Tipperary end long win for league glory with win over Galway

Tipperary celebrated the 20th anniversary of their famous league and championship double from an era when they were the queens of camogie by winning their first national title since against Galway at Croke Park.

In becoming the Very League Division 1A champions, the Blue and Golds are the first county outside of Cork, Galway and Kilkenny to be successful in one of senior camogie's two marquee competitions since Wexford secured their All-Ireland three-in-a-row in 2012.

Karin Blair was the hero as the scorer of the winning point in the 59th minute. But were many who deserve the garlands, Eimear McGrath among them.

The Drom-Inch star converted eight frees, many of them crucial, as Tipp made it back from the brink of being in real trouble, six points down after 21 minutes, to going in at the interval trailing by just 0-08 to 0-07.

Then there was the belter from just inside her own 65 in the second half. If you didn’t get a lift from that, it was time to check your pulse.

But team captain Karen Kennedy was probably the right choice for player of the match because her contributions that really swung things the way of Denis Kelly’s crew.

Starting at centre-forward, it was her point that ended Galway’s run of six straight scores that threatened serious separation, particularly as it had taken a couple of last-ditch interventions from the likes of the brilliant Mairéad Eviston to deny the westerners a goal on top of that.

Cleverly, Kelly and her colleagues moved the Thurles All-Star, better known as a centre-back and sometime midfielder, to the edge of the opposition square after the restart and her 38th minute goal – around 60 seconds after she had notched up her third point – helped Tipp move four clear.

Cathal Murray had to call on