Muckalee flying the flag high for Ladies Football in Kilkenny

All roads will lead to Baltinglass this Saturday afternoon as Muckalee take on O’Dwyers of Dublin in the Leinster Junior Football Championship Final (1pm).

The Kilkenny side have upset the odds to reach this stage but they are fully intent on bringing home provincial honours.

Muckalee secretary Paudie Hyland outlines how the club puts a lot of stock in Gaelic Football over the last few years.

“Muckalee would traditionally have a strong football emphasis and as strong as you could get in Kilkenny,” he says.

“If you go back far enough, football was at least the equal of hurling in the club but in the last five or six years, there has been a massive drive and impetus on Ladies Football and it’s matched by the overall drive of women’s sport in the country.

“The girls have really being pushing the boundary out the last couple of years and if you even go back to four years ago, a lot of them would have played in the Feile and a few of them have now graduated onto the senior team.

“Those young girls joining up with the more stronger experienced players like our joint captains Kelley Comerford and Edel Coonan gives us a perfect blend and they are a really determined bunch.”

The Kilkenny senior champions got to the final by defeating Sarsfields Mountmellick (Laois), Grattan (Longford) and St Josephs (Westmeath) and Hyland praised the character among the Muckalee team after they required extra-time to overcome St Josephs in the semi-final.

“They’ve showed great resilience to get to this stage and the semi-final win was a perfect example of that as we were down by nine points with 15 minutes to go and they still came through,” Hyland said.

“We never gave up and our full forward Laura McDowell kicked a couple of crucial points and led the comeback.

“The resilience that day really shows their character and I suppose Muckalee as a parish is lucky as it gives Ladies Football great time and women’s sport is still fighting for exposure and while they are still behind the men a good bit, these girls are really driving it forward on the football side.

“A lot of the team would have played both Camogie and Ladies Football on the day we beat Kilkenny City in the county semi-final and that shows the strength that the girls have”.

There is no doubting that O’Dwyers will provide the sternest test yet for Muckalee and the Dublin team showed their ruthless side when scoring six goals in their semi-final win over Raheens.

Muckalee’s star turn in attack is Katie Nolan and while she may be better known for her exploits with the Kilkenny camogie team, she’s also a fine footballer but as Hyland rightfully points out, it’s far from a one player show.

“Katie inspires all the other players around her for what she’s done on the national stage for Kilkenny yet here she is doing her bit for the club in football.

“I would also broaden it as there is big leaders there with players that have worn the Kilkenny jersey over the years.

“The likes of Kelley Comerford and Edel Coogan do a great job as well as Eadoin Cody at full back so there is great leadership among the team.

“We are blessed as a club to have Katie but she’s got great help and support around her and when the chips were down in the semi-final it was Laura McDowell who stood up to the mark and she actually doubles up as our club PRO so it’s a real panel effort.

“The whole squad is very important and we have one voice, one squad and one parish going forward and you need that to be successful and it’s a real united bunch”.