Tipp not fearing Galway challenge in Ladies championship opener
LADIES FOOTBALL: TG4 All Ireland Senior Championship Round 1
TIPPERARY v GALWAY
LIT Gaelic Grounds
Saturday 31st October
Throw-in @ 3.00pm
Referee: Eamonn Moran (Kerry)
2019 All Ireland Intermediate champions Tipperary will have it all to do next Saturday as they face the 2019 Senior All Ireland finalists Galway in the opening round of the TG4 All Ireland Championship.
Because of Covid-19, the championship has been restructured with the original two groups of six changed to four groups of three with only the group winners progressing to the semi-final. Monaghan also make up the group whom Tipperary will face the weekend after next.
Speaking in advance of the championship opener, Tipperary manager Shane Ronayne admitted that Galway would have to be favourites for the game.
“They have serious pace and a lot of experience and they have some very classy forwards in the Leonard sisters,” he said of Galway whom Tipperary lost to in their final competitive game before the first lockdown in March.
Preparations are going well in the Tipperary camp who are boosted by Roisin Howard returning to the panel after injury while Anna Rose Kennedy has resumed full training after a cruciate knee injury sustained twelve months ago.
The Tipp boss said that while he was happy how training was going he admitted that Covid had obviously caused some difficulties and disruptions for them.
“Challenge matches are banned now under the new restrictions and I had hoped to have a challenge game before we faced Galway but obviously that couldn’t happen. But all the counties are in the same boat,” Ronayne said.
Ronayne is fully aware that Tipperary are major underdogs going into this game having suffered a 1-12 to 0-4 defeat at the hands of Galway in the National League earlier this year.
“We would be very disappointed with how we performed that day, but we were missing a number of players and we have a lot of work done since then,” Ronayne added.
“Galway would have to be the favourites though they are the beaten All Ireland Senior finalists from 2019 and I know they would be disappointed with how they performed on that occasion.
“Look we have nothing to lose and we don’t have the threat of relegation hanging over us. We have Aisling McCarthy now and Roisin Howard that we didn’t have in the League campaign and I think if the girls believe in themselves we have every chance.”
Tipperary team v Galway: Lauren Fitzpatrick, Kate Davey, Lucy Spillane, Emma Cronin; Ellen Moore, Samantha Lambert (Capt), Orla O’Dwyer; Ashling McCarthy, Anna Rose Kennedy; Caitlin Kennedy, Emma Morrissey, Laura Dillon; Ava Fennessy, Aishling Moloney, Roisin Howard.
Tipperary panel
Anna Rose Kennedy, Caitlin Kennedy, Emma Morrissey (Aherlow)
Laura Dillon, Samantha Lambert (Ardfinnan)
Lauren Fitzpatrick (Ballymacarbry)
Orla O’Dwyer (Boherlahan)
Aishling Moloney, Aisling McCarthy, Roisin Howard, Rosanna Kiely (Cahir)
Orla Winston, Anna Carey, Ava Fennessey (Clonmel Commercials)
Carrie Davey, Kate Davey, Lucy Spillane, Niamh Hayes (Fethard)
Emer McCarthy, Megan Heffernan (Galtee Rovers)
Rachel Sweeney (Holycross/Ballycahill)
Katie Cunningham (Lattin Cullen/Emly)
Cora Maher, Emma Cronin (Moyle Rovers)
Ellen Moore, Muireann Lloyd, Roisin Daly (Moyne-Templetouhy)
Angela McGuigan (Sliabh na mBan)
Aine Delaney, Maria Curley (Templemore)
Marie Creedon, Sarah Fryday, Sarah McKevitt (Thurles Sarsfields)