The Camogie Association's official rulers state that players must wear skorts.Getty Images

The Cork and Waterford senior camogie panels are set to stage their own skort protest when they face off for the Munster Final this Saturday, May 10.

"We look forward to representing ourselves, our clubs, our counties, and our supporters in Saturday’s Munster Final," the two senior camogie teams said in a statement released via the Gaelic Players Association (GPA) on Wednesday, May 7.

"We will not be making any further media comment ahead of the game as our concentration is focussed on putting on our best possible performance.

"We will be at The Ragg in Tipperary with the intention of getting the better of each other on the field of play.

"We will be togged out wearing shorts.

"That is our choice."

As per the Camogie Association's official playing rules, players must wear a "skirt / skort / divided skirt" during matches. 

If the rule is not complied with, a referee will first caution the player(s) for dissent. If the player(s) continue to not comply, the referee of the match can dismiss them from play.

Last Saturday, the senior Dublin and Kilkenny camogie teams coordinated their own skort protest for the Leinster semi-final.

When the two teams took the pitch wearing shorts instead of skorts, they were cautioned by referee Ray Kelly.

Faced with the possibility of the match being abandoned, the two teams ultimately decided to both change into skorts and the match went ahead.

Last weekend's skort protest in Leinster comes just days after the GPA published the findings of its Annual Player Survey, which recorded responses from 650 inter-county camogie players. 

83% of players surveyed would prefer to wear shorts, or believe that players should have the option to choose, the GPA found. 70% reported discomfort while wearing shorts. 65% expressed concern about exposure in media content, affecting their mental state. 49% said they had experienced anxiety around period leaks. 

The official GPA position is that "players should have the choice to wear Skorts or Shorts on the basis of player welfare," and that "player welfare should be prioritised over established norms & traditions in decision making."

Players remain open to collaborative dialogue on this issue with the Camogie Association, GAA, Sport Ireland, and other sporting bodies, the GPA said.

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However, at the annual Camogie Association Congress in April 2024, a motion on players being able to wear shorts failed to pass.

"Great Britain proposed the inclusion of shorts as part of the playing uniform within Rule 6," the Association said afterward.

"There was in-depth discussion at Congress on the topic, with many counties providing insightful feedback from surveys completed by their younger and senior players.

"The motion resulted in 45% of the delegates voting in favour and 55% against."

The Association added: "Motion 56 was proposed by Tipperary to replace the ‘skirt/skort/divided skirt’ entirely with ‘shorts’ as part of the playing uniform. The motion did not pass with a 64% vote against.

"The next time delegates can vote on the playing uniform will be at Congress in 2027."

When asked about the GPA's findings, the Camogie Association told The42.ie on Monday that it "remains committed to respecting the democratic process in all decisions that affect all of our members."

However, RTÉ Sport reported on Wednesday that the Camogie Association could move the vote up to 2026.

It is understood that Camogie president Brian Molloy, with support and approval from the Ard Chomhairle of the Camogie Association, will bring forward a motion to be discussed before the association's Annual Congress in 2026 which will possibly give players the freedom of choice to wear skorts or shorts.

RTÉ Sport reported that Molloy's decision to seek and try to find a compromise is under the term "exceptional circumstances."