​Strong first half display helps Down see off Cavan in Intermediate Championship group opener

Down Ladies put on another impressive display in their first-round All-Ireland Intermediate Championship tie, easing past Cavan by seven points.

Coming off last season's All-Ireland Junior Championship win and their Ulster success last month, Caoibhe Sloan and Peter Lynch's Down side are looking like serious contenders to get back to Croke Park again this season.

In Meghan Doherty and Laoise Duffy, Down have two footballers who are among some of the best players in the country at the moment. Doherty's power and Duffy’s pace proved too much for Cavan today, but it is the team dynamic and work rate that must be most pleasing for the Down management.

Down proved they are not a two-woman team as this was a win built on hard work and stellar performances throughout the team.

After Niamh McClorey, Sarah Dougherty (Down), and Christina Charters (Cavan) traded scores in the opening spell of the match, Down really took control of the game in a devastating ten-minute spell. Laoise Duffy, Vivienne McCormack, and two Niamh King scores stretched Down's led to five points as they pressed the Cavan kick-out and punished the hosts with clinical finishing.

Cavan hit back with points from Ally Cahill and Sinead Livingstone, but these scores were cancelled out with another two Niamh King scores. The second of these was a gem. Collecting the ball wide on the left, King jinked past her marker and powered the ball over the bar from 25 meters out.

With the half almost up, Teconnaught's Aimee Greene got another great score for the visitors. Hitting the ball with the outside of her right boot from a tight angle, the ball brushed off the far post and over the crossbar to give Down a lead of six. This was a dominant half for Down who, in truth, could have gone into the break with an even greater lead if they had taken more of their chances.

The second half was a different matter, as Cavan pressed forward and dominated large spells. A converted free from Cavan's Sinead Livingstone in the opening minutes of the second half reduced the lead to five, but Down continued to look dangerous when on the ball.

Laoise Duffy took a good score to return the gap to six and then further extended the lead with another lovely point when Bredagh's forward's turn of pace opened up the Cavan defence and she cleared the bar.

Niamh King pointed after great work from a Niamh Scullion interception and pass, and at this stage, Down looked comfortable. Cavan stepped up their tempo, and three unanswered points from Ally Cahill and two by Butlersbridge's powerful forward Niamh McCorry got them back into the game.

Cavan were throwing everything at Down now, looking for a goal that would set up an exciting finish. But the Down defence held firm. Fullback Ciara Byrne was outstanding, commanding the Mourne back line and not giving Cavan any chance to get past.

Down's forwards were wasting a lot of good chances in the second half, but Bryansford's Natalie McKibbin got a much-needed point for Down, ending a 12-minute drought without scoring. Sarah McCabe took a great score for Cavan to keep the pressure on.

A Niamh King goal near the end of the game put the game to bed. Niamh Rice's cross-field ball fell into Natasha Ferris's arms, and a quick fist pass across to King was finished in style as she rounded her defender and slipped the ball under the keeper and into the net.

Another converted Livingstone free for Cavan finished the scoring in the game with Down winning by seven. A fantastic win on the road for Down, who now face Westmeath in Pairc Esler.

Down's Niamh Scullion, and she described what it was like playing in sweltering conditions.

“The conditions were tough, but I felt as though the Ulster final had prepared us,” she said.

“It took us a while to settle into the game, but after that, we adapted to the heat.”

Cavan pushed hard, especially in the second half, but Scullion praised how Down defended under pressure.

“We defended very well and held them to mostly frees, which was great for us. Our defence works so well in unison. Our fullback Ciara [Byrne] is excellent and a real leader for us, and her performance today was outstanding. It’s a lot easier to defend well when you have players like her around you.”

Up next Down take on Westmeath, and Scullion is looking forward to getting back to home comforts.

“We are definitely excited to get back to Pairc Esler again and hopefully get good support behind us. Whilst we won the game today, we left a lot behind us. It gave us something to work on before next weekend against Westmeath, and hopefully, we can lift it again.

“Westmeath are a very good, experienced team who have recently won intermediate, so it will be a great test to see where we are. We are definitely expecting a battle.”

Down Team: McGivern, Greene (0-1), Byrne, Sands, Mulvenna, McKibbin (0-1), O. Duffy, M. Doherty (c), Scullion, King (1-5), L. Duffy (0-4), McClory (0-1), S. Dougherty

(0-1), McCormack (0-1), Fitzpatrick.

Subs: Ferris, O'Higgins, Laverty, Rice, Howlett.