President’s July Blog

Ulster Camogie Finals
Last weekend’s Ulster Camogie Finals were a wonderful watershed in the game’s development. In the company of John Feehan, Mayor of Newry and District Council, I attended the Ulster Camogie Council’s first Festival of Camogie. 

Hosted in partnership with Ulster GAA,  in Pßirc Esler in Newry on 4th July, Derry and Tyrone did fantastically well to collect the senior and junior provincial silverware but Camogie was the real winner. We enjoyed great facilities, great pitch, excellent demonstration of Camogie skills, excellent refereeing, great sportsmanship, well attended games and fantastic participation by all.
Overall 230 players were part of the event – including young children, over 40s and Ulster’s best in 2009. Hearty congratulations to all concerned.

Camogie in Britain
The previous weekend, the future development of Camogie was under discussion at a Conference in London.  It was organised by the London Camogie Board’s Development Committee, with the support of the GAA Provincial Council of Britain. The day was an exciting initiative that brought together Camogie members from London, Birmingham and Scotland. It was inspiring to be part of discussions that focussed on introducing Camogie to local communities and schools in Britain as well as continuing to promote Camogie to the Irish community. Watch this space as Camogie looks to forge a stronger presence as a sporting option for women and girls across the Irish Sea!

Fantastic FÚile na nGael
FÚile, sponsored by Coca-Cola, continues to grow and get better and better each year. This year’s Parade in Birr and Finals in Tullamore were once again spectacular. Wonderful hospitality from clubs throughout Offaly and Laois, great organisation and presentation of the games, lots of fun and friendship with Camogie, hurling and handball connecting communities all over the country. It was a privilege to be a part of it. This event, along with FÚile Peil in Kildare last weekend, demonstrated the Gaelic Games family at its best – working locally and working together. Douglas (Cork), Ballymacnab (Armagh), Kerry and Na Brideoga (Mayo) went home with the titles and everybody went home with great memories.

Recognising player excellence
A recent Ardchomhairle (Central Council) agreed to introduce a new recognition scheme to recognise player excellence in the Gala All Ireland Junior Championships. The main reason for the introduction of an additional recognition scheme is that junior players will be selected for an award based on their performances against players of a similar standard. Players competing in the New Ireland Cup, the Nancy Murray Cup and the Mßire NÝ ChinnÚide Cup will be eligible for this scheme. The current All Stars will continue to be awarded to players competing in the Gala All Ireland Senior and Intermediate championships (the O’Duffy and McGrath Cups).

Selectors
Selectors for the All Stars and the new recognition scheme for the Gala All Ireland Junior Championships have been ratified by Ardchomhairle. Chair of Munster Council, Waterford man Morgan Conroy chairs the selection panel. He will be joined by Maura McCloy (Derry), Mßire NÝ ScolaÝ (Dublin), Eamonn Browne (Tipperary), Bronagh Gaughan (Meath) and Sheila O’Donoghue (CCAO – Third Level Colleges’ Camogie Council). With the Gala championships well under way, the selectors will continue to be casting their eye over performances until the end of the season.

That’s it until next month. Slßn go f¾ill.
Joan O’Flynn
7th July 2009

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