*Laoise Ryan. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
TWO WEEKS after tasting defeat in the Clare ladies senior football final, Laoise Ryan is hoping for a different outcome this week.
She is keeping her fingers crossed that she will be going up the steps of the stand at Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg to accept the McMahon cup which will be presented to the winners of the Clare camogie senior championship.
As one of a number of players who play camogie and football she doesn’t believe that being a busy dual player is particularly difficult. “Many of us have done it and we enjoy it. It’s been busy. I have had one or two weekends off since the championships started. I was disappointed after the football final but Kilmihil were deserving winners on the day. It’s all about the camogie final now”, Laoise told The Clare Echo this week.
The Inagh/Kilnamona captain agrees that her side are “edging to get back. We last won this title in 2020. We were delighted to get back to the final last year having lost semi-finals to Truagh/Clonlara and Scariff/Ogonnelloe but this year we are hoping to go one better”.
Continuing she acknowledged, “it was an unbelievable achievement by Truagh/Clonlara to get to the All-Ireland final last year. They are a well-oiled and experienced team”.
Asked if the fact that Inagh/Kilnamona haven’t won the Munster title, something which Truagh/Clonlara and Scariff/Ogonnelloe have achieved, is a driving force for the side she said “we wouldn’t be thinking about that. While we haven’t won Munster it hasn’t been mentioned at all this year. The policy has been one game at a time and that was emphasised at the start of the campaign. The focus was on Kilkishen in round one and then on Kimaley in round two. It was step by step and getting a performance in each game. We were a little flat against Clarecastle/Ballyea but in last week’s semi-final we were determined not to let it get away and we delivered a strong second half performance”.
Referring to the concession of a goal just before half time in the semi-final she said “mistakes do happen and it’s how you bounce back. We all make mistakes but it’s about recovery”.
Following last week’s semi-final win she was one of a number of the players who travelled to Fr. McNamara park to support the club’s intermediate team who “unfortunately lost”.
“With such a short turnaround, there isn’t much we can do this week. It’s about recovery We did pick up a few injuries and it’s about getting things right for Saturday. We are facing the All-Ireland finalists who just fell short against an unbelievable Sarsfields side. They did put Clare camogie on the map but we will be hoping to take the Clare title off them”, according to Laoise.
Concluding she acknowledged “we have a strong management headed by Eugene Foudy who is dedicated to camogie in Inagh/Kilnamona and in Clare”. Laoise also praised the support the team receives throughout the parish. “There is huge interest. Our intermediate hurlers are in the final on Sunday, the junior B’s are in the semi-final while the under 14 camogie team have achieved a double. Everyone in the parish is hoping for a successful weekend”.
