HANNAH: WE CAN STEP UP
DONEGAL v KERRY
KILKERRINCLONBERNE’S double All-Ireland winner Hannah Noone says Galway will be boosted by some returning stars ahead of a crunch tie against Dublin in the Lidl NFL this weekend.
Both sides began Division 1 with impressive wins over Donegal and Meath respectively and will now face off at Tuam Stadium on Saturday.
Galway are still waiting on a number of the Kilkerrin-Clonberne contingent who made history at Croke Park last month, when they secured a second successive All-Ireland Senior Championship.
Sisters Eva (19), Hannah (20) and
Lynsey (22) are among those in contention as Galway look to make a statement in a rematch of the 2019 TG4 AllIreland Senior decider.
Debuts
“It definitely was a good start, we even had a good few girls making their debuts against Donegal and they didn’t look out of place out on the pitch,” said Hannah Noone.
“We trained during the week and the rest of us will be going back in. Hopefully this will help drive us a bit more against the Dubs on Sunday.
“I’m looking forward to getting back in with Galway. You want to be playing against these top teams.
“You love having the competition and the tough opponents to play against. At the end of the day, it will help us improve as a team and see what we need to work on and where our strengths are.”
The three Noone sisters were also involved in last year’s Yoplait O’Connor Cup semifinal, where Lynsey was part of a successful University of Limerick team. They beat University of Galway en route to a final win over UCC.
Lynsey has since graduated but Hannah and Eva are still a big part of the University of Galway team.
“I’d have wanted to have won myself but then it was like, at least she (Lynsey) won it,” said Noone.
“It was grand then because you are delighted for her to have won it. The work they have put in is crazy. They deserved to come back with the win.
“I didn’t mark her in the semi-final and I was close to because I usually play wing-back and she plays wing-forward but I was midfield that day so I stayed away from her.
Harder
“At club training or county training now, there are often times where you have to mark each other. You want her to do good but it nearly makes you want to work harder because there is such competition between us.”
All three sisters have experienced major success with KilkerrinClonberne in recent years and they were joined by their father, Gerry, who is a selector with the team while their mother, Linda, is club secretary.
“It’s hard to explain it, unbelievable really,” said Noone. “The first year we won it was so special because we had lost and we had got to the semi-finals and lost the semi-final, we had lost the final in 2019. “So to win the first one was just such a relief and then the one then this year, that was first time to ever play in Croke Park as well.
“For the first time to play in Croke Park and win an AllIreland with your club is incredible and just so special. “It showed that we were able to back it up.”
PAUL GEANEY has played down comparisons with Tyrone’s collapse last year as “behind the curve” Kerry start their League title defence this weekend.
As many as 10 of their AllIreland-winning team will not be available for Sunday’s League opener against Donegal in Ballybofey.
And the Kingdom have already had an uninspiring McGrath Cup campaign having just returned from their team holiday over Christmas, which manager Jack O’Connor admitted this week has them chasing their tails at this early stage of the year.
Tyrone, their predecessors as champions, were in a similar state of flux 12 months ago and never got going, winning only three games all year.
“There’s lot of possibilities and there are a lot of things that can happen,” said Geaney when asked if he feared Kerry getting caught in a tailspin similar to Tyrone last year.
“I wouldn’t say worry, but you’d always have those different variations at the back of your mind. All we can do at the moment, having had that late start, is put the shoulder to the wheel and try our best to make up the bit of ground, and try and get those performances, no matter who takes to the field.
“The holiday happened at the right time because you can’t go into the New Year with it any more. That boxed that off.
Panel
“We haven’t had a whole pile of lads leaving the panel, I think Tyrone had a shot of guys leaving their panel after their win. We are in a slightly different boat to them, as well.
“Age profile-wise, we are probably younger than Tyrone were as well. They had been on the road a good few years trying to get over the line, whereas most of our guys were 18, 19, 20 coming into the squad, another few guys in 20 and 21.
“They are two totally different scenarios, but all we can do at the moment is try and put one foot in front of the other and try and get there. Other teams that have started earlier, they’ll have other things they need to work on as well.”
Geaney is one of the absentees this weekend as he works his way back to full fitness after undergoing a procedure on his ankle recently.
Training
“I suppose it wasn’t fully right just from previous injuries bit towards the club end of the season I was injuring it regularly and pretty much went through a club season without training mid week, and all the games I re-injured and re-injured so I was kind of struggling through that, about 70 to 80 per cent through the club season.
“To get back to this level it was just something I had to do to tidy it up, and the opportunity arose then after the team holiday to get the procedure and I am halfway through the recovery now.
“A couple more weeks and I will hopefully be back and available for selection.”
Geaney and his wife, Siun, daughter of late Kerry legend Paidi O Se, welcomed their second child, Christina, the week before last year’s All-Ireland semi-final win over Dublin.
And while the 32-year-old admits he has entertained thoughts of retirement previously, packing it in wasn’t given much consideration in the close season just past.
“This year I think I have a lot more to give. Hopefully we can get to the latter stages again and I can provide my best then, as well as throughout the season.
“Having had a great run with the club and played well myself, that side was never going to be an issue