23-05-2025
'It's a victory for the sport': Dublin captain welcomes rule change after skorts row
Dublin senior camogie captain Aisling Maher has welcomed the decision to allow players to wear shorts instead of skorts.
The rules were changed at a special Congress at Croke Park held by the Camogie Association on Thursday, with 98% of the 133 delegates voting in favour of the change.
Earlier this month, Kilkenny and Dublin saw their Leinster senior camogie semi-final come close to being called off when players from both sides originally lined out in shorts instead of the regulatory skorts.
The game only went ahead after the players went, as ordered by the referee, back to the dressing rooms at St Peregrine's GAA club, Blanchardstown and put on skorts before standing for the national anthem ahead of the 3.30pm throw-in.
Following this, the Munster final was postponed 16 hours before its scheduled throw-in time after Cork and Waterford players said they would be wearing shorts rather than skorts.
Ms Maher, who is also co-chair of the Gaelic Players Association, was asked on RTÉ's Morning Ireland what she thought of the decision, which 98% of delegates voted for.
She said: 'It's a victory for the sport in general. It's a victory for players who are presently playing.
'I also think it's a victory for young players coming up, who will now be able to make a choice about what they wear while they play.'
She said protests that she and other players had been involved with 'definitely accelerated the speed of change' on the issue.
Despite the issue being brought up in the past and not acted on, she said she did not believe the rules would have been changed 'without some form of extreme action', adding that 'unfortunately, the protests probably were warranted'.
Aisling Maher. Picture: INPHO/Laszlo Geczo
Asked if the row had damaged the game, she said that it had certainly caused 'a huge amount of frustration with players'.
But she said what was important was that the issue had been dealt with ahead of the forthcoming All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship, which Cork won last year. Had it not been, she said it would have led to the championship being disrupted.
She said: 'Had we not got to this point where the introduction of the shorts prior to championship was achieved, I think a huge amount of damage would be done through the championship, either not being played or played under protest, or potentially with games being cancelled again.
'I think it's a significant positive development that this change has been introduced before that championship begins.
'I hope that going forward we can learn from it, and not put ourselves in similar positions again for actual long-term damage.
'I hope that this is something we can recover from. You have to see the positives in this.' She added: 'The beginning of the All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship has probably never got as much attention and publicity, and hopefully some of that attention will stay with camogie in a more positive light.'
Skorts were first worn in September 2003 but have since been seen by a majority of players as archaic.
The Camogie Association last year had rejected a request by players, who see skorts as uncomfortable, that they be allowed to wear shorts.
Camogie Association president Brian Molloy described Thursday's decision as a 'very important moment for the Camogie Association', saying he welcomed it.
'The association listens to its members. We've always listened to our members. We're a representative democracy.'
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