Waterford finish in seventh spot at Gaynor Cup
2025 WDWSL Gaynor Cup Squad who finishd 7th at the SFAI Gaynor Cup competition in UL.
After a very promising start by Waterford when they topped their group and knocked the holders out of the Cup competition there was ultimately disappointment for the squad after they were eliminated at the quarter final stage of the Cup and ended with a 7th place finish. The week began with an emphatic destruction of Lisburn but ended with a defeat to the eventual winners Limerick District in a game played in atrocious weather conditions.
It was a dream start for the Gaynor Squad as they destroyed their Northern opponents with a superb display of attacking power. In a very one sided encounter the only surprise was that it took Waterford until the 12th minute to open their account but once they had done so the floodgates well and truly opened.
Waterford took the lead in the 12th minute when a trio of Bohemians players combined. Katie Nolan collected a loose pass just inside the Lisburn half, and her sweeping pass found Clara Cullinane on the left wing. Cullinane drove at the Lisburn defence, skipping past the full back before sending in a dangerous low cross that Lily Codd applied the finishing touch to from close range. Waterford doubled their lead after 22 minutes following a neat inter change between Kayleigh O Neill and Maia Stokes, with Stokes crossing for an unmarked Kate Mannix to fire home. It was soon 3-0 as a quick throw in from Cullinane to Nolan, who hit a perfectly weighted pass for Stokes on the left wing, and she went past Byrne before cutting inside and stroking the ball past Counsell. On 29 minutes, Stokes adder her second with a goal of quality. Winning possession out wide on the left she proceeded to dance between three defenders and calmly slotted past Counsell.
Any hope Lisburn had of launching a comeback in the second period were wiped away within 9 seconds of the restart when again down the left wing Stokes was too hot to handle and her cross evaded the keeper giving Codd the simple task of touching home for her second. On 39 minutes Mannix added her brace when she got a head to Khora Power's in swinging corner. Substitute Vittoria Pascolini entered the fray and she was to claim a hat trick within the following 11 minutes. Her first - and her sides seventh - arrived after 46 minutes when Alicia Radley's cross was met by Pascolini with her back to goal but she spun her marker and her shot on the turn went under Counsell. On 50 minutes another Power corner was met by Cullinane at the back post and she made no mistake stroking home. Pascolini would have the final say as on 53 minutes she scored with a sublime long range free kick and completed her hat trick on 57 minutes when she got across her marker to flick home Nolan's cross.
In a game they dominated for large portions Waterford were left to rue a number of missed opportunities to put the game to bed when Limerick equalised against the run of play with just four minutes remaining. Vittoria Pascolini had given Waterford a 17th minute lead with a superb individual goal as she ran at the Limerick defence before unleashing a fine strike from 30 yards that gave Quinn no chance of saving. With time running out and the three points looking secure a rare lapse of concentration in the Waterford defence saw Erin O Connor equalise at the back post.
Waterford claimed top spot in the group and, in the process, dethroned the reigning champions by virtue of a 2-0 win. Waterford were in control throughout the proceedings and went ahead after 9 minutes. Molly Dunphy O Brien's long punt up the field saw Kate Mannix get in between two opposition players, and her headed pass sent Maia Stokes through on goal, and she held off the challenge of McClaffrey to slot past the advancing Devaney. Kayleigh O Neill tried her luck from distance on the quarter hour mark, but her effort was saved by Devaney. On 23 minutes, Waterford appealed for a penalty after Stokes went to ground in the penalty area, but the appeals fell on deaf ears as the referee waved play on.
The second half saw Hallinan and Stokes both come close to extending the lead as Waterford pushed forward. The cushion of the second goal arrived after 47 minutes, when, after Codd's cross had been intercepted, Hallinan won back possession and with a sweet left-footed drive across Devaney, her effort went in via the post. Hallinan came close to adding her second on 50 minutes when her free kick struck the crossbar with McClaffrey well beaten.
A winner six minutes from time brought heartbreak for Waterford in a match where they struggled to impose themselves on the Limerick side that had topped their own group with three wins from three. Limerick finished the game with ten players after the goalscoring hero Rhiann Nolan Cantillon was sent off with left after receiving her second yellow card.
The opening chance fell the way of Limerick District after 9 minutes when Paige Morgan raced onto a long ball over the Waterford defence, but even though she managed to nick the ball past Dunphy O Brien, the keeper did enough to prevent it from hitting the target. Dunphy O Brien was back in action shortly afterwards when, after a goalmouth scramble, Nolan-Cantillon got her shot away, but it was straight at Dunphy O Brien. Limerick continued to apply the pressure, and in the 9th minute, Waterford had another scare when a free kick was spilled by Dunphy O Brien, but the ball was quickly cleared. Nolan was next to try her luck and her long-range effort on 22 minutes from an acute angle beat Dunphy O Brien but struck the post. On 26 minutes following a corner, the ball broke to Stokes on the far left of the box, but her shot was off target. The final chance of the half fell to Limerick when Hayes saw her in a swinging free kick held by Dunphy O Brien.
Waterford registered their first shot on target after 39 minutes when Stokes created space for herself, but her effort was well held by McKeon. As weather conditions rapidly deteriorated, both sides struggled to make the breakthrough. Waterford came close to taking the lead with 8 minutes remaining when Stokes cut in from her left, and when Grace Geary swung he leg at it the ball spun towards the goal, but McKeon was well placed to save. The winning goal arrived after 54 minutes when a hopeful long ball over the Waterford defence went straight to Dunphy O Brien, but with such poor conditions, she couldn't hold the ball, and Nolan-Cantillon, who had followed in, was left with the simple task of rolling it into an empty net. Seeking the equaliser, Hallinan saw her left-footed drive hit the side netting. With two minutes remaining, Nolan Cantillon received her second yellow card and saw red, but Waterford were unable to break down a resolute defence to exit the Cup.
Having beaten Waterford in the National Inter League earlier in the season, Wexford repeated the trick at the UL Campus Complex. Wexford took the lead on 18 minutes when Ellie Byrne netted and they doubled their lead just before half time when Fiadh Daly was on target. Alisha Samadi made the game safe for her side when she increased the lead to 3-0 after 40 minutes. Molly Dooling struck two minutes later to offer Waterford a lifeline but as the full-time whistle loomed, Byrne notched her second of the tie to restore Wexford's three-goal cushion.
Waterford's final game of the tournament saw them fall to a lone goal scored in the opening half. The winning goal came from the foot of Kate McGing after 24 minutes. Waterford battled hard to get back into the game, with Hallinan unlucky not to score, with Pascolini and Codd causing Mayo plenty of headaches. Clara Cullinane and Kate Nolan both gave options going forward, but it was Mayo who recorded the win. Having scored 10 goals in their opening match, they struggled to hit the net in the knockout phases with just one goal from three games.
