Football

Armagh relishing the chance of getting revenge on Cork

Clodagh McCambridge admits that last year’s championship defeat to the Rebelettes hurt the Orchard girls

Clodagh McCambridge
Clodagh McCambridge Clodagh McCambridge of Armagh wins possession from Laura O'Mahony of Cork during last year's TG4 All-Ireland Ladies' SFC quarter-final at the BOX-IT Athletic Grounds in Armagh Picture: Ben McShane/Sportsfile (Ben McShane / SPORTSFILE/SPORTSFILE)

Lidl Ladies’ NFL Division One, round two

Cork v Armagh (Sunday, Pairc Ui Rinn, 1pm)

ARMAGH, fresh from their opening day victory over Waterford, are eyeing a Cork scalp when they head to the bottom of the country to face the Rebelettes tomorrow.

After defeat in the All-Ireland quarter-final last season to the Munster side, captain Clodagh McCambridge has been patiently waiting on this game to come around.

That two-point championship exit hurt the Orchard county as they felt it was one that got away.

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“We have full belief that we can make it two out of two so far. Since our last day out in the championship, we have been keen to meet them again and try to rectify the things that didn’t go well for us that day,” said McCambridge.

“It will be a long journey and Cork will similarly be looking for back-to-back wins, but we definitely want to build on our performance from the Waterford game, and we’ll be well prepared for it and ready for the challenge Cork will bring.”

Cork defeated Galway 1-6 to 0-5 last weekend with Katie Quirke scoring their entire quota, six points in the first half, and a decisive second half goal.

Games last weekend were particularly effected by the weather as teams battled heavy winds and for those who did records wins, the three points they collected were huge.

Armagh laid the foundations of their 2-8 to 2-3 win over Waterford in the first half, leading 2-6 to 2-0, with only five points scored in the second half.

McCambridge is delighted to have got off to a winning start.

“Obviously we’re delighted to be back up in Division One, and being able to compete at the highest level. Getting a good start to the league was so important for us, especially with a home fixture to begin with, so it was brilliant to get a win.

“It was really tough with the wind; I’d say both teams made a lot of mistakes as a result, but we were able to make good use of the breeze in the first half and managed to see it out in the end,” said the full back.

McCambridge already sees the step up from Division One to Division Two and knows the importance of consistency from one game to the next and they will set out with the same mindset each time and that is to win.

“We’ll be going out to win every game in the league. It’s a step up from Division Two, and I think producing back-to-back performances against these top teams is a really big focus for us, where inconsistent performances might have let us down in the past. Our focus will definitely be on performing well and hopefully the result will come with that.”