Camross captain Aoife Collier excited ahead of All-Ireland Club Final at Croke Park

Camross Camogie captain Aoife Collier is counting down the days to one of the defining moments of her career, as she prepares to lead her club out at Croke Park for Sunday’s AIB All-Ireland Club Intermediate Final against Ballincollig of Cork.

For Collier and her teammates, the season has stretched deep into December, unfamiliar territory, but one that has brought a renewed sense of excitement and connection within the group.

“Yeah, unbelievable. You think badly of yourself going out in that kind of rain and frost that we have on most nights, but you count your blessings by all means to be still in this position at the moment. Something that we're not used to, unfortunately, and I think something we haven't done maybe since COVID, been training in December, and still at a competitive level, but to be here at the moment is just surreal, there's a great buzz around the place.

“There's something a little bit extra special about training at this time of year, and having the group of girls that we have, we've been together for so long now at this stage, that the bond has just grown that little bit extra,” she said.

Much of Camross’ journey this season has been powered by extraordinary backing from the parish, with fundraising efforts and sponsorship ensuring the players have had every possible support along the way.

“It's a small parish here, but it's a massive community. We opened up that GoFundMe for the Leinster final just to get us past the line at that stage, and cover them few overheads that we had. The response that we had to it was absolutely phenomenal. We knew the people were going to get behind us; they always have been regarding their sport. But the generosity that was shown around the parish between companies, between individuals, people even outside of the community and the parish that were really not associated to us in any direct way were so generous with their funds. 

“We had people outside of that; we've had companies come at us outside of the GoFundMe since we've made it to the All-Ireland final. We have had so many local businesses that have been putting their hands up and shouting at us that they want to sponsor us. We are kitted out in every sort of gear and flag that we have at this stage, and it's just amazing. Do you know what, it was a massive drive to the Leinster final and now to the All-Ireland final. It made such a difference to us, I think, seeing everyone rowing behind us and seeing the parish behind us; it was definitely more than that monetary value, it was the support also from everyone,” she said.

With a supporters’ bus organised for Sunday, Collier admitted the players would almost like to step back and soak in the spectacle from the stands.

“I think it's been 50 years or something similar since the parish was brought up to Croke Park. We were just saying this as we're having conversations with people that we're meeting across the board, to see the Camross colours up there in Croke Park is just going to be second to none. 

“We'd nearly like to be on the trains and the buses ourselves to be able to see the buzz around the place. I hope that it’s captured in its troves because we're looking forward to looking back at all that and just seeing the magic of it all and seeing our families in Croke Park and knowing that we're the reason that they're there is just, it's second to none,” Collier said.

Named captain for the 2025 campaign, Collier said the honour has only grown as the season has progressed, stressing that leadership within the panel runs far deeper.

“We're throwing around this word a lot, but it is a thing of dreams. He said it to me at the start of the year, and not that you don't think much of it, it's an absolute honour, but as the victories keep coming, that honour just gets higher and higher. It's something that you can only dream of.

“The girls that we have on that team, we are a panel of 25, any one of them could have been a captain here today. They are all leaders in themselves, and everyone plays a massive role and a different role within our panel. But look, it's an absolute honour, it's a privilege to be able to lead them out every day that we go out, whether it's Derrynaseera or it's Croke Park, it's the same really. Look, we're not going to talk about getting up them Croke Park steps yet, but yeah, it's a dream for anyone, and to be able to lead them out into Croke Park alone is a real privilege,” she said.

Preparation for Ballincollig has been meticulous, with Collier pointing to the work done by management and the responsibility on players to match that effort.

“You're never going to go into these things blind. I mean, Arien like always done his homework on these things and he's shared it with us. Like any team, you study them whether it's inside the county or outside it. You study them, you see their weak points and you see their strengths, and you try to target, no more than I'm sure they'd be doing with us. I suppose the joy of it and maybe the downside of it is that when you come outside your county, you know less about the team.

“You're inside the county, you've nearly gone to school with the girl beside you, you know everything about her. I suppose that can be a good thing and a bad thing when you come outside the county. We're using it as our strengths. We're just focusing on the 15 that we have on the field and whoever joins us thereafter. But by all means, you have to do your homework at the end of the day, and you have to know what they're doing to match it,” she said.

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Experience is not something Camross lacks, with many players having previously lined out at Croke Park, while also blending seamlessly with a talented crop of younger players.

“We're lucky that we're not short of experience. I think out of the 15 girls that will be possibly lining out as in our previous team from the semi-final, nine of them have had the experience of playing in Croke Park, and that's probably only in the last two years, so it is fresh there. It's a totally different story, though there when you're with your club. 

“We're lucky in that sense that they have the experience of a big stage like Croke Park. As you said, we have quite an array of ages. I was going to say we don't want to rat out anyone's age, but I think there's about a 17-year age gap between the eldest and the youngest. I think that just shows it's experience and they're bringing the younger ones along with them.

“We have Erin (Walsh), who is 17 years of age. We said to her the other day, like, how do you feel? You're 17 years of age, you're here in an All-Ireland Club final. And she says, I feel like I robbed ye. But these younger ones don't realise that they're after giving us the opportunity to get up here. They're the ones that have driven this on, and we've been knocking at the door for a number of years, even for that Leinster final, and now to be at an All-Ireland stage is just incredible, and it's because of that talent that's coming up through,” Collier said.

Looking back on Camross’ four-year journey back to the top at county level, Collier believes this year’s breakthrough was built on attitude, honesty and togetherness.

“I think a little bit of both, but I think buy-in and attitude changed as well. Like every year, we sat down in Derrynaseera, and he asked us what we wanted from him and vice versa. It was all put out on the table. I think he forced a good attitude amongst the team. We finally found a good combination between the panel and the team. It continued to change everyone's strengths and weaknesses. We'd go out on different days and play different matches. Like that, we've had a long year of it, we're learning as we go, and things constantly change.

“But I don't know if you could say, do we do anything major differently? Or do we all just buy in this year and do what we have been doing at 100%? I know I've touched on this numerous times, and it is cheesy, but the bond that we found between us all this year, I think, makes a massive difference. The communication between the team then relies on that bond, and thereafter. Arien and Larry really encouraged that bond between us, which I think made a massive difference, but just getting the basics right and stay pluging away at them and just being ruthless with those,” Collier said.

She also pointed to the impact of inter-county players returning to the panel as All-Ireland champions as a turning point during the campaign.

“That's a massive drive. We won the league when we didn't have them, and that was a massive drive for us. Then they went on to Croke Park, won the Junior All-Ireland and came back to us. The combination of that coming together flourished then into the championship. We unfortunately didn't get much time together previously to that, just the way the year was playing out. They came back to us, I think, two weeks previous to the first round, maybe, of the championship or something similar to that; it seems like an age ago at this stage. They came in fit and ready to hit the ground running.

“They were always coming to training or trying to come to training as much as possible to see the tactics that we were running out. We already won the league without them girls, we had a seriously good team and a seriously good panel and the strength of the younger ones that came up at that stage, maybe that you aren't seeing at this stage, really got us past the line and got us up to that point. That makes a major difference to our year and to the achievements that we've had at this time with three cups sitting under us,” she said.

While many interviews might end with a rallying cry for support, Collier insists Camross need no such call; the backing is already assured.

“There are plenty of us, and we've seen every single one of them, whether it's been back here in the parish, whether it's been up at our matches, whether it's been Trim or it's been Derrynaseera. Like I said, the support has been incredible, and we can always hear them. Like that, their generosity across the board has just been unbelievable as well, and such a drive to this whole journey. We're always buzzing every time we go down to training and to be talking about the support that we see around the place.

“But I don't think we have to put out the request for anyone to travel to Croke Park by any means, if that's the question. I think everyone, if they can be there, they're going to be there by all means. When they put up the request for the bus, to see if they got numbers, I think it was a quick yes that it was going ahead.

“I have no doubt that they're going to travel there in their numbers, and they're going to bring every single person within that family. I mean, who wouldn't want to be going up to Croke Park with Camross wearing their club gear? It's something that we didn't think we'd see for a long time, and something that we're very proud to be bringing them out for,” Collier concluded.

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