THERE’S STILL THREE rounds remaining in the league, but All-Ireland champions Dublin are on the cusp of making an early exit from the race for the Division 1 title.
Dublin defender Martha Byrne. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
Mick Bohan’s side currently sit in fifth place after picking up one win from four outings. That run of results leaves them on four points, eight behind the current leaders, and defending champions, Cork.
The format of the Ladies football league has changed this year, with semi-finals being scrapped to leave just a decider for the top two teams while the rest battle it out to retain their top-tier status for the following season.
Dublin face Waterford, Donegal and Westmeath in their remaining fixtures, but as things stand, they are unlikely to reach the league final. And the Dubs are set to face further complications with getting access to competitive games later this year.
The Ladies Gaelic Football Association [LGFA] has scrapped the Leinster senior championship for 2020 as the future of the competition became uncertain due to Westmeath’s relegation to the intermediate ranks in 2019.
“Our league will be over by the end of March,” Dublin defender Martha Byrne explains.
And then we don’t have another competitive match until July so it’s a long wait.”
Commenting on the changes to the league format, Byrne continues:
“I can see why they did it. It makes the league shorter so people can spend more time with their clubs but it probably makes the competition a bit less competitive because it’s looking two or three teams are going to pull away.
But again, the league is a great time to just get performances in and get things in place. It probably makes things a bit less competitive but…
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“I don’t know, it’s hard to tell. And I probably have a biased opinion because we probably can’t reach a league final now. If we win our next three matches, we might have been in reach of a semi-final, so I’m probably a bit biased in that sense.
“They have to trial these things, and it’s good that the league is a little bit shorter so we have more time with our clubs. It’s always trying to find that balance really.”
On the personnel front, Byrne says that the team has been bolstered by the return of Sinéad Aherne and Noelle Healy in recent weeks.
Aherne, who captained Dublin to an All-Ireland three-in-a-row last year, is now into her 17th season after an already incredible career in the Sky Blue.
Dublin's Sinéad Aherne has returned to training recently. Bryan Keane / INPHO
Bryan Keane / INPHO / INPHO
Meanwhile, Healy has returned to the fold after helping Cork kingpins Mourneabbey to secure back-to-back All-Ireland titles last November.
“Noelle and Sinéad are back in training,” says a delighted Byrne.
Noelle has had the success with Mourneabbey. She’s back working in Dublin now. It’s great to hear their voices back out on the training pitch and in the camp. It’s brilliant.
“It seems every year the question comes up will Sinéad stay on. Last season we were disappointed in ourselves in the performance we put on in the All-Ireland final. But when we heard that Sinead was coming back again this year, it was such a huge lift for us all.”
But the Dubs also have some key absentees in the camp. Seasoned duo Sinéad Goldrick and Niamh McEvoy are both with Australian Football League Women [AFLW] side Melbourne at the moment, and will not be back in the capital until that season concludes in April.
Influential midfielder Lauren Magee is set to face a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a broken collarbone while Olwen Carey is unavailable as she is studying for accountancy exams.
“It will be a while before she gets back. Hopefully for Championship. But she is such a determined person that she be doing her best to return as quickly as she can.
“She can’t drive but she comes along to what she can.”
The first of Dublin’s final three league games for 2020 is coming up this weekend. They will travel to face a Waterford side who are just behind them on the Division 1 table with the same number of points.
A place in the league final may be all but out of reach for Dublin, but Byrne insists that getting a result from these games is still an important challenge for them.
“It hasn’t been the dream start by any stretch of the imagination. It’s not even the fact that we lost, it’s the fact that we probably haven’t really performed to our ability. Even though the league is probably out of our reach at the moment, these last three games are probably about going after performances really.
“We haven’t really performed to the level that we can.”
Kinetica Sports Nutrition has announced that it is the official sports nutrition partner to Dublin GAA which came into effect on 1 January 2020. The sponsorship extends across both football and hurling for senior men and under 20’s and football and camogie for senior women and U20 teams.
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'We won't have another match until July' - Dublin face long wait between league and championship
THERE’S STILL THREE rounds remaining in the league, but All-Ireland champions Dublin are on the cusp of making an early exit from the race for the Division 1 title.
Mick Bohan’s side currently sit in fifth place after picking up one win from four outings. That run of results leaves them on four points, eight behind the current leaders, and defending champions, Cork.
The format of the Ladies football league has changed this year, with semi-finals being scrapped to leave just a decider for the top two teams while the rest battle it out to retain their top-tier status for the following season.
Dublin face Waterford, Donegal and Westmeath in their remaining fixtures, but as things stand, they are unlikely to reach the league final. And the Dubs are set to face further complications with getting access to competitive games later this year.
The Ladies Gaelic Football Association [LGFA] has scrapped the Leinster senior championship for 2020 as the future of the competition became uncertain due to Westmeath’s relegation to the intermediate ranks in 2019.
“Our league will be over by the end of March,” Dublin defender Martha Byrne explains.
Commenting on the changes to the league format, Byrne continues:
“I can see why they did it. It makes the league shorter so people can spend more time with their clubs but it probably makes the competition a bit less competitive because it’s looking two or three teams are going to pull away.
“I don’t know, it’s hard to tell. And I probably have a biased opinion because we probably can’t reach a league final now. If we win our next three matches, we might have been in reach of a semi-final, so I’m probably a bit biased in that sense.
“They have to trial these things, and it’s good that the league is a little bit shorter so we have more time with our clubs. It’s always trying to find that balance really.”
On the personnel front, Byrne says that the team has been bolstered by the return of Sinéad Aherne and Noelle Healy in recent weeks.
Aherne, who captained Dublin to an All-Ireland three-in-a-row last year, is now into her 17th season after an already incredible career in the Sky Blue.
Meanwhile, Healy has returned to the fold after helping Cork kingpins Mourneabbey to secure back-to-back All-Ireland titles last November.
“Noelle and Sinéad are back in training,” says a delighted Byrne.
“It seems every year the question comes up will Sinéad stay on. Last season we were disappointed in ourselves in the performance we put on in the All-Ireland final. But when we heard that Sinead was coming back again this year, it was such a huge lift for us all.”
But the Dubs also have some key absentees in the camp. Seasoned duo Sinéad Goldrick and Niamh McEvoy are both with Australian Football League Women [AFLW] side Melbourne at the moment, and will not be back in the capital until that season concludes in April.
Influential midfielder Lauren Magee is set to face a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a broken collarbone while Olwen Carey is unavailable as she is studying for accountancy exams.
“It will be a while before she gets back. Hopefully for Championship. But she is such a determined person that she be doing her best to return as quickly as she can.
“She can’t drive but she comes along to what she can.”
The first of Dublin’s final three league games for 2020 is coming up this weekend. They will travel to face a Waterford side who are just behind them on the Division 1 table with the same number of points.
A place in the league final may be all but out of reach for Dublin, but Byrne insists that getting a result from these games is still an important challenge for them.
“It hasn’t been the dream start by any stretch of the imagination. It’s not even the fact that we lost, it’s the fact that we probably haven’t really performed to our ability. Even though the league is probably out of our reach at the moment, these last three games are probably about going after performances really.
“We haven’t really performed to the level that we can.”
Kinetica Sports Nutrition has announced that it is the official sports nutrition partner to Dublin GAA which came into effect on 1 January 2020. The sponsorship extends across both football and hurling for senior men and under 20’s and football and camogie for senior women and U20 teams.
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Changes Dublin Ladies lidl national ladies football league martha byrne