Latest news with #camogie
Irish Times
26-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Camogie president targets filling Croke Park for All-Ireland final
Brian Molloy has set a hugely ambitious target of filling Croke Park for All-Ireland camogie final day on Sunday, August 10th. Speaking at the launch of the 2025 GlenDimplex All-Ireland Camogie Championships on Monday, the association president called on the public to support their county teams over the coming months. The largest ever attendance at an All-Ireland camogie final was 33,154 at the 2007 decider between Cork and Wexford, though that figure was skewed by the Galway v Dublin under-21 All-Ireland hurling final acting as the curtain-raiser. The first and only time a camogie final broke the 30,000 threshold without hurling on the undercard was in 2023 when 30,191 watched Cork and Waterford in the senior showpiece event. All-Ireland camogie final day last year attracted 27,811. READ MORE In launching a three-year strategic plan in 2024, the association's stated aim was to have a crowd of 50,000 at the 2026 All-Ireland final. However, Molloy has set his sights higher. 'It was great to see so much focus and so much attention on camogie over the last number of weeks but I want all those people to keep their attention on camogie over the next number of weeks and the next number of months so that on August 10th we can fill Croke Park,' he said. 'We've never done it before. This year's All-Ireland final is going to be historic. The best way you can show actual support for camogie is by filling Croke Park on August 10th.' The Camogie Association has changed the format for this year's All-Ireland championships by not allowing any county enter a second team at junior or intermediate level. Cork and Kilkenny contested last year's intermediate final, while Cork also competed in the senior decider. 'We'll have six distinct counties irrespective of how things go because we've changed the structures and we don't have the second teams,' added Molloy. 'I think having six separate counties in our finals is going to be hugely important. So that's my key message, tickets are already on sale, they're up on the Ticketmaster website so there is no excuse for people not to have tickets for the All-Ireland finals.' All-Ireland camogie final day on August 10th will see a triple header take place at Croke Park with the junior, intermediate and senior deciders all on the card.
ABC News
26-05-2025
- Sport
- ABC News
Netball's dress debate mirrored in Ireland's camogie skort fight
The protest from Ireland's camogie players refusing to wear "uncomfortable" uniforms that conformed to tradition mirrors the discussion about whether netballers in Australia should still be mandated to wear dresses. After years of discontent and backlash from players, the Camogie's ruling body last Thursday ended the obligation to wear skorts (a skirt with built-in shorts underneath), which critics said had deterred girls from taking up the sport. The Camogie Association made the change after Dublin and Kilkenny players turned up at their provincial Leinster semifinal in shorts. After the referee threatened to abandon the game, the players changed into skorts. However, the protest galvanised public solidarity with their cause. This echoes a discussion point in recent years around the netball dress here in Australia, as some leaders have been calling for change, citing the uniform as uncomfortable and restrictive. Bess Schnioffsky, a researcher at RMIT University, whose thesis looks at femininity in Australia netball, said the tight-fitting, very short nature of the netball dress often left players pulling down their uniform. "A lot of netball moves involving putting your hands over your head, so if you're constantly worrying about pulling down your dress then you're not playing the game to the fullest of your ability," Dr Schnioffsky said. Dr Schnioffsky said there's an interesting tension at the moment in netball at the higher levels, with some players loving the traditional dress and others finding it outdated. "(Some) players are like 'Why are we still playing in a dress in 2025, this makes no sense' and other players are like 'No, I love playing in a dress, it's part of the game and I love that I can be feminine and sporty'," Dr Schnioffsky said. When the option was given at the Team Girls Cup, the sport's official pre-season tournament, most players still opted for the dress despite some choosing a shorts or leggings and singlet combination. GWS co-captain Jo Harten told ABC Sport last year that behind the scenes, she's been pushing for a more inclusive uniform policy at club level. "I think, the broader options we can have as a uniform, the more people it will attract, because it doesn't have to be one body type playing this sport," Harten, who has played netball at the top level for close to 20 years, said. "We should be looking at people of all different sizes, ethnicities, styles of hair, because essentially, that is what makes a global game and the more we can be inclusive, the better." A state of the game review in 2020 found that a lack of flexibility in uniforms was proving to be a barrier to girls taking up the sport. A 2021 national study by Victoria University found 58 per cent of girls do not want to wear skirts while playing sport outside of school, and 65 per cent do not want to wear skirts during school sport. Following this, Netball Australia revealed changes to their uniform policy in late 2022, which would allow players and umpires to choose between a dress, singlet, bodysuit, short-sleeved or long-sleeved shirt, skirt, shorts and long pants. These changes were implemented for the first time during the Super Netball pre-season Team Girls Cup by three teams. However, once the main season commenced, all teams returned to the netball dress. The discussion around netball uniforms has been simmering for years. Former Diamonds world champion Ash Brazill, in 2023, said that when she started playing netball, she didn't know where she belonged, partly because of the attire. "You know, I didn't have the blonde ponytail with the ribbon in their hair and I would have preferred to wear shorts than a dress," Brazill told The Age in 2023. "And going into footy and hearing [people] asking girls 'why did they stop playing netball', and a lot of it was not feeling like they belonged." Similarly, Dr Schnioffsky said if she was choosing a sport to play as a girl today, she'd likely opt for football over netball, given the comfort of the kit. "That was the part of the game that I really had to grapple with, how I felt in a dress," Schnioffsky said. "Because I didn't like it and I was very conscious of how my body looked in the dress and how I was being perceived in the dress. Whereas if I was growing up now I think I would have played footy. "Because even though the uniform is still somewhat restrictive in terms of the short shorts, there's a greater diversity of bodies at that higher level who are modelling how it looks to fit in a footy jumper versus how, if you look at the elite professional netball bodies, that diversity isn't there."
Irish Times
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Camogie round-up: Wins for Cork, Galway, Kilkenny and Clare
Galway , Cork , Kilkenny and Clare all picked up victories in the first round of games in the Glen Dimplex All-Ireland senior camogie championship this afternoon, with the two western counties going well to come through tough contests in front of their home supporters. Galway opened their championship campaign with a 0-15 to 1-6 victory over Dublin at a rain soaked Kenny Park in Athenry. The visitors made a strong start with a goal after 10 minutes from Aisling Gannon, while points from Sinéad Wylde and Aisling Maher (free) had the visitors 1-2 to 0-2 ahead after 18 minutes, threatening an upset win for the Dubs against last year's All-Ireland finalists. Galway leaned heavily on the expertise of team captain Carrie Dolan and her dead ball skills in the first half as she was the only scorer for the Tribeswomen in that opening 30 minutes, registering four frees, one 45 and two from play, while points from Wylde and Grace O'Shea scores left the sides level at half time, 0-7 to 1-4. Galway proved too strong in the second half, outscoring the visitors by 0-8 to 0-2 in what were incredibly difficult conditions for the teams to show their quality. READ MORE Dolan added four from placed balls while Sabina Rabbitte, Mairéad Dillon, Caoimhe Kelly and Niamh Mallon also chipped in. Two Aisling Maher frees were all that Dublin could add to their tally in the second half as the home side ran out winners. The other Group Two fixture saw Kilkenny record a 3-26 to 0-9 win over Derry in Owenbeg, with the Cats in complete control throughout. Kilkenny led by 0-9 to 0-2 and already had six different scorers on the board when Katie Nolan fired their first goal of the afternoon after 16 minutes. The visitors led by 1-15 to 0-3 at the interval with Sarah Barcoe picking off three from play. Orlaith Hull tallied all three of Derry's scores from frees during the first half. The half-time interval didn't change the flow of the game as Kilkenny picked up from where they left off in the second period, with Sophie Holden and Steffi Fitzgerald adding goals. Derry got second-half points through Sinéad and Áine McGill, but the Ulster side were left in no doubt as to the task on their hands if they are to rebuild their championship in advance of another fiercely tough test against Galway next Saturday. Kilkenny will go back home and play host to Waterford next weekend, with Dublin on a bye before taking on the Cats in round three. In Cusack Park in Ennis, the home side overcame Wexford on a 0-15 to 1-9 scoreline. A tough and competitive game saw Clare take a 0-10 to 1-5 lead into the interval before the scores became even harder to come by in the second half. Ziyan Spillane struck five first half points for the Banner (three frees) while Róisín Begley landed three from play. Joanne Dillon struck four placed balls for Wexford at the other end while the highlight reels will be dominated by a superb goal from Wexford's Anais Curran, a brilliant shot to the top right-hand corner. The second half was equally competitive, but Clare shaded the scoring with Ellen Casey tallying two vital scores. Dillon added two at the other end, bringing her personal tally to 0-6 for the afternoon, but it was not enough as Wexford could not find a way to engineer the second goal they badly needed. There was no surprise in Páirc Uí Rinn were reigning champions Cork recorded a facile victory over Limerick. Ger Manley's charges ran out 6-25 to 0-5 winners over the Treaty county, who now face into a crucial battle with Wexford next weekend in Rathkeale. First half goals from Amy O'Connor, Katrina Mackey, and Orlaith Cahalane saw the Leesiders lead by 3-12 to 0-1 at half time. Limerick's sole scoring coming from a Caoimhe Costelloe free. It did not get much better for Limerick in the second half, with Cork adding goals through Cahalane, and two from Clodagh Finn, while they also racked up another 13 points for good measure. O'Connor (1-7), Cahalane (2-3), Finn (2-3) and Mackey (1-4) all had productive afternoons in front of the posts for the Rebels, with Laura Southern hitting two point from play for Limerick to go with Costelloe's three frees. Cork will travel to Tipperary next weekend, with Clare resting up in this group.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Irish camogie players triumph after skorts backlash and can now wear shorts
Armagh's Sophia Vallely tackles Seamim Shaw of Meath at the Camogie U16 all-Ireland championship shield final in Kinnegad, Westmeath, Ireland, on 3 May. Armagh's Sophia Vallely tackles Seamim Shaw of Meath at the Camogie U16 all-Ireland championship shield final in Kinnegad, Westmeath, Ireland, on 3 May. Photograph: Leah Scholes/Inpho/Rex/Shutterstock Irish camogie players who objected to wearing skorts in the female-only sport have triumphed: they can now wear shorts. The sport's ruling body on Thursday ended the obligation to wear skorts – a portmanteau of shorts and skirt – and said players could choose to wear shorts. Advertisement A special congress of the Camogie Association voted in a landslide – 98% of 133 delegates – to change a dress rule that critics said was archaic and deterred girls and women from taking up Ireland's female version of the Gaelic game of hurling. Brian Molloy, the association's president, said: 'We are pleased to announce that delegates have voted by an overwhelming majority in favour of giving players greater choice in their playing attire. '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 in both colour and design.' Traditionalists had favoured skorts – a hybrid garment comprising an overlapping fabric panel over compressor-type shorts – as feminine but many players said the garment was uncomfortable and affected their confidence on the pitch. Advertisement Years of discontent flared into mutiny in recent weeks. On 3 May Dublin and Kilkenny players turned up at their provincial Leinster semi-final in shorts. They changed into skorts after the referee threatened to abandon the game but the protest galvanised solidarity and calls for change. Government ministers expressed support for the players, female lawmakers from the opposition party Sinn Féin wore shorts to parliament, and the sport's administrators faced being grilled by parliamentary committee. The Camogie Association, which in 2023 had upheld the ban on shorts, bowed to the pressure by holding the special congress on Thursday to vote on a motion to change the rule. Aisling Maher, the captain of Dublin's camogie team, welcomed the decision. 'It's a victory for players who are presently playing inter-county, it's a victory for young players coming up who now have a choice about what they wear,' she told RTE on Friday. 'You have to see the positives in this. The beginning of the All-Ireland championship has never got as much attention or publicity. Hopefully some of that attention will stay with camogie in a more positive light.'
The Guardian
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Irish camogie players triumph after skorts backlash and can now wear shorts
Irish camogie players who objected to wearing skorts in the female-only sport have triumphed: they can now wear shorts. The sport's ruling body on Thursday ended the obligation to wear skorts – a portmanteau of shorts and skirt – and said players could choose to wear shorts. A special congress of the Camogie Association voted in a landslide – 98% of 133 delegates – to change a dress rule that critics said was archaic and deterred girls and women from taking up Ireland's female version of the Gaelic game of hurling. Brian Molloy, the association's president, said: 'We are pleased to announce that delegates have voted by an overwhelming majority in favour of giving players greater choice in their playing attire. '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 in both colour and design.' Traditionalists had favoured skorts – a hybrid garment comprising an overlapping fabric panel over compressor-type shorts – as feminine but many players said the garment was uncomfortable and affected their confidence on the pitch. Years of discontent flared into mutiny in recent weeks. On 3 May Dublin and Kilkenny players turned up at their provincial Leinster semi-final in shorts. They changed into skorts after the referee threatened to abandon the game but the protest galvanised solidarity and calls for change. Government ministers expressed support for the players, female lawmakers from the opposition party Sinn Féin wore shorts to parliament, and the sport's administrators faced being grilled by parliamentary committee. The Camogie Association, which in 2023 had upheld the ban on shorts, bowed to the pressure by holding the special congress on Thursday to vote on a motion to change the rule. Sign up to Headlines Europe A digest of the morning's main headlines from the Europe edition emailed direct to you every week day after newsletter promotion Aisling Maher, the captain of Dublin's camogie team, welcomed the decision. 'It's a victory for players who are presently playing inter-county, it's a victory for young players coming up who now have a choice about what they wear,' she told RTE on Friday. 'You have to see the positives in this. The beginning of the All-Ireland championship has never got as much attention or publicity. Hopefully some of that attention will stay with camogie in a more positive light.'
