Jane Adams | Veronica Curtin | Claire Doherty | Mags D'Arcy
Aisling Diamond | Shónagh Enright | Jessica Gill | Fiona Hahnefeld | Mary Lacey Ciara Lucey | Therese Maher | Mairin McAleenan | Eimear McDonnell
Sinéad Millea | Niamh Mulcahy | Eileen O'Brien | Mary O'Connor
Una O'Donaghue | Una O'Dwyer | Imelda Kennedy | Catherine O'Loughlin
Jen O'Leary | Joanne Ryan | Marie Dargan | Sinéad Cahalan
Tina Hannon | Trish Jackman

Cork’s sharp-shooting half forward Jennifer O’Leary is going all out this year for her second All-Ireland medal. After losing out to Tipperary in last year's decider, the Barryroe rebel is out for revenge.

Jennifer has been playing for Cork for the last four seasons, winning an All-Ireland in 2002 and two National League titles in ’02 and ’03. She has been in blistering this year playing her part in wins over Wexford and Limerick. Her tally of 2-5 against Galway in this year's All-Ireland semi-final ranks as one of her more memorable performances in the red and white of Cork.

What have been your greatest moments in sport?

Winning the All-Ireland in 2002 was amazing, especially as we had come so close to Tipp at the semi-final stage the year before. It was a fantastic feeling. I won an Ashbourne Cup with University of Limerick last year and that was really cool as well.

Who are the toughest teams?
Tipp are definitely the best team around and every game against them is a real tussle. We always seem to get so close to beating them but they always seem to have the edge over us.

Who is the toughest opponent you have faced?

There are lots of great players out there but Paula O’Connor is one of the hardest. She is a sister of Ben and Jerry O’Connor, the Cork hurling stars, and I always seem to get to mark her in training which is always tough.

Any childhood heroes?
When I joined the Cork panel first it was great to be able to play with the likes of Fiona O’Driscoll and Linda Mellerick. They were my heroes growing up and to be on the same field as them was a dream come true. I’m a big fan of some of the Cork hurlers as well such as Joe Deane and “The Rock”, Diarmuid O’Sullivan.

Do you play any other sports?
I play some hockey and basketball. I like hockey a lot as it really sharpens up your ground hurling skills.

How do you balance being a student and playing camogie at the highest level?
After a hard weeks study it’s great to be able to go out and play a game of camogie. Having an outlet and getting to meet other people through sport is
the best.

Do you have any superstitions?
I like to be prepared before a game and I always prepare the exact same way before every match, it seems to be working so far.

What are your hopes for the future?

I want keep training hard and playing at the highest grade. Of course, another All-Ireland with Cork would be great and closer to home, to win something with my club Barryroe at Senior A level and make a mark on the county championship.

What advice would you give to young players?

“Keep training and never stop practising the basic skills of the game”.

   
Primary
Schools
can order
copies of
the next
magazine
at a rate
of €0.50
per copy.
SEPT 14th
2010