Ladies Triumphant, Shield Progressing

There were two other stories to catch up on from the final weekend in Maastricht two weekends ago.

The first is our Ladies. They were going for their own ‘drive for five’ this year.

The structure of the ladies competitions changed this year, going from six pan-euro rounds to mirror the lads’ structure. The early part of the season was regionalised and the Championship would be played out over three Pan-Euro rounds.

It didn’t really work for Benelux with only Holland and themselves competing in the region. As a result the early part of the season was a bit disjointed and it was also reflected in their training, with attendance dipping.

What they did learn in the first few months was that Holland were becoming a force to be reckoned with. If that needed any confirmation it came in Copenhagen when the girls had to fight tooth and nail for victory. A late Aisling Fenton point won it on the day.

Fortunes were reversed in Vienna when Holland turned them over by a point.

This set-up a winner takes all final weekend in Maastricht. Whilst always appearing in control of the final, the girls couldn’t pull away as Holland burst a gut to dethrone the champions. However, with Ciara and Caragh fairly unmarkable up front, they were not to be denied. Only a point or two separated them in the end.

This was by far the girls’ best win to date as they really had to earn each final win. They also had to play chunks of the season without regulars such as Caragh, Sinead and Ciara.

The quality of the final was the highest I’ve seen in the five years they’ve been in action so that really must make it the sweetest of them all. Well done on their success.

While all that was going on, the Shield team was battling away on another one of Maastricht’s magnificent pitches.

Wins against Amsterdam B, Clermont and Rennes meant they topped a group despite a loss to Dusseldorf. That’s no mean feat and shouldn’t be underestimated.

I’ve said it a million times but to be able to compete as a second team against other club’s first teams is a fantastic achievement in its own right. All those teams will have a sprinkling of players who would grace any side, Shield or Championship.

However, the pick of the Shield is always in danger of a call-up to the Championship panel and that proved the case before this tournament.

Pearce is probably their main man but with a mini injury crisis in the Championship panel, we had no choice but to call him up.

Johnny and Conor Mull have done a fantastic job keeping the lads on the go and topping the group was a good reward. They fell short against a strong Liffre outfit in the quarter final but there was no shame in that.

It’s a big challenge to get a steady commitment out of the lads. A lot play for pure recreation but a lot do everything in their powers to win. It’s a hard balance to strike. This year’s panel definitely has a couple of notches to go up and with a greater amount of application, they will close the gap.

In 2013, the Shield should be looking towards success in Benelux as their priority. A good run there would give a massive confidence boost heading for the Pan-Euros.

With the winter upon us, there’s plenty of time to be chewing on that.