By Sarah Gaughran
Galway Senior Camogie is one step away from a date with destiny as they look to book their place in the Glen Dimplex All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship Final on Saturday.
Their opposition is Cork, familiar rivals who they meet for the fourth time this year, having met twice in the league and now twice in the championship.
Galway have enjoyed the upper hand of Cork for the past three games, but they have always been forced to dig deep, and it is expected Galway’s ability to grind out a victory that has helped them get over the line, will once again be needed on Saturday.
Galway have also enjoyed the benefit of a three-week break from their last game, having received a bye straight into the semi-finals after topping their group. And Cathal Murray will also be delighted to have some players coming back into the team, such as Orlaith McGrath, who made her return to action as a substitute against Down, having suffered a cruciate ligament injury.
Murray has worked hard to blend the experienced players, such as Sarah Dervan and Aoife Donohue, with the younger players Shannon Corcoran and Niamh McPeake.
Galway’s ability to finish out a game has been one of their strengths, but they have relied on Carrie Dolan from placed balls in some of their matches, and will be hoping to get some more scores from play to help them over the line.
Cork, on the other hand, will be looking to get one over on Galway having lost to them three times already this year. They also have some experience coming back into their squad with players such as Orla Cronin, Laura Hayes and Aisling Thompson all making appearances off the bench in their victory over Kilkenny in the All-Ireland quarter final.
Cork looked very threatening up front against Kilkenny, and their ability to run at teams can cause problems for the opposition's defence which is something Galway will need to deal with from the outset.
Four points in the league final has been the biggest winning margin for Galway against Cork this year to date, which really shows there is nothing between these sides.
Throw in for the game is at 5.30pm in UPMC Nowlan Park on Saturday (July 22 ).
