Wexford calling once more in the championship

Ollie Lennon believes that his side have turned a corner, despite Roscommon’s unbeaten start to the season going up in smoke over the last two games.

Roscommon open their TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Ladies’ Football Championship campaign with a tricky trip to Leinster champions, Wexford, this afternoon (Sunday) at 2 p.m.. But with a home game against Antrim to follow, this year’s defeated Division Three League finalists should be capable of getting out of the group and securing their berth in the knockout stages.

“We won a Connacht title last year and ended in a group with Wexford and Monaghan, which would have been tougher in most people's eyes. It’s a lottery when it comes to these groups, so it could have been worse.

“We’ve beaten Wexford and Antrim already in the league this year but teams are always different when it comes to championship. We’re under no illusions regarding what’s ahead of us,” he told the Roscommon Herald.

Lennon’s theory about teams being a different kettle of fish in the championship certainly applies to Wexford. They hammered Roscommon in the All-Ireland semi-final two years ago, despite losing the league final narrowly to the “Primrose and Blue” ladies’ earlier that season. Last year, Lizzie Kent’s side came to a scorching hot Dr. Hyde Park in early June and won by a point.

Earlier this season, a strong finish saw Roscommon prevail by 1-10 to 0-8 in Elphin, but Wexford finished the league strongly and, inspired by players like Kellie Kearney, Chloe Fox, Caoilfhionn Ní Nualláin and 20-year-old Aoife Cullen, they won their three group games in the Leinster intermediate championship before edging out Westmeath by 0-15 to 1-11 in the final.

“It’s a very difficult start. Two years ago. We beat Wexford in the league final. A couple of months later in the championship, they were a completely different team. They got to the business end of the All-Ireland championship again last year, even though they were in Division Three.

“They look like a team that target the All-Ireland championship, and I suspect that this year will be no different. Going on the road to play them won’t make our job any easier,” Lennon admitted.

Roscommon will be without a host of players for Sunday’s test. Lauren Shanagher picked up a calf injury in the Connacht final against Leitrim, while Aisling Feely, Caoimhe Lennon, Millie Hagan and Erin Hagan are long-term absentees with cruciate ligament injuries.

Sinead Farrell, who was a regular during the league and came on in the recent Connacht final, has opted out of the panel for the remainder of the season. On the plus side, however, Farrell’s Clann na nGael team-mates Orla O’Neill and Róise Lennon are nearing a return to full training after missing the league through injury. Midfielder Lisa O’Rourke is also expected to be available after missing the Leitrim game as a result of her boxing commitments. 

"Aimee O’Connor’s tour-de-force in the provincial final delighted Lennon who is hoping that other players can follow in the St. Dominic’s forwards footsteps over the coming games.

“You’re always hoping that a player that hasn’t seen a lot of game time or is coming back from injury can come in and do a job for the team. When someone like Aimee starts her first game in a while, you don’t expect her to score ten points. Hopefully, someone else grasps their opportunity and has the same impact over the next few weeks. That’s what you have a squad for.

“I think Aimee’s performance against Leitrim deserved more for the team overall. Hopefully, the person that shoots the lights out for us the next day will be on a winning team.” 

Despite those reversals against Clare (in the league final) and Leitrim, Lennon believes that his side are in a healthy state of mind ahead of the trip to the south-east.

“When you have such a league campaign where you’re used to winning games, a couple of losses, in two fairly important games, leads to a few doubts creeping in.

“But I think we’re coming out the other side of that. The break between the Connacht final and this game had given us the chance to get answers to a few questions. 

"Once Sunday comes around, I think we’ll be in a good place.

“We have been looking at doing a few things a little bit differently, especially in the Leitrim game. Maybe that gave Leitrim extra opportunities that we were hoping they wouldn’t get. They exploited them and got the better of us.

“We need to look at our performances over the last couple of games compared to where we were earlier on in the league. We just have to get the balance right. But we scored 0-19 against Leitrim and kicked 11 or 12 wides. We probably can’t have it every way.

“With two teams coming out of a three-team group, you have to be targeting getting out of the group. We want to be one of those two teams, otherwise we’ll be in a relegation play-off. We know from last year that anything can happen in those games on the day. Whether we win the group or come second, it’s the same prize — a place in the All-Ireland quarter-final,” he concluded.