Catherine Neary says camogie open draw format works well

It’s the time of year again when the All-Ireland qualifiers creep upon us and, with them, the perennial spike in the criticisms of the footballing and hurling competition structures and a myriad of suggestions as to how they could be improved.

Among them this past number of years has been the idea that perhaps the provincial championships could be run off as stand alone competitions between the league and All-Ireland series.

As is the case with most ideas, that has met with a mixed response.

For half a decade now, camogie has run its provincial championships as a vacuum-packed event, sealed off and unaffected by the league that precedes it and the All-Ireland series that follows and which is played off via an open draw group system that feeds into quarter- and semi-finals.

Obviously the camogie landscape is chalk and cheese compared to those of hurling or football, but Camogie Association president Catherine Neary believes that the segregation of the provinces from the national competition is something that has certainly worked for them.

“There was a fear among people that (the provinces) would be devalued and teams wouldn’t bother. What I think has happened is that the provinces have worked very hard and they have placed it at a time of the year where it will be important and where they will be competitive games rather than maybe to put it in at the tail-end of the year where it might become unimportant.

“So, it’s about emphasising its place in the calendar and its value,” said Neary, ahead of the three senior ties which will open the 2015 Liberty Insurance Camogie Championship this weekend.

“When you talk to the players, it still has huge value for them to compete in and win a provincial final, but its place is the key.” Just to reiterate: there is no knock-on benefit to claiming a provincial camogie title other than the satisfaction of winning the trophy itself and no real clamour for that to change. Two groups of five make up the All-Ireland series and the only seeding sees last year’s two finalists, Cork and Kilkenny, kept apart.

So, is Neary right? Does the provincial title still hold its cache for the players?

“It’s definitely not looked over,” said Kate McDonald who is captain of Kilkenny’s recently-anointed Leinster’s champions.

“You’re going to be competing against the top teams and it is good to get the run-out. It is nearly a trial run to the championship. We were out of the league a long time this year, say, so the Leinster Championship was great to get us match fit and back into the mindset.”

The vagaries of the open draw for the All-Ireland series have worked in Kilkenny’s favour this year with the 2014 runners-up handed a Group B schedule that will see them face Dublin, Clare, Tipperary and Derry.

The other three big guns – reigning champions Cork, Wexford and Galway – will meet up in Group A. Newly-promoted Limerick as well as Offaly will complete the line-up and Saturday’s meeting of Cork and Galway will see the gig start off with something of a bang. A repeat of the league final which Galway won by three points.

The game will precede the Leinster hurling semi-final between Galway and Laois in Tullamore and Neary is hopeful that more such double-headers will be possible as the sport looks to extend its reach and public profile.

“We have had a lot of discussion with the GAA and, in fairness, they have been very positive about it. We both see that there is a natural affinity between camogie and hurling and in many cases it is similar counties that are out playing as well.”