MARY Harrington has enjoyed every minute of her first season involved with the Cork LGFA U14 football team – and would love an All-Ireland title to cap it all off.
‘I am really glad I got involved,’ the Argideen Rangers and Ibane Ladies stalwart said, as Cork count down to this Sunday’s U14 Platinum All-Ireland final against Galway in Nenagh (3.30pm).
Her coaching role with West Cork LGFA opened the door to the county set-up. Harrington is not a person to say no – and is glad she didn’t.
‘There are a good few Ibane girls involved so I felt it was a good time to help out and see it from a different perspective,’ she added, and the West Cork representation on the Cork U14A squad is a positive reflection of ladies football in the region.
There are nine West Cork players in Ioannis O’Connell’s panel preparing for the All-Ireland decider. Stretching from Ibane Gaels (Aibhlinn McCarthy, Aoife Harte, Aoife Walsh, Kate Collins and Niamh Doyle) right across to St Colum’s (Emily Conlon and Niamh O’Sullivan), and taking in Tadgh MacCárthaigh (Grace O’Sullivan) and Kilmacabea (Nell Kinsella), it highlights the talent within the division right now. Also, Sally McCauley (Clonakilty) who has been involved with the B squad is also on the extended panel.
Add in the other local players involved with the Cork U14B panel, and it strengthens West Cork’s claim as a hotbed of football talent. Take a bow, Aoibhinn McCarthy (Castlehaven), Caoimhe Hurley, Claire Healy, Grace Holland (St Colum’s), Caragh McCarthy (Bantry Blues) and Hannah O’Sullivan (Beara) for their role with the county set-up.
‘Last year’s U13 competition in West Cork was so competitive,’ Harrington noted, ‘Ourselves and St Colum’s would have been the top two teams, but there was very little between any of the clubs. I think that’s why we have such a strong representation in the Cork U14 set-up this year.
‘To have nine girls on the county panel is fantastic, and there were seven or eight girls on the B squad. So, to have 16 West Cork girls on the county panels is a great achievement.’
To add another layer to West Cork’s key role in the county squad, Ibane’s Aoife Harte captained the young Rebels in the All-Ireland semi-final win against Mayo. It was a game where these young guns needed to dig deep, rallying from a slow start to eventually win 5-8 to 1-7. It has set up an All-Ireland final against Galway this Saturday.
‘Because we know the girls are so good, our first aim was to get in the Platinum series, to be in the top grade – and we achieved that,’ Harrington said.
‘With the amount of work the girls have put in, it’s great to see that they have reached an All-Ireland final. They want to go all the way now.
‘We want the girls to go out and enjoy themselves, that’s very important – they’ve made great memories in this journey and hopefully there are more to come.’
From the first blitz day in Mallow all the way through to this weekend, it’s been a memorable adventure for the Cork U14 squad. And for the management team that Glanmire clubman Ioannis O’Connell has assembled, including Harrington as well as Dylan Byrne (St Finbarr’s), Martin Nagle (Erin’s Own), John Callaghan (Grenagh), Cathal O’Callaghan (Mallow) and Colin McTaggart (Nemo Rangers) as mentors. Miriam O’Connell (Dripsey) is the FLO (female liaison officer) with the team.
For Harrington, her involvement with Argideen Rangers stretches back 20 years, and she has been hands-on with Ibane Ladies since it was set up in 2015. It’s a labour of love, and this season has been one of the more rewarding yet, with the hope of more to come.
