Sport

Elaine Dowds to head new Antrim camogie management team

Elaine Dowds will head Antrim camogie's new management team  
Elaine Dowds will head Antrim camogie's new management team   Elaine Dowds will head Antrim camogie's new management team  

ANTRIM camogie yesterday unveiled their new management team for 2022.

Paul McKillen and Jim McKernan stepped down after the Saffrons collected the All-Ireland Intermediate title in September. Elaine Dowds, the third member of that successful management team, indicated at the time that she was keen to remain and she now heads a new management teams that will look after two adult teams; the senior side will now play in the O’Duffy Cup for the first time since the early 1980s, while a reserve team will compete at Junior level in 2022.

Former Dunloy and Antrim goalkeeper Shane Elliott, Eoghan Rua’s Joe Passmore and Cushendall’s Brian Kearney will join Dowds and the strength and conditioning team that was in place for 2021.

Elliott has been involved with a number of successive hurling club teams with his native Dunloy and for the past couple of seasons has taken Derry club side Kevin Lynch’s.

Passmore was at the helm more than a decade ago when his local club Eoghan Rua Coleraine collected back-to-back All-Ireland Intermediate club titles and then claimed an Ulster senior club title. More recently the Omagh native has been involved with a number of club hurling sides across Derry and Antrim as well as with Antrim minor hurlers.

Brian Kearney, the fourth member of the management, has been in charge of Cushendall seniors who have become competitive in Division One in recent years.

Elaine Dowds, as well as being part of the 2021 All-Ireland winning management, has also overseen success at provincial level for school teams in Cross & Passion Ballycastle where she is a science teacher.

She becomes one of the few women in charge of inter-county camogie teams at the top level, with Down’s Martina Rooney the last woman to manage a team to an Ulster senior title.

On the Sunday before Christmas Dowds oversaw a well-attended county trial at Dunsilly and there will be a second trial this coming Sunday after which panels for both the senior and junior inter-county teams will be announced with the opening games in the Littlewoods Ireland National leagues pencilled in for early February.

It is expected that management teams for Antrim under-age squads will be announced within the next ten days.

Meanwhile Armagh later this week are also expected to announce a new senior team manager in succession to Mattie Lennon who stepped down after the side’s defeat in the All-Ireland Junior final in September.

The 2020 provincial and All-Ireland club championships have just been completed and now the dates for the continuation of the 2021 competitions have just been released.

The Ulster senior club final is yet again a shoot-out between Slaughtneil and Loughgiel, the seventh successive final between the pair with the Antrim champions winners away back in 2015 and Slaughtneil ruling the roost since.

They will clash on Saturday 15th January with the All-Ireland semi-finals five weeks later and the national senior club final in Croke Park on the weekend of 5th/6th March.

Those are also the dates for the All-Ireland semi-finals and final of the Intermediate club championship, but the Ulster club championship final will take place at the later date of Saturday 29th January.

Eglish wrestled the title away from Clonduff last month to write their name on the trophy for the fourth time. They will be face new Down champions Portaferry in the Ulster final at the end of January.

Portaferry beat Clonduff on their way to a first ever Down title back in November with the brilliant Niamh Mallon capping a fine year for herself by scoring everything for the Ports in the final against Liatroim Fontenoys.

At Junior level, Derry champions Eoghan Rua Coleraine face new Cavan champions Lacken in the first round on January 23rd. Eoghan Rua were the last Ulster senior champions before the Loughgiel v Slaugthneil rivalry began.

The winners of that game face Mayobridge while the other semi-final will pit Loughgiel’s second team against back-to-back champions 2018-19 Ballymacnab. The semi-finals are scheduled for 30th January with the final a week later. The All-Ireland Junior semi-finals will take place on the weekend of 19th /20th February and the final a fortnight later.

The All-Ireland Junior B final on Sunday past delivered a national title for Naomh Treasa from Dungannon. Tyrone representatives in the 2021 version next month in Ulster will be Derrylaughan who will face Cullyhanna on Sunday 16th January.

The other semi-final on the same day sees 2018 champions Clontibret up against Castletara from Cavan with the Ulster final the following weekend and the All-Ireland semi-finals and final following the same dates as the Junior A programme.

Senior club championship

Saturday 15th January

Ulster Senior club final: Slaughtneil v Loughgiel

19th / 20th February

All-Ireland Senior club semi-finals

5th /6th March

All-Ireland Senior club final

Intermediate club championship

Saturday 29th January

Ulster Intermediate club final 2021 : Portaferry v Eglish

19th / 20th February

All-Ireland Intermediate club semi-finals

5th /6th March

All-Ireland Intermediate club final

Junior club championship

Sunday 23rd January

Ulster Junior quarter-final: Eoghan Rua v Lacken

Sunday 30th January

Ulster Junior semi-finals 2021

Mayobridge v 1

Ballymacnab v Loughgiel

Sunday 6th February

Ulster Junior final

19th / 20th February

All-Ireland Junior club semi-finals

5th /6th March

All-Ireland Junior club final

Junior B club championship

Sunday 16th January

Ulster Junior B semi-finals 2021

Clontibret v Castletara

Derrylaughan v Cullyhanna

Saturday 22nd January

Ulster Junior B final

19th / 20th February

All-Ireland Junior club semi-finals

5th /6th March

All-Ireland Junior club final