Trinity were faced with difficult weather and pitch conditions as they arrived into Limerick, knowing a win against Mary Immaculate College would mean automatic qualification to the Giles Cup finals weekend in Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT).
Mary Immaculate started the stronger of the two teams scoring four points, while Trinity only managed a point from midfielder Sarah McCaffrey. The conditions made it difficult for the game to flow and the referee didn’t help, awarding both teams too many frees and killing the tempo of the game.
The first half was a close, physical encounter. Trinity managed to come out on top courtesy of points from Aisling – whose accuracy from frees has been a major asset for Trinity – and Ailbhe Finnerty. Cliodhna Hayes showed her composure with a calmly finished goal at the end of the half. Trinity went in at the break with a two point lead.
Mary Immaculate started the second half well with an early goal. Similar to Trinity’s last game against Athlone Institute of Technology, they showed resilience and determination, regaining control over the game. Reynolds added to her tally with a goal, followed by a point from Hayes. Mary Immaculate managed to get a point back but this was quickly followed by another Reynolds goal to restore order.
Trinity maintained a healthy five point lead for most of the second half until Mary Immaculate struck back with a goal making it a nervous finish for Trinity’s footballers until Reynolds finished the game off, completing her hat trick with a last minute goal.
The game finished 4-7 to 2-8, after another encouraging performance from Trinity who again displayed a mixture of determination and skill. They now head into the finals weekend in GMIT, assured that they have a good chance of going all the way and winning Trinity GAA’s first piece of silverware of 2017. Their semi final takes place on March 10th, with the final on the following day.
