Lower Township’s Madie Gibson holds aloft the first-place trophy from the Sports Direct Women’s FAI Cup. Her team, Athlone Town AFC, beat Shelbourne in the conference finals in Tallaght Stadium, on Sunday, Nov. 19. At 32 minutes Athlone Town’s Dana Scheriff scored and the team held a 1-0 lead at halftime. Shelbourne tied the game before the end of regulation and scored first in extra time. Down 2-1, Athlone Town’s Gillian Keenan tied the match at 2-2. Athlone Town AFC won the cup final 4-3 in a shootout. Gibson did not score but had a significant impact on the game. This is the first time Athlone Town has won the FAI Women’s Cup, but the second time in 2023 that Athlone Town has beaten Shelbourne in a cup final. Earlier, they defeated the Dubliners in the President’s Cup. Gibson was also one of two Athlone Town players named to the PFA Ireland Women’s Premier Division Team of the Year 2023.