CHRISTINE O’Neill isn’t surprised by the rise of Courcey Rovers’ All-Ireland winning heroes, Saoirse McCarthy and Fiona Keating.
The deadly duo played starring roles as Cork reclaimed the O’Duffy Cup last month, demolishing Waterford in the All-Ireland senior camogie final to spark huge celebrations around the county, including Courceys’ territory.
‘They have put Courcey Rovers on the map,’ says Christine O’Neill who was part of the history-marking 2020 county-winning Courceys senior camogie team that also included Fiona and Saoirse.
‘We are only two small villages (Ballinspittle and Ballinadee), but when they are interviewed by any outlet, they are so proud of where they come from. It gives the people here more identity.’
This duo’s success can be traced right back to where they come from. Both went to Ballinspittle National School. Both hurl with Courceys. They both attend MTU Cork. And they travel to county training together, too.
‘Their friendship has really blossomed in the last three years. They are stalwarts for the club and even after we won the county, it solidified their friendship even more because they’re so young and two absolute class acts.
‘You actually don’t see one without the other at the moment,’ O’Neill says.
After Cork’s 5-13 to 0-9 win against Waterford in Croke Park, Saoirse and Fiona celebrated together on the pitch; that reminded O’Neill of two other Courceys stalwarts.
‘Watching them climb the steps of the Hogan Stand together was just so heartwarming. It was something that Sara Hayes and Rachel Moloney would have done a lot of when winning All-Irelands. It was class to see the girls embracing after the match,’ O’Neill explains.
In terms of sporting traits, both have followed similar paths, but their characters can be quite different however.
‘Saoirse would be quite hyper and maybe Fiona not so much. Both of them are great fun, extremely hard workers and have turned into super leaders over the last couple of years,’ O’Neill says.
‘Fiona is a right chatterbox. The year we won the county with Courceys, herself and Lorraine Collins had to get separated at every single training session because they’d just keep talking!
‘Fiona is an undercover messer almost whereas with Saoirse you would know she is in the thick of it,’ O’Neill laughs.
Courcey Rovers' Saoirse McCarthy in action for her club.Their talent is undeniable. Saoirse won a Camogie All-Star last season and looks like she will be in the conversation again after her heroics this season. O’Neill is a big fan.
‘I have said it for so many years: Saoirse McCarthy is the best player I’ve played with or against,’ O’Neill says.
‘She is a formidable athlete. Her workrate. Her agility. Her ability to read the game is the main thing.
‘She has orchestrated things at club level as well as county level. Before, she wouldn’t have been as vocal as a leader but now she has really found her voice.’
Fiona, who was winning her first senior All-Ireland last month, has developed into a top-class player too, and a key cog in the Cork attack. Look at the goal she scored in the All-Ireland final as evidence.
‘When we won the county seniot final against Inniscarra in 2020, Linda Collins scored 1-5. For any person to score that in a county final, you would say she is an automatic player-of-the-match but Fiona Keating came out and scored 3-2 on the same day. What a woman,’ O’Neill points out.
‘Both of them are unbelievable on the big days. I went to both of their All-Ireland minor finals in the last couple of years and both got player-of-the-match.’
Not only are the two great players and standard bearers but they are a key part of the Ballinspittle and Ballinadee communities.
‘What’s brilliant for our underage is that they get to see their heroes everyday. Saoirse did a month of teaching practice with me, too. They are both really great with kids and just before the summer, Saoirse came into our secondary school and gave a talk to our school camogie team,’ O’Neill said.
‘They are very much in contact with our own club and surrounding clubs and schools, which is great.
‘They have turned into such leaders within the club but there is a mutual respect.’
O’Neill hasn’t just played with Saoirse and Fiona, she has coached them as well, giving her a unique insight into the Courcey stars.
‘I trained them at U16 at one stage and you could see that they have the ability to change a game so quickly. They would be happy to help out defensively and run to the other side of the field to get the score that’s needed,’ she says, and that hard work is still key to their rise now.
Courcey has a tradition of producing quality players, and in Saoirse McCarthy and Fiona Keating, they have unearthed two genuine stars who are keeping the club on the map.
