‘There’s not a prouder set of managers in Croke Park’- Laois Camogie's Pat Collier and Robert Jones

Most post-match interviews after an All-Ireland final loss are filled with disappointment and despair, and while that might have been the case for Laois Camogie managers Robert Jones and Pat Collier, the overwhelming emotion was happiness and pride despite being beaten by 14 points by Antrim in Croke Park.

Speaking under the Cusack Stand, the pair gave Antrim full credit for their win and said there were no complaints from their side about the result.

“At 36 minutes, there were two points in it. But to be fair, for us to be two points from Antrim at 36 minutes, Antrim should have been winning by 10. I take my hats off to Antrim, they were brilliant. You see the senior status in them, like. I'd nearly make a prediction that Antrim would be in the senior semi-finals next year. They're a very classy outfit, great use of the ball. We haven't had pace in our team as we've seen today. Still, there's not a prouder set of managers in Croke Park than we are today. They've brought us on some journey for the three years, and every one of them will always have a special place in my heart. They’re some bunch; I'm happy enough,” Collier said.

This was somewhat bonus territory for Laois, as they had only won the Premier Junior crown in 2025 and not much would have been expected of them in the All-Ireland Championship. Their main goal from day one was to get their hands on the Leinster Championship, which they did after two years of losing the final.

“We’re leaving here happy enough. Winning Leinster was one of our main goals this year after losing two in a row and they've done that, to be fair to them. Just on today's performance, we were beaten by a better team and the Division 1 status showed with Antrim. They're a very impressive team, very pacey, their use of the ball was excellent. We just couldn't stick with that pace. But look, I have to give huge credit to our girls, the work rate, they never gave in. They worked till the very end, and we're very proud of them,” Jones said.

Collier knew that Laois would have to produce a near-perfect performance if they were to upset the odds, but that would have also required Antrim to have an off day, which they didn’t as they finished with 1-22 on the scoreboard. He gave huge credit to his panel for getting to where they did.

“Look it Antrim, me and Rob felt in the first 10 minutes we should have been down 2-4 to score. Then Gráinne got through, and we should have stitched one, but look, we have to be realistic; we were always playing catch-up. To go in down by just four points at half-time was an absolute blessing and then to come out and get it back to two. We’ve said it the whole time, you need a really strong panel to compete with the likes of Antrim now. If you look at the rest of Intermediate, they're all fairly even; Wexford are back down and Antrim beat Wexford by 15 points this year in the league. As I say, we're happy. We had a few players with niggles of injuries, and maybe three or four that didn't train for the last three weeks. Those three girls might have shown a little bit today too. You need everybody; we do in Laois because we have only eight clubs. No excuses. Antrim, they're actually a privilege to watch,” Collier said.

Jones reflected on the three years he and Collier have been in charge and spoke of the journey the side has gone on. This was their third successive All-Ireland final, along with having competed in three Leinster finals and two league finals. They won one of each: the league in 2024, the All-Ireland Premier Junior in 2025 and the Leinster Championship in 2026.

“I was just going to say, they’re after taking myself and Pat on a serious journey, three years now since we took over, and Laois probably wasn't in the best place. Bringing us to three All-Ireland finals in a row, it's something a county might never do, it’s unreal. Camross winning last year as well. It just proves that they are good enough. There is more talent in Laois that can come in next year. I just urge all the girls that are on that panel today, and girls that are sitting at home, that there's definitely a possibility to push on from this,” Jones added.

Collier said questions of whether they will stay or not are for another day, and that they are just immensely proud to manage this Laois Camogie team.

“Rob and I have put an awful lot into this, but that's not saying. This is about a special group of girls and our chairman, and we'll have a sit-down with them when the time comes in a few months. For us, to come back in again, maybe it's time for somebody different to maybe move it another gear. Rob and I haven't even discussed that, and we will with our chairman, Paddy, and the girls in time to come. We're just privileged to be at the helm,” Collier concluded.