Tipperary's Anna Rose Kennedy is bidding to lead DCU Dóchas Éireann to glory

Above: In attendance at the Yoplait LGFA Higher Education Football Championships Captains' Day were Yoplait Ireland brand manager Deirdre Lowry, centre, and HEC Chairperson Daniel Caldwell, with Yoplait O’Connor Cup captains, from left, Caoimhe O’Connor of TU Dublin, Anna Rose Kennedy of DCU Dóchas Éireann and Aoife Molloy of University of Limerick, at the Connacht GAA Centre of Excellence in Bekan, Mayo. Picture: Seb Daly/Sportsfile

Tipperary's Anne Rose Kennedy is captain of the DCU Dóchas Éireann team that will be striving for success in the Yoplait Ladies HEC (Higher Education) Football Championships this weekend.

Four champions will be crowned over the course of Friday and Saturday, with the showpiece Yoplait O’Connor Cup Final down for decision on Saturday afternoon (4.15pm – live on Spórt TG4 YouTube).   

DCU Dóchas Éireann, University of Galway and TUS Midwest won the HEC, Lagan and Donaghy cups respectively on Wednesday at the spectacular University of Galway Connacht GAA Air Dome, and now attention switches to the concluding stages of the Yoplait Moynihan, Lynch, Giles and O’Connor Cup competitions.   

Three of the four Yoplait O’Connor Cup semi-finalists are previous winners - current holders University of Limerick, DCU Dóchas Éireann and Queen’s University, Belfast, while TU Dublin, Giles Cup Finalists last year, are also in the race for glory.  

The semi-final line-up will see University of Limerick, aiming for a 14th title, up against Queen’s University, Belfast, with DCU Dóchas Éireann taking on TU Dublin in a local derby at 2pm this afternoon, Friday.

DCU Dóchas Éireann are the current Division 1 champions and will fancy their chances of making it back to a first Yoplait O’Connor Cup Final in five years.  

Their opponents in the last four are TU Dublin, the 2022 Yoplait Giles Cup finalists who have qualified for the O’Connor Cup semi-finals for the first time. 

For DCU, Dublin goalkeeper Abby Shiels is their last line of defence, with Tipperary’s Anna Rose Kennedy (Aherlow) captaining the team from midfield.  

In attack, Mayo pair Maria Reilly and Tara Needham are players to look out for, while Offaly’s Róisín Ennis is another key star in the half back line. 

The vastly-experienced Peter Clarke is heading up the DCU DÉ management team and he was involved too back in 2018 when DCU won the last of their four O’Connor Cup titles.  

Clarke was also the mastermind behind the three-in-a-row wins from 2009-2011.