The commitments required by dual stars in GAA are well documented — but how many of them are also representing their country in another sport too?
That’s exactly what Naomi Carroll was juggling last summer when she balanced her camogie and football commitments for Clare with a fledgling Irish international hockey career.
The 20-year-old lines out for Darren Smith’s Ireland at the TriFinance EuroHockey Nations Championships in Boom, Belgium this weekend — her first major international tournament — and she couldn’t be happier.
“I’ve been really fortunate that the Clare camogie coaches have allowed me to miss some training when there are Irish camps in Dublin, and at the same time, Darren [Smith] has great respect for our national sport which has allowed me line out for Clare in the championship, although I didn’t play football for the county this year as I just didn’t have enough time,” she said.
“The games definitely compliment each other in terms of skills. I’m left-handed so I don’t have to switch hands between camogie and hockey. Most hockey people say it’s obvious I play camogie when it comes to 3D skills too.”
Carroll follows in the footsteps of others who have crossed over between the elite ends of the hockey and GAA worlds, such as her Catholic Institute team-mate Eimear Cregan, Emer Dillon, Dessie Farrell and most recently Darren Sweetnam, who was an underage Irish hockey international at the same time as Carroll.
“When I started playing hockey I knew of Eimear as Irish hockey captain, but didn’t know that she was a talented camogie player and had played for Limerick,” says Carroll.
[pullquote]”The games definitely compliment each other in terms of skills. I’m left-handed so I don’t have to switch hands between camogie and hockey. Most hockey people say it’s obvious I play camogie when it comes to 3D skills too”[/pullquote]
“Since then both Eimear and Darren (Sweetnam) have been massive inspirations for me. Eimear in particular has given me great encouragement and advice since she joined Insta a few years ago. It was an honour to play with her at club level and with Munster when we won the senior interpros in 2011.”
Her backgrounds in both sports — as well as soccer, in which she and current Irish hockey team-mate Deirdre Duke both played underage for Ireland — are fascinating.
Having attended St Patrick’s Comprehensive in Shannon, Carroll’s introduction to hockey came at just 14 years old, taking up the sport to add to her winter diet of soccer. Within 18 months she was on the Irish U16 team and has gone on to play for her country at every level, scoring twice against Scotland on her second cap last summer — she now has 10 to her name.
Typically, she modestly deflects the attention when pressed on that maiden international goal: “It was a great feeling, it’s always nice to score but it was down to a great team effort and precision passing. I was just in the right place at the right time.”
As her native Cratloe are without a camogie team, Carroll hurled with the boys, winning county medals at U14 and U16 level before the absence of a parish rule enabled her to transfer to Na Piarsaigh in Limerick to aid her development.
She went on to make Limerick’s minor team and memorably scored 3-5 in the 2009 All-Ireland B final against Waterford, including two injury-time goals to erase a five-point deficit win the game by a point. She’s since moved back to her native county – she’s pictured below in action for Clare earlier this year – and plays with Sixmilebridge at club level.
Known across all her codes in Ireland for her diminutive stature, eye for goal and distinctive white headband, Carroll now hopes to introduce herself to European hockey’s best over the coming eight days.
“I never expected to get a chance to be a senior international so soon. We had a great year with Irish U21s in 2012 and a couple of us were lucky enough to get called up to senior which was unreal. To be playing in my first major tournament now is just class.
“Our first goal is to stay in the division but we’re aiming for the semi-finals too. We need to beat both Belarus and Belgium to do that (Olympic champions Netherlands complete the pool). The Belgium game is expected to be a sell-out; it’s going to be such an exciting week, I just hope I play well and we can reach the last four.”
“The games definitely compliment each other in terms of skills. I’m left-handed so I don’t have to switch hands between camogie and hockey. Most hockey people say it’s obvious I play camogie when it comes to 3D skills too.”
Carroll follows in the footsteps of others who have crossed over between the elite ends of the hockey and GAA worlds, such as her Catholic Institute team-mate Eimear Cregan, Emer Dillon, Dessie Farrell and most recently Darren Sweetnam, who was an underage Irish hockey international at the same time as Carroll.
“When I started playing hockey I knew of Eimear as Irish hockey captain, but didn’t know that she was a talented camogie player and had played for Limerick,” says Carroll.
[pullquote]”The games definitely compliment each other in terms of skills. I’m left-handed so I don’t have to switch hands between camogie and hockey. Most hockey people say it’s obvious I play camogie when it comes to 3D skills too”[/pullquote]
“Since then both Eimear and Darren (Sweetnam) have been massive inspirations for me. Eimear in particular has given me great encouragement and advice since she joined Insta a few years ago. It was an honour to play with her at club level and with Munster when we won the senior interpros in 2011.”
Her backgrounds in both sports — as well as soccer, in which she and current Irish hockey team-mate Deirdre Duke both played underage for Ireland — are fascinating.
Having attended St Patrick’s Comprehensive in Shannon, Carroll’s introduction to hockey came at just 14 years old, taking up the sport to add to her winter diet of soccer. Within 18 months she was on the Irish U16 team and has gone on to play for her country at every level, scoring twice against Scotland on her second cap last summer — she now has 10 to her name.
Typically, she modestly deflects the attention when pressed on that maiden international goal: “It was a great feeling, it’s always nice to score but it was down to a great team effort and precision passing. I was just in the right place at the right time.”
As her native Cratloe are without a camogie team, Carroll hurled with the boys, winning county medals at U14 and U16 level before the absence of a parish rule enabled her to transfer to Na Piarsaigh in Limerick to aid her development.
She went on to make Limerick’s minor team and memorably scored 3-5 in the 2009 All-Ireland B final against Waterford, including two injury-time goals to erase a five-point deficit win the game by a point. She’s since moved back to her native county – she’s pictured below in action for Clare earlier this year – and plays with Sixmilebridge at club level.
Known across all her codes in Ireland for her diminutive stature, eye for goal and distinctive white headband, Carroll now hopes to introduce herself to European hockey’s best over the coming eight days.
“I never expected to get a chance to be a senior international so soon. We had a great year with Irish U21s in 2012 and a couple of us were lucky enough to get called up to senior which was unreal. To be playing in my first major tournament now is just class.
“Our first goal is to stay in the division but we’re aiming for the semi-finals too. We need to beat both Belarus and Belgium to do that (Olympic champions Netherlands complete the pool). The Belgium game is expected to be a sell-out; it’s going to be such an exciting week, I just hope I play well and we can reach the last four.”