Proud Ryan hails Mulroy’s character

Maria Ryan admits her heart was still racing when the cup had been collected.

Mulroy College prevailed 3-1 on penalties in Friday’s FAI Schools Senior B Girls Ulster Cup final in Letterkenny.

St Patrick’s College from Mayo await in an All-Ireland semi-final on Tuesday.

“It worked in our favour in the end,” a breathless Ryan said.

“It was a fantastic performance by the girls. They made hard work of it at the start, but eventually they pulled together.

“They got what they deserved. They had most of the play and missed a number of chances. Thankfully we got there in the end up.”

Friel hits the sport as Mulroy edge a final of inches with Rosses

Mulroy College defeated Rosses Community School on penalties at Letterkenny Community Centre

While Mulroy went close several times to breaking the deadlock, it wasn’t all one-way traffic and Leah McLaughlin, the Mulroy goalkeeper, stepped up with a couple of vital interventions.

In the shoot-out, McLaughlin saved penalties from Claire Diver and Ellie McGarvey before Rachel Friel converted the winner.

Ryan said: “Leah made some fantastic saves to keep us in the game. She played exceptionally well. She made some fantastic saves in the shoot-out too.

“We won the previous game on penalties so we did think ahead about penalties when the game went to extra time.

“I’m exceptionally proud of them. They all stepped up. None of them shied away from taking a kick.”