Limerick ladies face Longford in Junior Football All-Ireland championship opener

AFTER a triumphant Munster Senior ‘B’ Championship final victory over Cork, the Limerick Ladies football team now turn their attention to the opening round of the TG4 All-Ireland Ladies Junior Championship.

Limerick were beaten in last year’s All-Ireland Junior final by Down and the team is aiming to right the wrongs of that final.

The Shannonsiders open their championship campaign away to familiar rivals Longford this Sunday, June 2 at Glennon Brother Pearse Park at 2pm.

Sean Kiely and Mike Quilligan’s side will compete in Group B with further fixtures to follow, away to Louth and finally at home to Kilkenny. Most recently the Limerick side captured their first piece of silverware this season after a confident 1-10 to 0-7 victory in the Munster LGFA Senior ‘B’ final against Cork in Mallow.

This trophy couldn’t have arrived at a better time for the group who suffered a disappointing defeat to Carlow in the Division 4 Lidl National League final back in April.

Speaking after the Munster final win joint-manager Sean Kiely said: “It was vital for us to pick up a trophy before the All-Ireland Championship started. At this stage we have lost an All-Ireland final, two National League finals and a Munster final and that is all in the space of two years so we really needed to get over the line to make the girls realise that we are more than capable of beating these teams.”

The Limerick Ladies team used this Munster Senior ‘B’ championship as part of their preparation for the All-Ireland series with over 31 girls seeing gametime throughout the provincial competition. This has allowed the management team to implement new strategies and build-up a solid squad ahead of their opening game against Longford.

Joint-manager Kiely said: “The Munster Championship is a fantastic competition. Before 2021 you were finishing the National League and waiting almost two months to play again in the Championship.

“Those days you were letting girls go back to their clubs for two or three weeks and almost running another pre-season to get them up to speed again, but thankfully the championship has acted as a stepping stone for us and it gives us plenty of scope to bring in new players and get everyone vital game time.”

The team have shown character over the past two years and results in both the National League and the Munster Senior ‘B’ Championship have shown the depth of the panel.

After the June Bank Holiday weekend, the Limerick ladies will enjoy a weekend off before hitting the road again to take on Louth on Sunday, June 16.

The final group game of the Junior All-Ireland Championship will be a home fixture on Sunday, June 30 against Kilkenny.

LIMERICK LADIES FOOTBALL PANEL 2024: Roisin Ambrose (Old Mill), Carol Bateman (Mungret St Paul’s), Fiona Bradshaw (Oola), Laoise Browne (Ballylanders), Roisin Browne (Monagea), Grace Lee (Monagea), Yvonne Lee (Monagea), Meadbh McNamara (St Ailbe’s), Cathy Mee (Ballylanders), Grace Mullane (Monagea), Aine Cleary (Knockainey), Leagh Coughlan (Oola), Michaela Cumes (Knockainey), Sarah Dillon (Pallasgreen), Katie Heelan (St Ailbe’s), Aoibhinn Murphy (St Brigid’s), Deborah Murphy (Monagea), Caoimhe McGrath (Fr Casey’s), Joanne McGuire (St Ailbe’s), Caoimhe McNamara (Knockainey), Sophie Hennessy (Old Mill), Mairead Kavanagh (St Ailbe’s), Kate Kenendy (St Ailbe’s), Iris Kenneally (Old Mill), Ailish Kiely (St Brigid’s), Karen O’Leary (Monagea), Andrea O’Sullivan (Ballylanders), Alva Quaid (Old Mill), Lauren Ryan (Adare), Ellie Woulfe (Monagea).