'We don't fear Kerry' - Donohoe

LGFA news

Kevin Óg Carney

In the world of Ladies Gaelic Football, defending All-Ireland SFC holders Dublin, Connacht pair Galway and Mayo and latterday kingpins Cork are the current behemoths of the game. Top NFL Division One teams and a class apart, apparently.

Cavan and Kerry, meanwhile, enter the race for this year’s Brendan Martin Cup sporting 2020 Division Two colours. Most pundits have them down as also-rans as the runners and riders take their place on the starting line.

This coming Sunday in Birr (1pm), Cavan’s finest will attempt to arrive at the Elysian Fields by going under the radar and winning their first round championship tussle with Kerry.

In taking the first step towards what will hopefully eventually see them add to the county’s one and only All-Ireland ladies’ senior championship title (1977) triumph, the James Daly (Armagh)-managed side will have to upset the odds. Kerry’s blueblood status in ladies’ football is reflected in the game’s roll of honour. The Kingdom have won 11 blue riband titles, a tally matched only by neighbours Cork. In recent head-to-heads with Cavan, the Munster side also boast the bragging rights.

“They (Kerry) got through for a few easy goals last February (in the NFL) in Crosskeys in the first half which gave them a big cushion and even though we clawed them back a good bit, the gap was too large and we lost by a point or two,” Cavan coach Brian Donohoe reflects.

“Kerry are a good team but our girls will hopefully raise their game to match the occasion and the quality of the opposition. We know from our 2019 league game against them in Killarney that we have the ability to beat them so we go to Birr with no fear.”

The Ballymachugh clubman who was a pivotal figure in the Ballinagh think tank that recently captured the county IFC title is optimistic that his charges can reverse the result in Crosskeys last spring.

2020 represents Donohoe’s third successive year in the Cavan camp – having been part of Lurgan’s championship success in 2017 – and is confident that the blues will give a good account of themselves in the midlands this weekend:

“A few players stepped aside for different reasons this year but we’ve still a very good squad with a decent mix of youth and experience,” Donohoe enthuses.

“We’ve some good young players on board who have come through from the minors and they’ve got a lot of good coaching before this at county under 14 and under 16 levels as well as at their schools like Loreto College and they don’t lack for desire or don’t lack anything in terms of the skills of the game so hopefully they’ll impress in Birr.”

Cavan have had mixed fortunes this year in trying to impress. While Kerry won all their four games in the second tier of the NFL, the Breffni blues lost out to Monaghan as well as Kerry. They did, however, overcome Clare and Meath in their other two league ties.

If Cavan are to upset the odds and beat Kerry in Birr, they will have to do so without long-time chief scoregetter Aishling Doonan (Templeport) who is out with a foot injury. However, in the likes of seasoned campaigners like Joanne Moore, Aishling Sheridan and Donna English, Cavan have a bulwark of experience to call upon.

“Aishling will be a big loss but there’s a lot of drive and energy in this team and part of the process of building any team is that you look to other players to step up to the plate when needed,” Donohoe opines.

“We fancy our chances but we respect Kerry and know they’ll be difficult to beat. They’ll defend in numbers and look to break quickly out of defence. We know we need to stop them generating forward moves; work hard at getting to them before they kick that important kick pass forward.

“They are probably favourites, marginally so maybe, but I can’t see it being anything other than close run affair. With Cork the other team in our group and only one team going through to the quarter-finals, it’s very important that we get the win on Sunday.

“We’d love to make it a do-or-die game against Cork but for the management team and all 29 of our girls, it’s just all about looking at Sunday’s game and getting the win.”