Westmeath camogie legend Greville hangs up her boots

Long-serving Westmeath camogie star Pamela Greville has hung up her boots after over 20 years of service to the Lake County.

Greville, an iconic figure in Westmeath Gaelic games and arguably the county’s greatest ever camogie player, announced her retirement on Instagram last night.

“It has been an absolute honour to wear the Westmeath jersey and it was even more special as it was shared with the most amazing people!” she said.

She paid tribute to her daughter Stephanie and her brothers, Johnny and Jimmy for their support and motivation over the years.

“One thing is for sure is that dreams really do come true, so don’t give up on yours,” she said. “Looking forward to seeing Westmeath Camogie grow more & more! Thanks for the memories!”

The Raharney camóg has played for Westmeath at every inter-county grade. A member of Westmeath’s victorious All-Ireland junior ‘B’ panel in 2006, she picked up All-Ireland medals at junior ‘A’ (2012), premier junior (2017) and intermediate grades (2019).

In October, she played her first game in All-Ireland senior competition, and was one of the stars as Westmeath upset the odds to overcome Limerick in their championship opener.

The Maroons’ campaign came to an end with defeat to Waterford in November, after which her brother, Johnny, decided to step down as manager of the team after four years of unprecedented success.

Now, Greville has followed suit after a glittering career in which she won two Soaring Star awards and last year’s WGPA intermediate player of the year award. Earlier in the year, she was also named the Westmeath Examiner’s Sports Star of the Year.

At club level, the gifted attacker has played a central role in making Raharney the dominant club in Westmeath, winning a sixth consecutive senior championship this year and making a provincial breakthrough in 2019.

Speaking to Midlands 103 this morning, the Deelsider – who works as office manager at Mullingar Golf Club – said that she felt the time was right to call it a day.

“With Covid and everything, senior looked like it was never going to happen, but it did, and we won a game in it. So I just feel like I’ve given everything that I can give, and I can walk away happy and feeling grateful,” she said.