‘I can't say they will vote for change... I fear they may not' – Sarah O'Donovan on camogie's Special Congress
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RTÉ News
3 days ago
- RTÉ News
Familiar foes meet in decider after tumultuous summer
The 2025 All-Ireland camogie final provides us with a comfortably familiar pairing after a season of upheaval. Whatever the outcome this weekend, we know that both posterity and the casual observer will likely remember the 2025 camogie season for ' skortgate '. The saga is sure to be allocated a couple of minutes on Reeling in the Years whenever they get around to making it. It was a controversy that could easily have been averted. Throughout 2024, it was clear from GPA surveys that the consensus among the players was for a change in the regulations to allow shorts to be an option. Nonetheless, at last year's Congress, Camogie Association delegates rejected two motions that would have allowed for choice. That teed up this summer's protest, which wound up generating international headlines and led to female parliamentarians donning shorts on the plinth in Leinster House. The Dublin-Kilkenny joint-protest ahead of their Leinster championship encounter kicked the controversy into a higher plane, sparking a crisis which saw the Cork-Waterford Munster decider being deferred after the All-Ireland champions released a statement indicating they would refuse to play in skorts. Brian Molloy, the association's first-ever male president, called for a hastily arranged Special Congress where the matter could be resolved. Despite expressions of pessimism from players and ex-players, it was clear which way things were headed. A whopping 98% of the 133 delegates voted to allow change - leaving only three or so delegates who were willing to torpedo the entire season in order to insist on the maintenance of tradition. This week, Molloy invoked those two crazy weeks in May as a challenge to supporters to come out and support the games in person. "This time the message should be to all of their (camogie players') followers, and all of their constituents because there were a lot of politicians, senators, TDs, Ministers involved, they need to communicate the importance of actually physically supporting the players, not just verbally supporting the players, and that means turning up to Croke Park," Molloy told the Irish Examiner this week. "Demonstrate physical, tangible support for the women that in May they called on the Association to support." Camogie finals have tended to lag well behind women's football finals in attendances. Football deciders have regularly attracted crowds in the 40-50,000 range, with a couple of finals delivering crowds in excess of 50,000. By contrast, All-Ireland camogie final day has only witnessed one crowd north of 30,000, for the relatively novel Cork-Waterford final in 2023. At least part of this is attributed to the strength of Dublin - and to a lesser extent, Meath - in women's football. Notably, the 2024 football decider between Kerry and Galway saw crowds plummet to just over 30,000, with the Dublin-Meath final last week generating a crowd of 48,000. At the end of it all, the final is a repeat of last year's decider. Indeed, no final pairing has been as common as this one in the past three and a half decades. This will be the ninth Cork-Galway All-Ireland final since 1993, which was the latter's first appearance in a final since the early 1960s. Cork, who have none of the scar tissue in finals that now hangs over their male counterparts, are aiming for a three-in-a-row and seeking a 31st title which would take them five clear in the roll of honour. It was the strength of their bench that proved decisive in last year's showdown, with subs Sorcha McCartan - from Down - and Clodagh Finn together landing the last three points of the game after Galway had drawn level following a second-half surge. There was a bitter dispute over the ultimately decisive goal, Katrina Mackey failing to make contact on the ball with her hurl as she hustled it over the goal-line. Ger Manley's side made exceptionally light work of Group 1, amassing a score difference of +90, with only Clare avoiding a double-digit defeat (0-21 to 1-09). They were troubled by Waterford in the second of the Nowlan Park semi-finals, with Beth Carton hitting 1-03 as the underdogs led 1-07 to 0-09 at the break. However, the wind was always a factor and Cork's superiority told in the second half, even if the 10-point margin in the finish was a little flattering to the champions. Substitute Orlaith Mullins, who replaced McCartan, rustled up 1-02 in the dying embers to put a further gloss on the scoreline. Saoirse McCarthy and Mackey carried much of the scoring load in the semi, registering 0-07 and 0-04 respectively. Cork are especially strong in the middle third where the highly experienced and decorated duo of Ashling Thompson and Hannah Looney exert a major influence. Cork camogie's hex around the 'threepeat' exceeds even that which affected the Kilkenny hurlers for years - this being an exceptionally first world problem admittedly. They've done the back-to-back seven times since the beginning of the 1990s - indeed they rarely win All-Ireland titles in singles. But they haven't mustered three on the bounce since their four in a row team of the early 1970s (1970-73). "Everyone you talk to is talking about it," said Amy O'Connor this week, when asked about the three-in-a-row bid. "For ourselves, you have to acknowledge it. It's an unbelievable position to be in but it's not something we're going to focus on too much. "It's another final. Every final you get to you want to win so we're not trying to go out and specifically focus on the three in a row, we're focusing on the final and trying to win that." For Galway, it's been a season of renewal which has seen longstanding manager Cathal Murray usher in a new crop of players while overseeing an uptick in performance. The westerners, who last won the title in 2021, beating Cork in the final, rather crept into last summer's decider, squeezing by Waterford and Tipperary in the knockout stage. By contrast, they cut a greater dash this year, registering impressive wins over Waterford, Kilkenny and Dublin in the group phase and then accounting for Tipp by seven points in the semi. This is all the more impressive given the turnover in personnel. Three-time All-Ireland winner Niamh Kilkenny, player of the year in the 2019 victory, stepped away in the off-season, while experienced inside forward Niamh Hannify also left the fold. On top of that, Murray has lost both Aine Keane and Niamh McPeake to injury. But there's been an influx of youth with the teenage trio of Caoimhe Kelly, Olwen Rabbitte and Ciara Hickey all nailing down places, Kelly hitting 0-02 from play in the semi-final. Murray also presided over Galway's triumph in the inaugural All-Ireland Under-23 title, where they beat Cork 1-11 to 1-08. The former Sarsfields player, who guided his club to the Galway SHC title in 2015 before taking over county camogie job in late 2018, has copper-fastened his managerial credentials and is seeking to garner a third O'Duffy Cup triumph in what has been a highly successful reign. Intriguingly, both sides will have Down women in action, Portaferry's Niamh Mallon - goalscorer against Tipp - lining up against former inter-county teammate McCartan and seeking a first All-Ireland senior title in her second year with Galway.
Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Irish Examiner
Laois chairman PJ Kelly sceptical about deadline for Gaelic games merger
The integration of the three Gaelic games bodies has a better chance of becoming a reality if it is done organically, says Laois chairman PJ Kelly. The Timahoe man has reiterated his reservations about the 2027 deadline for the merger of the GAA, Ladies Gaelic Football and Camogie Associations. Earlier this week, Camogie Association president Brian Molloy said that 2027 was the year the organisations committed to and added the female sports would have 'equal status, equal standing and equal support' to men's Gaelic football and hurling. However, Kelly remains pessimistic about the amalgamation process being completed in that timeframe and is unsure those charged with overseeing the integration have done enough to bring people with them. 'It's like anything that comes to an end, it can come to a natural ending as well and people find that a lot easier to accept,' says Kelly, who will be in Croke Park on Sunday to support Laois's premier junior camogie team against Armagh. 'So, similar to when you're starting out, it's a massive change in culture. 'If people felt that they could maybe take ownership of it, they wouldn't want it to fail. Whereas, if you're directing people below you that you have to do it this way, there's an element of resistance.' In December 2023, Kelly argued that the integration steering chairwoman, former President of Ireland Mary McAleese, gave 'false hope' for the completion of the process. Although it's known the group meet in Croke Park monthly, have held several consultations, conducted a roadshow and established a fixtures oversight body earlier this year, Kelly highlights the lack of updates from them. 'Jim Gavin came in and spearheaded the rule changes. Probably the most significant and seamless changes we've ever had in the GAA. And people are behind it, spectators, players, administrators. But you have to say the right person was put in there, Jim Gavin. 'There is massive respect for Mary McAleese in her own regard but putting her in there she was probably outside of her comfort zone. When's the last time Mary McAleese came out with a statement? I don't want to run down Mary in any regard, but I still think that she gave us false hope in the beginning.' Nothing Kelly has seen has changed his mind that the 2028 date was on the aspirational side. 'Integration doesn't seem to be gaining the same traction as it did when it was brought out first. From working on the ground, the expectation from both the LGFA and Camogie Association is still there. 'We are facilitating it as best we can, but the same challenges are still there such as pitches, finance, etc. You could ask the question, what has changed in the last two years to give you a level of comfort to say that it's on track for 2027.' Kelly speaks of volunteers who are already stretched without taking on more work. Read More Watch: Meabh Cahalane carrying on the family tradition of captaining Cork 'To try and bring this together is probably a challenge that's been overlooked as well. Because I know from clubs, from county boards, it's getting harder to get administrators. 'A lot of them are burnt out at the moment, and this is probably the biggest challenge facing us. And where are we going to get the glut of new people with all this energy? I don't know. 'I can't see it (happening in 2027). I hope I'm wrong, but I cannot see this. I can't put my finger on enough parts of the process to say this has changed, that has changed in the last two years, to say that we are where we need to be. 'I'd say if people on the ground were honest, you'd hear similar views. Of course, high up, they want it to work on time. If I see progress, I'll reconsider my position but I haven't yet.' The one-club model has been heralded as a means of expanding integration from the bottom up but there are issues with that too, Kelly points out. 'We have clubs that operate that policy in Laois but when the JP McManus money came and it was welcome, suddenly they weren't one clubs because the LGFA and Camogie Association in those clubs wanted their share and we split the money that way. How strong is that one-club model when it comes to money?'
Irish Examiner
06-08-2025
- Irish Examiner
Molloy calls on supporters to back players, as they did during skorts debate, on final weekend
Camogie President Brian Molloy is targeting a record All-Ireland final attendance of 40,000, challenging every single person who weighed in on the skorts debate to be present at Croke Park for Sunday's decider. Camogie came under intense scrutiny, both locally and internationally, when inter-county players protested against the mandatory wearing of skorts during May's provincial championship fixtures. Cork and Waterford's refusal to wear skorts for their Munster final led to the fixture being pulled less than 24 hours before throw-in, with a hastily convened Special Congress two weeks later voting in choice and the option to wear shorts on matchday. Ahead of this Sunday's All-Ireland final triple-header at GAA HQ, Molloy called on the politicians, commentators, and social media influencers who spoke out during the skorts debate to now turn their words into action by supporting the same players in person. Waterford reaching a first All-Ireland final in 78 years contributed to a record 30,191-crowd at the 2023 decider. That remains the sole All-Ireland camogie final where the attendance surpassed the 30,000 mark. Last year's Cork-Galway showpiece was watched by 27,811, with Molloy hopeful of a significant leap to 40,000 for this latest instalment between the counties. 'The amount of focus we had on camogie in the month of May, a huge number of people all across the country, and internationally, took time out of their lives to comment online, to do TikTok videos, WhatsApp posts, Instagram posts, Facebook, Tweets, and all that carry on. It was hugely welcomed because we got a massive change into our game as a result of that focus. 'But the message all those people had was it wasn't about jumping on the bandwagon, it wasn't about self-promotion, it was actual genuine support for these women and for the women across the country who play camogie. I have no doubt whatsoever that that is absolutely true, but in order to manifest that properly then, they need to light up their social media as much this week as it was lit up in May,' said Molloy. 'This time the message should be to all of their followers, and all of their constituents because there were a lot of politicians, senators, TDs, Ministers involved, they need to communicate the importance of actually physically supporting the players, not just verbally supporting the players, and that means turning up to Croke Park. "Demonstrate physical, tangible support for the women that in May they called on the Association to support.' After sold-out All-Ireland hurling and football finals, 48,089 turned up for the Dublin-Meath ladies football final last Sunday, while it would represent a massive step forward for the Camogie Association if they were to achieve Molloy's stated aim of half filling the venue this weekend. The Camogie president said the gender-rooted disparity in crowds does not reflect well on society. 'The fact that the split is on a gender basis is not good from a societal perspective. We really need to get better at actually putting into practice the support we espouse for female participation in sport, the support we espouse for equality and equity in sport. It needs to be reflected on the ground and on the seats of Croke Park. 'There was a huge crowd up for the Kerry footballers for their All-Ireland final. Are they all going to come up and support Kerry camogie, and if not, why not? Cork are going for three-in-a-row. Everybody who went to the hurling final should be coming up and supporting these ladies. 'Galway and Armagh were in the All-Ireland football final last year, huge crowds came up. The same crowd needs to be coming up this Sunday to support the Galway and Armagh camogie teams. Offaly and Laois are huge GAA counties and there is huge focus when the men get into finals. It needs to be the exact same with the women. 'Anybody in those six counties who positions themselves as a supporter of Gaelic games, you need to go beyond positioning yourself as a supporter of Gaelic Games, you need to actually turn up on Sunday and support the women from your county.' In their most recent Strategic Plan, the Camogie Association put in writing a 50,000-attendance target for the 2026 All-Ireland final. The long-term plan is to someday fill Croke Park entirely, with Molloy wanting an end to the mindset where there is zero expectation of a camogie final full house. 'We have to break away from that and the only way we break away from that is everybody getting their head around the fact that there is absolutely no reason why we can't have 82,000 for a camogie final. 'You need to do more than just a TikTok video or a message somewhere to say, I support the camogie girls. Great, really appreciate that, but we actually need you to come in and support the camogie girls.' Molloy said the 5.15pm senior final throw-in was not a Camogie Association call and was instead dictated by RTÉ's broadcast schedule. 'We will look at it and see can we get it brought forward an hour earlier [from next year] - that would make it easier. It means it's quite late when particularly younger ones are getting back home. It's not our decision to put it on that late.' Adult tickets for the triple-header are priced at €30, €20 for OAPs, €15 for students, €10 for juveniles, while a four-person family deal is also available at €17.50 a ticket.
