GAA: Steelstown Ladies hoping to make history

Steelstown Ladies will be hoping to make club history when they take on O’Neill Shamrocks in the final of the Ulster Junior Ladies Football Championship in Killyclogher (Omagh) this afternoon (throw-in 1.00pm).

It is new territory for the Derry champions who are just the third ever club side from the Oak Leaf county to contest a provincial final.

A new name will be inscribed on the trophy at the end of the game as it is also the Monaghan champions’ first appearance in an Ulster final.

Having cruised to the County Championship title with a dominant performance and scoreline against Magherafelt at Celtic Park back in August, the ladies entered Ulster for the first time and went on to beat Mullaghbawn and Trillick before dismantling near neighbours Buncrana in the semi-final.

Coach Thomas Cusack is confident his Brian Og girls can make history.

He said: “The girls have surpassed everyone’s expectations by getting to the final. That is an achievement in itself.

“We’ve played some nice football this season and we went into Ulster and played three very yard games, and hopefully we can get one more big performance out of the girls which would take us over the line.

“From the start of the year, from the first few games I didn’t expect we would get this far, but the attitude changed after those first few games, they knuckled down and went to work and from that change in attitude we’ve gone on from strength to strength as the season has gone on.”

He added: “It would be great for the club to win it and it would also be great for the town because it could make more girls become interested in it

“We’re the only girls’ team in the town at the minute but I think some of the other teams in the town have underage teams coming through at the minute. It would be nice to give that boost to gaelic football in the town.

“It would be great for more girls team to come through, especially for the promotion of gaelic football in the town.

“Any team that we have played in Ulster has looked on us as a Derry City team, but of the 35 girl who have played this year, there are only six who don’t live within a mile radius of the club, so it really is a Steelstown team. It would be great to see other clubs developing and pressing on.” Steelstown: Emma McCallion, Rachel Roberts, Katie Henderson, Lea Casey, Dearbhla Wilson, Aoife McGough, Leah McCready, Ciara McGurk, Orla Flanaghan, Enya Doherty, Megan Devine, Emma Doherty, Aoife Laverty, Michaela Wilson, Aoife McKeever, Naoimh Ni Mhainian, Lucy Williamson, Pauline Walker, Rachel Roberts, Ruagin Doherty, Una Casey, Aoife McGeough, Beth Heaney, Fionnula Flanaghan, Jasmine Boyle, Laura Henderson, Alanna Ferry.