Tipp edge past Galway in Camogie League

National Camogie League Round-up

By Kevin Egan

Division 1A of the Very National Camogie League feels like it has split into two sections with two rounds to go, with Cork, Tipperary and Galway hunting the two final spots while Kilkenny, Waterford and Dublin are in the relegation mix.

Champions Tipperary gave themselves a huge shot in the arm in advance of what’s sure to be a titanic battle with Cork at The Ragg in a fortnight, Clodagh McIntyre’s goal clinching a 2-14 to 1-13 win over Galway in Kilbeacanty.

It was a game of two halves in the South Galway venue, with 23 of the game’s 30 scores arriving in the opening half.

Niamh Mallon and Caoimhe Kelly helped Galway to start well and lead by three, but Grace O’Brien added a stoppage time goal to her seven first-half points to make it 1-11 to 0-11 at the interval.

The workrate, as particularly illustrated by the outstanding half-back trio of Mairéad Eviston, Caoimhe McCarthy and Sarah Corcoran, as well as the Casey Hennessy around the middle third, really pleased Tipp manager Denis Kelly.

“We started slowly and gave Galway a bit too much room so when we picked it up midway through the first half, we got back on level terms and then that goal was a sucker punch,” Kelly said.

“At this time of year, when the ball hits the ground there will be a lot of rucks, you want to come out on top of those. We turned them back towards their own goals a few times when they were coming out from their own goal, that was very pleasing to see.”

Waterford have the advantage in the battle to avoid the drop this week after they capitalized on top-of-the-ground conditions in Parnell Park to record their first win of the season, by 3-16 to 0-12 over Dublin.

Déise manager, Jerry Wallace said his team are exactly where they planned to be, heading into the fortnight’s break.

“We knew at the start that we had Cork and Galway, the two best teams in the country at the moment, up first,” said the Midleton native.

“We said that we’d get a few nuggets out of those, and we got what we wanted, we didn’t get destroyed by anyone, and we had today’s game targeted. We were fresh, disciplined, ready to go and the players came here with the right frame of mind.”

Waterford rode their luck a little with their first two goals, initially when Niamh Rockett tried to catch Abby Flynn’s shot but instead deflected it past Eimear Hurley in the Dublin net, then again when Lorraine Bray shot for a point only to see the sliotar rebound off the crossbar, into Hurley and back over the goal line.

Their third goal was very well crafted, with Flynn picking out Mairéad O’Brien for a close-range finish, and Waterford continued to score freely, led by Rockett (1-5) and Beth Carton (0-6)

“We wanted to play our own game today, to move the ball quickly through the lines and play positively, and we got a good return from that,” Wallace explained. “The game opened up, we kept the scoreboard ticking, and we said that improving our efficiency was key, not to pull the trigger until the score was on.”

It was also a game of two halves at Supervalu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, where Kilkenny were well in contention at the break, 1-7 to 0-9 adrift, but were blown away in the next 20 minutes before falling to a 3-17 to 0-13 loss to Ger Manley’s All-Ireland champions.

“We settled in the second half, we worked hard, but Kilkenny are a different level to what we’ve played already. They’re doing great work, but we showed that we have quality in there, we got three great goals and defensively we were sound,” was Manley’s take on Cork’s win.

Orlaith Cahalane’s goal undid Kilkenny’s fast start, while Saoirse McCarthy hit the net twice after half-time to ensure that the Rebels have now won their three games by a double-digit average margin.

“We were probably a bit leggy in the first half because we trained hard this week, but now we have two weeks, we can work hard and then give them a few days coming into the game. Tipp are very different up in The Ragg, but that game will stand to our girls.”

It was a mixed news for the panel however, with Manley going on to confirm that Izzy O’Regan will play no more inter-county camogie in 2025 following a cruciate ligament injury sustained in last weekend’s victory over Dublin.

“Izzy has been a mainstay of the team since I’ve been here, she’s a special girl. She can play anywhere, half-forward all the way back to corner back, and I’m just devastated for her,” said Manley.