Sligo aim to be dynamic in the NFL

County’s Ladies Footballers begin campaign with away fixture against Offaly this Sunday

IF THE Sligo Ladies Footballers are intent on going places this year, a good place to start is the upcoming Lidl National Football League. Sligo’s Division Three campaign for 2024 commences with an away game against Offaly this Sunday – Ferbane GAA Club are the hosts (2pm).

This is one of seven games for Cormac Reape’s side, with an away game coming up on Sunday week – Sligo play Clare – followed by the first of the schedule’s three home fixtures when Down are the visitors on February11.

Sligo also host their Connacht neighbours Roscommon (February 18) and this is followed by two more away fixtures – Antrim (March 3) and Wexford (March 17).

The campaign’s round robin series concludes on March 24 when Sligo are at home to Louth (venue to be confirmed).

Roscommon have come into the third tier following their relegation from Division Two last year and Antrim won the Division Four title in 2023.

Sligo’s minimum target is to retain their Division Three status before making a big push to be a contender in the TG4 All-Ireland Junior Championship later this year.

The team stayed up last year but it was a tightrope walk because score difference kept them up after just one win in seven games.

But those disappointing results, under Reape’s predecessor, Anthony Brennan, disguised the fact that Sligo played well but were let down by mistakes and regularly left themselves with too much to do in games.

Reape, who was appointed at the end

Sligo LGFA senior squad (Lidl NFL 2024): Tara Walsh, Nicola Brennan, Cora Gilligan, Sarah Cunney, Amy Kennedy, Lauren Normanly (Tourlestrane); Jade Lyons, Aoife Morrisroe, Ellie McDermott (Shamrock Gaels); Isabella Henry, Sinead Regan, Rianne Smith (DrumcliffeRosses Point); Eimear Hunt, Macayla Burke, Cara King (CT Gaels); Aisling Molloy, Claire Dunne, Rachel O’Brien, Leah Kelly (St Farnan’s); Nisha McDonagh (Curry); Leah Duffy, Fiona Feeney, Ellen McGuire, Sarah Curley (Eoghan Rua); Ciara Gorman, Eryn Lavin, Ciara Scanlon, Jennie Creegan (St Nathy’s); Aife Haran (Owenmore Gaels); Tara Breheny (St Mary’s); Ella Boland (St Patrick’s); Lisa Powell, Megan McCormack (Eastern Harps)

of last March, is relishing his first full campaign at the helm.

The Mayo native, who guided Knockmore to last year’s Mayo LGFA Senior Championship title, has assembled a 33-player squad. A dozen of the county’s clubs are represented.

In the panel are eight talented teens from the Sligo panel that contested last year’s ZuCar AllIreland U-18 ‘B’ Championship final.

How these rising stars adapt to the Lidl National Football League, with a number of them having already featured in last year’s campaign, could provide a welcome boost for a county that has underperformed in this competition.

Reape is looking forward to seeing how the preparations of recent weeks will translate into competitive fixtures.

“We’ve had a fairly good pre-season – we’ve been back since the middle of November. There was stuff in the background that we had to work on

The number of home games for Sligo in Division Three of the Lidl National Football League. like nutrition and strength and conditioning. “We’ve also had a couple of challenge games.” The manager is pragmatic regarding the challenges ahead – Sligo are the only Junior Championship team in Division Three – but he also wants the players to set targets and try to achieve them.

“We are fairly confident that we can get results – although I’m not going to say that we can win Division Three because, at the same time, we have to be realistic.

“We have to take things one game at a time and see how things go each week on that basis.”

He continued: “You don’t know where a few good results could take you – we have to look at it as a positive challenge that we are up against teams who are playing in the Intermediate grade.

“If we can compete at this level then that will give us confidence. We are very clear on what we are trying to do. If we can look after our own performance then we know that we won’t be far off the teams that we’ll be playing.”

Elsewhere in Division Three this Sunday, Antrim host Louth, Roscommon are at home to Down and Clare travel to Wexford.

SLIGO’S LIDL NFL FIXTURES 2024 DIVISION THREE

R1: Offaly (a), Sunday, January 21; R2: Clare (a), Sunday, January 28; R3: Down (h), Sunday, February 11; R4: Roscommon (h), Sunday, February 18; R5: Antrim

(a), Sunday, March 3; R6: Wexford (a), Sunday,

March 17; R7: Louth (h), Sunday, March 24.

Note: The Division Three final, involving the top two teams, is scheduled for Saturday, April 6.