Memorable year for ladies captain
December 30, 2010What a fantastic year it was! Just over a decade since those historic back-to-back All-Ireland junior and intermediate championship wins of the late '90s had put Louth ladies football on the national map, the Wee County returned to the big time in 2010 by blazing a trail through to the All-Ireland junior ladies football final against Limerick at Croke Park on Sunday September 26th.
Therein, Dermot Agnew's charges gave a wonderful account of themselves, leading by six points at half time but eventually falling to a narrow 4-10 to 3-8 defeat. While defeat was disappointing, contesting another big final on such a huge stage represented an invaluable arc on the team's learning curve and the hope now is that they can put the experience to good effect by finishing the job at the next time of asking.
As Louth captain, Grace Lynch had another outstanding year in the red shirt. The centre back had previously served as county captain in 2008, before being re-appointed for the 2010 campaign. Grace first burst onto the intercounty scene in 1999, coming on as a substitute in the All-Ireland intermediate final, and has represented her county with distinction ever since. Does she agree that 2010 was Louth's best season since '99?
"Getting to Croke Park and getting to play in an All-Ireland final was great. Ironically, though, we didn't get any silverware at the end of it. In 2009, we won the Leinster junior title, but this year we lost the Leinster final. When we lost the All-Ireland final, it meant we finished the year empty-handed, apart from the memories of getting to Croke Park. It was a wonderful experience and we're now hoping to do what a lot of other teams have done by going back and winning it next year. They say you have to lose a final to win one, so hopefully we can follow in Limerick's footsteps by winning it in 2011."
What about the experience of All-Ireland final day - travelling to Croke Park, playing live on television, the hype around the county? How enjoyable was the whole occasion? "It was brilliant. When we won the semi-final, we were thinking how brilliant it would be to get to an All-Ireland final but nothing could have prepared us for the reception we got. The hype and the colour and the support all over the county was incredible.
"We got unbelievable coverage and it was brilliant the way the game was promoted in the county. Everybody got behind us and even if it inspires three or four young girls to play football it will all have been worthwhile. From a player's point of view, it was great to be involved. We had Mickey Harte down to give us some advice and little things like that make a big difference. Overall, it was just a great experience."
It's been quite a remarkable transformation considering that ladies football in the county had hit an all-time low as recently as four or five years ago… "We've got to the last three Leinster finals, winning it in 2009, and now an All-Ireland final, so things are looking up," Grace notes. "It wasn't looking good a few years ago and some girls just didn't want to give the commitment. That has changed now and hopefully after this year girls will see that if you are prepared to put in the work you can get to the big stage and get to play in Croke Park, which is a dream for every footballer.
"It's hard to believe that only four or five years ago we weren't able to field a team, but hopefully more and more new girls will want to get involved now. That's the best part."
Of course, you don't get to an All-Ireland final by chance. It takes a large amount of endeavour. The Louth ladies started training together way back in December; the league kicked off in February; and they were still going right through to the end of September - which is where every team wants to be. "It was great but there is a lot of hard work and sacrifices to be made, while other people are heading off on holidays and going for nights out, but that's all part of being a county footballer and it's worth it in the end when you taste some degree of success.
"We had a very young team this year with a lot of new players, so that augurs well for the future. We lost eleven girls from the previous squad through retirement etc. but these new girls really stepped up to the mark and we're hoping to get the same response again next year."
And what's the target for next year? To go back and win the All-Ireland? "If you're not thinking about trying to win All-Irelands, there's probably no point in playing football. I still haven't got over the disappointment of losing last year's final but we have to put that behind us and move on. We know now we're good enough. We know we have the football in us so, with the right commitment, hopefully we can get back to Croke Park again in September. We desperately want to get back and go one better."
In 2009, Grace's outstanding performances in the Louth jersey saw her selected at centre half back on the Division Three Team of the Year. In 2010, she made the Division Four All Star side, alongside Louth colleagues Sarah Quinn (full back) and Roseanne Heaney (midfield).
At club level, she has won back-to-back senior championships with Stabannon in 2009 and 2010, while the league title was also collected during the season gone by. Her brother Padraig trains the senior team and also manages the club's junior side that won the junior league in October. Now the leading lights in Louth ladies club football, Stabannon have made phenomenal progress since coming up through the grades from junior and intermediate levels and their best-known player attributes this to the amount of football the girls are getting:
"When you're involved in a club, you want to play matches. We set up the junior team so everyone would get plenty of games and we also have a large pool of underage players coming through. They are all getting their games and that's what has made us so strong. Credit for that has to go to the committee, the mentors and the people of the parish in general, who have given us great support and encouragement." Tweet
