Eimear Ryan: Kilkenny relief but Galway may have psychological advantage

With camogie and hurling All-Ireland finals taking place over the same weekend, Christmas is indeed coming early

Kilkenny's Collette Dormer and Claire Phelan celebrate after the All-Ireland semi-final win over Cork. Picture ©INPHO/Laszlo Geczo

There are certain players in the hurling pantheon whose mere presence on the pitch has a psychological impact on the game, and Gemma O’Connor is one of them. Like Brian Corcoran in the noughts or Declan Ryan in the late nineties, O’Connor brings physicality, experience, and a hurling brain to whatever line of the field she occupies.

Paudie Murray is well cognisant of this talismanic aspect of O’Connor; her ability to galvanise her team and rattle opposition.