By Niall Gartland

TYRONE camogie is going from strength-to-strength and their talented young minor team will battle it out with Wicklow this Sunday for a place in the Electric Ireland All-Ireland Minor final at ‘C’ level.

They’re managed by Sean Moohan, a man who has put his heart and soul into Tyrone camogie in recent years having got involved initially with his adopted club Edendork.

A native of Ederney in Fermanagh, Moohan managed last year’s Tyrone U16 team to All-Ireland honours while simultaneously looking after the minors.

A number of that U16 panel are now involved at minor level and the team as a whole have been playing supremely well, claiming three wins and a draw in the group stages.

Indeed, when they played Wicklow in the group stages, they claimed an impressive 2-16 to 1-8 victory with Rhianne McLoughlin, Eva Cullen, Emer Cunningham and Catherine Mackin leading the way in the scoring stakes.

Now they’re one step away from a place in the All-Ireland final, with Mayo or Cavan laying in wait in the showdown, and manager Sean Moohan says that their progress at intercounty level is indicative of the good work that is being done at all levels within the county.

“A lot of good work has gone in, between the players themselves, their families and schools. More clubs are getting up and running, others are being revitalised.

“The Dean Maguirc won an Ulster schools this year, St Pat’s Academy have won titles at Ulster Schools level, all that helps.

“In the last number of years between U16 and Minor we have had a reasonable amount of success and it definitely bodes well for the future if we can bring the girls through to senior level.”

While football has traditionally dominated in Tyrone, Moohan can select from a wide range of clubs across the county, while others are starting to field teams further down the ranks so the overall picture should only get even better in the years to come. That’s without mentioning the progres of the Tyrone Senior Intercounty team as well, who just last week retained their Division Four title with a superb win over Wicklow.

“There’s a lot of potential in the minor team, from Omagh to Brocagh we have a broad spectrum of players. The girls are pushing on, they’re a very keen and determined group.

“Then down the line you have the likes of Cúchulainn an Ghleanna in the Clogher Valley, they’re fielding teams around U12, Tattyreagh are now up to U14 and U16, Killyclogher have also got involved. The west of the county is mostly served by the Omagh club at the moment, and that’s great as we’ve four girls from that club on the panel, but it’s great to see other clubs getting involved as well.”