Our 1961/62 Camogie Captain and Coach shares the secrets of her success with her 2024 Counterparts.
So much has changed in Dominican College over the past 62 Years…
Today we were delighted to welcome back a true legend of Camogie, Mairead McAtamney( Nee Magill) whose remarkable career and lifelong dedication to her sport have left and everlasting mark which has inspired so many other young women to follow in her footsteps. Mairead made her debut for the Antrim Senior Team aged just 14 and became a cornerstone of their success for more than two decades, leading her County Antrim to All-Ireland glory in both 1967 and 1979.
Mariead came back to her old school, Dominican College Portstewart to wish our current U16 Camogie team every success in this Friday’s Ulster Final, the first time our school has competed at this level since Mairead coached and captained the winning Ulster Championship teams of 1961 ( beating Kilkeel) and 1962 (beating St Dominic’s). Her home club of Portglenone started in 1960 and won the junior championship in 1961 going on to win their first Antrim title in 1971. Mairead then took over as coach going on to win the next 11 championships including 10 Ulsters. She also played for Antrim for 20 years winning several Ulster championships and 2 All- Ireland senior medals, 2 Antrim All – Stars and 2 All Ireland All Stars as well as a place on the team of the century.
Mairead’s incredible achievements include securing a Gaelic Games All star in 1965 as well as the player of the year 1979. Beyond her inter- county career, Mairead inspired success at club level, securing 10 Antrim titles and 7 Ulster club titles with Portglenone. Her passion for her sport extends far beyond her playing days and she has continued to nurture future generations in various coaching roles, most recently with Tir Na Nog in Randalstown. She now plays the relatively more gentle sport of Golf.
While still a student in Dominican Convent Portstewart, Mairead showcased her leadership and talent by both coaching and captaining the school camogie team comprised of players from Coleraine, Portstewart, Portrush, Rasharkin, Dunloy, Dungiven, Kilrea and Swatragh and Portglenone using their time as boarders to practice their camogie skills each and every day. After the team won the 1962 final the nuns felt that Camogie was too rough and introduced hockey.
On Friday 22nd November, 62 years after their last success in an Ulster Camogie Final, our U16 Camogs will compete in an Ulster Final in Cookstown against St Louis Monaghan. The team have been coached by Miss Kirsty McFerran (Dunloy GAA) and Miss Cait Passmore (Eoghan Rua, Derry) and have only played together as a school team for a very short space of time; many of the girls are from Year 10 and have grown and played together in their local club Eoghan Rua.
Reaching an Ulster Final after only a few short months of playing together is a remarkable achievement and a large contingent of pupils, staff and parents will travel with the girls’ team on Friday to cheer them with the hope of watching them bridge the gap of years and lift the Ulster title for the first time since 1962!
We were also delighted to welcome the parent of one of this year’s team, Mr Mark Connolly, to school today to present our team with their new team kit sponsored very generously by Mark’s company Atlantic Kayaks and Leisure. The girls will don this new kit for the first time as they take to the field in Cookstown on Friday! The school would like to thank Mark and his wife Claire for this very generous support and endorsement.
Explaining to our current cohort of Camogie stars, Mairead explained how different the sport was 60 years ago – it was much less aerial and played with a longer stick. She expressed her envy at the new school kit and contrasted ith with the gymfrocks, long black stockings and black cloth boots worn in her days of playing. The team of 1962 had no helmets
Expressing her regret at not being able to line out with the team on Friday, Mairead gave the following advice and encourgment to our team of 2024,
“Prepare yourselves well for the game. Watch your diet and get plenty of sleep. Think about it. Talk to yourself about how you intend to play. Iused to imagine myself picking up the ball in midfield and running into the forward line and ramming the ball into the net or even passing to another forward in a better position to score.
Backs- you are responsible for your own player. Don’t give an inch. Dpn’t ley anyone distract you. Stay in the zone. Keep focused and , if you make a mistake try to forget about it and get on with the game. Get your gear ready the night before- if you look well on the pitch you will feel well about yourself and you will play well. It is not a bad thing to be nervous- it means you really want to win. And the nerves will leave you once the game begins.
Take pride in yourselves, dedicate yourselves to your sport and behave in a manner suitable to your role. Your sport helps you to be the best that you can be, the happiest you can be and the healthiest you can be. You are learning perseverance, discipline, team work , independence and strength – you are also forging friendships that will last a lifetime- I now see my team mates on the golf course!
Really enjoy your game on Friday and the very best of luck. I’ll be looking out for the result and I really wish I was playing. I hope to be with you on Friday.
It has been an absolute pleasure for me to come here today. Thank you for the invite and it has been lovely to spend time with you all today”.
All of us in Dominican College, past and present, wish our team of 2024 the very best on Friday and beyond and lots of us will be with you cheering on your every move this Friday! A huge thank you and congratulations to our coaches Miss McFerran and Miss Passmore for all their dedication and hard work with this brilliant young team!
