Player drain has left Cork looking to its young guns 

SO, as the Cork ladies’ footballers edge closer to the trapdoor and relegation to Division 2, the question must be asked: what has gone wrong?

Sifting through the record books the last time Cork lined out in Division 2 was in 2003 when the Rebels won promotion along with the league title; that was the season before Eamonn Ryan came on board and transformed everything, turning Cork in an All-Ireland winning juggernaut.

Eleven senior All-Ireland triumphs in 12 years (2005-16) saw the Rebels rule, but the landscape has changed – it’s now eight years since Cork won the game’s top prize. There have been two All-Ireland final appearances (2018 and ’20) in the seven seasons since 2016, as Dublin and Meath have taken over. 

Since 2018 the once-serial winners Cork have won one national title (2019 Division 1) out of a possible 11 between championship and league, and the reality is the gap between Cork and the top teams has widened again this season.

Four league losses in a row – when is the last time the Cork ladies footballers lost four games in a row? – leaves Shane Ronayne’s side rooted in the Division 1 relegation zone, with daunting trips to Dublin and Meath to come. The outlook looks grim. Relegation is moving closer.

The player drain has stripped this group of some of its best assets. Compare the team that started the 2023 All-Ireland semi-final loss to Dublin to the side that were defeated by Mayo last weekend – only six players started both (Melissa Duggan, Aoife Healy, Maire O’Callaghan, Daire Kiely, Libby Coppinger and Emma Cleary). Between injuries, retirements and players taking a break from the league, Cork are without Doireann O’Sullivan, Ciara O’Sullivan, Katie Quirke, Eimear Kiely, Shauna Kelly, Rachel Leahy, Roisin Phelan, Eimear Meaney, Meabh O’Sullivan and Laura Fitzgerald. Collectively, any county would struggle to absorb those losses.

It’s now falling to a young group to step up and while Cork have enjoyed success at minor level, winning five out of six minor All-Irelands (2015 to ’22), this doesn’t mean senior glory is a formality. Minor to senior is a sizeable gap to bridge, and for all Cork’s underage success in recent years, it hasn’t made a noticeable impact at senior level. A look through Cork’s minor successes too highlight how many stars on those teams aren’t involved with the senior footballers now, by their own choice – 2015 minor star Eimear Scally left the panel in 2022, Saoirse Noonan opted for soccer, both Fiona Keating and Orlaith Cahalane are focussed on camogie only.

‘Minor success doesn’t correlate to senior success – that’s where we are falling down a bit in Cork, thinking that because we are winning minors we should automatically win at senior level. It’s a huge step up to senior level,’ Cork boss Shane Ronayne says.

Take Dublin as an example, their last All-Ireland minor football title was in 2012, yet they have won five senior All-Irelands between 2017 and ’23. Meath have never won a minor All-Ireland, yet bagged two seniors in 2021 and ’22. For all Cork’s minor success, it hasn’t energised the senior set-up like many had hoped. And now this season when Cork have been forced to turn to their young guns, it’s a daunting challenge for players who need time to find their feet at this level. From the 2022 All-Ireland winning Cork minor team, five played against Mayo – Ellen Twomey, Aoife Healy, Kate Redmond, Abigail Ring and Emma Hurley. All talented players, but who need time, too, to acclimatise to senior level.

‘Players are learning, and they are learning harsh lessons at the moment, but they are very willing to learn,’ Ronayne added, but unless Cork can pull two big results out of the bag in the weeks ahead, Division 2 football is on the cards for 2025.