Swapping summer Down Under for winter football

The pull of playing for her club has detained Maria Kelly in Ireland for months longer than she had foreseen. The West Clare Gaels midfielder, who returned from Australia last July, is due to head back down under whenever the Gaels ’10 odyssey wraps.

Up to now, Maria has gladly traded an Australian summer for mid-winter football in Ireland. The prospect of winning an All-Ireland medal, along with her twin Sineád and younger sister Eileen, dwarfs the attraction of summer in Australia for the moment. She will jet off in the coming weeks, hoping that
elusive medal will be nestled amongst her luggage. Workwise, Maria is substitute teaching at St Michael’s Secondary School in Finglas.
“I didn’t think I’d be around until November. I’m getting a lot of substitute teaching at the moment so that keeps me going. But I’ll head back out once it’s all finished,” the Kilkee girl said.
Maria’s last All-Ireland final appearance is something she would prefer not to dwell upon for long. Just a couple of minutes into the 2008 All-Ireland intermediate final against Tipperary, she was struck down with a serious knee injury. She hasn’t played since for Clare but the knee is now fully functioning.
While in Australia, she played in a seven-a-side tournament in Melbourne but that was the extent of her football since September ’08, until this summer.
“I didn’t play for a year and a half after the injury. I probably would have been able to go back last year but the added time was definitely beneficial,” Maria explained.
West Clare Gaels primary ambition all year was to win the Clare senior title. Although they enjoyed their run to the ’07 junior club final, Munster or All-Ireland titles weren’t on their radar until they escaped from Clare.
“The main focus was definitely the county final. We thought ourselves that we’ve never had as good a team. Some of the younger girls are getting older and we thought that this was our big chance this year.
“I don’t think we even realised we were in the intermediate Munster championship. I thought we were in the senior Munster club. We only found out after we won the county final that were intermediate in Munster so we knew then we’d a great chance,” Maria explained.
She feels that circumstances have aided West Clare Gaels all year.
“We’ve been really lucky with injuries bar Fiona (Troy) in the semi-final. Everyone is playing well and all the younger girls have come on in the last few years. We didn’t have Katie Geoghegan three years ago; Bríd Troy and Deirdre Troy have joined as well. We’re stronger all around and we even have the girls on the bench now to come on. We wouldn’t have had that before,” the former Clare player maintains.
Maria’s brother Darragh is in his first year at the helm, along with Patrick Foley. Eleven months into the year, management and players are still on talking terms.
“Both of them have been great. The training has been very good. It has been all short and fast. They have no problem telling you where you went wrong and there’s no holding back. They have put an awful lot of time and effort into it. When they put in that much effort you want to put in the same effort yourself,” Maria maintains.
In most of their recent games West Clare Gaels have built up a sizeable half-time advantage, bar their quarter-final win in Ruislip. That day they played against the wind on a heavy pitch and fell behind. But they rallied and showed that they had the mettle to emerge from a literally sticky corner. Despite the emphatic nature of their semi-final win, Kelly is certain that West Clare Gaels will remain steadfastly grounded.
“Three years ago we had a really good game in Doonbeg in the semi-final. But we really just let ourselves down I think, in the final. They were a better team but I don’t think we played as well as we could have,” she recalled, determined that whatever the result on Sunday, the Gaels girls will show what they are made of on the national stage.

Bríd clocks up mileage for the West Clare cause
Three years ago, Bríd Troy was keeping an unwavering eye on how her then former club was motoring. Now a Garda based in Tralee, the West Clare Gaels full-forward played her underage football with O’Curry’s – Kilkee but come 2007, she had transferred to Na Gaeil in Kerry.
While she missed West Clare Gaels’ march to the ’07 junior All-Ireland final, Bríd lined out at full-forward for Na Gaeil in the 2008 Munster junior final. The Kerry club lost 2-8 to 2-7 against Kilmihil that day. These days, she is still working in Tralee but is back playing her club football in West Clare. Back where she feels she belongs football wise.
“It has been brilliant this year. The attitude has been right from the word go and I suppose that’s half the reason why we’ve given it such effort. Everything has gone well for us and everyone has put in the effort. I’d travel up about twice a week but it’s well worth it. There’s 20 odd training every night. It’s great when you’re going up and there’s that many there,” Bríd told The Clare Champion, reflecting on her regular trips to Kilkee from Tralee for training.
Although stationed across the estuary, Bríd stayed in touch with how West Clare Gaels were getting on.
“I knew they were fairly strong and that they had been there or thereabouts. I knew that the Banner and Kilmihil were there as well but I said I’d come back and give it a lash with them for maybe the last two or three years of my career,” she explained.
Like her teammates and management, Bríd cannot believe the depth of support that has flocked behind the girls in white and blue.
“The support has been fantastic. I couldn’t get over it. I missed 2007, which was very disappointing but the support has been just unbelievable. To be involved in it is just fantastic. I’m just so delighted I came back,” she said.
At the outset, West Clare Gaels were focused on trying to win the Clare senior championship. With quality teams like Kilmihil and the Banner to contend with, the Gaels couldn’t think beyond trying to best their domestic rivals.
“Every game since the county final, we’ve only looked at that. We’ve never looked any further than what has been in front of us. The county final definitely was the one we wanted to win and we’ve just got stronger since then,” Bríd maintains.
On Sunday, she will pull on the number 14 jersey and go into battle surrounded by some of the most talented club forwards in the country. The trips from Tralee have been worth it far and if Bríd is handling an All-Ireland medal at the end of it all, the return on the mileage will be manifold. The only problem Bríd Troy will have to contend with next week, barring a replay, is how she will successfully kill the time once donated to driving home for training.
“I don’t know what I’ll do but I’d say my bosses here will be a bit happier that I’ll be around,” she predicted.