By Ciaran Woods
c.woods@gaeliclife.com
SIX of the nine Ulster counties are in action this weekend as the Bord Gais Energy National Football League continues at full steam. Players involved in Thursday night's colleges finals as well as schools play-offs this week will have had little time to recover, but that cannot be an excuse this weekend with crucial league points up for grabs.
In Division 1A Tyrone will be hoping to bounce back to winning ways as they travel to Donegal. The Red Hands currently sit mid-table with three of their five games played so far. They picked up two wins against Mayo and Laois last time out, but fell to Kerry last weekend. Tyrone were minus a number of players for last weekend's trip, and boss Niall Colton will be hoping that with a full compliment of personnel this time out they can emerge from the local derby tie with the spoils.
For Donegal, the situation is becoming increasingly desperate. Three games, three losses, with a score difference of -41 leave them in serious danger of being cast adrift at the foot of the table. Relegation is a very real threat unless they can win both of their remaining games, starting this weekend with the visit of Tyrone.
Manager Dominic McGlinchey has had to field without a host of first-team regulars, and in their absence the talented young players have not shown enough experience and know-how to cope with life in the top grade.
It's difficult to see anything other than a Tyrone success, even though Donegal's need for points will ensure that it's a tough contest.
Also in 1A, Armagh take on Mayo. The Orchard girls have stuttered through their games to date, but although they have only picked up one win from three outings they have shown glimpses of form which suggest that they are not too far off the mark.
They went down to Laois last time out, four points the losing margin, and if they can get more points on the board then they could prove too hard for Mayo to handle. The Western side have found their form in the last two games, recovering from that opening day defeat to Tyrone to record two subsequent wins. While Mayo's sights may be set on a league title, Armagh's first concern will be to keep themselves clear of the relegation trapdoor.
With Donegal three points behind and just one more round of games to be played after this weekend, Armagh boss Gregory McGonigle will not want to be heading into his side's final round tie against Tyrone in desperate need of points. The first thing that he will demand is a good performance this Sunday afternoon, and will hope that it will be enough to keep them clear of trouble.
A win might not come this weekend, but a good showing should set them up nicely for that championship dress rehearsal to follow a week later.
In Division 1B, Monaghan travel to Galway hoping to continue their good run of form. They recorded their second win of the campaign with a comprehensive victory over Kildare on Sunday last. Two first-half goals from Niamh Kindlon set them on their way and by the time the 60 minutes was up, all six forwards had scored.
Both Amanda Casey and Isobel Kierans were unavailable to boss John McAleer, and this weekend they head into the first of two away games. Galway have struggled, three defeats from three outings, and Monaghan will hope to pile more pressure on the Tribeswomen.
A win could see Monaghan top of the table by Sunday evening, and with a playoff place within touching distance the Farney girls will not let it slip now. Monaghan have serious firepower and that should catapult them to victory with the crunch clash against high-flying Cork to follow.
Down got their division 2B campaign off to a flying start with a 6-12 to 3-9 thumping of Cavan in their opening round clash, and hope to maintain that run of form as they head into their clash with Meath this weekend. The Mourne girls have continued their good run of form from last year, a season which saw them take out the Royals in championship action.
They head into Sunday's game hoping to repeat that feat, but it will be far from easy against a formidable Meath outfit who proved too strong for Fermanagh last weekend. They racked up 4-16 against the Erne girls, which shows that this weekend's tie really could turn into a shoot-out.
Meath have been around the top table of the ladies game for some time, while Down are only recently finding their feet and making their mark at the highest level. A win over Meath this weekend would be another milestone in their development. They have played well at Saval over recent games, it's proven to be a fruitful venue, and they should earn another victory this Sunday to maintain their push for promotion.
Elsewhere in Division 2B, Fermanagh travel to Longford for a game which could go a long way to deciding their fate in this grade. The Erne girls have fallen to both Cavan and Meath so far, and this weekend's clash against second-bottom Longford could ultimately decide which of the two teams makes the drop. Longford's results and performances have been poor so far, and if Fermanagh have any realistic aims of maintaining their status in the division then victory is a must.
Heading into another Intermediate championship campaign with high hopes, the Erne girls need to rack up a few positive results in their remaining games in what really is a crossroads year for them.
Fermanagh have shown an ability to turn in a performance when required, and with so much at stake this weekend the Erne girls should not be found wanting.
This weekend's Bord Gáis Energy Ladies NFL fixtures
Saturday February 28
Division Two
Waterford v Westmeath at Dungarvan (3.30pm)
Sunday March 1
Division One
Armagh v Mayo at Dorsey Emmets (2.00pm)
Kerry v Laois at Castleisland (1.00pm)
Donegal v Tyrone at Venue TBC (2.00pm)
Dublin v Cork at Naomh Mearnóg (2.00pm)
Galway v Monaghan at Dunmore (2.00pm)
Clare v Kildare at Lissycasey (2.00pm)
Division Two
Sligo v Wexford at Castleconner (2.00pm)
Leitrim v Tipperary at Leitrim Gaels (2.00pm)
Longford v Fermanagh at Emmet Park Killoe (2.00pm)
Down v Meath at Saval (2.00pm)
Division Three
Louth v Offaly at Venue TBC (2.00pm)
Roscommon v Carlow at Johnstown (2.00pm)
PRO's get the message
"Make something happen" was the message to county PROs at the Public Relations Conference which was held in Croke Park on Saturday.
The delegates who attended heard from the journalistic profession as Ollie Turner (Galway Bay FM), Conal Collier (Meath Chronicle) and Lorraine O Sullivan (Inpho Photography) gave of advice and tips on how to maximise coverage in the media.
Patricia Monaghan from the Ladies association also delivered a very informative session on PEIL and the requirements for match programmes. The day was organised by the Ladies association and was facilitated by Mick O'Keefe from Pembroke Communications.
Two very clear messages came out of the day. Firstly it is important to provide consistent, quality and accurate information to the local media. Secondly everyone present was asked simply to make something happen.
"The Bord Gais Energy Ladies National league has just began. If you havent already done something then over the next week or so go and make something happen," said Ollie Turner from Galway Bay FM.
Five Ulster counties were represented on the day. Mary Grimes (Monaghan), Pat Quinn (Tyrone), Paddy Coll (Donegal), Louise Glass and Niamh Archibald (Derry), Paul Swift (Ulster PRO) and Mairead Mc Parland (Armagh) all attended the event.
Nothing's bad that couldn't be worse
Ladies footballers in Ulster often complain about how they are treated, or mistreated, by their county boards. Whether it's no food after training, a bus that's decades old, or tracksuits that aren't the correct colour of blue.
However, it could be worse... you could be from Kildare.
In an unusual series of events the Kildare ladies football board has asked members of it's senior squad to pay a levy in order to represent the county.
Members of the senior and senior B squads have been told that they must pay ¤250 by May in order for the ladies board to be able to finance the teams for the coming year. The Kildare ladies board are in the red to the tune of ¤45,000 and the cash strapped executive has called on the players to fork out for their own expenses.
Kildare ladies PRO Tom Ryan has stressed that the levy was only a suggestion, but it has angered many of the players who feel that they should be properly looked after for representing the county.
Spake
Cast your mind back a few years. Integration was the buzz word in GAA circles. There were press launches, glossy literature, grand gestures from the three associations; GAA, Ladies and Camogie.
Years have passed and what has changed? Very little it would seem.
Two weeks ago, Tyrone, Galway and Limerick had put plans in place to play their mens and ladies National League ties as double-headers. However, the plug was pulled by the GAA's CCC at Croke Park and the girls were forced to find alternative venues for their games.
Take Tyrone's tie as a case in point. The two county boards worked hard to make the double-header a reality. All the plans were in place, from stewarding to changing rooms. Laois, their opponents, had agreed to travel at the earlier time. Everything was in place for the Red Hand girls to take on Laois as the curtain-raiser to the men's match against Kerry. Instead, their plans had to be abandoned because of a directive from Headquarters.
A crowd of more than 11,000 was at Healy Park in Omagh for the men's game, while the ladies played in Pomeroy at exactly the same time in front of, well, probably nearer 11 than 11,000.
Croke Park officialdom cited the weather as the reason why the three double-headers could not go ahead. That excuse doesn't exactly hold much weight in this case, as it was one of the mildest weekends of the year so far. It's widely accepted that ladies games don't exactly do much damage to a pitch at the worst of times, so surely it's not a viable reason to cancel a game on a surface of the calibre of Healy Park. There were a number of cases that weekend when National Football League games were played on the Saturday night, with a National Hurling League tie on the Sunday afternoon at the same venue.
So what's the difference?
It seems that integration, or co-operation as it has now evolved, is happening at every level except at the very top. Across the country clubs are working in unison, male and female facets working hand in hand. The same is true at county level, where links have never been closer.
Maybe it's time that those in the biggest, most comfortable seats in Croke Park had a flick back through those glossy publications and their grand speeches, and started to practice what they preach.
