Long Serving Áine Lyng to Lead Gailltir Up Hogan Stand Steps

I have often said be it rightly or wrongly that interest we see in Camogie right now in the Déise County began with Waterford reaching and winning the Under 16 ‘B’ (then a minor grade) All-Ireland Final against Armagh at O’Moore Park in Port Laoise in the summer of 1993.  

Work on that team had gone on for some time, but for that particular Championship work began the previous October in Bunmahon when the players that formed that panel were brought together. Between that day and the day the All-Ireland winners trophy was raised aloft tremendous work was put in a club venues in Lismore, Aglish, Dungarvan, Abbeyside, Kilmacthomas, Kill, Tramore, Saint Saviours in Ballybeg, De La Salle and Roanmore in Clayboy, Ballygunner and the Waterford Crystal Grounds on the Cork Road on the way out of Waterford City.

Little was left to the imagination to get that team ready and Championship or Challenge games were played at home or away against neighbouring counties like Kilkenny, Tipperary and Cork, as well as those further away like Galway, Clare, Limerick and Kildare.  

It was clear to see that the work was put in and as happens when this happens the business people of the city and county put their money where their mouths were when it came to supporting the side and they were not to be left disappointed.

The selectors that year as pointed out came up with a good panel. There was a brilliant young goalkeeper in Aisling O’Brien from the Lismore Club. She had fellow Lismore players like Shelly Keane, Patricia Broderick, Tanya Morrissey, Kate Heneghan and Jenny Houlihan with her in the panel. Laura Buckley was also involved and was the team captain.

From Saint Anne’s Charlotte Raher was involved. She would go on to have a brilliant career with Club and County in the years that followed. Jenny Simpson would later play at Club and County Level with Charlotte at the time was a member of the now disbanded Ardkeen Club. Also from the Ardkeen Club were Orla Heffernan, Róisín Heylin, Róisín Delaney and Ciara Kehoe. Other clubs to disband since are Saint Saviours and Roanmore. From Saint Saviours was Martina Cashin and from Roanmore were Vicki Gaffney, Susan Finn, Aimee O’Sullivan and Louise O’Dowda. There were also players from Portlaw and Tramore. Áine Breathnach was from Tramore and Alice Moore was from Portlaw.

Another club had a number of representatives on the panel – Gailltir. Claire Hartery and Emma Tallon were two of the five players from Gailltir involved. The other three were Margot Heffernan, Trish Jackman and Áine Lyng.

When Gailltir run out from under the steps of the Cusack Stand on Sunday afternoon in this year’s All-Ireland Intermediate Club Final against Saint Rynagh’s the last three named players above will be running onto the famous Croke Park sod in the Sky Blue and Navy shirt with the latter player as this year’s captain given the honour to lead the side out and receive the applause and roars of the assembled support that they will generate on the day.

The Dungarvan Leader in its edition in the lead up to the 2003 All-Ireland Final success gave over almost a full page to previewing the game in Port Laoise and contained some short notes on each player in the panel.

The compiler of the piece told us that Margot Heffernan was a quality defender who was also able to play in attack. Nearly seventeen years on if notes were to be compiled on the players in that year’s panel right now on their career since then we would surely be told that she is still a quality defender who has achieved so much in her career.

Of Trish Jackman we were told that she was the youngest player in the panel. She too has proven to be a great player since then adding to her collection of All-Ireland Final winners medals since and would surely love to add one or two more to her collection of honours in the coming years starting this coming weekend. Trish took some time away from the game in recent years as she took time out to complete her studies but has come back an even better player than she was before she took a break.

Emma Hannon who is now Emma Roche (but still the same person) we were told in 2003 was going to be “a key player for the Déise” and the same could apply here for the Sky Blues. Once more she is a player that has achieved so much in the years in between and her influence playing and working alongside younger players coming through the ranks at club and county levels is un-measurable.

Another player to have taken a break from the game for a while is Áine Lyng. Back in 2003 she played a major part in helping Waterford win the All-Ireland Final. And like so many others involved in that year’s All-Ireland winning squad she has had a hugely successful career.

In the white and blue of Waterford she helped the county win a league title before taking a break from the game before coming back in recent years showing that she had lost none of the class that she showed in her earlier career making her way onto the County Senior team and getting nominated for All-Star’s in each of the last two years.

I have to hold my hands up here and admit I do not know Áine Lyng but I would guess that if she had any regrets from her time playing Camogie (than might not be the correct word to use, but I am sure you know what I mean) it would possibly be missing out on the 2011 All-Ireland Junior Final win over Down after helping Waterford reach the finals in the two previous year’s losing both to Offaly in 2009 and Antrim after a replay a year later. She would also miss out on the 2015 Intermediate All-Ireland Final win over Kildare but since returning to the inter county scene she had made a huge impact.

On the club scene she has also had some glorious days. Before taking a break from the game she won the first of her two senior county titles. In her underage days she also helped the Sky Blues to win under 14, under 16 and minor championships. In the last few years she has been at her very best for the club helping Gailltir to win three of the last four County Senior titles, going on to win Munster Intermediate titles a few weeks after winning county medals to go with the Munster Junior medal she won previously and was part of the side which narrowly lost in last year’s All-Ireland Final against Clonduff who Gailltir knockout out of this year’s competition in January in the semi final stages.

Former Liverpool and Scotland centre back Alan Hansen once famously said on Match of the Day in August 1995 that “you can’t win anything with kids”. Some would argue that he was proven wrong when Alex Ferguson lead Manchester United to win the Premier League. While Alex Ferguson in his championship winning side that year did have what may well be described as kids with the likes of Nicky Butt, Gary Neville, Simon Davies, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Phil Neville, David Beckham etc in the team, but there was also some very experienced players some of whom were leaders in the team such as Peter Schmeichel, Paul Parker, Denis Irwin, Steve Bruce, Gary Pallister, Eric Cantona, Brian McClair, Roy Keane and Andy Cole involved. Often the difference between success and otherwise is finding the right balance between youth and experience like what Alex Ferguson did after what Alan Hansen had to say.

This year’s Gailltir panel has that blend of youth and experience. There is young players in the likes of Leah Sheridan, Hannah Flynn, Clodagh Carroll, Kate Lynch, Ciara O’Sullivan as well as Annie and Aoife Fitzgerald to name but a few who have already won so much. You have players who are slightly older the likes of Ciara Jackman in goal, Shauna Fitzgerald, Anne Corcoran, Emer Walsh, Roisin Flood and Emily Mahony who are part and parcel of the set up with the last number of years and gained so much experience.

Then you have the older more experienced heads in Margo Heffernan, Emma Roche, Trish Jackman and Áine Lyng who would add to any team which they are involved in and will all play a big part in side they are involved in. All four are leaders. All four will be giving it there all on Sunday next.

If Gailltir are to win on Sunday fifteen leaders, captains, call it what you want will be needed on the field of play and if and when players are introduced from the bench the same will be expected of them. Should Gailltir win (and I think they will) one of those leaders or captains will lead the side up the steps of the Hogan Stand be presented with the Agnes O’Farrelly Cup by Kathleen Wood’s the President of the Camogie Association. For longevity and for what they have achieved in the game, I for one can’t think of a better person that Áine Lyng to be that player.