Waterford Ladies Look to Appear In Back To Back Munster Finals

            Ladies Football is set to get a massive boost this coming weekend, after the Waterford Senior Ladies Football panel agreed to defer their Munster Semi Final clash against reigning champions Kerry by 24 hours so that the game can be part of the same programme as Kerry’s (Men) Munster Semi Final at the Killarney venue on Sunday afternoon.

            Fitzgerald Stadium will hardly be full to capacity for this game, but its fair to say all the same that a sizeable attendance will pay in to see the game and whether it is Kerry as the home side or Waterford as visitors that come out on top, the real winner in this game will be the game of Ladies Football, with many who might not normally go and see Ladies Football in the flesh being played will get to see some or all of the Kerry/Waterford game played, depending on how early they get inside the ground.

            Both sides in the National League which started a little earlier than usual this year had it could be said had very contrasting campaigns.

            Yes, the two sides played in different divisions. Kerry played in the top tier of National League Football, with Waterford playing in a division below them.

            Kerry had a very disappointing campaign, and at the end of seven rounds of games, they found themselves relegated.

            Waterford began the league with a long trip north to play Tyrone and returned home having suffered a defeat.

            However from here on it was wins all the way for Waterford, and they secured top spot in the table after they beat a previously unbeaten Tipperary side in a rearranged game at the end of the campaign and topped the group by virtue of winning the head to head between the two sides after they both finished on eighteen points each from a maximum of twenty-one.

            Waterford in the semi finals were pitted with Cavan who finished in fourth place having finished level on points with Armagh but finished below the Orchard County Side on score difference after the two sides shared the spoils when they clashed in the round robin section of the competition.

            But it was not to be Waterford’s day in the semi finals, as the Ulster side ran out 1-8 to 0-8 winners, and so will play in Division two again next year, with Tipperary going up to play in the top division after securing back to back promotions.

            After the league, Kerry came under new management with Eddie Sheehy taking over as manager.

            He will know only too well that while his side are the reigning Munster Champions, they are by no means certain of securing a passage to the next round of the competition.

            Twelve months ago when the two sides met in Fraher Field Waterford ran out winners and when the pair clashed again in the Munster Final Waterford were leading with the game heading into the dying minutes, but the Kingdom ladies hit three points in a row to win the game by two.

            The home side on Sunday will not liked to be relegated this year, and will be looking to gather themselves and get back to winning ways as soon as possible, showing that they are no-where near the side they showed themselves to be in the league.

            The new Kerry manager will take into this game a wealth of experience, having previously managed club side Na Gaeil in Tralee to All-Ireland Junior success back in 2013.

            Waterford and Kerry are going to be no strangers to each other with the sides having met on a number of occasions since Waterford went back playing Senior in 2016.

            Waterford will know that within the Kerry side they have a number of excellent players in the likes of Aislinn Desmond, Lorraine Scanlon, Sarah Houlihan and of course Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh.

            But just as Waterford will know of the talent available to Kerry, the home side in this game will know all about the talent available to Pat Sullivan.

            Waterford may not be able to get its best starting fifteen on the field this weekend because of Injuries and players returning from injury who would normally be first choice players.

            Caoimhe McGrath did not feature in the league this year. The Abbeyside club player is without doubt one of the finest footballers in the country. It remains to be seen if this game comes that little bit too early for her, but it would be expected that if needs be she will be available to be sprung from the bench.

            Her fellow Abbeyside club player Maria Delahunty is another of the country’s finest players. She picked up a freak injury recently and while it is hoped that she is likely to feature at some stage in this game, it remains to be seen if she is fit to play the full sixty minutes.

            Emma Murray is also nursing an injury for Waterford and Róisín Tobin whose value to any side cannot be highlighted enough is out for some time after she picked up a nasty injury while playing for Waterford in the National League against Sligo at the WIT Arena earlier this year.

            But despite these possible losses, Waterford still will have a very strong side out on the field on Sunday.

            Grainne Kenneally volunteered to go in goal earlier this year for the side and since doing so hardly put a foot wrong, something would never expect one of the sides most experienced players to do.

            In defence Waterford will have players like Michelle McGrath, Megan Dunford, Mairead Wall, Rebecca Casey, Kate McGrath, Aisling Mullaney, Keeley Corbett-Barry, Laura Cusack, and Kate Hahessey to choose from.

            In the middle of the field Karen McGrath and Katie Murray were outstanding throughout the league and Pat Sullivan and his selectors might see no reason to break up a fantastic pairing.

            In attack, Waterford can be really strong, being able to call on players like Aoife Murray, Geraldine Power, Lauren McGregor, Maria Delahunty (if deemed fit to play), Kelly Ann Hogan, Liz Devine, Michelle and Sinead Ryan, Aileen Wall, and Eimear Fennell to name but a few.

            Such is the talent available to Pat Sullivan and his selectors, they were able to leave players like Sinead Ryan and Aileen Wall out of the starting team for much of the league, bringing them on during the course of the game adding considerable firepower to the Waterford attack.

            Any side that can leave players of the calibre of the Ballymacarbry duo out of the side from the start just shows how good this Waterford side are.

            It’s also worth noting that in the league Eimear Fennell was outstanding playing at full forward for Waterford and how she was not included in the Division Two National League team of the year is bound to amaze many of those that saw games played in the competition.

            Waterford had just one name listen on that team in former captain, Michelle McGrath but could and should have had others included.

            Kerry playing on their home patch, and being the reigning champions, might go into this fixture as favourites, but many will be expecting Waterford to really upset those that set the odds for the different Bookies.

            Back in 1991 when Michael Ryan was manager of the Waterford senior Ladies Football side, the start of a great run that lasted for most of the decade that followed began by beating a Kerry side in the Munster Championship that were hoping to win ten All-Ireland Finals in a row that year.

            Back then there was no back door system; once you were beaten you were out. Waterford went on in the next number of year’s won five All-Ireland Senior titles as well as numerous Munster and National League finals, and the players involved in these successes spurred on many more to take up and be successful playing Ladies Football.

            It would be nice to think that if Waterford were to win on Sunday afternoon in Killarney, that it could well start another glorious era for Ladies Football in Waterford.

            The hard work has certainly being done with developing the game in the county and some great young players are coming through at present. There is some fantastic players in the current squad, many of whom you would expect to be around for a while to come yet.

            If Waterford were to win on Sunday and another great era was to begin for the game within the Déise County, it would be nice to think that some of the more senior in age players of the panel might hang around for a few more years and to ease those that will be added to the team in the years to come into the panel and playing at the very top level.

            Can Waterford win on Sunday and set up a Munster Final appearance against Cork or Tipperary, you can bet your bottom dollar on the fact they can.