Back again. Still chasing their dream, hoping this September might bring something different.
For Cork intermediate camogie players Amy Lee, Leah Weste, Sarah Harrington, Niamh Ní Chaoimh, Sarah Buckley, Jennifer Barry, Caroline Sugrue and Finola Neville, Sunday’s decider against Down represents their third consecutive All-Ireland final appearance. That they’re returning to GAA HQ for another tilt at intermediate silverware tells you how the previous two attempts went.
In 2016, Cork led Kilkenny for most of the contest only for the Cats to come strong at the finish and nick the verdict on a 3-6 to 1-11 scoreline.
Last year, they failed to put Meath away in the closing stages, with Jane Dolan converting an injury-time free to force a replay. The Rebels never got motoring second day out, failing to raise a flag of any description for a 30-minute period. They were three adrift at the final whistle.
At the start of this year, captain Sarah Harrington, who’s been involved with the Cork intermediates for the past seven seasons, wasn’t sure how many of the above-mentioned players would again commit. They’d had their fill of heartbreak and she wasn’t going to begrudge any player who wished to walk away.
“It has been a tough two years. Emotionally and mentally, it has been hard. It has been very tough to get back up the next year and go again,” said the Fr O’Neill’s full-back.
“You start training in January and it is a long season. I wasn’t sure if girls wanted to give up their summers again because there are a lot of teachers in the squad.
“But I think we knew there was another year in us. It would be a shame to do otherwise with the set-up we have. We knew the management was coming back. They wanted one more year from us and so we are really going for it.
“Leah Weste has been there nearly 10 years. She’s put her life into this. Sarah Buckley, Niamh Ní Chaoimh, Finola Neville and I have also been there a while. There is nothing more we want. It is everything to us at the moment. I even get emotional thinking about it. It is something that we have wanted for so, so long. We have been through such heartbreak and hardship over the last few years that were we to win it on Sunday, I’m not sure words would do it justice.”
What has been a significant plus this season has been the influx of youth. Siobhan Hutchinson has come in at centre-back, with All-Ireland minor winners Laura Hayes and Saoirse McCarthy also joining the starting team.
“They have brought in this fresh new drive that we didn’t have. They have brought in this enthusiasm. Also, they have this fresh confidence which I don’t think we had as a team. It is nice to see the younger girls making an impact on the older girls.”
Harrington concluded: “In the 2016 and 2017 finals, we let the opposition back into it, making silly mistakes under pressure. In the semi-final against Galway this year, we were down by two points in the second-half. If it was any other year, we would have buckled under the pressure. That would have been it. We fought back, we came back.”
