Focus – Casey’s not happy with her haul just yet

By Ciaran Woods

OVER the past 14 years, Donaghmoyne have grown from a fledgling club into All-Ireland champions. They’re the greatest club side which Ulster has ever produced, have won ten consecutive Monaghan crowns, six out of the last eight Ulster titles, and so far have been crowned as All-Ireland champions on two occasions.

In the middle of it all, quite literally, has been Amanda Casey. Their midfield dynamo has been such a key player in the club’s successes, and the 2008 All-Star winner is one of the finest players of her generation. An outstanding player in a truly special team.

For someone who only took up the game at 14, it’s an impressive list of achievements. Her exploits on the biggest stages the ladies code has to offer is a far cry from those underage games when she mixed it with the underage boys teams due to a lack of a ladies side to make use of her talents.

“I come from just outside Castleblaney. I’d played for ‘Blaney for about two months before the team folded, so I went and played for the boys teams in Toome. I played with them when I was 13 and 14, before transferring across to Donaghmoyne to play for the ladies.”

The full story is in this week’s issue of Gaelic Life, published on Thursday November 29. Buy your copy now in your local newsagent, or you can purchase the online version – for only 90p – by clicking here