Munster Final success should boost confidence of Tipperary senior camogie team

The Tipperary senior team begin their Glen Dimplex All-Ireland Camogie Championship campaign against Dublin at 4pm on Saturday at The Ragg on the back of a recent Munster final win against Clare.

It was the first piece of silverware the senior team has won since last winning the Munster final in 2010. Denis Kelly’s side were bitterly disappointed not to reach the league final this year but re-grouped to beat a fancied Waterford team in the Munster semi-final before a convincing win over Clare a week later.

Eimear Heffernan struck brilliant goals in both games while Cáit Devane, Grace O’Brien, Caoimhe Maher and Róisín Howard all look to be in flying form. Eimear McGrath has also been notching up the scores from play and frees and is likely to start on Saturday in the half forward line.

Two brilliant performances at centre back have earned Karen Kennedy a recent player of the month nomination while also picking up player of the match in the Munster final.

At full back, Clodagh Quirke has been a rock while Caoimhe Bourke has been very effective between the posts. On Saturday Dublin will be looking to spoil the current positive mood in the camp. Last year, when the sides met in the group stages, Tipperary needed a last- minute free from Cáit Devane to draw the game.

In the league, Tipperary were 2-13 to 1-6 point winners over Dublin in Parnell Park. However, Dublin are expected to pose a bigger threat to Tipp this weekend, judging by their recent form in their Leinster campaign.

A one-point win over Wexford saw Gerry McQuaid’s side reach the final against Kilkenny, where they matched their opponents all the way to the end. A late scrappy goal two minutes from full-time put daylight between the sides, with Kilkenny claiming a 1-14 to 0-13 victory.

Aishling Maher was their chief scorer in the final with 6 points in total, 5 from frees, while Aisling O’Neill had 4 points from play. Tipperary and Dublin championship games have always been very close and keenly-contested. With both sides looking to be in good form, a cracking game is expected, as both teams look to get off to a winning start.

It will be interesting to see if Denis Kelly starts with the same 15 that beat Clare in the final. There is certainly lots of competition for places, with last year’s starters Mairead Eviston and Mary Ryan pushing for a starting position in defence, while Ciardha Maher has also returned to full fitness after a concussion.

Further up the field Caoimhe McCarthy, Niamh Treacy and Ereena Fryday all made an impact off the bench and are likely to cause selection headaches for the management.