Fr. Murphy's through to Camogie final

Fr. Murphy’s go into this years Senior Championship Final having lost out on a place in the final last year for the first time in five years. They were beaten last year in the semi final by eventual winners Tara.

Having gotten off to a sluggish start this season, the girls in purple and gold started to find form towards the end of the group stages of the championship, registering wins over Bros. Pearse and Croydon to finish second in the group.

Fr. Murphy’s were winners of the Senior Championship in 2007 and 2008, and were also history makers in 2008. They were the first team from Britain to win at championship level in Ireland, beating Donard Glen of Wicklow comprehensively in the Leinster Quarter-final, before losing out to Shinrone of Offaly in the semi-final.

There are quite a few familiar names in the Fr. Murphy’s squad for the final, with Melanie Hogan, Brenda Kerr, Eimear O’Higgins and Bronagh McLernon having been good servants to Fr. Murphy’s Camogie for many years. As is always the case in London, new players have come into the squad this year, which has meant the girls in purple and gold have gone from strength to strength.

Tara have strong players all over the field, with many representatives on the county team, and their resilience will be difficult to break down.

Fr. Murphy’s beat Croydon in a tough semi-final. when they were far from their best. The week previous, the Murphy’s had beaten Croydon comprehensively but failed to find that form again on semi-final day. It was a very close encounter, and the girls in purple and gold wasted a lot of possession, but in the end they did enough to reach their fifth final in six years.

Tara have yet to really be tested this year, having won all their games so far very comfortably, but Fr. Murphy’s hope to hit form on the 3^rd July and wrestle the title back.