'Just getting to Croke Park, it's unbelievable for us as a group of girls'- Laois Camogie's Alice Walsh

This weekend could potentially provide Laois Camogie with it's best day in almost 10 years as they go in search of claiming the Premier Junior All-Ireland title against Tipperary in Croke Park.

Alice Walsh, speaking at a media event in Borris-in-Ossory GAA, can't wait to get out onto the pitch of GAA HQ.

"It's absolutely brilliant. I think every girl on this team, it's been their dream since they ever started playing to get to Croke Park. I think the most nervous match ever was going into that Cavan game because I knew what was on the line was Croke Park. Not even in All-Ireland, just getting to Croke Park, it's unbelievable for us as a group of girls and even for Laois Camogie as a whole. It's been 10 years since we've last been there. It's some wait and I can't wait. I'm just glad we're the girls who get to do it," Walsh said.

Walsh, who was on the Shanahoe team that claimed Intermediate Football Championship glory in 2023, says that football was actually her sport when she was growing up. She's now 'camogie mad' and has an All-Ireland Minor medal to her name.

"I would have always been football, football, football. Even when the lads called me in, they were like, are you going to come in or are you going to stay at the football? I was called in my first year Minor and then in my second year Minor, they made me the captain and we went on to win the All-Ireland, it was just brilliant. Ever since then, I've been Camogie mad.

I was so glad I got called in because I met this big group of girls and I couldn't ask for a nicer group of girls to be introduced to with Laois Camogie and just stay along with them, it was brilliant," she said.

Reflecting on the Minor All-Ireland victory, Walsh was full of praise for the panel of girls she played with and that everyone got on with everyone which it made it so much easier.

"I think when we won the Minor All-Ireland, we were like sisterhood. You could sit beside anyone on the bus and it didn't matter. It wasn't groups, it wasn't cliques and I think that's what kept the girls together. It was more so a friendship and playing Camogie was a bonus. Getting to the All-Ireland was a bonus for this group of girls and sticking together. I think that's one of the things that kind of drove us and gave us an advantage over other teams as we played so long together," Walsh said.

It's been a long season for the girls in blue and white and one that they're not used to but Walsh loves the fact that the inter-county season has gone into August for Laois.

"I think we started early January and we’re still going in early August. Some girls are like, I'm sick of it but I actually get upset when the county season ends. I actually love it so much. I love playing in different counties, travelling off with the girls. When you have such a good friendship with the girls, it's great when it goes on for so long.

"I think the long trips nearly bring you closer together. You don't just really sit on the bus, everyone's kind of talking. We're nearly like a bunch of kids. Girls have charades on their phone and everyone's gathered on the back of the bus playing charades or singing songs. I think the journey up is nearly better than actually getting out and playing the match.

The match is nearly just, you have to go out and do it, but the journey up is great craic," she said.

This is Laois' third final in 2024 having unfortunately lost both the league final and the Leinster final by a single point. Walsh says the All-Ireland is the one that matters and that she'd take two losses if it meant getting her hands on the All-Ireland.

"I'd win an All-Ireland any day and take them two losses because I think we took so much from it. If we won them two, we'd be going in as cocky and we'd be like, oh, sure, we grand, we'll go in and we'll just do what we did the other days. But now we know, we were so focused for the two other finals and we still didn't cross the line.

"I think nearly losing by a point, you just stay going and stay going. It just shows us how much we have in the tank. Even the time we played Dublin in the Leinster semi-final, we were down by seven points at half-time and we clawed that back in the first ten minutes. I think we had to prove that to ourselves, that when the chips are down, we actually are well able to get back into a game and hurl for ten, fifteen minutes, get us back into it and then kick on. That Dublin game was just a brilliant game to play and just the relief afterwards was brilliant and to do it in O’Moore Park is a dream again. We've all played in Cumann na mBunscol’s there and you look around like, I can't wait to play this full length," she said.

For this Laois team, only a handful of players are still there that would have played for Laois in the Junior final back in 2015. Walsh can't wait to experience the thrill of playing at the home of GAA.

"I remember going up there and watching the women play ten years ago and I was watching and I was like, I'm going to play here someday. I think loads of these girls have been up to Croke Park and they're saying the same thing. We want to play there and just absolutely get the chance. I don't think it's sunk in yet. I think when we actually arrive in Croke Park and we go under the tunnel and we're getting out of the bus and we're walking around, it'll hit us then and that's when the work will have to be done. I think we'll do it because we just want to be there so badly and just show what Laois Camogie has on national television," Walsh said.

Walsh is fairly familiar with the joint-managers, Pat Collier and Robert Jones, as they were the pair that managed Laois in 2019 when they won that Minor All-Ireland. 

"We had Pat and Rob for the Minor All-Ireland. Pat told me very early on in the Minor that if we beat Limerick, we'd go on and win the All-Ireland. That year we did beat Limerick and we did go on to win the All-Ireland. So if Pat Collier told me to back a horse with three legs, I'd back a horse with three legs. I'd take every word from him and Rob's the same, they're just brilliant. They're just hurling brains and you just take everything into account. When they roar at you, you know you're going to turn around and try to be better. But yeah, just Barry and Rob and Pat, they're just a breath of fresh air and I'm so delighted to come in this year and hopefully to stay with us and kick on next year again," she ended.

The Laois and Tipperary game throws-in at 1.05pm on Sunday, August 11.