No pressure on Tipp ahead of tough campaign
LADIES FOOTBALL: TG4 Munster Senior Championship Preview
By Michael Dundon
CORK v TIPPERARY
Pairc Ui Rinn, Cork
Saturday, 25th April
Throw-in @ 2.00pm
The odds are heavily stacked against Tipperary as they face up to Cork in the opening game of the Munster Ladies Gaelic Football Championship at Pairc Ui Rinn this Saturday.
Tipp have not won this title since 1980 and haven’t been in the final since 1982. Cork, in addition to home advantage, recently claimed the National League division 1 title with a victory over Galway, and while Kerry have been the dominant force in Munster, while Waterford have been much improved in recent years. All three are division 1 counties with Tipp in division 2.
The Munster championship is separate from the All-Ireland series but placings in the provincial competition determine seeding for the All-Ireland draw, so Munster progress is relevant in the overall context of the championship.
Tipp are managed by Kilsheelan native David Power, a man with a hugely impressive record in football, headlined by an All-Ireland minor success and a Munster senior final triumph, and just recently he steered UL to Sigerson Cup glory. Basically, he has been at the heart of the premier county’s biggest moments in football for the past number of years.
He is now bringing all that know-how and experience to bear on ladies’ football in the county to the point that Tipperary narrowly missed out on promotion from division two of the national league in his first year at the helm and has breathed new life and optimism into the ladies’ game in the county.
Initially, survival in division two of the league was Tipperary’s goal. That was achieved but as the Kilsheelan/Kilcash clubman reflected: “We were happy with our progress but a little disappointed that a couple of games did not go our way which might have earned us promotion.
“We used about thirty players during the campaign and that was great exposure for them to competition at this level. We defeated Donegal so we know we can be competitive at this level of competition.
During the league programme, the manager identified aspects of the game that the Tipp ladies needed to improve on.
“Turn-overs cost us in the league and we have to be better on the ball. Skill development and growing confidence in our own ability are other factors we have been addressing.
“This all takes time but the girls have been working very, very hard and improving all the way,” he added.
There will be no real pressure on the girls going into the Munster campaign, according to the manager because of the seeding process for the All-Ireland championship.
“It is going to be tough facing Cork after their league success but we will be striving to build on the progress we made in the league. These are the games you want to be playing and our win over Donegal showed that we can be competitive at this level. We just want the girls to express themselves to the best of their ability,” he said.
The manager has no injury headaches ahead of the game and readily acknowledges that Cork will be hot favourites to win but he has a strong belief in the ability and spirit of his players.
“It is going to be very tough for us but if we can get a good run going against them, we have shown that we can be a match for the best of them,” he added.