In numbers: Cork's camogie dominance and the story of those attempting to stop them

The 0-21 to 1-9 victory over Clare in Round 4 is as close as any team came of the Rebels in their four outings en-route to the All-Ireland semis.

Sat, 26 Jul, 2025 - 08:00

Eoghan Cormican

Saoirse McCarthy has heard the question before. She’s heard the question enough times to know what’s being asked is far more of an issue for those outside the Cork dressing-room than inside it.

Cork are in All-Ireland camogie semi-final action early on Saturday evening. They arrive in Nowlan Park carrying an average winning margin 23-points strong. The 0-21 to 1-9 victory over Clare in Round 4 is as close as any team came of them in their four outings en-route to the semis.

“That gets thrown around a lot, but we don’t read into it,” replied Cork half-forward McCarthy when put to her that Cork are severely undertested ahead of facing Waterford.

“Our performances haven’t dipped to where we would let them. We’ve gone out and tried our best every day, regardless of who we are playing, and that is the test for us. It is something other people worry about, but something we don’t think about in camp.”

'We will do everything to stop that from happening' - Saoirse McCarthy hopes Cork camogie learns from hurlers' loss

The below numbers paint a further picture of Cork’s dominance, as well as telling the story of those attempting to overthrow them.

0 - Goal conceded by Tipp since they were carved open in their championship opener on May 31. Cork came to the Ragg that Saturday and took the hosts for 3-21 and an 18-point thumping. Mairéad Eviston told the Examiner this week the result wasn’t so much a setback as it was “a rude awakening”. Wexford, Clare, Limerick, and Kilkenny failed to breach them for a green flag in the weeks since.

1 - Games lost by champions Cork in 2025. And that solitary defeat comes with an asterisk bigger than their All-Ireland final winning margin of two years ago. In their final outing of the League round-robin, and with progression to the Division 1 decider already secured, an under-strength Cork lost at home to Galway by 0-19 to 0-13. Ten wins from 11 outings will have to suffice.

2 - Minutes remaining in the regulation 60 when Tipp moved two clear of Galway at the end of last year’s All-Ireland semi-final. They would fail to hold on. An Aoife Donohue point either side of Carrie Dolan frees edged the Tribeswomen first across the line. The counties' latest last-four collision throws in at 3pm.

3 - Current Tipperary panelists who played in all six of the county’s All-Ireland semi-final defeats over the past seven years. They are Julieanne Bourke, Eimear Loughman, and Karen Kennedy.

4 - Goals banged in by Clodagh Finn this summer. The Fr O’Neill’s forward was a pivotal contributor off the bench in the closing stages of last year’s All-Ireland final. Her status has been upgraded to first team regular in 2025, a promotion she’s vindicated with 4-7 in the championship. As if there weren’t already enough assassins in the Cork front six.

5 - Goals banged by Cork when last they ran into Waterford in the All-Ireland series. That was the chronically one-sided 2023 final. Five points was the difference between the sides in their one championship meeting since, that the 2024 Munster final. Can Waterford keep today as close?

8 - Season count of Galway’s Cathal Murray, the longest serving manager of the four on duty today. Came in towards the end of the 2018 League following player unhappiness with the previous management. Has delivered three Leagues and two All-Irelands. Most recent O’Duffy Cup triumph dates back to 2021.

12 - Of the 22 games in this year’s championship, a dozen have finished with the end margin in double-digits. There’s a severe imbalance. An eight-team championship would be a much better fit than the current 10-team model - for all involved.

15 - Date in April when Carrigtwohill native Michael Boland was appointed interim Waterford boss. The need for an interim Déise manager was created by Jerry Wallace’s shock mid-season departure a fortnight earlier.

24 - The respective scoring totals of Cork’s Amy O’Connor and Waterford’s Beth Carton, who sit joint-top of the from-play scoring chart. O’Connor has 5-9 to her name, Carton’s more out-the-field role reflected in her 2-18 tally.

57 - Percentage of Galway’s championship total supplied by Carrie Dolan and Niamh Mallon. From 5-74, Dolan (0-36) and Mallon (0-15) are responsible for well over half that figure. While Dolan’s superb form in the captaincy role has been a standout feature of their campaign to date, the dependency on the pair is a concern. Case in point is the League final defeat to Cork where Galway managed just 0-4 from play and 0-10 overall.

1972 - Cork’s camogie class of 53 years ago were the last from the county to achieve an All-Ireland three-in-a-row. The current crop are driven to match that feat after the three-in-a-row attempts of 2016 and ‘19 fell short.

2006 - Tipp’s last successful negotiation of the semi-final stage. The two-point win over Kilkenny at today’s venue secured an eighth consecutive final appearance. Their eight subsequent ventures to the championship’s last-four stage have all been unhappy ones.

7,257 - The record semi-final crowd from two summers ago. Such is the attractiveness of Saturday’s double-header, and the strong possibility of an improved Tipp following off the back of the hurlers’ exploits, that figure could be under threat. Record attendances is a constantly repeated goal of new president Brian Molloy, chief among them being 50,000 pouring through the Croke Park turnstiles for the 2026 All-Ireland final.