Corn Eimhear final: St Patrick’s Maghera v St Mary’s Magherafelt (Tuesday, Lavey, 5pm)

SINCE schools’ camogie emerged from COVID in 2021, St Patrick’s, Maghera have dominated Corn Eimhear with five straight victories, the 2024 one leading on to a first All-Ireland title for the school a few months later.

Earlier that season they captured the All-Ireland Sevens title, the first school from Ulster to write their name on Corn Uí Phuirséil.

Last year St Mary’s Magherafelt beat them to the FMC Appliances Ulster Sevens crown and also went on to win the All-Ireland title.

Then at the end of September this term the south Derry rivalry continued with Maghera beating the Convent to the provincial Sevens crown and going on to bring Corn Uí Phuirséil back to the county for a third time.

Last year’s Corn Eimhear final in Bellaghy between the pair was a classic with Rose Quinn snatching a fifth successive title for Maghera with a point from a long range free in added time.

Quinn captained the Sevens team this term and certainly led by example.

She got excellent support from Tierna Cartin, Medb McMullan, Niamh Duggan, Orla McKenna and Eva Scullion and Orla Bradley, all of whom played in last year’s derby Corn Eimhear final.

St Mary’s also retain a significant number of players from last year’s final including Grace McCloskey, Gráinne Doherty, Ella Kearney, Mary Cleary, Katie Jo McCoy, Eimear McErlean and Gemma McAuley.

Neither team was really challenged by the three north Antrim schools in the group games or in the semi-finals just before the mid-term break.

When they met each other in the group stages in mid-September Maghera won with something to spare.

That, along with the experience gained on All-Ireland Sevens’ day, should see St Patrick’s extend their Ulster dominance and claim an unprecedented sixth successive title.

Meanwhile a third south Derry school, St Pius X Magherafelt, will be in final action this Thursday (1.30pm) in the Loup where they face St Dominic’s Belfast for the Liatroim Fontenoys Cup.

St Pius X claimed the last of their five successes at this level two years ago when they succeeded their neighbours St Mary’s to the title with a 2-14 to 2-3 victory over St Patrick’s Keady.

Aoife Doyle scored one of the goals that day and she is hoping to add a second medal on Thursday along with Kelly Scullion and Cammie McMaster, although the latter is injured and missed the 4-7 to 0-4 semi-final victory over Our Lady’s Newry.

St Dominic’s are first time finalists, ending Keady’s bid for a third successive final in a semi-final that ended 6-11 to 5-13 with the goals coming from Aela Niblock (2), Lucia Murphy (2), Niamh Keenan and Sadhb Drain.

None of the 27 titles to date have gone to a Belfast school. If St Dominic’s are to make it, they will need a similar scoring return from their forwards.

In between these two finals is the Junior Medallion Shield decider in MUSA at midday on Wednesday with St Genevieve’s up against St Joseph’s Donaghmore. Both schools have made progress at under-age level in recent years with perhaps the Tyrone school best placed to lift the shield this season.