Magic Mackin leads the way
There have been a lot said and written about Aimee Mackin’s performance last weekend, and one more piece won’t hurt.
The Shane O’Neill’s star was in sensational form last Saturday and accumulated a personal tally of 2-7 by the final hooter.
Mackin has been in superb form since returning from her ACL injury which kept her out of the same fixture last summer.
Not only was the corner-forward top scorer on the day, what made her scoring tally all the more impressive is that 2-6 came from open play.
Her first half point was a thing of beauty, something the likes of the Gooch and Ciaran McDonald would be proud of and it’s worth watching again no matter how many times you’ve seen it!
Not all about attack
While the top end of the Armagh team is filled with game winners with the likes of Mackin, Mallon and O’Hanlon, it’s easy to forget about the stars at the other end.
Clodagh McCambridge has made the number three jersey her own and has performed brilliantly so far this season.
Sarah Marley is a calm, experienced head in defence while Anna Carr is also a brilliant addition between the sticks.
The half back line constantly drive forward from deep and Blaithin Mackin hit a point on Saturday evening as well as providing the assist for the second goal.
Niamh Coleman and Aveen Donaldson form a good, hard-working partnership in the centre of the park and are always there to help out.
Revenge
Armagh reached the quarter final of the All-Ireland Championship last season, but their year was halted at that stage.
After heroically seeing off Cork in a memorable encounter, it was Mayo who denied Armagh the chance of going any further.
The Westerners had the opportunity to do so last weekend, but Armagh were too good on the day and did enough to prevail.
While there is plenty that Ronan Murphy can work on, he will be delighted that his girls were able to bounce back from last years defeat and learn their lesson.
Worth the wait
It’s been five years since the Armagh ladies side have reached the last four of the competition, so they will be delighted to final get back to this stage.
This side has been a coming force for the last number of years and this season will also compete in their third Ulster Final in a row.
Ironically, they will meet Dublin in the All-Ireland semi-final, the same team they clashed with back in 2015.
That game ended in defeat for the Orchard County as the Dubs proved far too strong on the day, winning 2-16 to 2-5. Lets hope for a different result this time around.
Special birthday for Shauna
Shauna Grey was handed a starting role against Mayo on Saturday, slotting in at corner back.
Grey played well for her side on the same day the Dromintee lady celebrated her 27th birthday.
The celebrations didn’t stop at the final whistle however as Shauna later on got engaged to her now fiancé!
