The second half didn’t open up to any degree, though there were two goals. Donohue’s was the key one as she raced away with that trademark electric burst. Her first shot was saved by O’Regan but the sliotar came straight back to her and she instinctively doubled it back off the netminder’s head for an outstanding goal.
A Carrie Dolan point put five between the sides but when Niamh Rockett was unceremoniously downed in the square, having slotted three points from play up to that juncture, Carton drilled beyond the diving Sarah Healy and it was game on.
Galway gritted it out however and hard though Jerry Wallace’s side tried, the facts are they never led and it was the westerners who just about deserved to get over the line.
Waterford: B O’Regan 0-01f, L Forrest, C Carroll, A McNulty, K Lynch, K Corbett, M Power, B Bowdren, L Bray, N Rockett 0-03, B Carton 1-04 (1-00pen. 0-03f, 0-01 '45), O Hickey 0-01, A Flynn, T Power, R Kirwan.
Subs: A Fitzgerald for Kirwan (25); S Lacey for T Power (36); R Walsh for Mairéad Power (36); M O’Brien for Lynch (44); M Gostl for Bray inj (56)
Galway: S Healy, R Black, C Hickey, D Higgins 0-01, A Keane, N Hanniffy, R Hanniffy, A Hesnan, C Dolan 0-04f, N McPeake 0-01, A O’Reilly 0-01, N Kilkenny, N Niland 0-01, A Donohue 1-01, N Mallon 0-02.
Subs: O McGrath for McPeake (42); O Rabbitte 0-01 for Hesnan (57); S Rabbitte for Kilkenny (58)
Referee: Ray Kelly (Kildare)
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