Issue link: http://digitaleditions.uberflip.com/i/1192470
ADVERT G etting to a national final is never easy, no matter what grade or division you're playing in. Undeterred by an uncertain and delayed start to the season, the Lidl National League Division 1 title was the first target that we set out for ourselves in 2019. Achieving that target against an old and formidable foe (Kerry), with one of our best team performances to date, made it all the more memorable. Somewhere along the journey you realise that it's incredibly important to celebrate the good days and thankfully the scenes of pure joy on the pitch and in the dressing room after the final whistle have been captured for us all to enjoy. The new players to the panel couldn't have asked for a better start to their senior inter-county careers. For those of us who had achieved victory in the Division 3 Final in 2016, a Division 2 title was a sign of further progression stemming from the long, hard-fought return to TG4 Senior Championship status in 2015. For those of us lucky enough to have a Division 1 League medal from 2002, this Division 2 League Final victory meant that we had seen the status of Waterford Ladies Football come full circle, with the team back competing at the highest level in all adult competitions once again. So, while some might say "It's only the League", to all of us, that 2019 League title and team performance meant much more than that. Michelle Ryan's TOP 5 MOMENTS of 2019. Michelle Ryan is a Waterford Footballer and a participant on the PR/Media strand of the LGFA Female Leadership Programme: Learn to Lead. 1 2 T his time last year saw me looking for new personal challenges and with that I decided to apply to take part in a new LGFA leadership programme. Looking back at it now, it was one of the best decisions that I made for 2019 and through it, I have shared many powerful and memorable moments with fantastic people. While not entirely certain of what exactly I was signing up to, I decided to look upon it at the time as a chance for personal development within the sport that I've loved since a very young age. In selecting the PR/media strand, I knew that I would be pushing myself well outside my comfort zone but the opportunity to learn more about this area within the realm of ladies football and sport made it both intriguing and extremely exciting. Meeting my fellow participants on day one was quite nerve-wracking but a very simple bonding exercise that was embraced by us all within our PR/media group turned into a very moving and powerful experience. That first exercise on that very first day succeeded in uniting us all from that point on and it has stayed with me ever since. To date, the Learn To Lead programme has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience and one that I'm very grateful to be a part of. The leadership seminars have allowed us to interact with and learn from some truly inspirational figures in the world of sport, business, politics and beyond. So www.ladiesgaelic.ie | WINTER 2019 | 35 Waterford winning the Lidl National League Division 2 League Title LGFA Learn To Lead Programme