Ormond RFC at the Tipperary side’s home ground. Nenagh took an early lead with a breakaway try and conversion, with the next score, a penalty slotted over by Ailish Toner of Young Munster, bringing the score to 7-3.

Again Nenagh’s backline found a gap and converted the try to take the score to double points in favour of the home side but the Cookies’ side (or’ Cookettes’ as they have been called) did not let the heads drop and were relentless in the chase for victory in their first AIL game of the new season.

Seana McCallan crashed up the centre to get Young Munster’s first try, and hooker Maria Madigan, the team’s captain, followed it up with a well worked try from a dominant forward pack who could well have bagged themselves a further brace of tries on two other occasions.

With a strong wind spoiling outhalf Ailish Toner’s conversion attempts, the game went down to the wire when, in the dying minutes of the game, Young Munster were awarded a penalty on the Nenagh 22-metre line in front of the posts.

Toner, showing maturity beyond her 19 years, ably knocked it over and, though Nenagh got the chance to run it downfield before the final whistle went, there was no way the girls from the Yellow Road were surrendering their victory. Final score 14-16 to Young Munster in a well deserved win.

In other Limerick Women’s Rugby news this weekend, Division 1 side UL Bohs travelled to Belfast beating Cooke 5-34, while in Division 2 Shannon took on Portlaoise at home winning 57-10.