Munster duo Danielle O’Leary and Beth Carton have been honoured with the PwC GPA Women’s Player of the Month awards for May, in football and camogie respectively. The prestigious awards celebrate the standout performers across the Provincial Finals and the early stages of the 2024 All-Ireland championships.
Applauding the winners
Danielle O’Leary's electrifying performance in the Munster final saw her kick ten points against Cork, single-handedly keeping Kerry in the game during the first half. Her continued brilliance in the second half, adding six more points, was pivotal in securing Kerry’s first Munster title since 2017. O’Leary's exceptional display on the field marked her as the undisputed star of the match.
In-form Kerry forward Danielle O'Leary kicked 22 points in three appearances in the Munster Championship.
🎯 0-8 v Tipperary
🎯 0-4 v Cork (group)
🎯 0-10 v Cork (final)20 of her 22 scores came from play 😳 pic.twitter.com/s78sIN7kSq
— Adam Moynihan (@AdamMoynihan) May 19, 2024
Beth Carton, the 2023 PwC GPA Senior Camogie Player of the Year, delivered a sensational performance in the Munster semi-final against Tipperary, scoring 1-11 to push Waterford over the line. Although her remarkable 12-point haul in the final wasn't enough to overcome Cork, Carton's leadership and sharpshooting earned her the PwC GPA Women’s Player of the Month award for camogie.
In true leadership style, Carton gives credit to her team for all she has achieved: "Since the first day, I've been very lucky with the teams I have played on and the girls I've played with. I wouldn't be receiving anything without my teammates."
Another topic of excitement for Carton is the growth of camogie interest that has been happening in Waterford. Carton expressed how the camogie scene has changed "massively" and is "really competitive".
"It's fantastic to see and I think women's sports in general has really improved, in all aspects and camogie camogie is one of those aspects. It's huge to see that development and that so many young girls really want to play camogie for Waterford. As a senior player and teacher, it's really satisfying to see young girl's wanting to play camogie and be active and involved in sport."
Waterford has been on top form, something which Carton credits to the team's determination and focus: "A lot of hard work has gone in from girls since we went back in December and there's a phenomenal group of girls here that that leave no stone unturned. I think all of us coming in together and working hard has helped massively with with all those aspects. We know how hard it is to get back to number one."
"There's a man from Waterford called Austin Gleeson and he'd be proud of that one!" 😵
2023 @OfficialCamogie Player of the Year Beth Carton fires one over from long range in the @MunsterCamogie Semi-Final 🚀
Tune in LIVE on ➡️ https://t.co/yMkMTpFmTc 🔗 pic.twitter.com/AxoixCscc5
— Clubber (@clubber) May 4, 2024
Words of congrats
Speaking on the May winners, Managing Partner of PwC Ireland, Enda McDonagh, said: “The provincial finals are steeped in tradition and always an exciting time of year, and this year was no different, thanks to some outstanding performances. On behalf of everyone at PwC, I would like to extend my congratulations to Danielle, Beth, Darragh and Peadar on being named the May Player of the Month winners.”
Uachtarán Chumann Lúthchleas Gael, Jarlath Burns also awarded praise to the winners saying: “Our championships have been illuminated over the last two months by some superb team and individual displays and the performances of Danielle, Beth, Darragh and Peadar were of the highest quality during May. Congratulations to all four recipients on their awards and thank you to PwC and the GPA for their ongoing partnership which acknowledges the brilliance of these players.”
GPA CEO Tom Parsons also expressed his best wishes to the winners, stating that the PwC awards are "special" given that the winners are voted for by players and "peer recognition of individual performances really does mean more."
“On behalf of players, our thanks as always to PwC who are a long-term supporter of elite inter-county athletes. Thank you too to the GAA for your ongoing partnership on these awards.”
The PwC GPA Women’s Player of the Month and PwC GAA/GPA Players of the Month Award winners are voted for by the GPA’s membership.
