Carrigtwohill Community College (CCC) claimed All-Ireland glory on Wednesday after a superb performance against Salerno Secondary School in an enthralling final in Ballingarry.

It’s not every day you wake up as All-Ireland champions, but that is exactly what the girls of CCC are doing today. The manner in which they achieved it is a credit to the entire squad, along with their teachers, parents and coaches.

The game began at a high tempo with Salerno settling quickly and putting CCC under pressure for the opening ten minutes. The CCC defence stood strong during this period and managed to contain the early attacks.

Around the 17-minute mark a powerful strike from Lily O’Connell, well saved by the Salerno goalkeeper, seemed to spark CCC into life. From that point on they began to find their rhythm, confidently playing out from the back and working the ball across the pitch with growing belief.

Their hard work paid off when CCC won a corner. Showing great awareness of the strong wind, Lily O’Connell delivered an incredible corner kick that flew straight into the net — a remarkable finish that gave CCC the lead.

CCC continued to press and doubled their advantage just two minutes later when Molly Dennis finished calmly after excellent work from O’Connell.

Moments before half-time Dennis weaved past three defenders before being brought down in the box. She stepped up herself and coolly converted the penalty to give CCC a commanding 3–0 lead at the break.

Salerno came out strongly in the second half, now aided by the wind, and began to apply serious pressure. The CCC defence, led superbly by Maedhbh Carroll, repelled attack after attack. Salerno did manage to pull one back with a long-range effort that caught the swirling wind, leaving goalkeeper Emily Bernard unfortunate on the occasion. Bernard responded brilliantly, however, producing several important saves and sweeping up a number of dangerous attacks.

In midfield the tireless work rate of Amelia Sheehan, Kinga Prajsnar, Olivia O’Sullivan and Rachael Barrett played a vital role in breaking up the Salerno pressure.

CCC always looked dangerous on the counter attack with Molly Dennis and Lily O’Connell driving at the defence, while the back line of Teagan O’Sullivan, Ellie O’Shea, Maedhbh Carroll and captain Clodagh Dorgan were outstanding throughout.

With seven minutes remaining CCC won another corner. Once again O’Connell’s delivery caused problems in the crowded box and Molly Dennis produced a clever looping flick over the goalkeeper to complete her hat-trick and secure the victory.

It was a sensational day for every member of the CCC squad. A large number of the panel are also players with Carrigtwohill United, highlighting the strong link between the school and the local club. In recent years several former CCC players have also progressed to League of Ireland clubs, underlining the strength of football currently coming through Carrigtwohill and the wider East Cork area.

The team’s achievement is even more impressive considering the squad features players from 1st Year through to 5th Year, and they overcame a number of strong all-girls schools on their path to the title.

The occasion was made even more special by the fantastic support from both schools. The singing, chanting, bodhráns and colourful face paint created a brilliant atmosphere and a fitting stage for an All-Ireland final.

Carrigtwohill Community College have now set a very high standard, and with the talent currently emerging from Carrigtwohill and East Cork, this may well be the first of many special days ahead.