Tipp consign the hard-luck stories to past
Premier women get over the line for first title in 20 years
AFTER suffering so many blows in the past, Tipperary will feel this is the way to win — and to end a hoodoo.
Starting nervously and falling six points down and hanging on, with Galway threatening a goal that could finish it early and perhaps open the floodgates.
Clawing back, moving ahead, looking like posting the famous victory and then being dragged back as the Galway came thundering through once more.
When Niamh Mallon, the former Down star, scored with her first touch and then hit three points, another glorious defeat looked to be Tipp’s lot.
But they refused to give in and they hit the front again via Karin Blair’s 59th minute point before defending as if their lives depended on it.
All that was left was for Karen Kennedy to lift the Very Camogie League Division 1A silverware, the county’s first national success since the 2004 All-Ireland.
Mary Ryan joined the Tipperary panel in 2005, the season after they won the League and Championship double. She must have thought her career would be laden with silverware.
This is her first national medal and as the last person to go up the Hogan Stand and raise the cup aloft, the Moneygall player received the loudest cheer. She helped see things out after coming on for the quarter.
‘It’s important to celebrate days like today,’ said Ryan. ‘We know that there’s a big championship to come and that’s ultimately what we want. But to have these moments with our supporters… My mam and dad there. For 20 years they’re travelling to every game. Never miss a game. This squad has had its ups and downs and it’s just lovely to have moments like this and hopefully we can build on it and take it into the championship.’
It could have gone very wrong as Galway moved six clear with 21 minutes gone And then, in that period down the stretch where the Tribeswomen recovered from losing their own skipper Róisín Black to injury and the Karen Kennedy goal soon after to peg back a four-point deficit. But Tipp stepped up.
‘That’s the strength in the squad now. We have been through those tough games. To come back like that, and then with such a close game, the resilience is in the team now. This is a strong, experienced squad now. It’s a massive boost. We’ve a huge championship to go.
‘To even reach today was a great end to the league but to come out of it with silverware, after a tough game; getting over Galway in Croke Park — a huge battle. We have to have full belief in ourselves now.
‘We’ll celebrate today but we’ll be straight back in during the week because we know ultimately, what does it mean if we don’t produce in the summer’
‘We’ve always believed but then we fall short. The semifinal last year (against Waterford) really hurt. But it’s coming back now, you hear the girls saying it. We’ve it drilled into us. Sticking to our routines, keeping to our process, believing in our process, not dropping the heads. We stuck to that today. You could see it late on. The belief. The communication on the field.’
Manager Denis Kelly felt the circumstances of the win made it all the sweeter.
‘It went down to the wire but we knew with Galway, they don’t give anything soft,’ he said.
‘They’re a huge team. They’ll be back in the championship even stronger again. We’re here a long time, we’re not getting over that line and eventually it just came for us today.
‘The girls worked their socks off. We needed all our subs. We needed tot make changes early. Some girls are disappointed they had to come off early but that’s the way it goes. You have good days, you’ll have bad days. They’ll bounce back and go again.
‘We didn’t want the heroic defeat anymore. We’re sick of that.
‘For too long that’s been said to us. We had huge performances all over the field and we needed them. The girls are a great bunch.
The final word went to Ryan, who spoke so eloquently about the squad and would hate any added fuss about her getting the side over the line.
‘Sure I’ve always believed we could get there,’ she insisted.
‘I’ve always believed in the squad but there is something about this squad in recent years.
‘The commitment to be part of a high performance environment, what everyone goes through as a collective and to bring it out in the field. I’ve very much full faith in this squad to be successful and this is a very positive stepping stone for Tipp camogie now.’ TIPPERARY: N Walsh; M Eviston, E Loughman, C McCarthy; C McIntyre (C Quirke 26), K Blair, E Cunneen (J Bourke 26); C Hennessy, T Ryan (M Ryan 51); C Maher, K Kennedy, G O’Brien (M Burke 43); E Heffernan, E McGrath, R Howard. SCORERS: E McGrath 0-8(8fs); K Kennedy 1-3, C McCarthy, K Blaire 0-1 each GALWAY: F Ryan; R Hanniffy, R Black (N Hannify 36), A Crowe; D Higgins, Á Keane, C Hickey; A Hesnan (N Kilkenny 42), A Starr; N McPeake (N Niland 53), A O’Reilly (O Rabitte 53), C Dolan; A Donohue (N Mallon 46), S McGrath, O McGrath (S Rabitte 60). SCORERS: C Dolan 0-5 (5fs), A O’Reilly, N Mallon 0-3 each, A Donohue, S McGrath, O McGrath, N Niland 0-1 each REFEREE: Aaron Hogg (Clare)
“This is a strong, experienced squad now”