‘It’s been my dream to captain Camross’- Dwane Palmer eyes Bob O’Keefe Cup glory

Camross are back in a County Final after missing out in 2024, having last lifted the Bob O’Keefe Cup in 2023. Their captain, Dwane Palmer, says that within the camp, not reaching the final is always seen as a disappointment.

"It's a disappointment every year if we don't get to a county final. Well, internally, it's a disappointment, but it's nice to be back. I know it's only been two years since we’ve been in one, but it feels like a long time," he said.

Manager David Cuddy, who led Camross to that 2023 triumph, took a year out before returning to the helm this season. Palmer says having him back has been a major boost and that things feel different this time around.

"David is a Camross man, but I know he's been down in Limerick the last couple of years; but he knows the team. He wasn't coming in blind like the first time around; he didn't know what he was dealing with. He was coming in with knowledge of the players already and what we had coming through the system, too. He was still coming in with a fresh pair of eyes after being away for a year. He probably had different ideas and things again he wanted to try. So, it's great to have him, Tomas and Packie there, brilliant to have the three of them back, to be honest," Palmer said.

This year’s Laois Senior Hurling Championship featured a revamped 10-team format, split into two groups of five. Camross got off to a slow start, registering just one point from their opening two games against Portlaoise and Rosenallis.

"In fairness to the format, I was kind of sceptical at the start of the year. I didn't know what way it would fare out, but it's actually been quite exciting to be honest. At the start of the year, we didn't seem to be going too badly. We won the Leinster League, got to the semi-final of the league. Come the Championship, I know we were missing one or two of our key players. Especially Mossy Keyes and Mark Downing, they didn’t play those two games. It's amazing the difference it made when they came back against Ballacolla. Portlaoise and Rosenallis, credit to the two of them and credit well due, they were two brilliant teams as well, and they really stuck it to us," he said.

Palmer believes that the gap between teams in the Senior Championship has closed significantly and that the overall standard this season has been as high as ever.

"Every game has come down to the wire. Even in the semi-finals the other day, Ballinakill and Ballacolla came down to the wire. Castletown ran a couple of teams close as well. Portlaoise, the same thing, and Rosenallis. These so-called weaker teams, they're not weak at all. They're all very competitive. They're as good as games as we've got all year anyway," he said.

Looking ahead to the County Final on Sunday, October 19, Palmer knows that his side will be in for a serious battle against reigning champions Clough-Ballacolla.

"Ballacolla are a great opponent. Credit to them, they're there or thereabouts every year. They're a great team to play against. They're a great team to get a win over as well because they're such a hard team to play. They always have a good system, especially with Willie Hyland over them this year. You'll never have it easy with them," Palmer added.

Camross reached the final after a strong semi-final win over Rathdowney-Errill, a game that was tight for much of the first half before Camross hit a purple patch in the second period, pulling away to win by 12 points with goals from Darren Drennan and Ciaran Collier.

"In the first half, both teams were kind of seeing who would make the first move, really. That's what it felt like looking at it anyway. Both teams probably had opportunities for scores; Rathdowney hit a few bad wides. Mossy had a great save on the line from John Purcell in the first half; it was a certain goal, but in fairness to Purcell, he got across. Second half, then probably opened up a little bit. I don't know whether the wind was with us or against us, either half, because it kind of seemed to be all over the place. Mossy caught fire there for 10 or 15 minutes. His man got a yellow card, which probably helped him a little bit. He probably couldn't tackle him as hard, maybe in case he got the line. There was a five-minute spell. I think he got three or four points. Then Darren came on and got a goal, which gave us a bit of breathing room. We just kicked on from there. Ciaran Collier got a goal, and a couple of lads got a few points. Liam Delaney and Odhran Phelan hurled brilliantly in midfield. The backs were super all game, but it's just the way it worked out," he said.

As captain, Palmer admits he hasn’t featured as much on the pitch as he would have liked. After starting the opening two games, he’s since played mainly as an impact substitute, something he puts down to a mix of injuries and personal challenges.

"There's a combination of a lot of small things. It was an honour to be selected as captain this year. I was looking forward to the year so much. I probably had the worst year with little niggles; my hamstring, my back, my calf, all at separate times. It kept me out for maybe two or three weeks at a time. There was a little bit of bad news earlier in the year, family-wise. Nothing major, but that kicked me around for a couple of weeks. I was all over the shop a small bit too.

"A combination of a lot of little things. But as I said to David and the boys, the lads have been great. They've always thrown an arm around me or pulled me aside and asked if I was okay or whatever. In fairness to the lads, they've always said I've just been there, I'm never too far out of the equation. I told them at the start, I don't mind not playing. I have no problem sitting in the stand for the whole year as long as we win it. I’m a fierce, good team player that way, so I won’t sulk or whinge. I have no problem sitting there if other lads play well, absolutely fantastic. It's great," Palmer commented.

For Palmer, leading Camross out as captain has been a lifelong dream, one that he hopes will end with him lifting the Bob O’Keefe Cup.

"It's been a long year. We're back training since January-ish, end of January, start of February. You look at it now, we're nearly in the middle of October, end of October by the time the finals play, and if it goes to a replay, it'll probably push on nearly till November. It's been a long year, but it'll definitely be all worth it. Ever since I first picked up a hurl, it’s been my dream to captain Camross and climb those steps to lift the trophy. It's been an absolute honour this year," Palmer ended.

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