Historic Cork LGFA final another staging post on Éire Óg's journey

Sadhbh McGoldrick, Éire Óg, looking to evade the tackle of Ava Barry, Bride Rovers, in their senior A ladies football county semi-final match at Ovens, Cork. Picture Dan Linehan

When reigning champions West Cork confirmed they would not be fielding a team for the 2021 Cork ladies football championship, it left a vacant seat, alongside Mourneabbey, at the top table of Cork ladies football.

West Cork won a historic first Cork senior crown last year, but it subsequently emerged that the divisional outfit had done so — albeit unknowingly — in contravention of LGFA Rule 190. The rule states that amalgamated teams be made up of no more than three junior clubs or one intermediate and one junior club, whereas the victorious West Cork panel pulled players from 11 clubs.

In February of this year, a Cork LGFA motion proposing there be no limit to the amount of junior and intermediate clubs feeding into a divisional team was unanimously passed at county board level.

This motion, however, has not yet been heard at national level, meaning West Cork’s 2021 title defence became a non-starter.

West Cork and Mourneabbey have contested the last three Cork county finals, the two standard-bearers opening up quite a gap between themselves and the chasing pack in recent years.

But with the divisional side not involved for the 2021 season, their absence created an opportunity for one of the remaining eight clubs to at the very least reach a county final.

Step forward Éire Óg, tomorrow evening’s decider representing the first time the Ovens club has appeared in the county senior final.

Established in 2003, theirs has been a relatively swift ascension to the showpiece event of Cork ladies football.

“Friday is a big occasion for the club because it is a relatively young club. It is a massive achievement to be there,” said senior manager Donal Cronin.

“This team didn’t happen overnight and, similarly, reaching a first senior final doesn’t happen by accident. We have 450-plus playing members. There is enormous work going on at present and enormous work has gone on over many years to bring players through to this senior team.

“You go back to the foundation of the club, Tom Scally (Cork LGFA vice-chairperson) certainly had his fingerprints all over it. There have been so many people who have put so much work in, phenomenal work, day in, day out. Every time you go down to the club there will be a ladies football team playing, starting with our U5s and U6s. We have been relatively successful at underage because of all that work and that comes through then at the top level.”

Negotiating the semi-final hurdle proved beyond Éire Óg in recent years, with final opponents Mourneabbey trouncing them on an 11-12 to 0-5 scoreline in the penultimate round last year.

Cork sharpshooter Eimear Scally was absent on that occasion, the full-forward bagging two goals when Éire Óg scored a 5-2 to 0-0 semi-final win over Bride Rovers a fortnight ago. Other standout names are Cork half-back Méabh Cahalane and the Clearys, Emma and Laura.

“We feel we are improving with every game. They are coming more together,” the manager continued.

“There is very little to be said about Mourneabbey that hasn’t already been said. They have beaten us over the past number of years and they will again be a very, very stiff challenge on Friday night.”

But irrespective of the outcome at Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cronin is hopeful of several more final appearances in the years to come.

“This (Friday) isn’t a destination at all. We’d expect to be competing at senior level and trying to get to semi-finals and finals, and winning county titles for many years to come. That is certainly the ambition of the club.”