Another wonderful year for Mayo Camogie at all levels
THIS was again a wonderful year for Mayo Camogie, with the county teams taking home a total of three national titles.
Back in April, the adult team stormed their way through the Littlewoods Ireland League to emerge Division 4 champions.
A confident performance in the final against Wicklow showed that this group of players are determined to work hard to move up the camogie ranks and Division 3 beckons in 2023.
They had some tough opposition in the Glen Dimplex Premier Junior Championship but again showed their mettle by putting in a massive work rate and coming to within one point of Waterford.
The team also hosted Tipperary in Tooreen this year – another historic occasion and no doubt there will be many more of those ahead for this team.
The minor squad reached the All-Ireland C Championship final in March of this year after an emphatic win over Tyrone. They faced a very strong Wicklow side in the decider and despite a strong performance on the day, Wicklow took the win.
With many of these players making the move up to adult camogie in 2023, there is plenty of exciting talent to keep an eye on.
Mayo were dominant all the way through the Under 16 D Championship and were crowned champions in August.
Meeting opposition in Louth, Tyrone, Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan, the players powered through each fixture and had two home fixtures in Hastings Insurance MacHale Park.
The Under 15 team, for the first time, beat all opposition to win their division at national level. It’s the first time that Mayo have participated at this age grade and it's proving to be a great development ground for the players involved.
The Under 14 development squad trials began in May, with 45 players involved. It was fantastic to see the skill level from players and commitment over the four weeks of trials.
Each club had representation on the panel and the squad played in a few blitzes over the summer. A great experience was had by all and it a great start to many a camogie career.
CLUB SCENE
Within the county, with nearly 500 players involved in the clubs, there was lots of camogie played this year.
For the first time, four teams participated in the Mayo Camogie Feile – Castlebar Mitchels, Claremoris, Na Brideoga and Westport.
Westport emerged on top that day and went on to represent the county at the national finals in June, which they won, beating St. Dominic's of Roscommon. It was a day that none of them will forget and a wonderful experience for all.
Castlebar Mitchels, who reached the final of the Mayo Camogie Feile, represented the county at the Regional Feile Finals in Celbridge and reached the Cup semi-final on the day.
The future of camogie in the county is certainly bright.
Castlebar Mitchels also claimed the Under 16 and Under 14 Mayo Development League titles this year with strong performances against tough opposition in Westport on both occasions.
Westport took home all the Under 12 silverware this year, winning the Mayo Development League Cup, Shield and Plate titles, along with the West Mayo Shield.
Many secondary schools are now participating in schools competitions, and Sacred Heart School, Westport, has reached the Connacht final with their junior team. The team had a good win over Presentation Athenry in the semi-final and is looking forward to the final in January.
Mayo Camogie would like to thank all the clubs, club coaches, county coaches, players and all sponsors for their time and commitment to the sport in 2022. We look forward to a busy 2023 and wish everyone a very happy new year.