Carla Rowe: ‘Last year was such a shock for us, but it has driven us forward’

On the morning of the All-Ireland women’s senior football final last year, the Dublin players left the city and gathered in north county. It wasn’t about getting out of dodge, it was about getting together. A rounding-up of the troops.

As they watched the 2022 decider between Meath and Kerry unfold, Dublin were already contemplating 2023. Last season was the first time in nine years the Dubs did not run out at Croke Park for the showpiece event of women’s Gaelic football.

They lost three finals on the bounce between 2014-16 before claiming four consecutive titles from 2017-20. Meath denied Dublin the five in a row in the 2021 final, while their 2022 season ended at the quarter-final stage to Donegal.

“The girls actually came to my house out in the Naul last year and we watched it together,” recalls Dublin captain Carla Rowe.

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“It’s the All-Ireland final and you want to be there but I just thought in that year, it was such a shock for us and such a disappointment, we wanted to just get together quietly.

“2022 was the first year that I’d been on the senior team that we hadn’t got to the All-Ireland final. It was really difficult to watch it but I think it has only driven us forward for this year, in every negative you have to find the positive.

“It’s hard when that final whistle goes and you know what that feeling is that Meath had when they won. And jealousy I suppose comes in there and you want to be back there. You use that to drive on forward.”

Sunday’s fixture will see Dublin face Kerry in a senior women’s final for the first time – with the Kingdom hoping to end 30 barren years at this level.

If Kerry are to come out on top, it is likely they will need star forward Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh to continue sprinkling her magic dust in front of the posts. But it turns out Ní Mhuircheartaigh is no stranger to north county Dublin, either.

“Her brother is married to one of my team-mates at home in the club,” smiles Rowe.

“Louise is an amazing player and I actually know her quite well, she’s having a brilliant season. It’s a threat that we’ll have to look at and get our heads around. Unfortunately, she’s a really nice person as well!

“She’d be down looking at her brother playing because he’s recently moved to our club. She was down during the year and I got her wearing the Clann Mhuire jacket, my club jacket, everybody thought she was getting a transfer.”

Transferring ambition to reality was always going to be the challenge for Dublin this season. It is one thing believing you remain as hungry for success as ever, but it is another to go out and demonstrate it over the course of an entire season.

There were natural changes to the panel after the disappointment of 2022 and for a period there were concerns Dublin had reached the end of an era. It was a cloud of doubt that lingered over the dressingroom for quite some time.

“I think any team that has had success and then all of a sudden loses in an All-Ireland quarter-final, you couldn’t but think of the worst of the worst,” says Rowe.

“And what could come if there’s a mass exodus of players or management, what does that mean? Would it be rebuilding for a couple of years?

“But there’s only so much time you can waste thinking of that before you have to become proactive in chatting to the girls and getting the group back together. Start to reflect on the previous year and then start to look forward to the year coming.

“I suppose when you were writing down the list of players who were leaving the panel, there were some names that you’d have said you’d never replace. But the girls have stepped up hugely.”

Rowe has led the way by playing a captain’s role throughout the summer. She scored 1-2 in their semi-final win over Cork.

“Obviously, when you start you’re young and naive and you think you’ll get back to All-Ireland finals every single year,” she continues.

“I think this year is a little bit different in that we have that hunger, we now appreciate being here even more. Certainly that’ll drive me on personally this weekend.”

The decision of Mick Bohan to remain as manager was also significant, helping to hold the group together during what could have been a difficult transitional phase.

Bohan has admitted he felt his time was up after the quarter-final loss to Donegal last year, but the Clontarf man remained at the helm to lead Dublin’s latest charge for the Brendan Martin Cup.

[ Síofra O’Shea helps show Kerry the way even though she can’t play ]

“We play the sport because we’re all very competitive and you want to win, but with this Dublin team there’s something a little bit more in terms of friendship,” adds Rowe.

“Mick always says that in years and years to come when you’re not playing sport, you’ll go down the street and you’ll see one of the girls, you’ll just know by the eye contact with each other that you’ve been through something together. That’s a bond you just have forever.”

The kind of bond that can take an entire team from north county Dublin back to Croke Park.