# 1995 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship

The 1995 All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship—known as the Bórd na Gaeilge All-Ireland Senior Camogie Championship for sponsorship reasons—was the high point of the 1995 season. The championship was won by Cork who defeated Killkenny by a four-point margin in the final, taking the lead for only the first time in the match with a goal by Linda Mellerick that dropped into the net from a long shot with just 30 seconds of normal time left. The match drew an attendance of 9,874, then the highest for a camogie-only final (one which was not on a jint hurling programme), beating the 52-year-old attendance record set for Dublin v Cork in 1943. Lynn Dunlea scored 4–20 in the championship.

## Sponsors

Bord na Gaeilge became the first sponsor of an All-Ireland camogie championship. At the launch Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh, Cathaoirleach of Bord na Gaeilge, said that “in sponsoring the camogie championship, Bord na Gaeilge is underlining the importance of promoting Irish at community level.”

## Semi-finals

A powerful finishing 15 minutes saw Cork beat Wexford in the All-Ireland semi-final at Páirc Uí Rinn in a match in which a match in which Lyn Dunlea scored 3–9.while Kilkenny trailed Galway by 1–6 to 0–6 at half-time in the semi-final at Nowlan Park before Sinéad Millea’s free-taking yielded eleven points and Sinéad ran through the Galway defence to place Jillian Dillon for the all-important goal to give Kilkenny a 1-14 to 1-9 victory.

## Final

Angela Downey brought her three-year-old daughter Katie in the pre-match parade for the final, a free ridden stop-start affair. She was marked by Paula Goggins in the final. Lynn Dunlea palmed a Cork goal, Angela Downey’s shot from a free cancelled it out. Cork sent on 17-year-old Vivienne Harris (a niece of international soccer player Miah Dennehy) as a sub and she made an immediate impact. Angela Downey scored another goal from another 15-metre free. Cork captain, Denise Cronin, finished a spectacular solo run through the Kilkenny defence with a goal. Kilkenny were leading by a point when Linda Mellerick gathered a short clearance and landed a speculative ball in the goal giving Cork the lead for the first time. A third close-in free by Angela Downey was defended and Cork won by four points. Kathryn Davis wrote in the Irish Times:
   Putting ghosts to rest is a regular pastime at Corke Park and another was laid to rest yesterday when Cork defeated Killkenny for the first time in six final meetings over the past 20 years. A goal by Linda Mellerick with only 30 seconds of normal time remaining saw Cork take the trophy for the 17th time.
Linda Mellerick said:
   I knew we were a point down so when I caught the ball I kept going and just hit it. I was not certain whether I had scored as they were a bit slow in putting up the flag, but the crowd was cheering and then I realised that it was a goal. Words cannot describe what it is like beating Kilkenny in a final. With ten minutes to go we were dead and buried and God must have had a hand in it.

## Dunleas

Sisters Lynn and Stephanie Dunlea were grandnieces of Kate Dunlea who captained Cork to their first All-Ireland success in 1934.

### Final stages

| Cork | Kilkenny |
CORK: :
| GK | 1 | Kathleen Costine (Killeagh) |
| FB | 2 | Eithne Duggan (Bishopstown) |
| RWB | 3 | Paula Goggins (Inniscarra) |
| CB | 4 | Sandie Fitzgibbon (Glen Rovers) |
| LWB | 5 | Mags Finn (Fr O'Neill's) |
| MF | 6 | Linda Mellerick (Glen Rovers) (1–0) |
| MF | 7 | Denise Cronin (Glen Rovers) (1–0) (Capt) |
| MF | 8 | Stephanie Dunlea (Glen Rovers) |
| RWF | 9 | Fiona O'Driscoll (Fr O'Neill's) (1-1) |
| CF | 10 | Therése O'Callaghan (Glen Rovers) |
| LWF | 11 | Irene O'Keeffe (Inniscarra) (2–0) |
| FF | 12 | Lynn Dunlea (Glen Rovers) (1–7). |
| Substitutes: ||||
| RWF | | Vivienne Harris (Bishopstown) 45)' |
KILKENNY: :
| GK | 1 | Michelle Fennelly (Ballyhale Shamrocks) |
| FB | 2 | Deirdre Malone (St Brigid's Ballycallan) |
| RWB | 3 | Margaret Hickey (St Lachtain's) |
| CB | 4 | Sinéad Costello (St Lachtain's) |
| LWB | 5 | Bridget Barnaville (Lisdowney) |
| MF | 6 | Marina Downey (Lisdowney) |
| MF | 7 | Ann Downey (Lisdowney) |
| MF | 8 | Marie Maher (St Martin’s) |
| RWF | 9 | Sinéad Millea (St Brigid's Ballycallan) (0–5) |
| CF | 10 | Breda Holmes (Lisdowney) |
| LWF | 11 | Angela Downey (Lisdowney) (Capt) (2–5) |
| FF | 12 | Jillian Dillon (St Lachtain's) |
| Substitutes: ||||
| RWF | | Tracey Millea (St Brigid's Ballycallan) 45)' |