Ladies Gaelic Football

"PEOPLE LIKE THAT ARE GREAT, TO HAVE THAT EXPERIENCE AROUND AND JUST GIVING. SOMETIMES IT'S JUST A SMALL CONVERSATION, GIVING PIECES OF ADVICE. IT WAS GREAT TO HAVE THAT EXPERIENCE AROUND THE PL ACE. IT'S AN EARLY START SO HOPEFULLY PEOPLE FROM FERMANAGH GET UP THE ROAD AND GIVE US SOME SUPPORT DEFINITELY." INTERVIEW INTERVIEW year. The new look girls in green won 2-11 to 2-8. Smyth top scored with 2-5. Fermanagh's league campaign ended with a semi- final loss to Limerick. Antrim got their revenge in the Ulster semi-final before coming from seven down to pip Fermanagh again in the decider. The highs and low continued. Fermanagh went down 1-9 to 1-5 to Carlow in their championship opener before getting past London 2-15 to 2-7. But the last day against Limerick, they really turned it on with seven goals in a high scoring thriller. "It was a hard and tough game and Limerick really brought it to us," continued Smyth. "They got a brilliant start; 1-3 up in the first five minutes. That's something that we definitely want to work on and have a look at before the 31st. But yes, it was a great game. "We definitely have the players and when we hit our stride, we're very, very difficult to stop. Now is the time to get ourselves into the game a bit quicker probably. But that's something to work on. You want to have things to work on. You're never going to be the perfect or finished article." So, all roads lead to Croke Park on Sunday 31stJuly and another showdown with Antrim. It's a contest that can to set the day up, even if 11.45am is an early start for enthusiastic supporters. "We know our own strengths but I suppose Antrim will definitely be favourites," states the 2020 junior footballer of the year. "I suppose given the experience of Croke Park last year, that will stand massive to them. So, we'll be under no illusions about the threat that Antrim pose. "Given the fact we've played each other a few times, they probably got one up on us. We'll be looking to right those wrongs. We know a lot about them and they know a lot about us. So, it'll be an interesting game. "They're very physical – the likes of Lara Dahunsi and Gráinne McLaughlin up front and Orla Pender. They have savage firepower and are very, very defensively solid. They're a very strong all- round team. I don't know if there's many weaknesses in terms of positional wise." Antrim's 2-17 to 1-9 defeat to Wicklow in last year's decider will make them more determined to get over the line. But Fermanagh are not without experience themselves. "Róisín Gleeson has been around since 2009," mentions Smyth. "She's played in a few All-Irelands. I think this will be her sixth now. "People like that are great, to have that experience around and just giving. Sometimes it's just a small conversation, giving pieces of advice. It was great to have that experience around the place. "It's an early start so hopefully people from Fermanagh get up the road and give us some support definitely." There's no doubt about that and the atmosphere in Croke Park will be completely different from the 2020 experience. "We missed out winning the All-Ireland back when it was in Parnell Park, added the Derrygonnelly Harps player. "We'll relish the occasion, sure. "But we know there's a game to be won so our focus will be on the match. And cliché as it sounds, it is just another match. Our focus will be on that. We'll take in the occasion but then we'll turn our focus to the game." Finally, what will it mean if Fermanagh win a third junior All- Ireland? "Whenever you're in the garden, six or seven playing with your brothers and sisters, you're imagining you're in Croke Park," concluded Smyth. "It'd be a massive achievement (to win). I think especially for this group of girls where we've come from without doubt. It'll be a great feeling for the girls, and for our captains, whoever goes up to lift it." With Smyth leading the charge, anything is possible. This image: Eimear Smyth of Fermanagh during the TG4 All-Ireland Junior Ladies Football Championship Semi-Final match between Fermanagh and Limerick at Coralstown-Kinnegad GAA in Kinnegad, Westmeath. 42 | SUMMER 2022 | www.ladiesgaelic.ie

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