Gr-eight season for Cork camogie’s brightest Stars

BY DARAGH Ó CONCHÚIR

TO the victor goes the spoils and so it was that All-Ireland champions Cork emerged with eight PwC Camogie All-Stars at Croke Park recently to go with the Matthew Twomey’s Manager of the Year honour.

It wasn’t a clean sweep for the Rebels however, as Waterford sensation Beth Carton walked away with the coveted PwC GPA Camogie Player of the Year award, beating off the stiff competition provided by Cork duo Amy O’Connor and Saoirse McCarthy of Courcey Rovers.

Cork All-Star Saoirse McCarthy with Cella McCarthy and Leonard McCarthy.

Amy Lee was the first of the Leeside octet to be called to the stage, the goalkeeper claiming her first award but making it a nice double with the Soaring Star recognition received in 2018. Méabh Cahalane (wing-back), from the famous Cahalane dynasty, was also winning her first PwC All-Star.

At the other end of the scale, the ultra-creative Katrina Mackey earned her seventh award, 11 years after her first, while the ever-consistent Hannah Looney scored for the fourth time, albeit the first as a forward.

Victorious captain and All-Ireland final player-of-the-match with her contribution of 3-7, Amy O’Connor received her second award, as did full-back Libby Coppinger St Colum’s, who continues to keep Carbery camogie on the map, and midfielder Saoirse McCarthy, who also has a Soaring Star and is a former Intermediate POTY, while the experienced centre-back Laura Treacy was named for a third time.

Manager of the Year Twomey, who has since stepped back from his role as Cork boss, enjoyed catching up with the players again at the awards but more than anything, he was thinking of a lot of colleagues as he collected the Manager of the Year gong.

‘It’s an honour but it’s really Management of the Year because it’s the people around you. There were some great coaches, stats, S&C – you could see the players peaked at the right time. But it’s also people in the background who do an awful lot of work in the dressing room, like our sports psychologist Michelle O’Connor, who was so important. It’s nice to get recognised without a doubt but it’s a total management thing. I know it’s a cliché but I was accepting it on behalf of everyone,’ Twomey explained.

PwC Camogie All-Stars: Amy Lee (Cork), Vikki Falconer (Waterford), Libby Coppinger (Cork), Róisín Black (Galway), Karen Kennedy (Tipperary), Laura Treacy (Cork), Méabh Cahalane (Cork), Saoirse McCarthy (Cork), Lorraine Bray (Waterford), Hannah Looney (Cork), Beth Carton (Waterford), Denise Gaule (Kilkenny), Cáit Devane (Tipperary), Amy O’Connor (Cork), Katrina Mackey (Cork).