Friends of Ann McConnell can't remember how long it is since they first heard her talk about taking a break from the coalface of camogie administration. But each year that the long-serving county treasurer agrees to continue to be part of Cavan camogie's inner circle, her co-workers in the county board breathe a huge sigh of relief. "You couldn't beat her," one colleague testified. The self-same colleague can't remember exactly when Ann first joined Cavan camogie board's frontline. It's well known though that Ann is currently the longest serving member of the executive of Cavan county camogie board. So many years, not so many tears and mostly enjoyable times for Ann. "Sometimes you think to yourself that this will be my last year and then when the AGM comes around again, you hang in there because you think you might feel bad about throwing it in and that you'd be letting people down," Ann concedes. A bit like going against your nature? "Yeh, I suppose so. Camogie must be in my blood or something because at the end of the day, I'd hate to give it up because I know I'd miss it," she replies. And yet, like many another long-serving officer of any committee, of any organisation or sport, Ann confesses that her frustration has sometimes threatened to get the better of her and she'd love if camogie officialdom in Cavan was infused by some new blood. Ann regrets the fact that so few players who retire from the game decide to "put something back into the game." She can understand why they don't but she still regrets that fact. "People are so busy, running here, there and yonder with family, work and all sorts of commitments and I can understand that. "But it's getting more and more difficult to find people who are willing and able to help out on the administration front." Ann isn't big into the business of laments. The knashing of teeth isn't her game either. But she's realistic and acknowledges that the game she loves has enjoyed better times in county Cavan. The days when the game of camogie was the only show in town for ladies has long since past. That era went out at the same time boys' short trousers got short shrift. "Ladies football has eaten into our membership a good bit but we're still holding our own. "There's a lot of work going being done in the county with regard to promoting and developing camogie at underage level and we're hopeful a fair bit of talent will result from that work in the next few years," Ann says with hope in her heart. The Cavan town native but long-time Castletara club member is mindful of all the options girls have nowadays when it comes to picking and choosing which sports they wish to play. She expresses the view though that if camogie can be offered to them at a young age, then Cavan's young lassies will be captivated by the Gaelic game and continue to play it and promote it for years afterwards. Ann reckons the help of local GAA clubs is pretty vital in that respect and she looks forward to a continuation of the fruitful and mutually beneficial relationship camogie in Cavan has had with the county's GAA clubs. With regard to the individual camogie clubs in Cavan, Ann genuinely looks forward to the day when the likes of Castletara will be up against several equally strong clubs in the race for the top honours each year. Just as nobody outside of the county town would wish to see Cavan Gaels lord it for years and years on the football front, Ann says ongoing dominance of the camogie scene by Castletara wouldn't be good for the small ball game in Cavan. "Castletara have been the dominant club in the county for the last fifteen years and regardless of what club we're talking about, I don't think such a long spell on top is good for the game overall. Ideally you'd have a few clubs getting among the cups each year rather than one side picking up nearly all the cups nearly every year. "Castletara have worked hard at developing talent over the years and sometimes the club has been lucky that a lot of very good players have come onto the scene at the same time. "Most of what the club has achieved over the last forty years has been down to hard work and not just luck and it's up to other clubs to take a leaf out of their book." Ann is sorry to report that quite a number of senior camogie clubs have gone by the wayside since she and her team-mates in Castletara were doing their damnedest to win just one senior title never mind a whole lorry load. Clubs like Cootehill, Cornafean, Kill and Templeport - among others - have fallen by the wayside and, worryingly, haven't been replaced by newer clubs. "When I started out on the county board executive back at the end of the 'eighties, there were twenty-five clubs in the county but unfortunately there's only about ten now which is very sad. "It's a big pity in particular that there's no camogie club in Cavan town and hasn't been for the last five years or so. "I think it's very important that we have camogie in the county town but there doesn't seem to be enough people interested in Cavan to get things up and running. "Hopefully things will change there soon. "Years ago the competitions were much more competitive." But what of the standard of play these days? "I think the skill levels are higher nowadays because of the coaching the players get and there's a lot more commitment needed from the players too," Ann contends. Still, the former top-notch Castletara 'keeper reckons that the harvest isn't as rich these days as it was, say, twenty years ago. Ladies football, basketball etc are all competing for the hearts and minds of young girls. However Ann is upbeat about the future of the game in Cavan. "I've no fear that the game will survive in the county even though it's been taking a knock in recent years. "There are still enough people interested in promoting the game and once the opportunity to play camogie is given the children, they'll play it." Just three years shy of celebrating twenty years in the county board treasurer's position, Ann is very much a sleeves-rolled-up administrator and is content to get on with the job in hand rather than being judgemental, critical or overly-analytical about affairs in the game right now. As with the case of practically every volunteer movement, finance is a major issue for the camogie association and, therein, lies the nub of the matter as far as Ann is concerned. "Our main income would come from gates at championship time but it's getting harder and harder to raise money. "I suppose every club or county board would tell you the same. "We just have to keep trying to do our best to raise the income and the profile of the game." One of four girls born and reared into a camogie-friendly environment (Dympna, Frances and Brenda are her sisters), Ann has great memories from her own playing days. Like many another, Ann was sorry to have to hang up her boots and hurl but the sight of five senior championship medals on her mantlepiece has been a source of great comfort and joy. Is there any particular highlight that she can fasten onto though? "We won a three-in-a-row but the first of those championship wins was the highlight by far," Ann explains. "I suppose winning your first championship medal is the highlight for most players and I'm no different. "We won the intermediate title in 1988 and our first senior then the following year and it was terrific. "That group of players really stood out in my time playing with Castletara and were probably the best squad of players I ever played with," the former Castletara number one enthuses. Any truth in the rumour that you have to be mad to be a goalkeeper in camogie, as is reported to be the case in hurling parlance as well? "Just a bit," Ann laughs. And yet for all her years in between the sticks, the one-time ace ball-stopper and now chief administrator says she suffered very few injuries other than a fractured thumb and a "few bumps and bruises." It's now something approaching six seasons since Ann batted a sliotar in anger and she confesses that she's still suffering a bit of withdrawal symptoms, especially when the big matches come around and Castletara are on the cusp of the winners' enclosure, yet again. "I do miss it. I'd be telling a lie if I said otherwise but you can't play forever," Ann confirms. And just in case there are some young girls considering hanging up their boots way before their due time, Ann proffers the advise that they should take twice about doing so. "There's nothing to beat being a player and I know a few girls who were sorry that they gave it up too early and then by the time they got around to thinking about getting fit again, there wasn't any camogie there for them or they were a bit too old. Administration is alright and being a manager or a selector isn't too bad, but your best days are when you're a player." Ensconced in Ballyhaise for the last seventeen years, Ann is looking forward to seeing some eager competition for her own club in 2006. The emergence of a few new clubs would be just dandy but a more competitive league and championship at all levels would be refreshing all the same. She refutes the suggestion that camogie in Cavan has become somewhat stagnant in recent years or that a question mark hangs over the prosperity of the game. "We'll continue to move forward and we'll stand on our own two feet like we've always done," Ann concludes with the sort of defiance that marked her time as arguably the number one camogie goalkeeper in Cavan for many years. Tweet

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