Feely relishes sweet revenge
SMILES ALL ROUND: Eadaoin and James Lennon at Sunday's big intermediate ladies' football championship quarter final between Roscommon and Leitrim. Pictures: Gerard O’Loughlin
They say revenge is a dish best served cold.
However, the Roscommon ladies footballers produced a display filled with fire and brimstone to upset the odds and knock Leitrim out of the championship. Leitrim have been a thorn in the side for Roscommon in recent times, most notably in last month’s Connacht final which saw Finbar Egan’s charges swatted aside by 22 points.
Revenge was firmly on the minds of Roscommon’s players last Sunday according to Aisling Feely.
“Everyone would have wrote us off. Everyone knows what happened in the Connacht final. Twenty two points, an absolutely soul destroying defeat. The minute we found out we had Leitrim, we knew we had it in us to beat them.
“That feeling of revenge was in us, and I think we just came out and just absolutely put it up to them. I am so proud of the girls. The last two weeks in training, it has just been heads down stuff. It is too soon to end the journey. This group of players is so tight,” she noted.
Feely burst into life in the second half of this contest, with five of her six points coming after the interval. She credits manager Finbar Egan for helping her raise her game.
"The other girls in defence turning over the balls were excellent. For the first one, Abby (Curran) passed it back to me, I fancied it and it went over. Once you get one your confidence is back up again,” the Boyle clubwoman noted.
Feely wasn’t part of the panel at the start of the year. But, after receiving a call from Egan midway through the league, she felt the time was right to rejoin the fray. The lively forward feels the decision to return to the fold has been an extremely rewarding one.
“I wasn’t involved at the start of the year. Finbar gave me a ring in the middle of the year and said ‘would you be interested in coming back?’ It was the best decision I ever made. It is only when you are out of it and you come back do you realise how much you missed it. It has just been phenomenal. These are the days,” she exclaimed.
Although Feely respects the challenge Westmeath will bring in the All Ireland semi final, she believes that Roscommon can approach the contest with no fear after their impressive showing on Sunday last.
“There are four teams left. Everyone has earned the right to be in the semis now. It is whoever shows up on the day. We have another win under the belt and proof we are well able to mix it with the best. We won’t have any fear and I don’t think you can.
“We are not going to fear anyone now especially after this display and the display two weeks ago against Down. Backs against the wall kind of stuff. Whether it was going to be Westmeath or Wexford, I don’t think we were going to fear any of them. We know it is going to be tough. We are going to have our homework done on them so one more win to Croke Park. That is a massive carrot at the end of the day so we are delighted,” she concluded.
