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30 | AUTUMN 2019 | www.ladiesgaelic.ie FEATURE A t the end of a testing year for Monaghan football, Emyvale delivered a significant boost as a talented side claimed a third All-Ireland Senior Club 7s title on Saturday, September 14. From start to finish, Emyvale were very much a team on a mission during the annual blitz day, and they finished off a stunning run to glory with a comprehensive victory over the Banner Ladies from Clare in the Final. This was a sweet win for Emyvale, who had lost out to the Banner in the 2018 Final. When the sides met again, it was clear from the early minutes that there would only be one winner, and Emyvale cruised to a 10-6 to 1-10 victory. Monaghan county star Ciara McAnespie was brilliant in the Final, scoring five goal, and she was joined on the winning team by her four sisters. All in all, it was a memorable few days for the McAnespie family, as Ciara's mother Brenda featured alongside Waterford's Marie Crotty in a video commissioned by the LGFA to remember the All-Ireland Senior Final of 1994. On TG4 All-Ireland Final day, Brenda and her Monaghan team-mates were saluted as part of the 25- year Jubilee celebrations during a special function held at Croke Park. "Football has been a massive part of our family growing up," smiled Ciara (29). "Mam's video, it was great to see it. She's been hugely involved in Ladies Football for many, many years, and both her and Dad were at the blitz on the Saturday. It was nice for them to see us do well." Brenda's life and times have also been documented s winner Ciara McAnespie talks to Jackie Cahill… by the Laochra Gael team, and that special episode is due to air in the New Year. The All-Ireland 7s also brought a degree of revenge against Monaghan rivals Donaghmoyne at the semi-final stage. A week previously, Emyvale had lost the county Final to Donaghmoyne, but they beat them by a point in a gripping 7s semi-final. Ciara now hopes that 2020 will bring better fortunes for the Monaghan county team. They'll operate in Division 2 of the Lidl National League following relegation this year, but promotion is a realistic target if the newly-appointed county team manager can persuade some players to come back on board, while also supplementing the Senior squad with members of the minor team that contested an All-Ireland A Final. "This year was extremely difficult," Ciara admits. "We had lost about nine or ten players from the starting team but we had to keep going." Monaghan preserved Senior Championship status by seeing off Westmeath in a winner-takes-all relegation play-off – a significant result. And Ciara says: "I'd like to think that a few of them (players) will come back – it would be nice if we could get a few back, along with a few of the minor girls. "If you're missing one or two players from any team, it's always going to be difficult, but we were missing nine or ten. "It was hard but we were able to keep the thing going. We'll be playing in Division 2 of the League, that's a tough competition but if we can get a few wins out of that, it will give us the confidence we need going forward into the Championship. 7 Above: Ciara McAnespie in action. 2. Marie Hickey, President, LGFA, presents the Abbeyside, Co Waterford Captain with the Intermediate Championship Final trophy after they beat Templemore, Co Tipperary