*Ciara Doyle embraces Pat Minogue at the final whistle. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
FRESH FROM winning a third senior championship, Ciara Doyle wore a smile from ear to ear across her face.
A key pillar in their cause on each occasion that they’ve captured the McMahon Cup, Ciara remained at the heart of the Scariff/Ogonnelloe defence and once again managed to curb the influence of Truagh/Clonlara danger-woman Eimear Kelly, their final duel is almost proving to be an annual clash at this rate.
Whether it was under Jim Minogue (2019), David Sullivan (2021) or Alphie Rodgers (2022), the influence of Ciara has been central to Scariff/Ogonnelloe reaching the summit of club camogie in Clare.
While this is the third senior championship won by the East Clare outfit, this is the first instance that they’ve completed back to back titles. “This one means so much. A lot of people had us wrote off all year saying that we were in the weaker group but we came up against challenges that really benefitted us and we’re glad to come today and put back to back titles together and show we’re the best team for a second year running and hopefully now we can go and represent Clare well in Munster”.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, Ciara outlined that the goal of winning back to back titles was one they were anxious to achieve. “At the start of the year we took every match as it came, when you get the success you never want to let go of. That Cup was ours until the final whistle went today and unless we lost it we weren’t going home without it, we held onto it and made sure it was going back to Scariff/Ogonnelloe again”.
Unity is a vital tool in their engine, the Bodyke native flagged. “I just think as a whole we are a team with such belief in each other. I know it’s a cliché but we are one big family, we see each other week in week out and never get sick of seeing each other, we do it for each other and we want to win for each other, for our parishes, our club and our families”.
