Camogie chief: Cork team 'are fantastic women, fantastic athletes, and fantastic role models'

As Cork bid to secure a third All-Ireland senior camogie title in a row, the president of the Camogie Association has outlined his ultimate ambition of having Croke Park full to capacity on a regular basis for All-Ireland final day.

All roads lead to Croke Park today, with the senior final concluding the day of camogie action at 5.15pm, as Cork and Galway will battle it out for the O’Duffy Cup.

Beforehand, the Premier Junior final begins at 1pm and will see Laois and Armagh battle it out for the Kay Mills Cup.

The intermediate final will begin at 3pm and will see Kerry and Offaly face off for the McGrath Cup.

Speaking to The Echo, Camogie Association president Brian Molloy said camogie and ladies football should be looking in the future to get consistent capacity crowds at Croke Park on All-Ireland final day: “I think we need to have that aspiration and we need to fulfil that aspiration.

“There is no reason in my mind for us not to have a full Croke Park for the All-Ireland final, both for camogie and ladies football.

“If just the playing members of camogie went — of 94,000 playing members — we would not have enough room for them.

“If Galway is in the All-Ireland final or if Galway not in it, there should still be buses of camogie supporters going over to the All-Ireland final every year.

“I think we need to try and encourage people to go to All-Ireland final day, not just if your county is in it, but because it is a celebration of the game that you love and you want to go to see the best teams play it.”

Today, Cork will be hoping to be the first team to win three All-Ireland camogie titles in a row since the successful Wexford team of 2010-2012.

Mr Molloy feels this current Cork team are great ambassadors for the sport of camogie: “I have been lucky enough to meet a number of players from the current Cork team. They are fantastic women, fantastic athletes, and just fantastic role models.

“They are so humble and they are so engaging. They are so open to any kind of help they can give to expand the breadth of exposure to camogie. I know their county is very proud of them, and rightly so, their clubs are very proud of them and rightly so, and their families are very proud of them, and rightly so.”