Feeney more motivated than ever to send Roscommon to Croke Park
Niamh Feeney will do everything possible to ensure Roscommon reach their first All-Ireland intermediate championship final since 2005. Pictures: Ger O'Loughlin
What is a bigger motivation for a player? Winning a big game or avoiding the dejection after losing one.
It is hard to gauge which one of those thoughts will be to the forefront of Niamh Feeney’s mind when she takes to Kingspan Breffni as Roscommon face Westmeath in a fascinating TG4 All-Ireland intermediate championship semi-final on Sunday.
Perhaps an insight into her thought process comes when the topic of past semi-final defeats arises. For Feeney, who has been on the Roscommon panel since 2015, the primary takeaways from those games weren’t anything related to tactics or systems.
Instead, her thoughts jump straight to the feeling of dejection after Roscommon were well-beaten by a ravenous Wexford outfit in the Rossies’ last semi-final appearance back in 2022.
The freshest wound. The pain of that defeat is easily recalled by the St. Mary’s Tulsk clubwoman.
“I remember against Wexford, we were maybe a bit overconfident going into it. We had beaten them in the league (final) and even if you don’t mean to, subconsciously you have that bit of overconfidence behind you.
"After that game I had one of the worst feelings since I started playing sport because I was unaware of how much of a big deal the semi-final was when I was going in.
“It was only after when you are sat there on the pitch, and they all cheering about going to Croke Park, that you realise that’s it.
"It is tough when you are used to going to training and the routine of it all. You see these girls more than your family between work, training and everything else. It is just disappointing when you lose out,” she noted.
For Feeney, semi-final defeats in 2022, 2019 and 2018 were painful experiences. She took a year out in 2020 when Roscommon suffered a heartbreaking two-point defeat to Sunday’s opponents at this stage of the competition.
Yet, there is still that same fire burning within her when she voluntarily brings up the seismic prizes on display, an All-Ireland final berth and a chance to line out in Croke Park on the biggest day in the ladies’ football calendar next month. Feeney, who turns 28 this Saturday, is hoping to celebrate that milestone with a momentous win.
“When you are younger, you don’t realise how big an occasion it is. It feels like it has been so long since we have been in a semi-final that the girls who are coming in now are aware of what it means.
"It is 60 minutes away from Croke Park. It is every young player's dream to play in Croke Park. That is all we have to give now. If you look at the GPS, we have clocked over 6,000 minutes since we started out. Now all we have left is 60 (minutes) to get to where we are trying to. It will be nerve-wracking but exciting,” she noted.
Given the buzz surrounding ladies’ football in the county now, it is easy to forget where Roscommon were roughly two months ago. A 22-point hammering at the hands of Leitrim in the Connacht final was a dark day for both players and management. But a quarter-final against the same opposition was an ideal chance for retribution.
"When we are there training, we know what we can do, but supporters only see what we show on the pitch. We just didn’t bring a good performance at all (in the Connacht final), so it was nice to show there is more in us and we can do it.
“The girls have been putting in some amount of work. You are getting hits in training now and you are feeling them. You can be a bit soft on each other, but then you are going into these games and you are getting these big hits, so you have to know how to deal with them,” the 27-year-old noted.
Feeney is the type of player whose value to a team isn’t on full display to people outside of the camp until she isn’t there. After suffering a knee injury against Laois in the league, one that proved far less serious than first feared, she missed the final stages of the league campaign. Her absence, particularly her versatility, was keenly felt.
The St. Mary’s Tulsk clubwoman lined out at corner-forward in the 2018 semi-final, corner-back 12 months later and at wing-back in the 2022 semi final. If she features this Sunday, it will likely be at wing-forward.
That adaptability comes naturally to Feeney, as did her recovery from a cruciate ligament injury that robbed her of appearing in Roscommon’s last All-Ireland U-16 B final back in 2015.
With the county now in that very same decider on Wednesday and Trevor Clohessy’s minor side lining out in an All-Ireland final ten days later, Feeney hopes her charges can inspire those teams, future footballers in Tulsk, and young women across the county.
“It is nice to see three teams going so well, and it is a great sign of what is coming at underage. Sometimes you get gaps in ages between players on the senior panel but there is so much coming up that it hopefully says a lot about the team Roscommon will have in the future when these girls come through.
"There is just serious talent there. I might not be around to play with them, but it is great for Roscommon LGFA to see what is coming through.
“In Tulsk, we have so many talented players. Rachel Brady is up in Dublin, while Megan Gaughan does a lot of work within the county. It is nice to be able to represent Tulsk. It is a big commitment. I know that holds people back, but it is nice.
"For adults it might not be as big a deal, but for those who are young, it is big to have someone in the club or people from the area who play. There are great players coming up who I am sure will fill into that role when I am no longer there,” she stated.
For Feeney, the motivation is to bring further pride to the Roscommon jersey and ensure she avoids another trip down heartbreak avenue.
“It is what we have all been waiting for. When I was younger, I didn’t realise these days didn’t come around as often as I thought they would. It is a big deal to get there. You just want to do the county proud,” she concluded.
