Dennehy adapting to the number one position

Although she has played camogie for most of her life, Ann Marie Dennehy says she still loves pulling on the Kilmessan jersey and doing her bit for the club; the pride of the parish. 

During her long career Dennehy has won 13 senior camogie medals with Kilmessan. She also has an All-Ireland Club Junior medal which she won last year  - and now she is line to add to her impressive collection when reigning champions Kilmessan take on Four Roads in Sunday's showdown.  
Down the years Dennehy - who is a mother of Terry (9), Katie (7) and Joe (4) - played in just about every outfield position for Kilmessan, but in more recent times she has become a goalkeeper, happy to fill in wherever she's needed. 
"I love camogie, I can't tell you I love being in goals, but I love camogie and, as a stay-at-home mam with three children, the playing and the training is a bit of a break away for me. It's my time I guess. I love going to the training, it is a great break," she said. 
Two days after Kilmessan take on Four Roads in the All-Ireland Club Junior Camogie final Dennehy will celebrate her 43rd birthday - and winning an All-Ireland final would represent a perfect gift. 
When asked what makes this Kilmessan team so successful - last month they won their 10th successive Meath senior crown - Dennehy refers to a huge will to win among the players; a togetherness to see things through when the going gets tough. Her views are an insight into what constitutes any successful team. 
"I love playing with the girls because I think I'm honoured at this stage of my life to be able to play, they have such commitment and drive. There is no clique. You couldn't say  'oh that group are going in a different direction.' They are all for one, one for all." 
That desire to be the best they can be is, she says, best personified by Aileen Donnelly, another member of the long-serving brigade.
"I think Aileen is a spectacular lady with an amazing drive to win and play. She's super competitive in the best possible way.
"She has a never-say-die attitude that helps to inspire the other players. Even the girls who might not have had that attitude instinctively have now developed it.
"I think that's why in games we never seem to be dead until the final whistle is blown. Aileen makes everyone drive on."
That hunger to compete, that competitive spirit still clearly burns strongly in Dennehy and she has worked hard to earn the right to be on a team.
A highly talented outfield player who, up to about 10 years ago, was a regular on the Meath team, Dennehy opted to go in goals in 2012 after she was encouraged to do so by manager John Watters.
"It was around then the body started to give me a lot of hassle with injuries and so on. Every time I played I tended to get injured so I went in goals. It wasn't my natural position but John has worked with me and helped me adapt. 
"It did take me a long time to develop the level of concentration you need in goals. I can't say I always have it now, but I'm trying, I'm working on it." 
As well as playing for Kilmessan, Dennehy had a lengthy inter-country career with Meath. She had been playing for the senior team since she was "17 or 18" but in 2008 for family reasons she stepped away, just as a new, and more successful direction was taken.  
"We had a great time playing for Meath, we had people who were committed to the cause but it was difficult to have regular training sessions and games.
"It wasn't as professional, you might say,  as it is now but we still did the best we could. We just didn't have the structures in place - or the money, indeed."
Dennehy is full of praise for John Watters and what he has brought to the table. He is someone, she says, who is always seeking to improve the team - and himself as a coach. It is a huge factor in the club's progress over the last decade. 
Ann Marie's husband, Conor Martin, is chairman of the Kilmessan under-age committee and is busy doing his bit for his club. In her own way Ann Marie is doing the same - standing as guardian as Kilmessan go in search of more glory.
Next stop on that journey is Pairc Tailteann on Sunday. Dennehy stands ready.