Kinsale's Amelie Scharf recognises similarities between lacrosse and camogie

Amelie Scharf, and 18-year-old from Kinsale, is in action for Ireland this week in the 2024 World Lacrosse Women’s U20 World Championship in Hong Kong.

Scharf grew up in Shelburne, Vermont, before the family relocated to Kinsale last year. Her mother is originally from Youghal.

Growing up in the States, she began playing lacrosse at a young age and continued into High School. When Ameile and her family relocated to Ireland, she brought her love and enthusiasm for the game with her.

After playing with the Éire Youth team in the Irish Lacrosse League, Ameile was selected for the U21 Irish squad that competed in the 2023 European Championship in Prague, the team lost one game by a single point, finishing in a record fifth place.

After partaking in trials last October, Amelie found in January that she was picked for the upcoming championship. She is one of nine returning players in a squad of twenty-two. 

The inclusion of both domestic Irish players and dual citizens, many of whom are playing competitively in American colleges, have added a new dimension to the team as they look to build on last year's European success.

The Irish squad drew Japan, Hong Kong, Jamaica and England in the World Championship. With the top two teams qualifying for the knock-out stages.

Amelie has been travelling regularly to Dublin to train with the national team on weekends. They have welcomed travelling teams from the US for game-time as they prepare for competition.

Lacrosse is similar to camogie and hurling, I’ve noticed a lot of parallels between the two sports. They are both fast-paced and there's a lot of transferable skills between the two sports.” 

Instead of a throw-in to start the game like in GAA, there is a system called a draw in place. In the centre of the pitch, two opposition players will hold their crosses horizontally with the ball in the middle. 

At the sound of the whistle, the ball is flung into the air by the players and their crosses are pulled up and away, signifying the start of play. The same manoeuvre is also used to restart the game after a goal has been scored.

In a lacrosse game, 10 players line out on the field; a goalie, three midfield and three forwards. Every goal scored is considered as one point. Each game consists of four quarters; each 15 minutes long. The team who finishes the game with the most points wins.

Unbeknownst to many, there is a rich history of Lacrosse in Ireland. The first known origins of the sport here can be traced back to 1872 in Belfast. Despite facing near extinction a hundred years later, the game resurged in 2001 when the Irish Men's Lacrosse Team was re-established to compete in the 2001 European Championships tournament in Penarth, Wales.

Four years later, the Irish Women's National Lacrosse Team was re-established and entered the 2005 European Newcomers Tournament in Copenhagen, Denmark, finishing in 1st place, a remarkable feat.

ON THE RISE

The sport has since grown in Ireland with eight national teams – four for women and four for me – operating under the auspices of Ireland Lacrosse. The Ireland women's team recently secured fifth place in the European Championships, earning a spot in the 2026 World Championships. Meanwhile, the U20 men's team remains undefeated at the European Championships in Poland.

Lacrosse is a sport that's gaining momentum in Cork, mirroring that of the recent success of the national team.

Amelie, alongside her father Rob joined forces with Tony Devine to establish lacrosse on Leeside. The trio were supported by the Cork City Partnership and conducted taster sessions in various locations across the county, including Ballincollig, Togher, Carrigtwohill, Tramore Valley Park, Cork Harlequins Hockey Club, various schools, and most recently Kinsale. These sessions were a great success, attracting a diverse group of participants and sparking interest in the sport.

"We are grassroots in Ireland, but due to how fun, fast, and social it is, and due to the global growth of lacrosse, we have the opportunity to produce the best lacrosse players in Ireland right here in Cork," said Tony Devine.

“Our vision for lacrosse in Cork extends beyond local competition. Organisers are ambitious, aiming to nurture local talent capable of representing Ireland on the international stage. 

Players from Cork, such as Amelie, have a real shot at joining the Ireland National Lacrosse teams for prestigious tournaments like the European Championships, World Championships, and potentially the Olympics in 2028. 

“We’ve welcomed both competitive and non-competitive players who come in and out depending on their schedules but they all are really enjoying it and hopefully a competitive Cork league can be started up soon.

“You don’t need to have played lacrosse before to come along, a lot of people have never played lacrosse before but have seen it on the TV and thought it would be fun to start.” 

Cork Lacrosse is always on the hunt for new players and volunteers, if you would like to get involved, you can e-mail corklax@gmail.com or find one of the clubs on Instagram.