HISTORY is within touching distance for the Cork senior camogie team.
They are one win away from a first All-Ireland senior three-in-a-row since 1973, and standing in the Rebels way are Galway in Croke Park this Sunday (5.15pm).
In terms of the last ten championship meetings between the sides, it’s delicately poised. Five wins for Cork. Five wins for Galway.
The Connacht side did win four games on the bounce against the Rebels (2019, 2020, 2021 and 2023) before Cork wrestled back momentum later in the 2023 championship.
Subsequently, Cork won both 2024 encounters, including a tight 1-16 to 0-16 win in the All-Ireland final last year.
When these two sides meet in a final, form goes out the window. They met in the 2024, 2021 and 2015 deciders. Those were won by Cork, Galway and Cork respectively. That sequence could be a danger to Ger Manley’s side.
Focusing on the now, Cork have beaten their championship opposition by an average of 20 points while Galway have averaged a 12-point win.
Cork also beat Galway in the Very Camogie League Division 1A final back in April (0-21 to 0-10), a game where Cork had a 72 percent shot accuracy and hit 0-18 from play.
Cork camogie fan Ciara O'Sullivan from Newcestown met her namesake Ciara Sullivan from Newcestown at the Cork camogie open evening at Castle Road. (Photo: George Hatchell)
The number of changes to the Galway team isn’t that high between the league final and their All-Ireland semi-final win over Tipperary. In fact, it’s just one. However, that switch is important: Roisín Black, one of the best full-backs in the country, did not start in the league final. Black is back now and the Cork attack has been warned with her semi-final performance with Tipperary only scoring 1-3 from play. Even so, Tipp’s goal through Karen Kennedy was a ball dropped short so the Galway defence is improving.
It’s also worth pointing out that Cork were without two players for that league final in Laura Hayes and Katrina Mackey, both of whom are experienced campaigners.
Looking at the stats from the league final to their respective All-Ireland semi-finals, Cork converted 72 percent of their chances in April but just 57 percent in their win over Waterford. Galway have improved in that department, converting 65 percent against Tipp compared to their 50 percent return earlier in the year.
Galway have also improved on their turnovers and puck-outs whereas Cork are at very much the same numbers – it’s another sign that Cork’s road to greatness has a considerable Galway-shaped obstacle blocking the way forward.
Defensively, Galway are solid but in attack it could be argued they are one-dimensional. Their only players to score more than 0-10 in the championship so far are Carrie Dolan (0-42) and Niamh Mallon (1-17).
Looking at Cork in comparison, you have Amy O’Connor (5-30), Saoirse McCarthy (1-18), Clodagh Finn (4-7), Katrina Mackey (2-11) and Orlaith Cahalane (2-6).
Okay, those sort of stats were branded about before the hurling final between Cork and Tipperary too but look what happened there. One lapse from the favourite, and there is scope there for the underdog to shock.
What was learned in addition from that hurling decider is momentum is a big thing. Cork can’t let Galway get a run on them because as we have seen in the semi-final, the more this Galway side starts to score, the more they ooze in confidence.
The way the year has developed and on form, Cork are favourites but as emphasised in previous meetings, form is irrelevant once it comes to the big day. Cork need to perform. Do that, and they have a great chance.
