Munster Ladies Claim Junior Interpro Title

Munster ladies won the Junior Interpro title in dramatic style coming from behind to beat Leinster and deny Ulster 3 in a row.

They beat South East 5-0 on Saturday morning with Emma Harrington bagging a hat-trick. They then faced a strong Ulster side on Sunday morning. Ulster started strongly but Munster scored a cracking goal on the break with Caroline McCarthy setting up Emma Harrington for the finish. Ulster continued to press in the second half but found Rachelle Nyhan, Laura Buttimer and Emma White very hard to beat. Ulster finally made the breakthrough with only 2 minutes left on the clock to draw level.

Munster knew a win would give them the title on goal difference but they started slow against Leinster and were punished midway through the first half with a well-executed short corner. Munster then woke up and forced the Leinster keeper into some fantastic saves. After half time Munster started to dictate the pace of the game and 3 goals in 8 minutes turned the game on its head. First Caroline McCarthy struck after some Mel Ryan had won the ball in a dangerous area. Then Jenni Lyttle converted from close range after a well worked short corner. Two minutes later Steph Peters roofed a cross from Emma Harrington. Munster then sat back and soaked up some pressure to lift the trophy and bring the title back to Munster for the first time since 2007.