Nicola Ward using club success to drive on from Galway defeats
Michael Bolton
All-Ireland finals are becoming a regular attendance for Galway's Nicola Ward, as Kilkerrin-Clonberne were once again All-Ireland champions in December.
Their fifth All-Ireland in-a-row, Nicola has played a key role in being part of one of the greatest club sides the sport has seen.
When it comes to Galway, however, they can't get much closer to an All-Ireland title.
After losing the final to Kerry in 2024, a last-second free saw them dragged to extra-time in the semi-finals against Dublin, where they were defeated.
For Nicola, between club and county commitments, she is on the pitch for nearly the full year, but the thought of an All-Ireland with her county continues to drive her on.
"For me personally, trying to get that All-Ireland medal is bringing me back every year. For every athlete, you have to try and look out for your body, and continue in the off-season what you would do in season to a lesser extent.
"Focus on rehab and any niggles that you may have had in the year previous. For me, going back, it is getting that All-Ireland medal that we deserve.
"After the county season, it is a good thing about the split season that you concentrate on one team at a time. When we got knocked out by Dublin last season, you took a week off and got straight back into it again.
"If you stay away from the game or dwell on it too long, you won't get over it. If I am getting back into it and having such a good team to go back to, it helps me overcome that."
After being promoted from Division Two last season, Galway will take on Meath in the opening round of the Lidl National League.
While Ward will be kept in reserve after her club commitments, she is looking forward to watching Galway's players take their chance.
"We are very grateful to the management for giving us that time off. It is important to refresh the body and make sure you can go for the year and be injury-free.
"It is definitely important for me to be getting it as I am getting that little bit older."
An extra dimension to ladies' football this season is the new rules, which are aimed at speeding up the game and producing more attacking football.
Playing for a club and county that will be favourites for more games than not, Ward has seen how teams have become more defensive.
"They transformed the men's games really well. I am really excited to see how they go.
"Maybe our games weren't going as defensively as the men's game, but you noticed a lot of tactical fouling to slow down the men's game.
"In our club game, we noticed teams three or four weeks in a row with almost 15 players behind the ball. There was probably a need for change when you look back at those types of moments."