"I'm still catching my breath," said coach Dungarvan United women's coach Eoin Simms shortly after the West Waterford club booked their place in the Munster women's junior cup final.
Dungarvan were 3-2 winners over Charleville at Ozier Park, but had to fight in the second half in order to retain control of the game.
Eimear Fennell put them ahead after just seven minutes and Lily McGill doubled the advantage before the break for what had started to look like a routine result.
"At half-time, we came in and the first thing we said was that the first goal was crucial. It was a matter of getting the heads right, but we started a bit slowly and conceded," said Simms. Handing the opportunity to the Cork side, they wasted no time in reducing the deficit, finding the back of the net to make it 2-1. They would score again with half an hour to go and make it a level game.
"We just never got going," Simms added. Dungarvan had started a handful of players who were touch-and-go on the injury front and they paid the price with the Leesiders smelling blood as they started to get a foothold.
Big players are made for big moments and when the game is in the melting pot, that's when they tend to do their best work.
Eimear Fennell had bagged the first goal of the game to put Dungarvan into the lead, and while that lead had been squandered in the interim, Fennell was there once again when needed, so says Simms.
"She's been there and done it. She's playing the game an awful long time and you know if you give her a job to do she'll do it. We had her gone back playing left back to steady us up and with seven or eight minutes to go we just said we'd pop her up there and we got one ball in behind and she used her pace, got in there and a beautiful finish across the goalkeeper."
While the glory will always go to the players who put the ball in the back of the net, those who stop it from hitting the mesh are the players that can preserve a vital win and that's how it played out for Tommy Butler's Dungarvan on Sunday.
Twice Aimee Jordan denied Charleville near-certain opportunities. The game could have played out very differently had she not been tuned in and ready for every outcome.
The final is due to be played on the weekend of July 29th in Turners Cross (time and specific date still to be fixed) and it will be another Cork side standing opposite Dungarvan on the day.
Wilton beat Moyross of Limerick 3-1 in the other semi-final to secure their place in the decider. Wilton played in the FAI Intermediate final last year and carry a strong reputation ahead of kick-off.
