I put myself into that position so it was up to me to get myself out of it

Thompson not dwelling on a dramatic semi-final day

ASHLING Thompson had a tattoo inked on her side after her first All-Ireland club camogie title success with Milford a decade ago.

It reads: “Never give up on what you really want to do. The person with big dreams is more powerful than the one with all the facts.”

She talked about the tattoo in an interview that was published in late 2016, as part of her role as a Red Bull athlete.

A mental health ambassador too, she recalled how things weren’t going particularly well for her in 2012, prior to the All-Ireland win, and how the club’s motto ‘never give up, never let up’ had inspired her.

Important

She said in the 2016 interview: “That’s definitely my favourite tattoo as I feel that was the turning point in my life — those words, ‘never give up’ are so important to me because I didn’t give up, I didn’t have a choice.”

It’s a reminder of the character and the player that Kilkenny will have to overcome tomorrow if they are to regain the Glen Dimplex All-Ireland camogie title.

Now in her early 30s, Thompson has added two more club medals with Milford since then, and four with Cork, three coming at Kilkenny’s expense.

Her true grit was on display again last month when Cork overcame Waterford in the semi-final to reach their first decider since 2018.

Thompson was initially suspended for the game, slapped with a two-match ban for reported abusive language towards a match official in the final group game against Tipperary.

On the morning of the Waterford game, a last ditch appeal was successful but, sensing that she wasn’t in the right frame of mind to start, manager Matthew Twomey left her on the bench.

It didn’t stay that way long as Twomey turned to Thompson after just 22 minutes and ushered her on with the team yet to score. It’s not overegging the pudding to suggest that her introduction changed the game, Cork fighting back from five points down early in the second-half to win by five.

Matter

She said: “I wasn’t sure how much I would have in the tank. Always the aim is, look, if I was to come on I was obviously going to give it hell for leather anyway, no matter what, but I think the worry was in terms of how much was left in the tank at that stage because it was a long three weeks and I think when you have to get up at 6am and get to the Croke Park Hotel for half 10 in the morning for a hearing, and then go and play an AllIreland semi-final a few hours later, it was a tough task but I don’t like to make excuses for myself. I put myself into that position so it was up to me to get myself out of it.”

A disciplinary system that only wraps up hours before the next game clearly could do with some tweaking though?

Fault

Thompson nodded: “Yeah, I mean we had three weeks to get it looked after. To have two hearings in the timeframe that was there was kind of disappointing. But I don’t know the ins and outs of whose job it is to get these hearings in place. It could be our fault, it could be anyone’s fault.”

The 32-year-old acknowledges that she didn’t cover herself in glory either, landing herself in such a situation.

She said: “It’s funny because I’ve actually never been in that position myself before as a player. It was something that I don’t ever want to see from myself in the future as a player.”

Who knows what role Thompson will have this time.

The two-time All Star came on as a firefighter against Waterford, putting out flames all around a besieged Cork defence. At her best she is a ball of energy and creativity in the middle third and Cork will need that and more to take care of Kilkenny.

The Leinster champions