Ronan McCarthy hopes right blend can get Mourneabbey back on top
Mourneabbey midfielder Maire O'Callaghan is one of the most consistent performers in the club game. Picture: Gavin Browne
Ronan McCarthy believes his Mourneabbey club has enough quality to make an impact in this year’s Cork Credit Unions Cork LGFA senior championship.
Mourneabbey hold the astonishing record of winning every Cork LGFA SFC county final between 2013 and 2023, apart from 2020 when West Cork’s divisional side temporarily halted the North Cork club’s dominance.
Add in seven Munster LGFA crowns plus 2018 and 2019 All-Ireland senior club triumphs and it is fair to say that Mourneabbey remain one of the most successful and admired clubs to ever emerge from Cork.
No one dominates their sport forever and with the passing of time, Mourneabbey’s rivals have steadily improved, finally matching the lofty standards set by the nine-time champions over the past decade.
That is why narrowly missing out on last year’s county semi-finals stung a Mourneabbey setup used to competing at the business end of the Cork LGFA SFC. Losing out to Kinsale in the last four of the senior B championship only added to that disappointment.
Former Cork inter-county manager Ronan McCarthy will once again oversee Mourneabbey’s challenge and is eager to bounce back in the upcoming 2025 senior championship.
“For a club that has won nine of the last 10 senior county championships, not to make it out of last year’s group stages was disappointing,” McCarthy admitted.
“It is definitely the case that a narrowing of the gap has developed at the top of the senior grade over the last four or five years.
“Going back to 2023, when we last won it, we played St Val’s in the county semi-finals and we were very lucky to come through that game.
“So, I think that the level of competition has gotten stronger. Last year, Glanmire beat us, we drew with St Val’s and Kinsale beat us by a point in the Senior B semi-finals. It is a really competitive senior championship in Cork right now.
“You just must take things one game at a time, as this club has always done. Hopefully, we will have enough to qualify for this year’s knockout stages.”
That will be far from straightforward considering Mourneabbey has been drawn against Éire Óg, Glanmire, Kinsale and Bride Rovers in the opening group phase of this year’s senior grade.
McCarthy believes that there is enough quality within Mourneabbey’s ranks to bounce back. As well as the club’s more established stars, an emerging crop of inter-county underage players bodes well for the North Cork side’s future ambitions.
“To be fair to the club, with all the success they have enjoyed over the last few years, Mourneabbey has also been looking further down the road and bringing through their next generation of players,” the Mourneabbey senior manager stated.
“There is a real mix in our current senior panel. We have our more experienced campaigners in Bríd and Ciara O’Sullivan, Máire O’Callaghan and Aoife Walsh. Another group including the likes of the Cronins and Anna Ryan are coming through.
“You can add our three All-Ireland LGFA minor winning members, Laura Walsh, Éimear Walsh and Rachel Breen, to that list as well. We had other players on the Cork U16 and U14 panels this year too.
"So, I think we are going to be very competitive this year but, also, the club’s long-term future is very bright.”
Staying competitive whilst in transition is one of the most difficult things for a club manager to oversee. Ronan McCarthy understands the challenge better than most and has full confidence in his squad ahead of their senior championship opener against Kinsale.
“We will definitely be competitive, respect every one of our opponents and just take it one game at a time.
“Last year, we know we were only a kick of a ball away from going through to the county semi-finals. This year, every minute of every game will count. Hopefully, we will have enough quality to get through.”
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