Claremorris bid to reach All-Ireland final

THERE is a huge buzz around the Claremorris region ahead of the All-Ireland Ladies Junior Football semi-final which will be staged at the town pitch tomorrow, Sunday, December 3 when Claremorris take on Derry and Ulster champions, Erin’s Own from Lavey, at 1.30pm.

Laura Kelly from out the road in Koilmore is the inspirational captain of the home team. Football has been an integral part of her life for many years. She joined the staff of Claremorris Credit Union three years ago and she absolutely loves the community aspect of the Credit Union and meeting people and sharing in the news stories of the day.

Her parents, Martin Kelly and Patricia O’Neill, met in Manchester while Martin was working over there. Patricia was born in Manchester. Her dad is from Cork and her mother, a native Irish speaker, is from Camus in Connemara. The O’Neill’s now reside in Brickens having moved back from Manchester.

Laura was appointed captain at the start of the season this year and she has played a central role in moulding the panel into a cohesive unit that has captured county and provincial honours.

“We have a good panel of 25 players. Becca Kean, Marian Cawley, Clare Keane (a native of Abbeyknockmoy), Triona Morley and myself are the senior members of the panel.

“Sheila Hughes is somewhere in the middle while the rest are all younger and showing wonderful promise as the season has progressed in such spectacular fashion.

“Becca, Marina, Triona and myself were all involved in the Claremorris Community Games panel that won Mayo and Connacht honours back in 2004 before losing out in the All Ireland semi final in Mosney. I played fullback with the Mayo U-12 and U-14 teams back then.

“At the start of this year, we did not know who was going to be available for the team but once the minors finished their campaign, things began to fall into place and we started to get used to each other. We defeated St Brigid’s in the Mayo final in Bekan. I think it was a bit of a shock for both teams as we had lost to them in an earlier round of the championship. We were so focussed on the final that day and it was magic how it all came together for us.

“We felt we should not have been relegated last year and that we had let ourselves down. It was very disheartening and we were gutted but we had a new focus this year. We knew we had a team that was good enough to get back to Intermediate and that was the key for us. Winning the county final put a fire in our bellies.

“We got over CT Gaels in Tubbercurry and that was a tough game for us. They were a good team and we were lucky that we had a good lead at half time that saw us through in the end. It was the same against a very good St Brigid’s team from Leitrim in the Connacht Final in Boyle. We got over the line and here we are with a home game in an All-Ireland semi-final.

“Things have fallen nicely into place along the journey this year. Our manager Aidan Brennan along with Brendan French, Mark Morley and Niamh Morley, have guided us along the way and their enthusiasm and commitment has been great all year, says Laura.

“The goodwill is just amazing and the fact that we can host the All Ireland semi final here in town is massive for the area. It is a very exciting time and people who have never been to our games are coming along to support us on Sunday,” says Laura.

The blue and white flags are going up around the region as the big day draws near and the sense of expectation bubbling up nicely ahead of the showdown. “The town is rallying around us in an amazing way. People are saying fair dues to all the girls and the spotlight they are bringing to the town and club.

“People have been coming up to us and wishing us well. These few words mean the world to us. We know the Derry girls are a fine team and we respect them and will give them a warm welcome to Claremorris.

“We had a lot of good players coming through the ranks now. They have no fear in them and are all set for the big game. I am so happy for all of them and I know we will all do our best for the club on Sunday.”

· Claremorris GAA Club is calling on the people of the area to come out in big numbers tomorrow for this historic occasion as the town plays host to the All Ireland Ladies Junior Football semi-final. Throw-in time is 1.30pm.