The draw to determine the final qualifier from Group 2 of the Liberty Insurance senior camogie championship has been deferred on foot of appeals lodged by both Dublin and Clare.
Clare’s 4-19 to 1-6 win over Derry at Cusack Park drew Colm Honan’s charges level with Dublin in third place of the group and it remains to be seen which of those will play Wexford in one of the two All-Ireland quarter-finals.
Clare laid the platform for the victory in the first half despite the fact that Derry had the wind in that period. A good start was going to be important and it came via an Emma O’Driscoll point and two from Chloe Morey, the latter a spectacular score after a strong catch.
Karen Kielt replied for the visitors from a placed ball after 12 minutes but it was all Clare. Máire McGrath landed a bomb from distance and Róisín McMahon followed up before the Bannerwomen pounced for three quick goals to deflate Derry.
Aoife Keane struck for the first one and within a minute, the excellent Morey did likewise. It only took another four minutes for Keane to bag her second major and Clare were flying.
There was time for Andrea O’Keeffe to rattle the net one more time and it was 4-7 to 0-4 at the change of ends.
Derry resumed in perfect fashion with a goal from Dervla O’Kane after a strong run and that seemed to stop the hosts in their tracks for a time.
They gradually got going again though and while they didn’t raise any further green flags, kept the scoreboard ticking over with points from the influential Keane, substitute Vera Loughnane and player of the match Morey.
CLARE 4-19
(C Morey 1-6(0-3fs, 1 45); A Keane 2-3; A O’Keeffe 1-2; E O’Driscoll, R McMahon 0-2 each, M McGrath, K Lynch, A Considine, V Loughnane 0-1 each)
DERRY 1-6
(D O’Kane 1-2; K Kielt 0-2(1f, 1 45), M Kelly, M McGoldrick (f) 0-1 each
