Welcome for ladies’ games coming under the Croke Park banner

It’s good that camogie and ladies’ football are to come under the GAA’s wing, bringing to six the number of sports Croke Park will have under its administration. It’s not going to happen until 2027, but the important thing is, it IS going to happen, and not a minute too soon.

There was never a compelling reason why the two games should not have come under the one umbrella, linking them with men’s football, hurling, handball and rounders. Over the years they’ve been played on GAA pitches, their biggest games going ahead at headquarters.

The difference in men’s and ladies’ football rules are minimal, and helping the ladies grow in strength over the past half-century or so has been the backing it has received from previously all-male clubs. County teams wear the same colours.

Camogie has been played for over a century. This county played an active part early on, and then after a hiatus, came back to the fore. Fr John Mulligan’s History of Louth GAA tells us that a branch of the fledgling game was founded in Dundalk.

“By the end of 1905, the Emer club was formed. The club, which continued to 1909, played its first inter-club match against Newry at Whitecross (Cooley) on July 15th, 1906; they emerged the winners on the score of 4-6 to 0-0.

“Further games followed with such clubs as Keatings (Dublin), Cuchulainns (Dublin) and Castleblayney. Among the prominent players on the Emer team were, Mary Nolan, Annie Fearon (captain), Annie Gogarty, Kate Gogarty, Lucy Ward, Angela Ward, Kathleen Lennon, Alice Hanratty, Brigid Smyth, Cis Carragher, May Hughes and Annie O’Gorman ,” the history says.

With the demise of the Emer club, activity declined, but then in the mid-1920s there was a resurgence, particularly in the mid-Louth area. The inauguration of the All-Ireland senior championship, in 1932, was a tremendous boost to the game in Louth, particularly in Darver, where Fr Tom Soraghan had been teaching the basic skills of the game since his arrival as curate a decade earlier.

Fr Soraghan’s groundwork was soon to bear fruit. Louth, represented by Darver, won the Leinster Championship at the second attempt, in 1934, before going on to beat Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final at Croke Park. The final, also at Croke Park, was against Cork, and after being right in touch at half-time, Louth ended up losing by 4-3 to 1-4.

There was another All-Ireland appearance, in 1936, and again Cork got the verdict. Nothing, however, can detract from what was a great decade for Louth, in all, four senior provincial titles coming this way, the last of them in 1940. Prominent also on later team were players from the Knockbridge club.

It would be another 42 years before Louth would again reach an All-Ireland final, this one in the junior grade. Kildare were victims in the Leinster final and Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final; but if those wins were sweet, there was nothing to compare with the victory in the match that mattered most. Runners-up were Cork a county whose seniors had been Louth’s nemesis in the 1930s.

The winning team: Vivienne Kelly (captain), Ann Harrington, Marion McCabe, Geraldine Crehan, Mary Connor, Colette Tumulty, Anne Currid, Eileen Crehan, Irene McNamee, Teresa Bates, Kitty Sharkey, Noeleen Maguire.
Frances Kenwright, Connie Crehan, Annette King came in as reserves.

A significant date in the history of Louth ladies’ football is October 18, 1997. On that day, St Joseph’s beat Meath’s Summerhill to become the first team from the county to win a Leinster title.

On duty were: Pauline McKeown; Pamela Kirwan, Pamela Finnegan, Áine McKeown; Anne Mulligan, Edel McKeown (captain), Anne McArdle; Mary McArdle, Jacqueline McArdle; Ita Reilly, Catherine Reynolds, Sharon Drumgoole; Rosemary Hoey, Sinéad Mulligan, Mairead Doyle.

Subs: Margaret Murphy, Brenda Curran, Ursula O’Hanlon, Dorothy Callan, Aisling Crawley, Fiona Mackin, Sarah McCann, Siobhán Watters, Mirandea Maguire.

St Joseph’s hopes of adding the All-Ireland foiled by Fermanagh side, Newtownbutler, at the semi-final stage.
There was another first the following year, Cooley winning the All-Ireland Junior Club Championship with a defeat of Cork’s Naomh Abán in the final. Never before had a team from the county gained All-Ireland success.

On call were: Sonia Gernon; Joanne Rafferty, Joan McCarragher, Gráinne Byrne; Nicola White, Lorraine Muckian, Catherine Murphy; Nuala Murphy, Elaine Rogan; Laura Rafferty, Róisín Hanlon (captain), Gabrielle Ward; Audrey Rafferty, Lyn Savage, Anne-Marie Murphy. Subs used: Karen Kane, Geraldine McGuinness.

Both St Joseph’s and Cooley were well represented on the team when Louth went in search of junior provincial and All-Ireland glory that same year, 1998. The Leinster was easily achieved, Carlow losing 6-13 to 2- in the decider.

Tyrone were next up in the All-Ireland semi-final, and in a game played at Naomh Malachi’s Courtbane pitch, Cathy Reynolds led her team to a 2-9 to 1-6 win. It was then on to Croke Park for a meeting with Roscommon, and here again the ladies in red showed how to do it.

Showing behind at the break, Louth put in a terrific second half performance to win by 4-8 to 2-9, Elaine Rogan’s goal seven minutes into injury-time the clincher.

The team: Lyn Savage; Amanda Brennan, Fiona Sweeney, Ann Marie King; Karen Connor, Edel McKeown, Jennifer Agnew; Orla Kirk, Elaine Rogan; Róisín Hanlon, Lorraine Muckian, Sharon D4rimgoole4; Karen Fealy, Cathy Reynolds, Nuala Murphy.

Those are just some of the Louth highlights from two games, one that has stood the test of time, the other gaining in popularity with each passing year.

There’ll be another first in 2027. By then Jarlath Burns’ successor as GAA President will be in place, and whoever that is will have the honour of presenting the Brendan Martin Cup on the steps of the Hogan Stand.

Looking further ahead than that: now that the marriage has taken place, could we see a lady filling the role which Burns assumed in Newry on Saturday last? The wind has been blowing up some straws in recent years.

Tyrone was the first to elect a female County Board chairman (make that chairperson) with Róisín Jordan taking the top spot in 2014; and just a number of weeks back, Donegal followed suit, former Tánaiste, Mary Coughlan, getting unanimous backing of clubs. Yes, the old order is changing.