Tag Archives: Clare camogie

COLÁISTE Muire joint manager Barry Donnellan believes his side are ideally placed for a crack at All-Ireland glory this Friday in their rescheduled decider. The Ennis school came through the ultimate test of character in their All Ireland semi-final victory against Mountrath CS, Laois and have had to wait a week following the Storm Eunice-imposed postponement. In a game which was the definition of a war of attrition, Coláiste Muire overcame the elements to secure a hard fought 0-4 to 0-2 win. Donnellan believes the traits on show that day; character, heart, determination, to name a few will stand his side in good stead when they come up against a formidable Wicklow outfit in Coláiste Bhríde. “The conditions on the day were horrible. We knew it was going to be a battle. Our work rate and determination got us the result. “Until you are in that situation, you don’t know how they will respond. Mountrath were a very physical side …

Cork 2-6 Clare 0-4 Report by Eoin Brennan Two late goals flatteringly bolstered Cork’s opening victory of the new season after holding off hosts Clare in unflattering weather conditions in Cusack Park this afternoon. One would have to go back to the 2014 National League Semi-Final to find Clare’s last triumph over the Rebels and consequently another victory for the visitors was both expected and delivered. However, while 16 points separated the sides in their previous clash in the 2020 All-Ireland Quarter-Final, Clare halved the margin this time around and in truth could have been much closer, only to concede a brace of majors coming down the final straight. That said, the Rebels never looked in danger of letting all the points slip, having hit the front for the first time in the 33rd minute through Down native Sorcha McCartan. With the aid of a gale, Cork kept Clare scoreless for the second period while tacking on 2-3 themselves to …

A clinical performance from the reigning All Ireland Champions saw them ensure their place in the All Ireland final in two weeks’ time. Atrocious weather conditions with a gale force wind meant that this game was not one for the purists but the experienced champions knew how to get scores and the game finished 3-11 to 0-2. The opening exchanges were tough and competitive with Scariff-Ogonelloe defending as if their lives depended on it. After 15 minutes Oulart the Ballagh led three points to no score courtesy of three Ursula Jacob frees and David Sullivan’s charges would have been more than happy at this juncture. However a sensational Jacob goal ignited Oulart into life and seemed to knock the wind out of Scariff-Ogonelloe. Picking up possession 20 yards from goal Jacob showed her incredible ability rifling an unstoppable shot into the top corner past the helpless Rachel Daly. Playing against the gale Scariff dug deep however and although they would …

ELEANOR Walsh was joint-manager when Scariff-Ogonnelloe first contested an All-Ireland Club Final in 2013, writes Eoin Brennan, and along with Mike Rodgers, the Waterford native helped guide her adopted club to the brink of national success, only to be halted at the final hurdle by Carlow’s Myshall. She’s being one of their driving forces behind building strong, durable foundations for the East Clare Club ever since including several managerial and administrative roles. In fact, she was chairperson during that momentous 2019 season of highs that saw Scariff-Ogonnelloe garner historic county and provincial senior crowns. Eleanor is back on the line in the All-Ireland series, as both a mentor and supportive mother as her daughter Abby is one of a strong injection of teenage debutants that have established themselves on Scariff-Ogonnelloe’s flagship side. With her selector role primarily to scope out the opposition, it’s enough of a remove to allow Abby express herself fully, something that she along with fellow newcomers …

She’s been there from the outset of the Scariff-Ogonnelloe revolution a decade ago, writes Eoin Brennan, and while she wasn’t saying it out loud, there was a clear sense that Susan Vaughan is on the final leg of a memorable journey with her native club and is determined to make it count. An integral part of their breakthrough season in 2013 when winning county intermediate and Munster junior titles, a subsequent All-Ireland Final defeat to Carlow’s Myshall was in fact Vaughan’s last camogie match until after her international rugby sevens career concluded. That was in 2019, a perfect dovetail as it turned out, as her return coincided with an even more auspicious run of firsts for Scariff-Ogonnelloe at senior level. Blazing a new trail through Clare and Munster, the East Clare side become the first Banner club to win a provincial senior crown in 30 years. Unfortunately, that’s where their meteoric ground-breaking adventure ended as four-in-a-row chasing Slaughtneil just had …

Clare’s ongoing quest to dine at the top table of camogie takes an intriguing new direction in 2022 with the integration of junior and senior squads under a collective management team, writes Eoin Brennan. It’s not an innovative model as it has proven successful in other counties. However, in Clare’s case at least, an ill-fated initial attempt to field teams at both senior and intermediate in the county’s first season in the top tier in 2009 under Bertie Sherlock, seemed to leave a lasting scar. Those wounds were only tentatively healed when Ann-Marie McGann and Tim McGrath resurrected Clare’s second team five years ago and since that departure, there has been a growing pool of adult players proud to play for the Banner. Playing numbers were an issue in 2009 as was the additional work-load on management, with Clare in a much healthier position on both fronts this time around according to joint-manager John Carmody. “When you think about it, …

An All-Ireland Final beckons for Coláiste Muire after proving worthy players for all seasons following a gritty low-scoring war of attrition with Laois’ Mountrath Community College in Clarecastle on Saturday. On a day that you would be hesitant about putting your pet outside, the Ennis demonstrated their character and versatility in abundance once more to tee up a final showdown with Wicklow’s Coláiste Bhríde Carnew in a fortnight’s time. The antithesis of their freescoring Munster Semi-Final against Laurel Hill a month previously when firing 23 scores, every point was pivotal this time around thanks to almost Biblical weather conditions. With a gale blowing towards the clubhouse end, what unfolded was the proverbial game of two halves, with Coláiste Muire having its aid in the opening period before declaring with a four point cushion by the break. With the pressure on their shoulders from the outset, the home side eventually got off the mark in the fourth minute when the ever-impressive …

Eoin Brennan previews the Munster Senior Club Camogie Championship Final between Scariff-Ogonnelloe and Tipperary’s Drom & Inch HERE we go again as following an exceedingly tense Munster Final clash in 2019, Scariff-Ogonnelloe and Drom & Inch lock horns once more for the ultimate showdown in Mallow on Saturday. All because it’s a meeting of the last two winners, with Scariff-Ogonnelloe, thanks to the momentum of a first ever Clare senior crown, managing to shade matters by 1-7 to 0-8 two years ago while a delayed 2020 final last November saw Drom & Inch inflict another heartbreaking provincial decider defeat on Inagh-Kilnamona (their third in four years). Indeed, with this being Clare’s fifth consecutive Munster Senior Club Final appearance and fourth against Tipperary opposition, it will only add to what promises to be a memorable occasion. A fresh approach under new management has rejuvenated Scariff-Ogonnelloe’s challenge throughout 2021 as the injection of youth has only strengthened an already powerful hand. Drom …