The GAA yet again showed its best side this past weekend with a number of All Ireland Club finals at various grades in Croke Park. Being a Kerry man, my interest was drawn to the finals that saw both Ballymacelligot and An Ghaeltacht involved in both the Junior and Intermediate finals.

That showed again what the GAA can be when it wants to be, those finals in both hurling and football were held at GAA headquarters and gave many small parishes the chance for their day out. It was a move all those years ago that was questioned to move those games all to Dublin, but as you can see now what it does for those clubs. The build-up, the real excitement.

Ballymac won their final 1-16 (19) to 0-13 and had the father of the late Luke Sillies in the management team and they of course wore a specially commissioned shirt over the past while in his memory. It was a special day for the club and they did well to earn the win over Clougher Eire Og of Tyrone.

 An Ghaeltacht for their part saw off the challenge of Glenullin of Derry on a scoreline of 0-12 to 0-06. Ballymac formed a guard of honour to see An Ghaeltacht onto the pitch, a real mark of respect by them to do such a thing.

Like watching Tarbert in action last October in Tralee, the sense of pride of place and pride in the parish, even though I can’t stand that particular turn of phrase is always special to watch and then to see the Irish language used by An Ghaeltacht certainly also added to the day.

It is one of those truly Irish days and will be seen again this weekend when Dingle play St Brigid’s in the All Ireland senior club football final. All the best to Dingle this weekend who will have taken good encouragement from the wins of last weekend by the two other Kerry clubs involved in action.

You will have the All Ireland senior club hurling final between Ballygunner and Loughrea and then the football will follow at 3.40pm. Another special day is promised in Croke Park for all 4 clubs…

I made my way to Ballylongford for the replay of the 2025 North Kerry Senior Football Championship Final between Listowel Emmets and Knocknagoshel who were appearing in their first Final. They had played out an entertaining draw the previous Sunday that saw Knocknagoshel score a late two pointer to secure a draw after finding themselves 10 points down at one stage of the Final.

I travelled with local man Denis Kiely who won a few North Kerry Championships himself and he had shown me a photo of the Kerry Under 21 side that contested the Munster Under 21 Final of 1969 that saw 4 Tarbert men on the panel, himself, Patsy “Skin” O Connell, Tom O Donnell and Mossie Carrig, that moment set the tone for the afternoon.

That’s the thing about the district finals, it brings all the stories back to the surface. It is about the 60 minutes of course and the two teams involved but as the North Kerry Final shows, old friends meet up at discuss the day but also reminisce of by gone days and for this author, that is what truly makes the GAA so special and unique.

Like every organisation, the GAA has its faults but no one can deny how well it does at bringing people together for “the parish”. To see the Knocknagoshel’s supporters and Listowel’s supporters roaring on their respective sides is something so special. As was mentioned more than once to me yesterday, “there won’t be anyone left in Knocknagoshel”. There was a healthy Listowel contingent in Bally to support the “townies” also yesterday.

Having been at many sporting events over the years including a World Cup in France in 2014 and here in Ireland in 2017, I still fail to see the sport or event that will bring people together in this country like the GAA. The genuine “pride in the parish” you see on days like yesterday is why the GAA is still number 1 in this country.

The game was won by Listowel Emmets on a scoreline of 2-18 (21) to 2-07(13). Listowel draw level with Moyvane on 18 Championships a piece. They have youth on their side in terms of trying to go on a win a number of Championship in a row, having won last year aswell.

A number of clubs in North Kerry will be hell bent of making sure that any level of dominance by Listowel does not happen…

They have a number of men that have been involved with Kerry at various levels over the past few years, Eddie Healy and Aaron Kennelly were involved at under 20 level with Kerry this past year. They have been coached by new Kerry minor boss Marc O Se who is part of the Emmets management team that includes fellow All Ireland medallist Noel Kennelly.

The North Kerry Final takes on a life of its own and certainly shows the best of the GAA in its purest form. As I mentioned the GAA like many organisations does have its faults but one cannot help but be impressed by the organisation of Brosna GAA club last Sunday week and the Ballylongford club yesterday.

In the few words before the Eamon O Donoghue Cup was handed over to Listowel Emmets, both hosting clubs over the last 2 weeks were commended for getting as many volunteers as they did to help the day run as smoothly as they did on both days.

Volunteering is still a critical part of the GAA as it is for many things and will continue to be the case into the future where yet again on occasions like yesterday the call goes out and people rally round to help out if they can.

I have a gra for the GAA but it isn’t as big as it is for other people, It is always great to see genuine passion for your area that comes out on days like yesterday and earlier in the year when Tarbert defeated Beale in the Kerry Junior Club Championship final in Tralee.

In the words of John B Keane where he said Listowel Races is a “state of mind” I think the same can be said of the North Kerry Senior Football Championship.

People will complain about the time of year that the Championship is run off, the weather, the pitches but the North Kerry Championship Final still drew a crowd of 2,500 people to Ballylongford yesterday to see the replay.

Other sporting organisations might manage that on the odd occasion barring maybe there big days in those chosen sports. The North Kerry Final is still one of those special days in the sporting calendar of Kerry and long may that be the case…

Tarbert were last night crowned 2025 Junior Club Champions after defeating Beale on a score line of 2-13 (19) to 3-09 (18) in Austin Stack Park in Tralee. This performance was full of grit and determination.

Plenty of pundits in the build-up had said Tarbert needed to win yesterday having been defeated in the last two finals in 2023 and 2024. Tarbert certainly found the answers and it was certainly a case of 3^rd time lucky for the squad and mentors.

 For the senior men within the Tarbert set up like Shane Enright, Danny Wren, Kevin Enright and Michael Normile this was the cherry on top of the cake given they all were involved in the last big Championship win back in 2010 when the North Kerry Championship was won under Mike Holly and captained by the late Darragh Lanigan.

Certainly what is seldom is wonderful can be attributed to this win, it’s been a while since a county title has come back to Shannon side but the 2025 crop of Tarbert players matched the 1995 County title winning side.

Huge credit has to go to the management team of Eamon Mc Elligott, Jamie Diggins, Mike Carrig and James Cahilane and not forgetting team physio Darren O De.

This group play for each other and when the chips were down last evening and momentum had swung in Beale’s favour Tarbert’s key men stood up, Shane Enright, David Mulvihill along with the tireless efforts of Paudie Finucane and Michael Heaphy around the middle, Heaphy did a fabulous job on Robert Stack in keeping him quiet.

Up front Shaun Wren worked hard while, John Coolahan, Michael Coolahan chipped in with driving runs from  deep. Danny Wren showed his experience and held the middle while the likes of Shane Stack O Gorman, Conor Egan and David Mulivhill drove forward to help Tarbert stay on the front foot….

Beale for their part can be pleased with the efforts over the 60 minutes and while they came up short on the day they can give the North Kerry Championship a real rattle this year. Kenneth Mannix and his management team have a group that will give it’s all for the cause and that was in evidence over the course of yesterday’s game.

From a Tarbert point of view, they have got there just rewards after a few near misses over the past few years. They consolidated there place in Division 3 of the county league  and have a precious piece of silverware to compliment all the hard work.

It was great to see young and old come out in support of Tarbert during the game last night and join in the celebrations that started last night and will continue for the next few days at least…..

Well done to all involved in the club and enjoy the win along with the celebrations of the next while. Last night again showed what the GAA means to people. It really is the bedrock of every parish, village, town or city across the island of Ireland.

A word of recognition too for Sean Carrig team captain, who made a great speech and had a few special words for Darragh Lanigan who was captain when Tarbert won the 2010 North Kerry Championship.

To the whole parish of Tarbert, people living near and far. Enjoy the victory. They are hard earned and not easily won so drink it in and saviour it…….

Tarbert Team 2025 Kerry Junior Club Champions 2025 :

1 Gavin Breen

2 Tadgh Finucane

3 Kevin Enright

4 Conor Egan

17 Micheal Coolahan

6 Shane Enright

7 Shane Stack O Gorman

8 Danny Wren

9 Micheal Heaphy

21 Danny Stack

11 John Coolahan

12 Paudie Finucane

13 David Mulvihill

14 Shaun Wren

15 Darragh Foley

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10 Padraig Carrig

18 Micheal Normile

19 Noelie Brosnan

20 Jack Sheehan

5 Ben Sheehan

22 Gavin O Connor

23 Sean Thompson

24 Sean Carrig

25 Lee Mulvihill

Tarbert and Beale face each other on Saturday evening in the Kerry Petroleum Junior Club Football Championship Final at 5pm in Austin Stack Park. Both teams had good wins in their respective semi-finals last weekend, Tarbert defeated Moyvane and Beale saw off Cordal.

This will be Tarbert’s 3^rd final in this competition having lost out to Reenard in 2023, Duagh in 2024 so they will be hell bent on making it third time lucky on Saturday evening in Tralee.  They will be led by Shane Enright who is in the autumn of his footballing career but still performing well when called upon for the men in the red and black…

Tarbert won 2 of their 3 games in group phase only drawing one game and that set them up with a home quarter final that saw Lispole visit Shannon Park and Tarbert coming through as winners on the day, they faced Moyvane and again came out winners in an evenly contested game in Coolard last Sunday in the semi-final.

Beale will provide strong opposition as they will be looking to win a county title themselves and moving up the grade at county level in Kerry. The prize is a big one for both sides come 5pm Saturday evening in Austin Stack Park.

It is also another chance for both sides to play in Austin Stack Park which should inspire both squads to go above and beyond themselves in search of a county title. The excitement is building of course in both parishes and as the week ticks by the final in becoming the only ticket in town.

Having secured there place in Division 3 of next year’s County League, Tarbert drove on and worked hard to fight their way back to the final of this competition for the 3^rd successive year and with a bit of luck they will cross the finishing line this weekend.

Of course many ex-players, mentors and supporters will make the trip to Tralee to roar on Tarbert, it will be a case of planes, trains and automobiles and any other way to get to the final. To the players, it is simple go out and do your best in search of victory.

Tarbert have put in very strong displays this year and will be able to lean on previous final experience as preparations move on this week.

A county title no matter the grade is a special one to win and they don’t come along too often so enjoy the occasion and don’t let it pass you by…. As the old saying goes, “Do it for the Parish”.

Best wishes to Eamon, Jamie, James and Mike and the entire panel on Saturday evening…..

Kerry won their 39^th All Ireland title yesterday by defeating Donegal 1-26 (29) to 0-19. The margin of victory does not flatter Kerry who put in a masterful display of attacking football combined with disciplined defending led by Jason Foley and Gavin White ably assisted by their colleges at the back and Shane Ryan in goal.

Given the way the year panned out for both sides, questions were asked as to how the game would pan out, from a Donegal point of view they never really raised a gallop in the game and that will haunt them.

We have seen all year they played on the break with a running game based on coming from deep and using a pendulum shape to attack the 40m arc and that saw them benefit through the year to secure the Ulster Championship.

Yesterday though Kerry had a plan for that attacking shape and executed it to perfection, they completely stifled the Donegal kick out strategy by winning clean ball in the air as well as picking up nearly all the breaking ball.

The ability to take their score was also top drawer and picking there moment to push up and go after a kick out was also on point on the big day. Donegal did the usual under Jim Mc Guinness, breaking away from the pre parade etc, a well-worn and well used tactic in both of his terms in charge of Donegal.

These particular tricks had no effect on Kerry and after the parade the camera focused in on David Clifford and you could see he was up for the fight, defiantly a man looking to prove a point as in certain quarters his quality has been questioned in comparison to certain player from Tyrone.

While that player has 3 Celtic crosses, David now has 2 and time is on his side to try and add to that haul in the future. There is no questioning the quality of both men but given the fact that Kerry beat 3 Ulster counties enroute to yesterday’s win, let’s hope that certain pundits might just acknowledge how good David Clifford has been in recent years.

Other players like Paudie Clifford, Dylan Geaney, Sean O Shea et el all played vital roles in the win. They showed up when needed and executed the Jack O Connor led game plan to a tie. We always hear that teams are striving for the perfect game and performance but yesterday’s certainly was as close as you can get to a tactical masterclass.

Paidi O Se said the Kerry public are hungry for success, they really are but the past few weeks has also shown when the players called on them to get behind them, the Kerry support did that very thing and were paid back in emphatic fashion with yesterday’s win.

The amount of soul searching after the loss to Meath defiantly stood to them and players also stepped up to the plate when injury meant others were ruled out for varying periods through the year over the course of the National League, Munster Championship and All Ireland series.

Men like Sean O Brien, Mark O Shea, Mike Breen took the opportunities given to them and played key roles in the wins in Munster as well as yesterday. It again shows why you have a squad and why you also trust the players you select to go out and do a job when required.

David Clifford, even though he scored 0-09, he also played a very unselfish role within the game plan, that saw him keep his man occupied and by that he allowed others the space closer to goal to take their own chances while also coming up with his own scores including a critical 2 point score on the half time hooter, that saw Kerry hold possession for well over a minute and half and go in 7 points up.

Gavin White was like a duracell bunny and was consistently driving up field in support of the attack or then funnelling back to provide cover and mop up any loose ball. Kerry’s work around breaking ball was trojan work and was of a intensity that was frenzied over the full 70 minutes.

Donegal will now have to return to the drawing board after the loss and will just have to dust themselves down, easier said than done of course but similar to Cork last weekend that is just the way it is.

Brendan Cawley of Kildare officiated his 1^st All Ireland final and let the game flow, he and his team of officials have to be commended for the way they game was allowed to flow. It was a very open game with both sides attacking with pace and kicking some fine scores with great accuracy and efficiency.

The football year was dominated by the football review committee who brought in a few changes to the game but those changes while they took a while to bed in early on in the year by the time All Ireland series started after the provincial championships, all teams knew how to use the rules to their advantage.

The two point rule was a success as were the three up and as well as keeping 3 back… Kerry utilised the advantages of the two point score by taking full advantage as the clock ticked down to hit 35 minutes and that saw David Clifford kick the two points after Kerry held possession very similar to basketball team using up the shot clock before taking the shot on.

Kerry enjoyed the celebrations last night and will head to Crumlin Children’s hospital this morning before the journey home begins where they will have receptions in both Tralee and then Killarney. The Kerry supporters will have the chance to salute their heroes this evening….

Well done to Jack O Connor and his management team. Jack won his 5^th All Ireland as Kerry boss in his third spell in charge after his first one in September 2004. This win means a lot to supporters as well as the players, there really is only one Kingdom and that is the Kingdom of Kerry….

The phrase “uniquely Irish” can defiantly be equated to the GAA as the All Ireland finals have taken place over the past few weeks at varying levels. Yesterday’s senior All Ireland hurling final between Cork and Tipperary took place in front of 82,300 in Croke Park.

It is incredible that those two sides had not met in a senior All Ireland hurling final until yesterday afternoon, even though both sides have won multiple titles between them.

Cork will have to wait until 2026 to add another title since there last win in 2005. Tipperary last won in 2019 under Liam Sheedy and Liam Cahill added his name to the manger roll of honour. It is amazing to watch hurling and be continuously surprised by the quality of the skill on show.

It is so often asked of sports men and women to rank the sports events they would most like to attend in the future and almost all will straight head for the NFL in the USA, the Ryder Cup in golf, the World Cup Final in football.

One feels that an All-Ireland Hurling Final might just rank up there as one of the unheralded and lesser spoken events that people would marvel at if it was given a platform on a global stage on a regular basis.

Watching as a neutral it is always enjoyable to sit down and watch the “small ball” game on any day at club or county level. In particular of course on days like yesterday where the All Ireland is being contested it goes into overdrive. The scramble for tickets is a sight to behold and almost always those who look for a ticket get one.

As I mentioned at the start of this, hurling is the fastest field sport in the world and can wow everybody and anyone and is uniquely Irish and for that fact we can be so proud.

Both sides yesterday put on a show of point taking and goal scoring and even though you have to have a loser as you do in any sport, the quality of the scoring yesterday was special.

Tipperary for their part turned around a 6 point deficit with Cork leading 1-16 (19) to 0-13 at half time to then come out in the second half and out score Cork by 2-14 (20) to 0-02 in the second half. Winning 3-27(36) to 1-18(21).

Hurling and Football are both Irish and you were banned if you played rugby or football and you could not play other sports under a ban which came to an end in 1971.  Watching the games at club level or intercounty level is still a special occasion. Watching the scramble for tickets is good fun too, listening to stories of previous games and in some cases watching moments being re-created is also a part of the build up to All Ireland finals.

Yesterday saw Cork and Tipperary do battle in the All Ireland Hurling final and next Sunday will see Kerry and Donegal face off in the Football decider in front of another packed house.

For years in the early part of the 20^th century and in particular during the years 1916 to 1921, these games were forbidden but so much has changed in the 141 years since the GAA’s creation and people can enjoy an incredible spectacle again next weekend as they did yesterday in what can really be called a “uniquely Irish” occasion…..

Tarbert Comprehensive School 2024 All Ireland C Post Primary School Champions

Tarbert Comprehensive School reached the promised land on Saturday afternoon winning a titanic battle with St Malachy’s winning after extra time 3-19 (28) to St Malachy’s 4-13 (25). They won the day having worked tirelessly over the 80 minutes to gain the upper hand and come out on top.

The final was played in Carlow in Netwatch Dr Cullen Park, both sides brought huge support from the respective schools, be they teachers, school staff members and family members aswell as the wider communities from both areas.

Given the work of many sport organisations in recent years to improve coverage of local sports, this saw Saturday’s game streamed live on Youtube thanks to Stream Sport. Having it on Youtube meant a large amount of people could easily follow the action as it happened if you could not travel to Carlow.

The talk over the past few months about what this group had achieved was fantastic to hear and full credit goes to the group of players, management and everyone else associated with the school in recent months.

Having gone 11 points up in the 2^nd half of Saturday’s final one felt The Comp had done the necessary to put the cherry on the cake but in fairness to St Malachy’s they like Tarbert didn’t give in easily and found a way back from 11 down and to go one up toward the finish only for Comp team captain Shaun Wren to kick a crucial late “45” to bring the game to extra time and from there The Comp found that extra gear over the extra 20 minutes.

They won by 3 with John Coolahan finding the net with his second goal of the afternoon to help seal the deal. The way the different communities within the school have come together has been so impressive. That is the beauty of sport it really brings everyone together for a cause that all can get involved in.

From the top down from Richard Prendiville school principal and Leila Moloney deputy principal to the staff in the office everyone has a part to play in helping this happen over the last while.

The pride shown by everyone towards the team and the pride in the school has been so lovely to watch. They of course got the traditional welcome home on Saturday evening of bonfires. Today they had the whole school community and wider community have the opportunity to show their appreciation for what was a magnificent achievement after winning Kerry, Munster and to then top it off by winning an All-Ireland.

 It is a moment in time that must be appreciated and as has been the case over the past 48 hours celebrated by all. Huge congratulations again to players, management and school staff.

Here is the Panel in Full :

Tarbert Comprehensive School

Management Team: Cormac Leane, Kieran Culhane, Martin Trench & Martin Stack

1 Stephen Kearney (St. Senans/Foynes)

2 Shane O Gorman Stack (Tarbert)

3 Callum Buckley (Athea)

4 Michael Coolahan (Tarbert)

5 James Kissane (Moyvane)

6 David Mulvihill (Tarbert)

7 Fionn Mulvihill (Moyvane)

8 Brendan O Leary (Tarbert)

9 Patrick O Connor (Moyvane)

10 Evan Curry (Athea)

11 Shaun Wren (c) (Tarbert)

12 Caolam Moriarty (Tarbert)

13 John Coolahan (Tarbert)

14 Jamie Moloney (Moyvane)

15 Paudie Finucane (Tarbert)

16 Aaron White (Tarbert)

17 Tadhg O Connell (Tarbert)

18 Darragh Mullane (Gerald Griffins)

19 Matthew Quinn (Moyvane)

20 Cathal Byrne (Ballylongford)

21 Fionn Byrne (Ballylongford)

22 Kealan Lonergan (Shannon Gaels)

23 Aidan Healy (Glin)

24 Liam Hanrahan (Ballylongford)

25 Gavin O Connor (Tarbert)

26 Jack Finnerty McCoy (Castlemahon/Gerald Griffins)

27 James Broderick (Athea)

28 Caoimhin Barron (Clounmacon)

29 Cathal Halton (Tarbert)

30 Billy Hogan (Glin)

Additional Players (Names only)- Donal Finucane, Seamus Dillane, Conor Fealey, Cillian Mulvihill, Harry O Connor

, Charlie McDonagh, Sean Moore, Conor Woulfe

This Friday night in the Swanky Bar Tarbert, a group of men and their families will come together to mark a special occasion as the North Kerry senior champions of 1973 Tarbert will mark 50 years since they beat Ballylongford in their own backyard on a scoreline of 3-07 to 2-05, meaning a 5 point win for Tarbert for those of you not familiar with the GAA scoring system.

The team is now spread across the world with people coming from many parts of Ireland as well as a few travelling from further afield to mark what a real milestone. Only one man won’t be in attendance and that is the late Patsy ”twin” O Connell.

I only know this group of men since there playing days ended but from what I am told by ex team mates and opposition players is this was a good tough group of men. They played an attractive brand of football but were teak tough with men like Johnny Wren and John Mc Ginley in the ranks.

You had men like Gerald “yank” O Sullivan and Tommy O Donnell in the ranks also, two men who of course wore the Kerry jersey with Tom O Donnell winning an senior All Ireland in 1969 and Gerald winning three Under 21 All Ireland medals and I have been told only for Eoin”Bomber” Liston, Gerald would have been in that famed Kerry side to win numerous All Ireland’s through the 70s and 80s.

This evening will bring the stories flowing back for all and you can be sure the game will be replayed and some of the scores will be recreated “Mind the windows lads”. Huge credit to John Stack and Joe Langan ”Town” for bringing this together and marking a special point in the lives and sporting endeavours of these men.

The Tarbert Team that lined out that day was :

1 Paddy Hanlon

2 Tom Mc Carthy

3 Con Kennelly

4 Patsy ”twin” O Connell

5 Johnny Wren

6 Tom O Donnell

7 Ned Hanlon

8 John Mc Ginley

9 Ger Scannell

10 Joe Langan “Town”

11 Mossy Carrig

12 John Stack

13 Ambrose Lanigan

14 Mike Mulvihill

15 Moss “twin” O Connell

–

16 Peter Lavelle

17 Tom Stack

18 Pat Keane

19 Micheal Lanigan

20 Gerald O Sullivan

Denis Kiely had played up to the semi-final but injury ruled him out of the big day in Ballylongford. Of course the 2023 North Kerry Final is on Sunday at 2pm in Ballyduff. Nice to mark Tarbert’s win 50 years on the same weekend the 2023 final is taking place…

Tarbert will play in a first county final since 1995 on Sunday when they face Reenard in the Kerry Junior Club Championship Final in Austin Stack Park with a 1pm throw in time. This is a special occasion for the club who in recent years have had plenty of success at under age level as well as a promotion to division 3 of the County League for 2024.

The last trophy to come through the gates of Shannon Park at Senior level was the North Kerry Championship in 2010. Tarbert have played very well throughout the year securing promotion from division 4 to 3 in the County League after a strong campaign. They also contested the North Kerry League Final only losing out by two points to Moyvane.

They have been under the management of Cathal O Connor and Jamie Diggins for the past few years and will have the experience of ex Kerry defender and All Ireland winner Shane Enright to call upon from the centre back berth on Sunday, this team has built there good form up by being very effective defensively and being efficient in attack when the chance arises.

It has been a long time between meals for Tarbert at county level but there are back in a county final and will look to put the icing on the cake by defeating Reenard. We have seen Listowel Emmets win a county title in the last 24 hours and both Tarbert and Duagh will get their chance to claim further glory over the next few weeks. It’s great to see North Kerry getting back to finals at different grades in recent times, long may that continue.

The work being done by several people over the past 10 to 12 years at underage level is beginning to pay divides. Looking to Sunday this is a great chance for a group of hard working players to put their names up in lights and join the great Tarbert teams of the past who won titles at county level.

Another thing will be having the chance to play in Austin Stack Park, this should help give the team the chance to go an express themselves on what will be a pristine surface. As I mentioned previously Tarbert have done well this year beating Beale in the semi-final of this competition in September.

Looking to Sunday, it’s a chance for everyone to come out and give the panel the support they deserve because they achieved one of the stated goals at the outset of the year and the year isn’t over yet !!!  Tarbert County Champions 2023 has a nice ring to it, Go well men and all the very best on Sunday…..

Amy O Connor Cork Camogie

Hi Amy, It’s great to get the chance to speak with you.

 

Take me back to the start, how did you start playing camogie ?

It was pure chance really that I started playing camogie. My cousin had joined and his Mam bought him all the gear and he quit after a couple of weeks. So instead of the gear being thrown out, my aunt asked my mam would I give it a go and I did. And I’ve loved it ever since.

Having won 4 All Ireland’s to date, what else do you hope to achieve with Cork ?

I hope to be the best I can be and help bring Cork Camogie back to the top. It looks as though it might take us awhile to get there at the moment as we have had to bring in a lot of new faces and young players. But it is a challenge that we are looking forward to over the next few years.

Away from sport, what do you like to do ?

I like to go out for dinner, go to the cinema, and go for long spins, weekends away and holidays

What sort of improvements would you make to camogie to speed the game up ?

I think the new rule changes will help this. More flow to the games instead of a stop-start nature.

If the opportunity ever came up to play sport professionally, would you like to give it a go ?

It would all depend on a lot of factors. For me, i enjoy sport and if it became my job then i don’t think it would be as enjoyable for me to play. I enjoy having a job that has nothing at all to do with sport and having different things going on in my life.

Who are your biggest inspiration’s ?

My boyfriend, My family, the people in my club and some of the people I have been lucky enough to play with – Orla Cotter, Gemma O’Connor, Jenny O’Leary and Rena Buckley to name a few.

Does the fact your just finished in College, did it help to keep you focused over the last few years ?

It did, It allowed me to switch off from sport as it was something that I needed to give my full attention to. But then when I played sport – it was great to switch off from college and enjoy the freedom of playing and training.

What was it like for you to do college work and train as well  ?

It was good – I feel that they complimented each other and I was never overly focused on one because I also had the other.

Having played International Football at underage level for Ireland, how did it feel to get your international cap ?

It was great, a very proud moment for myself and my family.

When did you chose to concentrate on camogie and was it a tough decision to make ?

I chose to concentrate on camogie before the All Ireland semi final in 2014. At the time I thought it was the hardest decsion in the world to make but looking back, it was an easy one because I always knew I would go down the camogie route as it was the one I enjoyed and loved most.

Lastly Amy, what are the plans for 2020 and beyond ?

To continue enjoying playing camogie and to have a happy and healthy 2020 with my family.

Thank you for taking the time out to chat to me Amy..