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Moville success inspires Malin
ladies
18.02.10
by Emer Lafferty
AFTER an historic season last year, winning both the
Junior League and the Junior Championship, the Malin
Ladies are trying to establish an underage girls
team in the club. In the past, Malin GAA has had
girls' teams in various underage categories. Players
from these teams graduated to the current senior
team and it could be said that without this
influence from underage, the team would not have had
the success of recent years.
This theory can be strongly enforced with the
example of the Moville Ladies, the leading women’s
team not just in Inishowen but also in Donegal.
Moville has been going from strength to strength for
the past ten years with many players coming up
through the ranks to play with the skilled senior
team.
Changes in rules within the GAA has made the
provision of girls football more pressing. Until
2008, girls were allowed to participate in the
underage boys league up to U14 level, but the rules
have changed since the start of 2009 and girls are
only allowed to play in the boy’s league to U12.
Over the past number of years, many clubs in the
county have established underage girls teams and
also ladies teams. Just last year, the U12 Urris
girls team had huge success in winning the county
championship, demonstrating the great potential for
underage girls teams in Inishowen.
Present Malin senior team player, Denise McCarron,
is one of the many people involved in the planning
of the under-age teams. |
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“The training is for
girls in first class to sixth class and also girls
in first and second year in secondary school,” she
said. “We are not sure if the teams will be entered
into leagues but there will definitely be friendly
matches. It will start on Saturday 20 February in
the Malin clubhouse from 10am-11am where
registration forms need to be filled in by parents.
All of the coaches are fully certified. There will
be a note distributed to the schools in Culdaff,
Gleneely and the Malin Parish with more
information.”
Club Vice Chairman Pat Mc Laughlin is enthusiastic
about the prospects of an underage girls team.
“There is definitely a need for an underage girls
team in the club,” he said. “It is needed for the
future of the senior team, the same as the men’s
team and the underage boys teams, players train and
come up through the ranks. It will also increase
interest in the club, getting different people
involved.”
The move to establish under-age girls football comes
hot on the heels of the club’s decision to enter U12
and U10 hurling teams as Ireland’s most northerly
club grows to offer more Gaelic games to the people
of Malin.
For any queries or if you are interested in getting
involved with the underage training please contact
Denise McCarron or Marie Houton on 087 7734 901.
(Inishowen Independent) |
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