Shane Ronayne freshens up Cork panel for 2024 campaign

BY GER McCARTHY

SHANE Ronayne has freshened up his Cork ladies’ football panel with the addition of some West Cork recruits ahead of this year’s campaign.

The Rebels’ 2023 season ended at the All-Ireland semi-finals stage following a 2-19 to 0-13 defeat to eventual champions Dublin. Since then, Cork boss Ronayne has taken the opportunity to freshen up his senior panel and management team.

Kinsale’s Sadhbh O’Leary returns following a two-year hiatus and is joined by Dohenys’ Noelle O’Mahony and Clonakilty’s Katie O’Driscoll in a new-look Cork squad ahead of the national league campaign.

‘There is a reinvigoration of youth and we have brought up some minors from last year’s panel,’ Ronayne explained to The Southern Star.

‘Caoimhe Richmond (Glanmire), Katie O’Driscoll (Clonakilty), Áine Hallihan (Lisgoold) and Molly Burke (Mourneabbey) played minor last year.

‘Another girl who is back with us is Sadhbh O’Leary from Kinsale. She will be no stranger to Cork fans after taking two years out and is back on the panel; that is a good boost.

‘Noelle O’Mahony from Dohenys is also with us. Clara Lynch, a new girl from Mourneabbey, is as well. Shauna Cronin from Éire Óg has been playing very well for her club the last few years and she’s on board too.’

As well as Ronayne’s new recruits, there is positive news on the injury front, including an update on Valley Rovers’ Eimear Kiely.

‘We have a couple of long-term injuries but hopefully those players, Rachel Leahy and Eimear Kiely, are due back, maybe, at the end of April. Rachel and Eimear suffered cruciate injuries last year,’ the Cork boss said.

On the management side of things, Newtownshandrum’s Jerry Lane is the new Cork senior strength and conditioning coach for 2024. Douglas’s Katie Nagle comes in as the new senior physio while another backroom addition from West Cork is set to bolster Ronayne’s management set-up.

‘Denis Enright, who was a selector in my first year in charge of Cork, is back with us,’ he confirmed. ‘Dinny couldn’t commit last year but he’s back on board for 2024.’

It’s still early days in terms of preparing for the league and championship, but Cork has taken a significant step towards helping prepare their current and future inter-county players by securing access to their own new gym facility in Ballincollig.

‘We were looking, over the last couple of years, at hiring or leasing our own Cork LGFA training premises,’ Ronayne said.

‘The cost of hiring a proper gym facility is very high because of the quality of the place you are getting. A premises became available in Ballincollig and, in fairness to the Cork LGFA county board, they were fully behind us. They thought it was a great idea.

‘We were lucky that UCC had just built a new gym and we were able to purchase some of their old equipment at a good rate. Our new facility is all kitted out now. It’s a perfect squad gym. We have an office facility, a physio room, and it’s totally our own for the next couple of years, which is a huge thing.’

Having unrestricted access to their own gym will benefit the Cork LGFA seniors, minors and U16s. The Rebels’ inter-county adult and underage management teams can now plan their strength and conditioning programmes uninhibited and safe in the knowledge they will have access to a modern facility of their own.

‘The girls have already taken ownership of their new facility,’ Ronayne explained.

‘They are planning on painting the walls and things like that. They are going to make sure it’s kept in proper order. We’ve already made great use of it with the seniors, the minors have been in and the U16s are about to start in there as well.

‘It’s a huge thing to have our own premises and there aren’t too many inter-county teams around the country, male or female, who have this type of facility. This is totally our own, we don’t have to book it. We can just turn up and use it whenever we want so that is fantastic. The Cork LGFA County Board has to be commended for having the foresight to do it and there was a decent outlay of money put forward.’