Katie’s Best Keeper

Ballyduff Upper Club Player Katie Hannon is the sole Waterford representative on this year’s Division Two Lidl Ladies Football Team of the Year in the National League.

Katie who has come back into the Waterford set up in the last couple of season’s and has made a huge impact.

Within weeks of her return to the Waterford set up she helped the county reach the Division Three League Final which Waterford were somewhat unlucky not to have won the game in controversial circumstances against Sligo at Parnell Park in Dublin.

Katie and Waterford however would make up for that defeat by capturing the Intermediate All-Ireland Final recording a very good win over Kildare at Croke Park.

Twelve months on from the defeat of Sligo in the National League Final of 2015, Katie and Waterford were back in the final at 2016 where they drew with Tipperary at Clane thanks to a late pressure kick converted by Maria Delahunty, and in the replay at Semple Stadium Katie and Waterford in a game that proved to be a curtain raiser for the National Hurling League replay between Waterford and Clare, where another pressure kick by Maria Delahunty helped Waterford collect a second major piece of silverware in eight months.

The eight sides that took part in Division Two of this year’s league all have at least one player picked in the best XV in the league.

While Waterford finished the league in seventh place, five points off the number needed to secure a semi-final spot, the county are somewhat unlucky not to have had more representatives in the best XV.

In the side’s campaign, while all players in the panel were given a run, maybe as a result cutting down on the time they played overall in the league, players like Michelle Ryan, Maria Delahunty, Aileen and Mairead Wall, Lauren McGregor and Róisín Tobin along with Katie Hannon were all very impressive.

Westmeath who won this year’s Division Two final beating Cavan after a replay finished the league with three players in the best XV, as Rachel Dillon was named as the best right corner back, Laura Brennan was named the best left half back while Maud Annie Foley was selected in the Number Nine shirt.

Runners up Cavan however had the most representatives with four places on the best XV with Sinead Greene named as the best right half back, Donna English in the number eight shirt, while it was no surprise to see Aisling Sheridan and Aisling Donovan picked in the corner forward positions.

Clare also have three representatives on the team of the year with Laurie Ryan picked at full back, Ailish Considine at right half forward and Niamh O’Dea at full forward.

Elsewhere there is one place each for Kildare, Tyrone, Sligo and Laois.

Kildare’s Aisling Curley was picked at left full back, Neamh Woods of Tyrone at Centre Back, Stephanie O’Reilly from Sligo is named at centre forward and Erone Fitzpatrick from Laois fills the number twelve shirt.