Why are the senior and intermediate camogie semi finals in different venues on the same day?

WHILE Cork had already qualified for the All-Ireland senior championship semi-final, other teams were fighting tooth and nail to make the quarter finals. 

Cork’s intermediate team had to ensure a high scoring average against Kildare in order to ensure they pushed Derry into second spot. 

They did it with an impressive 5-21 to 2-4 victory, Newtownshandrum’s Cliona O'Callaghan the headliner with four goals. 

I have to say that her first on eleven minutes was a beauty. 

Kildare were poor on the day and Cork were in form in front of a great crowd. 

By the time the senior game started the stand was full. 

The home support that the girls have received this year in Páirc Uí Rinn has been excellent. 

I’m wondering why the sudden uplift?

Is it that supporters feel the team are more exciting to watch this year? 

Certainly they are playing a more fluid and direct game. 

The closing minutes when Cork struck five points on the trot to draw level had the crowd in vocal form, Shane Murphy racing up and down the stand getting the rebel roar going. 

Tipp’s converted free won the day for them, but it wasn’t enough to see them through, losing out on a scoring difference of eight points to Dublin who had a nine-point win over Wexford thanks to four second half goals. 

Tipp Manager Bill Mullaney stepped down after five years in charge. 

He did a great job with them and only for unfortunate events and losing players such as Ashling Moloney, Orla O’Dwyer, Karen Kennedy, Roisin Howard and Nicole Walsh, I genuinely feel that if Tipp had their full compliment there was an All-Ireland in them. 

As it is now, they’ve regressed and it’s disappointing.

So, group one finished up with Cork, Waterford, Dublin with Clare in a relegation final. 

Group two sees Galway, Kilkenny and Limerick advance with Offaly facing Clare.

Cork’s seniors gave a poor performance last Saturday. 

They’ll be disappointed but it’s good that this happened when they were already secure. And maybe that’s why it happened.

Sorcha McCartan played the full game and Orlaith Cahalane made her senior debut in the 53rd minute meaning Cork have played a total of 27 players throughout their championship campaign. 

The sending off of Ashling Thompson is a concern, the consequence of which was unclear at the time of writing. 

The loss of Orla Cronin is a big blow to Cork. She would have figured heavily in their plans at the beginning of the season. 

But managements and panels have to deal with absentees such as this year in and year out and you just have to get on with it. 

That’s what your panel is for.

Waterford got through a tough hour to advance. Clare, battling to avoid being involved in a relegation play-off, were battering at the Waterford defence. 

Having got to within a point, they fell three behind but were well in the hunt.

Waterford, who began the day in second position of Group 1, were heading for a win that would cement that spot. 

But if Brianna O’Regan had not been able to save from Muireann Scanlon, or Iona Heffernan had not blocked Chloe Morey’s goal bound shot, the eventual group runners-up would have missed out on a place in the quarter-finals, due to the victories of Dublin and Tipperary.

With Galway and Kilkenny playing out a high quality 1-17 to 2-14 draw resulting in the All-Ireland champions just claiming the semi-final spot from the Cats on score difference and a Lorraine McCarthy goal helping Limerick overcome Antrim 1-14 to 1-11 to secure third, it all means that Waterford will play Limerick and Kilkenny will take on Dublin in the quarter-finals at Semple Stadium on July 16. 

Cork join Galway in the semi-finals at Croke Park seven days later.

What is extremely frustrating is that both the senior and intermediate semi-finals are on the same day. 

The seniors will be in Croke Park and the Intermediates will be in Nowlan Park. 

How infuriating is that if you’re from Cork or Galway?

Both Galway teams train together. The senior sub keeper is the Intermediate side’s number 1. 

With Cork, Galway and Kilkenny all having strong first and second teams there is a high chance of this happening annually yet the association refuse to place the games on separate days. 

There are many supporters who would have liked to go to both games. 

It’s hard enough competing with other sports without competing amongst ourselves.