BONAGEE UNITED begin their assault on the WFAI Intermediate Cup this evening when they travel to face Illies Celtic (kick-off 7.30pm).
Seamy McGinty takes his team to Stranaclea without the services of influential midfielder Chantelle Grant, who sustained a suspected cruciate knee ligament injury on Tuesday night.
Grant was carried off in the closing stages of the Donegal Women’s League match against Lagan Harps at Dry Arch Park, a game won by Lagan 3-0.
While Grant is awaiting a scan on the injury, it seems certain that her season has ended prematurely with a protective casing around the injury that is likely to be confirmed as the dreaded cruciate.
[adrotate group=”37″]“Chantelle is a big loss for us,” McGinty says, “She brings good experience to the team and she’ll be missed. It happened so easily. She just turned awkwardly and the knee twisted on her.”
Goalkeeper Denise McElhinney was absent on Tuesday night, but is likely to return for the trip to Inishowen, although Deborah Kerrigan is unavailable as the winger is on holidays.
“It was a disappointing loss for us on Tuesday night, but they’re a lot fitter than us and are a good side,” McGinty says.
[adrotate group=”72″]“We’ll come back again. We’ve a couple of weeks now to get ready for our next League game.”
The Donegal Women’s League is now on a break until after the Leaving Certificate exams and McGinty is targeting progression in the Cup. Lagan have already advanced to the next round following a 2-0 win over Manulla last month.
Illies are no slouches, though with the likes of Aoife McColgan, Claire Doherty, Alison McGonagle, Lauren Cregan, Shania McGonigle and Andrea Kelly all part of the Inishowen Women’s League Under-18 team that won the WFAI Under-18 inter-provincial final last Sunday.
Illies had been due to play Corrib Rangers in the Intermediate Cup, but were given a bye after the Galway outfit pulled out.
[adrotate group=”70″]The likes of Danielle Doherty and Paula McGrory also add considerable power to the Illies side, while Bonagee have this year added the likes of Grainne Gallagher and Shannon McBride to their ranks.
“Illies will be strong as always,” McGinty says. “But we’re looking forward to the game. It’s a big chance in the cup and it’s always good to go for a run in the cup competitions.”
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