‘Resounding' 98-2 vote in favour of shorts choice
Camogie players can now choose between shorts or skorts after delegates at Thursday night's Special Congress of the Camogie Association voted overwhelmingly in favour of a choice of playing attire.
The meeting took place against the backdrop of inter-county player protests and a debate and push for change that garnered national and international headlines.
In the end, 98 per cent of the 133 delegates present at Croke Park voted for change with just 2 per cent in favour of maintaining the status quo of skorts only. Camogie players can now choose between shorts or skorts after delegates at Thursday night's Special Congress of the Camogie Association voted overwhelmingly in favour of a choice of playing attire. Pic: INPHO/Tom Maher
'98-2 is a fairly resounding result in favour of choice for the players,' said Camogie president Brian Molloy, addressing the media afterwards.
'There was a very strong round of applause as soon as the vote was announced,' he revealed. 'People are very happy about this; people are very positive about this.'
And so, 121 years after the association was founded, players will have a choice when it comes to playing attire. Camogie Association president Brian Molloy. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
Only last April, the same issue was put to delegates at a full Congress of the Camogie Association — and delegates voted it down 55 per cent to 45 per cent, well short of the two-thirds majority required.
A survey of 650 inter-county players, however, carried out by the GPA, showed that 83 per cent would prefer to wear shorts. And that 70 per cent said they experienced discomfort while wearing skorts — shorts with a panel of fabric that makes them have the appearance of a skirt.
That snowballed into a very public push for change that saw Dublin and Kilkenny players wear shorts in protest and the Munster final between Cork and Waterford postponed when the competing counties said they were prepared to do the same. 'From midnight tonight, each individual player will have the option to wear skorts or shorts — adding choice while maintaining the professionalism and uniformity of our team kits,' added Molloy. The meeting took place against the backdrop of inter-county player protests and a debate and push for change that garnered national and international headlines. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
'I want to sincerely thank our incredible volunteers for their ongoing support over the last few weeks, and to our delegates for voting on behalf of over 120,000 members, including 94,000 playing members.'
He said there was little contentious about Thursday night's debate.
'I'd had conversations with the delegate chairs, the county chairs and provincial chairs over the last couple of weeks directly and they were all very, very focused on engaging with their members and taking time to poll them and they did it in numerous different ways, but they were very focused on the importance of getting the players' voice and making sure it was heard.
'From my perspective, it's a fantastic victory for choice, it's a fantastic victory for the players and it's a fantastic opportunity for us to attract more players who maybe don't like playing in skorts and I've always recognised that.'
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