That’s how you finish. That’s how you write your name down in history.
22 years were buried emphatically on Sunday. The girls of Kilkenny dug a giant hole and Shelly Farrell slammed all their misery and pain down it with pure, ruthless conviction.
The Cats made it a double on Sunday, clinching both the intermediate and senior titles of the Liberty Insurance All-Ireland Camogie Championship, and it was a thing of real beauty.
Since 1994, the weight of not making it back to the top hung over the camógs of Kilkenny but, with an inspiring 1-13 to 1-9 victory over Cork at Croke Park, the Rebels were denied three-in-a-row and black and amber announced themselves as lynchpins of Ireland once again.
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16 🏆#SupportHerSport— GAA JOE (@GAA__JOE) September 11, 2016
In what was a stunning 60-minute display of bite, tenacity, and heart, there were moments, huge moments, that defined this cracking decider.
Ann Dalton’s incredible reflex save from Aoife Murray’s penalty was one.
Gemma O’Connor’s red card was another. The stifling job the entire Kilkenny rearguard did in limiting Briege Corkery was crucial.
But then you have Shelly Farrell. Shelly bloody Farrell.
In a swashbuckling counterattack that cut through the Cork backline like they weren’t even there, the Cats stormed from back to front in an instant and, when Jonjo Farrell’s sister got her hand on the sliotar, it was good night Irene.
With one swivel and one destructive connection off the corner forward’s stick, the ball was rattling in off the stanchion, even beyond the postage stamp.
Shelly Farrell finds the back of the net to give Kilkenny a 7 point lead against Cork in the Camogie final. https://t.co/vB748k5Rbq
— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) September 11, 2016
And with that, Kilkenny powered on to success and began writing their own history.
Kilkenny captain Michelle Quilty lifts the O'Duffy Cup for Kilkenny after winning the Camogie All-Ireland. https://t.co/VuADOjQKtR
— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) September 11, 2016
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