Milltown bounce back in style

North Galway club go one better after 2022 defeat

IN A week when Milltown claimed a gold medal in the national Tidy Towns competition, their local ladies football team also proved ‘SuperValu’ — pardon the pun! — for this deserved victory in The Galleon Restaurant County Junior B decider in Clonberne on Saturday.

Backed by a huge and vocal following of supporters, Milltown, under the management of Cathal Blake, John Hehir, Sean Bowens, Eamon Blake, Shane Connolly and Aoife Bowens, duly atoned for last year’s defeat to Micheál Breathnach at the same stage of the competition when recording a 14-point win in the 2023 showpiece.

Milltown, though, were strong favourites coming into this one. In the group stages, they accounted for the same opposition 4-10 to 1-9, before easing beyond a Kilkerrin-Clonberne delegation in the semi-final with a 15-point triumph.

It was also notable that Milltown were the only ‘first team’ outfit left in the last four — so, in many respects, the 2023 title was theirs to lose.

And yet, there could have been a seed of doubt sown in the opening 30 seconds, when Annaghdown goaled from the throw-in after Orla Mitchell set up the lively Katie Farragher.

Credit to Milltown, they didn’t panic and on the resulting kickout they worked the ball up the field and Player of the Match Shauna Hynes set up the equally impressive Claire Hehir for their first goal. With just 60 seconds gone, it was a whirlwind start…

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