Into the west: Niamh Mallon at home with Galway after year of 'overthinking'

Irish Examiner

10 hours ago

Mallon in maroon. A more comfortable fit than last year. On-field contributions are better for that improved fit.
It's amazing what stirs unseen beneath the surface. Niamh Mallon made her Galway debut 45 minutes into last year's Camogie League final. She rose three white flags in the quarter of an hour she was on the field.
Her debut campaign in adopted colours concluded with All-Star selection at right corner-forward. It was a selection heavily influenced by an All-Ireland semi-final display where she top-scored with 1-3 from play and won the 59th minute free that triggered their decisive late scoring burst.
A seamless switch into new colours and new environs. Well, to those on the outside looking in anyway. After her latest semi-final heroics on Saturday, the Portaferry native opened up on a difficult maiden voyage in maroon.
A sports scientist at Galway-based firm Orreco, where she conducts the company's Redox testing, essentially a point-of-care blood test for oxidated stress levels, Mallon commuted from Galway to continue lining out for Down following her move west in 2018.
The commuting ceased last year. She took on the challenge of trying to make the cut in one of the most competitive camogie dressing-rooms around. That challenge was quickly conquered. The challenge that stumped her was she herself feeling comfortable in maroon.
'Last year was a huge challenge,' she began.
'It probably was quite stressful from my own perspective, a new environment, something I wasn't used to in 12, 13 years in terms of a camogie dressing-room. I have definitely got more comfortable around the group, I have definitely got more comfortable around the environment, and that is leading to a lot more enjoyment. I couldn't be happier, to be honest with you.'
The western welcome was there from the first moment she joined Cathal Murray's group. The issue was Mallon convincing herself she belonged. That took time.
'It was completely my own doing. It was nobody else. Cathal and the girls were super, and they did everything in their power to integrate me into the group. But it was something new to me and something I grappled with, and probably overthought a lot, whereas this year, I am completely comfortable in the group and it has led to a more enjoyable experience.'
It has also led to a series of outstanding showings. For the second semi-final running, Mallon was Galway's top-scorer from play, albeit she shared the title on this occasion with Ailish O'Reilly.
Along with her 1-2 tally, she won the Tipperary puckout for Galway's sixth point, was fouled for their first score after half-time, and had the assist for Aoife Donohue's final quarter white flag. With 1-17 across five games, she heads into the decider as their leading contributor from play.
'Last year was about finding my feet and probably me feeling the need to deliver, whereas this year I feel completely at ease and yeah, it has led to better performances and a more enjoyable experience overall,' continued Mallon, who serves as the nutritionist to Pádraic Joyce's Galway footballers.
The Down sharpshooter was one of seven starters from Saturday's team that didn't feature in the 2023 semi-final defeat to Cork. Last year, so, was about returning to the final. This year is about traveling the whole distance.
'Today was definitely a stepping stone on what we want to do. Last year, there was huge euphoria and joy after the semi-final, such was the nature of how we won the game, whereas today, it felt like we had a job to do, and we did it. We are just delighted to be heading back to Croke Park in two weeks' time. That was ultimately the goal.
'I think the team as a whole has matured massively over the past 12 months. Last year, Ciara Hickey and Olwen Rabbitte probably hadn't been involved in games like this, whereas now, a year under the belt, 12 months of training, 12 months of being used to the players around them, the environment, they have huge aspirations and ambitions of getting back to the biggest day. That probably all contributed to the performance today.
'Cathal has done a brilliant job of bleeding players into the group over the last 12-18 months, myself included. It has been hugely important. We are in the final, but we have a lot of work to do if we are going to pull it off.'
Mallon was held to a point in the '24 decider defeat to Cork. Now more at ease in maroon, the Galway import is striving for improved final involvement.