Latest news with #BrianMolloy
Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
An outstanding camogie rivalry again delivered. Someday the sport's association might seek to harness it
The midweek soundbites of Camogie President Brian Molloy didn't land. The gauntlet thrown down to all those who weighed in on the skorts protest was ignored. The masses refused to be guilted into attendance. The president and the rest of the Camogie Association posse were naive to think the strong words of last week would ignite a response by foot. The camogie product has never been stronger and yet the year-round promotion of this product still lags a distance behind. That the latter statement still has to be made, in the wake of a second successive final thriller, is regrettable. The focus should be elsewhere and we will shortly steer it that way. Yesterday's crowd of 28,795, while still the second highest for a Camogie final, was nowhere near befitting the enthralling and physically ferocious fare served up. Of the four All-Ireland senior finals of the past month, yesterday was out on its own under several different headings. None of the previous three produced a contest of this nature. None of the previous three produced drama of this nature. As we wrote last year and we write again now, the players in maroon and their contemporaries in red can do little more to entice patrons through the turnstiles. Add to that list the referees. They too can do little more. This final was refereed from another world. Think back to the whistle-obsessed officiating of the many Cork-Kilkenny deciders in the middle of the last decade. Finals ruined by referees. Finals are now being raised by referees. The leniency shown is continually lifting the game to new heights by enabling players to express themselves both in strength and in skill. Yesterday was the latest example of such. That is not to say Justin Heffernan scored a perfect 10 with his performance. Anything but. He missed a blatant push by Galway corner-forward Caoimhe Kelly on Cork goalkeeper Amy Lee that ended with the former firing over for a four-point lead. On the Galway side, Sabina Rabbitte was somehow called for overcarrying as Libby Coppinger hung out of her. Both sides will have other grievances. Both sides did air their grievances. Ger Manley labelled Heffernan's performance 'shocking', Hannah Looney's red card 'very harsh', and the winning free 'a dive' by Carrie Dolan. Whatever about the first and third of these assessments, the first-half injury-time red card was a red card. Interpretation is off the table there. Cathal Murray, meanwhile, was infuriated with the interpretation of the charging rule for a second year in succession. On this occasion, Mairead Dillon and Dervla Higgins had second-half frees given against them when carrying possession into Laura Treacy. 'That rule has to change. It's absolutely crazy,' said Murray. The above incidences, though, were in the minority. The physicality allowed propelled proceedings forward. The physicality allowed propelled this final onto the top shelf of camogie deciders. Midway through the second period, Mairead Dillon presented herself in the face of Treacy. The Cork centre-back wasn't allowed out. She handpassed to Méabh Cahalane. The Cork captain got a similar unforgiving searching. In too many previous finals, the whistle would have been blown and the hand raised for a Cork free out. The whistle, as was the case so often yesterday, never came. Cork were turned over. Carrie Dolan was fouled. Carrie Dolan converted for a four-point Galway lead. 'We welcome physicality, we want physicality. Them girls are three nights a week in the gym, I'm sure Cork are too. We want the game to be played like that,' said Murray. 'Justin is a good referee. He'll always shake hands and say, 'I'm going to let it go as much as I can'. In fairness, most of the referees are doing that. You don't want a game of frees like we had in the past, but I do think it was an unbelievable game of camogie. You don't get a chance to enjoy it because you're running up and down the line, but it looked like an unbelievable game and Cork are unbelievable champions the way they came back at us.' Galway seethed during the two-week build up over how Cork were billed as untouchable rather than unbelievable. Ailish O'Reilly, the sole Galway player to start all four of their modern-day final victories - 2013, '19, '21, and '25 - became the latest All-Ireland winning player of recent weeks to speak of perceived disrespect. 'It felt like we were just coming up to show up and they were just going to be handed the trophy. We were so riled up,' said the forward who has scored in all four final wins. Galway have never needed perceived disrespect to stand equal with Cork. This was a relationship they took control of in the 2019 semi-final and dominated for eight successive games before the shift in sands two summers ago. Aggression was the central theme in the Galway gameplan. Always has been when the opposition wear red. Stop the Cork running game at the start line. Physicality at source to prevent possession snapped and short passes played. Crucified was Cork's short puckout game. Aggression stifling athleticism. Within the opening eight minutes, Amy O'Connor and Hannah Looney spent time on the deck receiving treatment. Orlaith Cahalane lay stretched just past the quarter hour. Galway were tackling right on the edge. At times, such as Aoife Donohue's goal-preventing pull on O'Connor for the saved penalty, Galway went past the edge. Cork were sore and unsettled for it. Next to nothing was being pulled. That was until Galway's aggression unnerved Cork to such an extent that Cork's nerve snapped. Late in the first-half, Ashling Thompson played a ground pass to Saoirse McCarthy. The half-forward was swallowed robustly whole by Derval Higgins, O'Reilly, and Siobhan Gardiner. Possession broke to Donohue, Thompson fouled her. Carrie Dolan converted and Galway were five in front. Two minutes later and in the same area in front of the Hogan Stand, Katrina Mackey was the latest in red to be swallowed. She handpassed to Laura Hayes. Such was the pressure applied, the half-back dropped possession out over the sideline. Niamh Mallon clinched her fist in pumped delight. When Carrie Dolan charged into the back of Looney just before the ensuing sideline was struck, the Cork midfielder put her fist across the faceguard of Dolan and was duly sent off. And yet, the numerical advantage almost didn't count. From a position of a woman up on the field and five up on the scoreboard, Galway almost threw the final away with their four second-half wides and shots sent short. Cathal Murray, unlike 12 months ago, ran the bench early. One of those, Sabina Rabbitte, was a lone outpost in the full-forward line. She won delivery after delivery. Captain Carrie won the game-winning free and then showed phenomenal steel to convert. Cork were camogie's standard-pushers of recent years. Galway were the sole stone in their shoe. There was no shaking them here. Galway rattled them physically and mentally. Galway again raised themselves to new heights in attempting and succeeding in conquering Cork. The wait for a red three-in-a-row and bridging the gap to the early 1970s runs on. The fifth and sweetest for Galway. Camogie's outstanding and only rivalry again delivers. Someday the Camogie Association might seek to harness and capitalise upon it.
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Politics
- 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 Times
7 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Times
Armagh aiming for glory in fifth junior camogie final in 10 years
Armagh captain Ciara Hill says that despite considerable change since their last All-Ireland junior camogie triumph, her side are ready for Sunday's final against Laois . Their last victory came in 2020 and was followed by final defeats in 2021 and '22, with Hill unable to play in their most recent decider due to injury. Adding in their loss in the 2016 edition, Armagh are heading into their fifth final in a decade, but this time they come into the decider with confidence after a 12-point win over Roscommon. 'I think from the 2020 team it's quite different now. We lost a few of the older girls but there's a lot of new girls in. It kind of sparks the camp and puts everyone through their paces, so I think it's a different team, but it's strong.' READ MORE 'It was great to get a win going into the final, it does give you that bit of confidence. But we know every match is a different game and we know that Laois is going to be a really tough opponent, so (we'll) just try and focus on the finals.' When Armagh won their first junior title in 27 years they did so in a near-empty Breffni Park due to restrictions during the pandemic. 'I suppose that was in the height of Covid, so that didn't really feel like an All-Ireland final at that time', admits Hill. It will be a different story this time out against Laois in Croke Park though, as Camogie Association president Brian Molloy has made clear his intention that the attendance record will be broken at this year's triple header. Molloy said he hopes there will be 'over 40,000' spectators at Croke Park on Sunday, saving his ultimate goal of filling the stadium for future finals. Hill is confident Armagh fans will mobilise to support their team: 'I think all week now there's been a great buzz in Armagh, in terms of organising buses for the underage girls to come up and support. I know they've been selling flags and headscarves and everything too. It would be lovely to look up into the stand and see a lot of orange and white there. 'They did it last summer now for the boys, so hopefully they'll match it this weekend and come out in full force,' she says.
Irish Examiner
7 days ago
- Politics
- 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.
Irish Times
06-08-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Camogie president challenges skort protest backers to show their support by attending All-Ireland finals
Camogie president Brian Molloy has challenged the Irish sporting public – including those who were exercised by the skorts debate earlier this year – to help Sunday's All-Ireland finals attract a record crowd. The triple header of finals will see Armagh face Laois in the junior decider at 1pm, followed by the intermediate clash of Kerry and Offaly at 3pm before the main event at 5.15pm between Cork and Galway. It is just three months since a protest by the Kilkenny and Dublin camogie teams in relation to wearing skorts sparked a debate that spread rapidly from the sporting sphere to become a central part of the national discourse for several weeks. Taoiseach Micheál Martin even entered the conversation as folk from all walks of life rushed to offer their tuppence worth on the matter. For a period, it felt the Camogie Association was under siege until a vote to allow choice was strongly supported and ended the controversy. READ MORE 'There was a huge amount of comment all through May on the skorts issue,' said Molloy. 'There were TikToks and WhatsApps and all sorts of Instagram and Facebook (posts) and all that. All really good, all really positive. 'There were loads of media interviews, the vast majority of which, I'd say, was positive. There were some who didn't really understand the situation, but those who understand camogie, understand Gaelic games and understand sports understood what the process was. Kilkenny's Katie Power and Dublin's Aisling Maher wear shorts as they speak to referee Ray Kelly before both teams returned to the dressingrooms to change into skorts ahead of the Leinster semi-final in May. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw 'And we got there. The vast majority of those people that commented at that time made it very clear they wanted to make a point in support of the voice of the female athletes, in support of female participation in sport. 'And if that's the case, and I have no reason to believe it isn't, their social media accounts should be as lit up this week calling on all of their followers, their constituents, their supporters to get to Croke Park on Sunday and demonstrate physical, tangible support for the women that in May they called on the Association to support. 'A lot of politicians were involved, a lot of senators, a lot of TDs, a lot of ministers. I want to see all those people using their position of influence in a positive way now for the camogie players and urging their supporters to come to Croke Park on Sunday.' While reluctant to float a figure, Molloy is hoping the 40,000 ceiling can be broken for the first time. There was a crowd of 27,811 at the finals last August for a triple header that was also headlined by the meeting of Cork and Galway. The largest ever attendance at an All-Ireland camogie final was 33,154 in 2007 when Cork beat Wexford – though that figure is skewed by the fact the All-Ireland under-21 hurling decider between Galway and Dublin was the curtain raiser. Cork's Meabh Cahalane with Galway's Áine Keane at Croke Park ahead of Sundays All-Ireland final. Photograph: Morgan Treacy/Inpho A crowd of 30,191 attended in 2023 when Cork beat Waterford – the first time the 30,000 mark had been broken by stand-alone camogie fare. 'I would like to see us get up over 40,000,' says Molloy, whose ultimate ambition is to have Croke Park full on All-Ireland camogie final day. 'My point wasn't about the ability to be able to deliver it (full house) in one year but I think we need to have the aspiration.' And Molloy's appeal is not merely for those engaged by the skorts debate. He believes a broader societal shift is needed to move the dial on how female sport is viewed in Ireland. 'I think we do need to look at ourselves as a society, where we have four All-Ireland finals and two of them are full houses and two of them aren't,' he says. 'There's a gender split. I think if there was any other part of life where we're looking at similar events but the only difference is gender split, there'd be question marks being raised as to, 'hold on a second, what's going on here?' 'I can go through all the counties. Kerry, the number of people who came up to watch the Kerry footballers win their All-Ireland final, are all those people going to come to watch the camogie players in their All-Ireland final? '(It's a) historic All-Ireland final for those intermediate camogie players, it's the first time that Kerry have got to the final in the intermediate grade. If they're not (going to come support the team), why not? Cork's Amy O'Connor celebrates scoring her third goal during last year's All-Ireland senior camogie final against Waterford. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho 'Why would you support your county men in the football but you wouldn't support your county women in the camogie? You could ask the same question with regards to Cork. 'Cork obviously had a difficult hurling final but all those people who came up to support the lads playing hurling, surely all those people are also going to come up and support the women playing camogie. And again, if not, why not? 'Galway and Armagh, both counties happen to be in different competitions but both are playing on Sunday. 'They filled Croke Park for an All-Ireland football final just a year ago. So are all those people going to come and support the Galway and the Armagh camogie players?' Molloy praised the initiative of Offaly GAA, who cancelled all of their club games on Sunday to try encourage fans to support the county's camogie team at Croke Park. 'The first thing we need to do is get our own members to go to All-Ireland final Sunday, irrespective of which counties are competing,' he adds. 'The Association was set up over 121 years ago, it's one of the oldest established national governing bodies for women's sport in the world. 'If all just the camogie members came on Sunday, that would be over 124,000 people.'
