Derry Camogs ready for the biggest stage this weekend

DERRY will feature on All-Ireland camogie finals day this weekend for the first time in 11 years, but the last time a Derry captain lifted a camogie Cup in Croke Park was five years earlier when Slaughtneil’s Claire lifted the Junior title after a 3-12 to 2-14 win over Clare.
The Intermediate final of 2012 went to a replay and Gráinne McGoldrick had to wait a further three weeks to lift the Jack McGrath Cup following a thrilling replay in Ashbourne that went to the wire. So – no Hogan steps presentation that year.
Derry’s sole remaining player from that first Intermediate championship win is current captain Aoife Ní Chaiside, who of course has enjoyed three more All-Ireland title wins at club level. Two of those came in Croke Park and two of them were with Aoife as captain.
Aoife has led by example this season as Derry bounced back from an agonising injury time defeat by Cork 12 months ago to reach this year’s Intermediate decider. It is a journey all the more incredible as just five of last year’s team started the semi-final last weekend in FDB Semple Stadium, Thurles.
Those five however presented excellent leadership; Aoife in the centre of the defence, Dervla O’Kane in midfield and forwards, Máiréad McNicholl, Aoife Shaw and Player of the Match Áine McAllister.
All three forwards got on the score-sheet, delivering 16 of the 21 points that Derry scored in their epic extra time victory. Shaw drew particular praise for her 45 metres free in the fourth minute of injury time, a score that levelled the game after an unexpected comeback from Kilkenny had produced six unanswered points.
The whole team has responded to the promptings of the more experienced players and the management team headed by PJ O’Mullan who came in at the start of year.
O’Mullan, an All-Ireland club hurling winning manager back in 2011 with Loughgiel, has overseen a transformation in the attitude of the players and their semi-final performance is testament to the work they have done in recent weeks.
O’Mullan contends that they had a mediocre league campaign that saw them miss out on the Division 2A league final after defeat in the final group game against Sunday’s opponents Meath. But the change in the team occurred after that.
“The journey to date has had its ups and downs,” said O’Mullan. “The league performances had glimpses of what we could do but we were very inconsistent.
“As a group we had a very open and frank discussion prior to playing Antrim in the Ulster championship. It seemed to do the trick. We didn’t win that game, but we played well and probably deserved to win.”
Derry were expected to win their All-Ireland group games and they did so easily, something that many felt would stand against them coming into a semi-final against Kilkenny, the competition favourites.
The campaign hasn’t been without its set-backs with Eimear O’Kane picking up a leg injury in the second half of the match against Antrim, an injury that kept her out of the rest of the campaign.
But, as had happened with the injury mid-season to long-serving goal-keeper Niamh McQuillan, Leah Lennon stepped up to the mark.
Niamh Gribbin had stepped in between the posts for McQuillan prior to the Ulster senior championship and has conceded just one goal in five outings. The defence has contributed to that statistic of course and it will give them great confidence going into the final against Meath.
O’Mullan believes Meath will present a difficult task for Derry in the final:
“They will be a different and extremely difficult opponent. They are physically very strong with excellent players all over the pitch. They have already beaten us in the league and have played in Croke Park in the league final.
“But that is the challenge ahead of us and one that we are relishing as a group.”
Meath beat Derry in Ashbourne in that final round-robin game of the league. The score was 1-9 to 0-10 and Meath led from start to finish with Aoife Minogue, player of the match in the All-Ireland semi-final, the driving force in the win.
However Meath then lost the league final in Croke Park to Kerry by a single point.
Will the Croke Park disappointment help or hinder Meath?
Can Derry do as they did in Thurles and play the game and not the occasion?
Can Derry reproduce their extra time heroics from that semi-final – or will they be pinned back in their own half as Kilkenny did towards the end of the ordinary time?
When I look at the teams, they are fairly well-matched. I think it will come down to hunger. Derry showed that hunger and ferocity in the semi-final. Replicate that and we should see a third Ulster team in senior camogie next season.
Then again the only successes for both counties at this level came after draws in Croke Park and a replay a few weeks later. Neither would I rule out that scenario for 2023.