Knockmore are back at the top of the tree in women’s football within the county. They overcame the brave challenge of first-time Senior finalists Westport in today’s LGFA SFC decider at the Connacht GAA Centre of Excellence.
Two first half goals propelled the 2021 champions into a lead that stretched to ten points at one stage. Westport came back at them hard after the break, however, and there was only two points between the sides at the finish, with Knockmore winning out by 2-8 to 0-12.
Match report on today’s title decider for the Mayo News by OisÃn McGovern is here.
There were two other LGFA county finals played at Bekan today as well. In the Junior decider Claremorris had a big win over St Brigid’s (match report here), while MacHale Rovers captured the Intermediate title, beating Moy Davitts by four points (match report here).
Decent game of football. Westport were, I felt, the better team with more skillful players but knockmore had a serious system about them. The nerves seemed to hit Westport in the first half. They’ll be disappointed by how much respect they showed Knockmore. Knockmore keeper very settled under immense pressure. Plenty of talent for the county panel anyway.
Good game of football, Knockmore got on top early on and Westport lacked the penetration to really trouble them until near the end but Knockmores lead was to much to reel in.
Westport a good young team, and massive numbers like the men with such a big area to pick from with Aghagower parish and new pitch in by Kilmeena. So no doubt their day will come just like their men’s team.
Knockmores manager Cormac Reape despite his young age has done wonders with them. He’s been involved with Mayo LGFA U14 for a few years as well and won several Connacht as well as am all Ireland with them.
For a small rural club this is another brilliant win for the Knockmore ladies. Hope though it doesn’t district from our guys who take on Ballina in the semifinal tomorrow.
Willie Joe, as a proud member of the Westport GAA/LGFA club(s), I am quite tired of people commenting on how our club’s new playing facility is located in ‘Kilmeena’. To put it into context, our new playing pitch is located in an area 500M away from the Westport border, and approximately a kilometer away from our club’s main current playing facility, in a village called Carrowholly; an area that is home to Westport Golf Club & Westport Rugby Club (which are both located further away from the ‘border’). Westport GAA has no intention of enticing or poaching players from surrounding areas. It is simply a matter of land availability.
Don’t think anyone’s suggesting poaching players. More the player pick available already with the amalgamation of the two parishes of Aghagower and Westport.
I actually didn’t realise it was that far over the border. Not much they can do about that if no green grass available in Aghagower or Westport, ya have to take what can get.
It’s more an issue for GAA down the road as rural clubs numbers continue to go down and the large population clubs designated by CB due to their player numbers e.g. Westport, Ballina and Castlebar continue to grow in relation to smaller neighbours.
It’s all good and well to have an emotive response as a Westport GAA/LGFA club member to hearing people mention that the new Westport GAA pitch is located in the Kilmeena area, but you must remember the objective facts.
1) The new Westport GAA pitch is in Kilmeena. That is a fact. Naming the specific part of Kilmeena, ‘Carrowholly’, doesn’t change that fact. Carrowholly is in the parish of Kilmeena, and I say that as a resident of Carrowholly, and as a proud member of Kilmeena GAA Club.
2) Yes, Westport Rugby Club and Westport Golf Club are also located in Kilmeena, that is true. It’s worth noting a poignant fact though, that there is no separate competing Kilmeena Golf Club, or Kilmeena Rugby Club. Both the rugby club and the golf club cater for Kilmeena residents and are regarded as local amenities for residents of Kilmeena. Their existence is not comparative to this situation.
3) Once the Westport GAA pitch is up and running, it is literally and figuratively on my doorstep, in Kilmeena. Without a shadow of a doubt, this will be a future difficult decision for parents on whether to join Westport or Kilmeena GAA when you can walk to the Westport pitch in Carrowholly (Kilmeena) or drive a few kilometres to the actual Kilmeena GAA pitch. I think it is an impossibility that it won’t have an impact on Kilmeena GAA.
There were opportunities available to purchase land within Westport for further club development but these opportunities were perhaps not as close to Westport town as the land bought in Kilmeena. I don’t think it is accurate to say that there is no land in the entirety of Westport that could be purchased to develop club facilities.
I am not writing this post to start an argument or a back and forth, but this is the just the objective reality of the current situation that people need to be mindful of.