By Gerard Mulreaney (@gerardmulreaney)
When the top two sides in the league meet, in any country in the world, it’s either a mistake or some individual brilliance that decides the outcome.
On Sunday, in the Women’s National League leaders Peamount United hosted second-placed Wexford Youths at Ferrycarrig Park. The visitors were looking to take all three points and give themselves an 8-point cushion at the top of the table.
Games between these two sides are known for producing strikes of the highest quality, and Sunday was no exception. Ryan-Doyle took the ball on her knee and smashed a volley into the Wexford net from all of 20 yards out. You can view the goal here;
Another fantastic performance in a big game from Peas @EleanorRdoyle topped off with this strike against Wexford last night which puts us 8 points clear of current champions in the @SoHotelsIreland @FAI_WNL @mickoshea100 @SoccRepublic pic.twitter.com/HDEvLjxvQ0
— Peamount Utd FC (@peamountutd) June 16, 2019
The game was decided by a single goal, a tremendous strike by Peamount United’s Eleanor Ryan-Doyle, a goal reminiscent of Stephanie Roche’s goal when she was nominated for the prestigious FIFA Puskas Award in 2014.
While Ryan-Doyle’s goal may not have been as impressive a strike as Roche’s, it was a control and volley effort from almost the same position on the pitch, and also against the same opposition and on the same ground in Ferrycarrig Park. Lots of coincidences!
That Stephanie Roche goal;
For Peamount’s Ryan-Doyle and her team-mates it was an important result, “It was very important to get a win away from home, against one of our main rivals in the league, its always tough travelling down to Ferrycarrig Park and coming back home with a win.”
“The game itself was very competitive. I felt we edged the first half as we applied so much pressure on them from the first whistle. We had great passages of play in a high tempo game, which led to the goal that we scored.”
“In the second half it was an even playing field and we’re blessed to have amazing defenders on the team that dealt with the pressure that the Youths put us under until the final whistle.
“Our defence and goalkeepers this season have been so impressive, which reflects on how few goals we have conceded this season.”
“It gives us 3 more points on the table and we go into our final game before the mid-season break with great confidence for the rest of the season. However we can’t be complacent as we’re only at the half way point, with many tough battles still to come.”
When I asked her about her goal Ryan-Doyle said, “To be honest the goal is a bit of a blur. I remember I got into a pocket of space and the pass from Lauren (O’Callaghan) just landed nicely for me to take a touch on my knee and volley it into the back of the net.”
The former Irish Youth International said it felt a little weird when she scored,
When the ball hit the back of the net I literally turned around and ran for Karen’s (Duggan) arms, because I didn’t know what else to do (laughs). I was so excited, not that I scored the goal, but for our team scoring a goal cause we have worked so hard this season and our hard work is really paying off.”
“Its great that our matches have been recorded for the past two seasons, as it captures moments like my goal that might never happen again (laughs). I’ve received many messages off people since the goal went up the other day. I’m delighted with the reaction to it.”
Peamount have one game left before the mid-season break when they face Kilkenny United next Saturday in Greenogue.
Photo Credit: womensSOCCERphotos (@mickosea100)