Award tops glorious year for McCarthy
CAMOGIE
Daire Walsh
COURCEY ROVERS star Saoirse McCarthy capped off an unforgettable year when she was named player of the match in Cork’s All-Ireland Intermediate Camogie Championship success over Down at Croke Park yesterday.
Having already secured an All-Ireland minor crown with the Leesiders, McCarthy amassed four points over the course of the hour to help Paudie Murray’s side end a 12-year wait for the second-tier crown.
She was also named on the Cork bench for their heart-stopping senior triumph against Kilkenny in the showcase event at Jones’ Road and was quick to pin-point the special bond that exists between both squads.
“We train on the same pitch, the same nights. We’re always in contact with them.
With those people on that team. Ashling Thompson, Briege Corkery, and Gemma O’Connor, they’re all superstars,” McCarthy explained in the players’ tunnel after the game.
“They’re all All-Stars. Coming onto that team at the start of the year was mental. They’re an inspiration to everyone.”
While they had seven points to spare (1-13 to 0-9) over the Mourne county in the end, it was a much closer affair than their comprehensive group stage win at the expense of the same team in July.
The gap was 12 points (0-18 to 0-6) on that occasion, but McCarthy felt Cork’s superior fitness was one of the key reasons why they were able to push on in the second half.
“We knew that they were going to put it up to us,” she said.
“At the end of the day, I kind of knew we were going to have the legs on them.
“I wasn’t confident, but I was definitely not afraid. I knew how to work our away around them.”
Given this was her first year on the panel, McCarthy didn’t suffer the heartache of final defeats to Kilkenny and Meath in the past two seasons. She is acutely aware of what this win means for the older members of the squad, however, and also believes it can be a stepping stone for greater achievements in the years to come.
“The girls definitely deserved this and I’m so happy for them. Especially the older ones, who have lost the couple in the last couple of years.
“The intermediate team is very young yet. There’s loads of girls like me and we’re all minors. We have many years ahead hopefully,” McCarthy added.