Howard – we are where we want to be

By Joe Scully

Roisin Howard feels one key aspect for the Tipperary senior camogie side this year ahead of Saturday's semi-final against Galway is the fact that there is such strength in depth through the panel.

On different days, different players have stepped up to the plate when needed, particularly in their quarter-final victory over Kilkenny, when it looked, at times, like the game might have been slipping away from the Premier Ladies.

“That has been so important, especially from an opposition point-of-view,” she says.

“They are going to target certain players, and try to keep them out of the game, so it’s really important that you have other players who will step up.

“Take the last day for example; we had the likes of Jean Kelly coming on and making a massive difference, and then you had Eimear Heffernan scoring a point over her shoulder in Croke Park, and then obviously Laura Leenane with a massive penalty save.

“They were three massives in the game from players maybe the opposition weren’t expecting, but from playing with them week in and week out, I expect nothing less from them.”

Cahir native Howard also felt Tipperary have improved as the year has gone on, after a mixed start to the year in the league, where they missed out on a final berth after losing their final two games, and then lost in a Munster semi-final to Waterford, before suffering a heavy defeat at the hands of Cork in their opening round of the All-Ireland series.

“We started off the year and there were plenty of injuries, so there were plenty of girls getting opportunities, and it’s good to get experience for the girls,” she added.

“You can look at these games as a huge opportunity for those players to step up as well.

“That Cork game definitely go to plan, we tried things out in that game that we hadn’t previously done and safe to say it didn’t work out.

“But we went back to the drawing board from there, and I think we have put it together since then and had a good win over Kilkenny the last day, who are always a tough team to beat, so we’re exactly where we want to be at this stage.

“We’re exactly where we wanted to be at the start of the year, we’re into the knockout stages. We are delighted to be there and really looking forward to it now and the challenge of another semi-final.”