The AZAP Print Carlow Camogie Championships were officially launched last night at Netwatch Cullen Park.
Among those at the launch was Kildavin Clonegal’s Kathleen O’Hara, who shared her own inspiring reason for picking up a hurley again after years away from the game.
Having not played camogie since she was a teenager, O’Hara returned to help ensure there would be a future for the sport in her local club – especially for her own children.
“I have three daughters and they all play. There wasn’t a team in Kildavin Clonegal and they were trying to get one going, so that when the younger age group, they do have a junior team, that they don’t have to get to 14, 15, 16 and have to go play for other clubs because there’s nowhere in the club for them,” she explained.
“That was my reason for getting back into it and then it just kind of built from there. Now we’ve got so many younger players coming up and playing with us and it’s just brilliant to see that they have somewhere to play, that they can stay and wear their own jersey in their own club.”
The Carlow Camogie Board say this year’s championship will showcase the depth of talent across the county, with clubs continuing to invest in underage and adult teams to secure the game’s future locally.