A blistering start helped Louth Ladies to their third win of the LIDL Ladies NFL Division Four campaign on Sunday afternoon, the Wee County overcoming Derry with an impressive showing.
Micheal McKeown’s side were the dominant force in Ballymaguigan, recovering from their round three defeat to Fermanagh to get their promotion hopes back on track.
The Reds wasted little time in establishing their supremacy, bursting out of the blocks with two goals in the opening 12 minutes to establish a 2–4 to single-point advantage despite playing into the breeze.
Prolific forward Kate Flood got Louth’s first score after four minutes with a well-taken point after good work by Susan Byrne and Paula Murray. From the subsequent kickout, Cooley’s Lauren Boyle won possession and her fine pass found Flood who smashed to the net from 14 metres.
Flood and Emma McArdle added points before Derry opened their account when Amy McGuckin fired over after a poor clearance by a Louth defender but the away team responded immediately with a similar score from Aoife Russell and it got even better for the visitors when Boyle beat a couple of defenders and placed a fine low shot past Cheree Mackey in the home goal.
Both sides missed chances after that before the hosts were thrown a lifeline when a McGuckin shot nestled in the Louth net. That score was quickly followed up by a good point from the same player, leaving the score 2–4 to 1–2 after 18 minutes.
Boyle soon restored Louth’s six-point cushion, but it was the Paul Crozier’s home side who finished the half on top and Derry added points from Ciara Moore (0–2), Megan Devine and Sinead Comer.
Flood and Boyle, however, replied for the Wee County, giving Louth a 2–7 to 1–6 lead at the interval and Louth upped the ante on the resumption with an Emma McArdle point preceding a goal from the returning Rebecca Carr of the Geraldines.
Further points from Sinead Woods, Boyle and Flood extended that lead — 3–11 to 1–6 — by the beginning of the fourth-quarter and a raft of substitutions followed as both managers gave a run out to some of their fringe players.
Despite this, Louth remained on top and comfortably saw out the match to maintain their place in second spot, three points behind league leaders Wicklow, with a home game against Limerick to come next Sunday.
LOUTH LADIES: Una Pearson; Eilis Hand, Eimear Murray, Michelle McArdle; Ceire Nolan, Deirbhile Osbourne, Bronagh McGrane; Sinead Woods (0–1), Emma Singleton; Paula Murray (0–2), Aoife Russell (0–2), Susan Byrne; Lauren Boyle (1–2), Kate Flood (1–4), Emma McArdle (0–2). Subs: Rebecca Carr (1–0), Orla McGeeney, Kellie Hughes, Leanne Sharkey, Roisin Osborne.
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