Camogie: Charting the history of playing gear, from gym tunics to skorts to shorts

Change in camogie, as in wider society, can be slow to arrive.

In 1959, the Cork Camogie Board brought a motion from the Old Aloysians club seeking to modernise the traditional uniform of gym tunics and blouses with black full-length stockings. The proposal concerned the introduction of (a) skirts or (b) shorts with full- or three-quarter-length coloured stockings.

The motion received a “very mixed reception” at county and provincial conventions but made it to the Camogie Association’s All-Ireland Congress. It was voted down by 16 votes to four.

DIVIDED

Eight years later, Cork brought a motion from the South Pres club to introduce a kit of divided skirts, with short or long sleeves, and knee-length stockings.

During a long debate at Congress, the Cork delegates modified the proposal to apply to colleges’ games only. The amended text was beaten by two votes.

In 1969, the Cork Board president suggested a competition be held among players for new uniform designs. The advent of the miniskirt was referenced as a marker of changing times.

Whether a designer was ultimately identified, a repeat of the original South Pres motion was brought by Cork to Congress in 1970. It was “heavily defeated”.

Following a successful Cork motion in 1971, goalkeepers and referees were permitted to wear tracksuits “during games played in inclement weather”.

The 1972 Congress proved particularly revolutionary. On the same day that camogie’s ban on members playing hockey or football was revoked, the 'Uniform Committee' recommendations were accepted by a large majority. Teams could choose between a skirt, sports shirt, and bobby shorts, or the traditional uniform.

Cork’s All-Ireland victory that year was their last in gym frocks, beating a Kilkenny side wearing the new uniform in the final.

Those wraparound skirts, fastened in place by safety pins, were replaced by the hybrid skorts in a September 2003 unveiling. They have become increasingly unpopular over time because of their discomfort, the risk of exposure, and period anxiety.

It’s telling that players, by and large, wear shorts to training and practice matches.

In 2012, a proposal to allow players to wear shorts in competition was shelved. An internal review cited a 60/40 vote in favour of retaining skorts.

In 2018, a Clare motion to replace skorts with shorts was overwhelmingly defeated. Delegates voted it down by 77 votes to 12.

London club Thomas McCurtains began their ‘Shorts Not Skorts’ campaign in 2023. Their survey of 240 players found that 82% of respondents preferred to wear shorts than skorts when playing camogie. Three-quarters viewed it as not reflecting current societal standards.

They had become a relic, unfit for purpose.

Last spring, four counties sponsored motions opposing the universal imposition of the skort. One of those counties, Tipperary, reported that their 39 clubs unanimously supported their proposal to replace skorts with shorts. In Dublin, 34 of their 35 senior players backed the motion. It received just 36% of delegate votes.

CHOICE

The less controversial bid was to offer players a choice of shorts or skorts. In Westmeath, 266 players responded to a county board poll. Of those, 78% voted in favour of the motion. 

When it came to Congress, just 45% of delegates backed the motion. Cork were among those to oppose it.

Even if they had got over half of the votes, a two-thirds majority was required to pass. By rule, the Camogie Association explained the issue couldn’t be raised again until 2027.

But a majority of players have had enough. From a GPA poll of 650 inter-county players, 83% favour the choice between shorts and skorts. The same survey showed that seven in 10 players find skorts uncomfortable. That’s physical discomfort, but there’s also the mental stress around exposure caused by skorts. That worry affects 65% of players.

The difference between player surveys and delegate votes shows a clear disconnect. The voting patterns do not come close to representing players’ wishes.

In some counties, the prohibition on shorts has been set aside amid the player revolt. Last Saturday’s Munster final could’ve been a forward step if a similar dispensation was allowed.

Instead, the Cork and Waterford squads made a stand. Players from both sides have spoken eloquently in favour of choice. The postponement of the match spurned their weeks of planning and preparation with 16 hour's notice.

Tradition shouldn’t overrule player welfare when it comes to a basic choice of what togs feel comfortable to play in. Players deserve to own that choice.

And if skort anxiety or discomfort puts one girl off playing camogie, then that is the greatest failure of all.