The 1st Year Girls have had a superb run in the group section of the league, winning 5 out of 5 of their league games, scoring 20 goals and conceding just 3.
First up was a hard fought 3-2 win V Tersians. The girls started slowly and went 1-0 down only to come back to go 2-1 ahead, with two superb goals from Clara Murphy. Our midfield of Anouk Taylor Schaffer, Lucy Staunton & Amelia Hauer worked hard in both attack and defence. The game was end to end with Teresians equalising in the final minutes but Isabel Fellenz was on hand with a slick deflection in the dying minutes to make it 3-2 to St Kilians. Final Score: 3-2.
Up next was Mount Temple on a Winters day in December. The girls were pumped for this game, there was some fantastic defending from Hana Gysin, Sophia Murphy & Sophia McMillan. Arianna Kealy, our goalkeeper, was on her toes to give the team the clean sheet they were looking for. Our forwards worked tirelessly in search of goals, with Katie Doyle Wahl netting two and Clara Murphy getting a goal to secure a 3-0 victory. Final Score: 3-0.
In the third game the girls faced Templecarrig. Missing a few regular faces from the team meant moving a few players into different positions. The players responded well to this and did the job that was asked of them. Lucy Staunton held the centre of the field magnificently & distributed the ball with great accuracy, as per usual. Clara Murphy was moved from her normal position up front to defence but worked excellently, both defending and pressing up the pitch to support the team. Clara scored three goals on the day, proving my point that defenders do score! Katie Mc Elwain, Jane Mulvihill & Lucia Garde worked tirelessly when they came on putting pressure on the Templecarrig defence. The team secured a 8-0 victory on the day with the remaining goals coming from Isabel Fellenz (1), Katie Doyle Wahl (2), Anouk Taylor Schaffer, Lucy Staunton. Final Score: 8-0.
On a freezing Friday afternoon the girls travelled over to Killiney to take on Cluny. Having secured 3 wins from 3 at this stage the girls were eager to keep the winning streak going. It was an end to end game with both teams having their share of chances. Our defence of Hana Gysin, Sophia Murphy & Sophia McMillan worked hard to keep Cluny at bay. As did Arianna Kealy in goals making some superb saves. The deadlock was broken mid-way through the first half when Katie Doyle Wahl managed to get past the Cluny defence and goalkeeper to get us off the mark. Isabel Fellenz and Flora Gabetto Frankish provided a much needed break for the girls, coming on and putting some serious pressure on the Cluny defence. Anouk Taylor Schaffer was causing havoc up the right hand side of the pitch making some wonderful runs along the right and along the back line. Early in the second half Cluny equalised and it was back against the wall for a while but the girls worked hard to gain the upper hand. Clara Murphy broke forward and secured our second goal with 5 minutes remaining. Final Score: 2-1.
The final group game was a road trip over to Sutton to play Santa Sabina. The girls were pumped for the game, having only conceded 3 goals so far, goal keeper, Arianna Kealy was keen to keep a clean sheet in the final group game. Missing our regular left back , Sophia McMillan, Clara Murphy slotted into the position. The girls played superb hockey, moving the ball with pace around the pitch, picking out passes and supporting the player on the ball. The girls had a lot of possession in the first half and were putting pressure on the Santa Sabina defence. The deadlock came when Katie Doyle Wahl knocked a ball into the from the back post. 1-0 up at half time, the girls started to apply pressure again in the second half. Katie Doyle Wahl netted another, Anouk Taylor Schaffer added to this and Jane Mulvihill got on the score board for the first time this year pouncing on a ball that had deflected off the keepers pads. Final Score: 4-0.
The girls have worked tremendously hard at training and in games all year, this success is as a result of their commitment to training and games, as well their work ethic. We now must wait until after the midterm break to find out who we have in the knock out stage.
Megan Shelley, Girls’ hockey coach
