We present an extract from Grit and Glory: A Decade at the Club, the new book by Aidan and Fergal Lenehan.
This is a powerful story of Dublin's only rural hurling and camogie club, Wild Geese GAA — a gritty, heartfelt journey through community, identity, and the quiet beauty of the game. Amateur sport is populated by everyday heroes, who give up their free time in the service of community. A raw, uplifting celebration of friendship, this book captures the heart of the GAA and the magic that happens when dreams take root in unlikely places.
The Perfect Storm
The camogie final was set for 3 pm on Sunday 20 October. A meteorological storm, Storm Ashley, was also scheduled for the weekend and both events converged at the same time.
The Camogie team had arranged to meet at Miriam's coffee dock in Oldtown village before the game. From there, a coach will take them to the final. The venue is only thirty minutes away, but they wanted to travel together. Laura Sammon is the first there, by the time her cappuccino is ready, most of the crew have arrived. Laura only started to play at the age of 16 when the team was formed. While she’s new to the sport, she had lived with the trapping of it for years. Her brother Dans hurls thrown inside the front door, always. Her youth was filled with hurling tales at the dinner table from her dad, Dave, Dan and baby sister Emma who would accompany them to all Dan’s games, no matter what. She knew they were in the coal face of a unique struggle. So, when she got the chance to play, she did not hesitate. Today, she’s in a spritely form while most are subdued. She’s a substitute, so maybe that’s why she’s not feeling even the slightest bit nervous. Substitute or not, Laura cannot hid her excitement. She’s feels part of the team. In the corner of her eye she spots Blathnaid and Siofra running towards her, with their hurls and gear bags in their hands.
'I thought we were going to be late, the priests sermon went on forever’ says a winded Blathnaid. Laura smiles and relies ‘hey with god on our side, what could go wrong’. ‘He wished us luck anyway’, replies Blathnaid. ‘Who, the priest or God? ‘Laura says in jest.
and Fergal Lenehan launch Grit and Glory
It’s a downpour now and the wind is ferociously strong. They are in the eye of Storm Ashley. The coach arrives just in time. The team Captain Amy, forever the teacher, calls out that they board in an orderly fashion. She teaches in Kilcoskan primary school. A four-teacher rural Primary school, two kilometres from the Meath border and within sight of the infamous Thorton Hall. Twenty years ago, the Government bought the house and farm for €29 million. They planned to build a ‘Super Prison’ but prisons do not need planning permission. Somehow the government managed to pay development land price per acre instead of agricultural price.
When all are lined up, Amy is first to board, dripping wet, she receives instant sanctuary from the elements. Her puts her headphones are on, the music is blaring. She sits. Alannan Newman joins her. Also, with headphones on. The manner people deal with their nerves is quite distinct but, in many ways, similar. Laura is last to board. Her long black hair, once sleek and orderly, now flows in a tangled cascade. Each strand a testament to the tempestuous weather. Its whipped around and clinging to her damp face. Despite the dishevelled and frizzy appearance, her smile highlights the resilience of her spirit amidst the storm. It’s not a good hair day but she does not care. She sits in front of Amy and Alannah. Then turns and looks around, practically everyone has their headphones on. She’s giddy and wants to talk. She gestures to Amy. ‘What are you listening to ‘she asks. ‘The teams play list on Spotify’ Amy replies. They chat for a bit and in no time, the Coach is on the M1. As big as it is, they can feel the impact of the gales hitting it.
By the time Alannah gets home, she realizes she had broken her ankle. She's not worried, the Camogie season is over, and she sits all day at work.
In near impossible conditions, both sides took to the field. This really was a day for the brave hearted. The gales crossing the pitch slightly aiding the Gaels from the area of Oldtown in the first half. Craobh Chiarán had lost the toss. The grass on the pitch was thick, with bare patches where rainwater had begun to accumulate. The wind was so severe that the plastic cones used for the warmup kept blowing away and had to be dispensed with. On a day like this, a hurling contest was always going to be an endurance test. Craobh Chiarán were favourites as they had beaten St. Mark’s comfortably in the other semi-final. When the sides had last played each other in the league in May, the Geese had been well beaten by 2-5 to 0-2.
Both sides settled fast, but the game began to resemble a rolling maul from a winter game of rugby rather than a camogie match. Chances were few. It remained scoreless after twenty minutes, until Maria Waters was fouled. Beibhin looks to take the free. She stands over the ball, looking confidently towards the goals. The free is inside the 45-metre line, close to the side line on the right-hand side of the pitch. It’s a tight angle. There’s a lot of movement in the square in anticipation of the incoming ball. She jab lifts the sliotar, then strikes with force. The travels all the way to the top left-hand corner of the net. The crowd roar – partly from shock and partly in celebration. On the line Dara punches John with delight, exclaiming: "Oh my god, she’s done it again. It’s not a hurl she has but a magic wand." Five minutes later corner-forward Molly Carton gets the ball into her hand. She has space, it is a real opportunity, and for a split second the DCU Sports therapy student looks for passing options. There are none, she is not renowned for scoring. With no other options, she strikes the ball. It’s goes over the bar. The look of relief on her face, now smiling, says it all. These are the only scores of the first-half. The home side have done well keeping us to two scores only, and now it’s their turn to play with the wind.
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Craobh Chiarán restart well, with a long-range point. The half develops into a full siege on the Wild Geese goals. Craobh Chiarán’s initial score indicates they will shoot long to get back into the game – but a few bad wides, sees them instead do the exact opposite. Not content at shooting from afar, they begin looking to get closer and closer to the goalposts in order to shoot safely and unhindered. Their lack of patience is a gift for the patient Geese, whose forwards have now joined the line of defence. It is a very tight game, with a lot of near misses. The Geese line is almost broken when a low grass cutting effort takes a defection. The ball moves rapidly towards the Geese net, it bounces on the uneven turf and allows Maebh Browne to gather it in the nick of time. The Wild Geese goalkeeper is working overtime and has been the busiest player on the pitch. Only twice in this half has the ball crossed into the Craobh Chiarán’s half of the pitch. Craobh Chiarán score another point but that’s all. It’s game over. There have been four scores in the whole match, which was definitely not a classic and was dominated by the storm. Alannah in her rush to embrace Paulie injures her ankle, but she keeps going anyway. The team feels a deep sense of gratitude to him for he has done for them from the very beginning. Amy raises the cup. A county hurling championship title was finally on its way to Oldtown, and it was the female hurlers from the camogie who had delivered first. They adjourn to Oldtown house, after the team end up in Beibhin’s house. It is well into the small hours of the morning, by the time Laura gets home, she has turned 22. By the time Alannah gets home, she realizes she had broken her ankle. She’s not worried, the Camogie season is over, and she sits all day at work.
Grit and Glory: A Decade at the Club is published by Orpen Press
