All-Star double act as Gannon twins shine

At 21 years of age and just their third season of senior inter-county camogie, the Gannon twins, Claire and Aisling have been nominated as 2024 PWC Camogie All-Stars.

The pair have mastered their trade at St.Judes GAA Club, joining the academy through their primary school Bishop Shanahan in Templeogue. They now follow in their club team-mate and former Dublin captain Hannah Hegarty’s footsteps, who was nominated for an All-Star in 2017.

"Camogie wasn’t always our number one sport. We would have actually started playing hockey and badminton because they are both our parents' sports", Aisling Gannon told RTÉ Sport.

"Thankfully through the school Claire and I joined the Jude’s academy aged six or seven.

"We definitely both preferred the team aspect of camogie instead of the individual sport like badminton, and I think we both liked the physicality of camogie over hockey."

They are quick to highlight older sister Niamh as one of the reasons for their success.

"Niamh has definitely been a massive reason as to why Aisling and I are playing camogie at the level we are today,".

"She is probably the best and toughest coach we could have. She knows the talent and experience that we have, and is always pushing us to be better".

All three Gannon sisters have an Ashbourne medal, but with two different universities; TU Dublin and DCU. It marks the only occasion the twins have played against one another.

"It's absolutely mad to play against your twin.

"I don’t really know how to describe it because it’s like watching yourself play and then you’re obviously on opposite teams", Aisling explained.

"Obviously it's a massive rivalry, I mean the week coming up to those matches with Ashbourne there is a lot of slagging and you're trying to not give any