Markievicz camogs look to cap a dream debut year in county final

One of Donegal’s youngest sports clubs, Markievicz Camogie Club, has reached the county final in its first year of competition.

The Markievicz club was founded in March 2020 but, due to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, its participation was delayed.

The Finn Valley-based club meet Burt in the Donegal senior camogie final on Saturday at the Donegal GAA Training Centre (throw-in 2pm).

“There is a great buzz about this week,” Markievicz senior manager Paul Campbell told Donegal Live.

“We know Burt will be the hot favourites, but it’s great for our girls to be in this.

“A lot of these girls have only started their first sport.

“There is a great buzz. We had 15v15 in Convoy for training on Tuesday night. We had 35 out training and that’s the best training you’ll get being competitive like that.”

Campbell is a former Donegal senior hurling championship winner with Setanta. Don Browne, a former Sean MacCumhaills hurling manager, is among the selectors with Pascal Cullen and Gerard O’Dwyer also in tow.

Campbell said: “We wanted it to be a team for all of the Finn Valley. We pushed that at the start and we have girls from Glenfin to Lifford and right over into Drumoghill. We have all of the area in with us.

“It’s great for the Finn Valley to have another team and another sport to get girls into. We wanted to get the identity of a Finn Valley hurling team.

“We have won two trophies, at under-13 and minor, it would be unreal to add a senior title to that.”

The likes of Laura Browne, Laura McGuinness and Martina Rushe have been among the stand-outs in the Markievicz colours so far with Aoife Campbell, Amy Campbell and Faragh Campbell all key performers.

Markievicz overcame Carndonagh in their semi-final and will look to cap off a dream debut year in Saturday’s final.

One big positive for Campbell has been the showings of those who only took up the sport this year.

“The likes of Jessica Martin and Emma Martin are only started, but they’re brilliant,” he said. “We have an awful lot of good players here. This just needed someone to give it a push and we have a great group of people working away in the background too, Kevin and Amy Campbell and Martina Cullen for example.

“Between underage and seniors, the first night we came back after Covid-19 we had 72 girls in training. It’s been a great social avenue for the girls too as well as getting them active again.”

Markievicz squad: Charlene Anderson, Shauna Bradley,  Laura Browne, Debroah Callaghan, Tamara Callaghan, Amy Campbell, Aoife Campbell, Clare Campbell, Faragh Campbell, Caitlin Campbell, Eloise Carlin, Ciara Coulter, Anita Coyle, Genevieve Creane, Alissah Cullen, Lee-Anne Dolan, Sinead Flood, Megan Flynn, Ciara Gallagher, Olivia Gillespie, Staice Gilmore, Susan Gleeson, Aimee Lafferty, Aoife Marley, Emma Martin, Jessica Martin, Shannon McBride, Jessica McBride, Margaret McConnell, Lorraine McCreary, Jodie McGhee, Kathleen McGinty, Rachel McGowan, Laura McGuinness, Michelle McGuire, Karina McMenamin, Caoimhe Moss, Eimear Neill, Meabh Neill, Mary O’Neill, Niamh Onofrei, Vicky Pearson, Martina Rushe, Allannah Sweeney, Eadaoin Whyte