Gaughan and Cuddy eye championship glory for Camross

CAMROSS will contest the 41st Laois Senior Hurling Championship final in the club’s illustrious history when they face The Harps in Sunday’s decider at Laois Hire O’Moore Park.

For a parish synonymous with hurling success, county final appearances are nothing new, but excitement remains as strong as ever. Following their semi-final victory over Rosenallis, anticipation has been steadily building as Camross prepare for another opportunity to bring the Bob O’Keeffe Cup back home.

Among those eagerly awaiting the occasion is Eoin Gaughan. Fresh from helping Laois lift the Joe McDonagh Cup earlier this year, he says the build-up to a county final with your club remains one of the greatest experiences in the game.

“We were only saying it there at the weekend after the game; there’s no better feeling, really, than the two-week build-up to a final. Everyone in the parish is in good spirits, great craic. You know you’ve a shot at a county title, more or less. No complaints at all on our side,” said Gaughan.

Camross booked their place in the final by overcoming Rosenallis in a hard-fought semi-final. While pleased to advance, Gaughan was quick to acknowledge the progress their opponents have made in recent seasons.

“They’ve been there or thereabouts for the last couple of years now. They’ve got a good young group of lads, in fairness. I think we’ve played them twice in the Championship in the last six or seven years, and they’ve beaten us twice, so it’s the first time we’ve beaten them in a while.

“It was nice to get over line; we knew what we were going to get with them. They’re physical, they’re quick, they’re young and they’re fit. So, yeah, it was a good one to get over, all right.”

While Gaughan has been a key performer throughout the campaign, Cathal Cuddy has led the side from the front after being appointed captain before the season began.

The honour came as something of a surprise to Cuddy, but he is keen to stress that the strength of Camross lies in the collective effort of the group rather than any individual role.

“It was a bit of a shock at the start of the year when I was told I was captain, but look, it’s only the lad that goes up to collect the silverware. Please God, we get it now, but there’s no difference between him and me or anyone like that,” said Cuddy.

Camross have already captured league honours this season but, like every senior club in the county, the championship was always viewed as the main objective.

“The league, it’s there to be won too. The main thing is the Championship. We have a chance to win it now anyway, and The Harps are a decent team, so it’ll definitely be a big battle,” he said.

The Harps arrive in the final on the back of a remarkable campaign and a dramatic semi-final victory over Clough-Ballacolla. Although Camross defeated them earlier in the championship by 2-31 to 5-16, Cuddy expects a very different challenge this weekend.

“Too many scores for them. It’ll be a different game again. I know we drew with them in the first round of the league; that was a really good match as well.

“They’re getting closer and closer every year. They’re coming; they have young lads there that have all won 20s and minors. They’re coming and coming long enough now, so they’ve earned every right to be in it.”

Despite the significance of the occasion, Cuddy intends to take a calm approach during the final week.

“It’ll be the same as always, I’m going to take it a day at a time. I’m not going to get too excited. I won’t be writing anything. Please God, I get up there now, but I’ll talk like I’m talking now, just pure muck,” he joked.

For Gaughan, the season has already delivered one of the highlights of his career through Laois’s Joe McDonagh Cup success. Yet he admits there was always a strong pull to return to club action and continue the journey with teammates he has played alongside for years.

“It was a brilliant year for Laois. That was something we were trying to get for the last few years, but you always look forward to coming back to the club and the lads you’ve grown up with.

“They’re slogging from, whatever it is, December, January; we’re after getting a nice easier patch coming into the Championship and that. It was great coming back to the lads. They were probably nearly as fit as we were by the time we came back. It was great getting back involved.”

Camross have also benefited from a fresh voice in the dugout this season, with former player Tomas ‘Mossy’ Burke taking over as manager.

Gaughan believes Burke’s familiarity with the squad has helped make the transition seamless.

“It’s a fresh face, fresh management and all that. Mossy’s hurled with a lot of us in his career as well. He’s not finished too long; I’d say he’s not finished at all, because he ended up hurling Junior C this year as well.

“He knows us all; we know him fairly well. He brought in a good management team with him. It’s going well so far. We’ve won a league this year, and hopefully we can bring home the championship as well, please God.”

One of the additions to that management team is coach Jordan Donovan, whose input has also been widely welcomed by the players.

“Jordan has fresh ideas. He has knowledge of the strength and conditioning part of the game, and the fitness part of the game, but he has good knowledge of hurling as well.

“Similar to Mossy, just new management, fresh face and fresh ideas. It’s kind of needed to keep everyone on their toes. They’ve all brought great ideas to the team this year anyway.”

Now Camross stand on the verge of adding a 28th senior championship title to their long and proud history. League honours have already been secured. One final obstacle remains.

The Harps will arrive intent on writing their own fairy tale, but Camross possess the experience, tradition and quality that have carried them to 40 previous county finals.

If they can produce one more big performance, Sunday could see another chapter of success added to the remarkable story of Camross hurling.