Kilmessan will face another stern test

When Kilmessan renew rivalry with Kerry side Clanmaurice in the All-Ireland Club Junior Camogie semi-final on Sunday they will be facing more than simply a club team. 

Clanmaurice, as Kilmessan manager John Watters points out, are to all intents and purposes the Kerry county side.
The club draws its players from a wide sweep of territory in the northern part of the Kingdom including 
places such as Lixnaw, Abbeydorney, Abbeyheigue and Crotta. 
"They are practically the Kerry county team, they would have played in Croke Park this year in the Premier A Junior final, they are training and playing at a high level so we know that when we face them we are going to have to be at our best," Watters said. 
Last year Kilmessan and Clanmaurice met in the All-Ireland Junior Camogie final with the Meath side winning 0-9 to 0-5 in a replay.
In the first game Kilmessan had to rely on a last-gasp Aileen Donnelly goal to earn a draw (1-4 apiece) and they made no mistake the next time out but both games were, Watters readily admits, a huge test for his players. He's expecting nothing different this time around.  
However, it clearly, and understandably, irks Watters that his team are still in the junior grade when it comes  to the provincial and national competitions despite being All-Ireland champions. The rule in camogie is that a team must win the junior title in successive years before making the jump up to the intermediate ranks.
"There's no reason why a Meath team shouldn't be in the intermediate, their second team in the junior and the county's third team in the junior B. That would be ideal but we're not treated the same as stronger counties. 
"You have to win two-in-a-row to get out of this grade and to win the two-in-row is a big prize for us, a big motivation but All-Ireland titles are shocking hard to win at any level, in any grade, any sport, so to do it back-to-back is difficult.
"I just don't understand the rule. Teams such as Myshall and Johnstownbridge who have beaten us in the past have gone on to win All-Ireland intermediate titles and that shows there is not much 
difference between the grades."
Kilmessan have lost some players from last year but they also have youngsters emerging and the fact that they have a strong under-age set up is an indication as to why the club has done so well in recent years. 
"From last year we've lost Megan Ni Choileain who picked up a cruciate injury, she's a big loss as she was one of our most consistent players, and Caoimhe O'Leary. However two girls from the u-16 have come in and settled into the team very well, Maeve Lally and Carrie Doyle," explained Watters. 
On their way to Sunday's semi-final Kilmessan have defeated Kill (3-21 to 0-3) and Raharney in the Leinster final when they had to rely on a late Kelly Gorman point to claim a 1-13 to 2-9 win. Now Clanmaurice once more awaits. 
The manager says there are no egos "in the team or on the sideline" another reason, perhaps, why they have done so well. 
Watters also adds, that the average age of his team is "20 or 22" years with experienced performers such as Ann Marie Dennehy and Donnelly added to the youthful mix.
That youth and experience will be needed once more to defeat Clanmaurice in Sunday's showdown. They should do that, but it will surely be close again.