Seventeen years on, Charlene and Leitrim are heading back to Croke Park!

A Leitrim All-Ireland Final in Croke Park will be an exciting new experience for all but one of Jonny Garrity’s Green & Gold Army on Sunday August 4, as Mohill’s Charlene Tyrell will play her second TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Final at GAA headquarters an incredible 17 years after her first outing!

Charlene’s remarkable journey that saw her return to County football at the behest of former manager Hugh Donnelly in 2020 will see her line out with a Leitrim team on the biggest stage of all and she wants her teammates to experience what she did back in 2007!

“Seventeen years ago this year - I wasn’t playing in 2006, they inspired me when they got to the final that year so I came back for 2007,” Charlene told the Observer as the celebrations continued on the Parnell Park pitch, “In fairness, I had about eight years of a break when I was living in the UK and had Noah.

“I think it was 2020 when Hugh Donnelly got me back in, asking myself and Sarah McLoughlin to come back for the experienced heads. I never played football in the eight years I was away but I just fell in love with it again.”

Now Charlene’s thoughts are for her teammates: “They are such a fantastic group of girls, we’ve been together, going strong since Hugh took us over, the bones of the team and just playing with them the last few years, having been through so much disappointment together, I want them to experience what it feels like to get to Croke Park and win an Intermediate championship.”

A DREAM COME TRUE FOR CAPTAIN MICHELLE GUCKIAN

With Wexford chasing a late equaliser, the Mohill clubwoman actually thought Leitrim were leading by two at the time: “I thought we were up by two points, so I was like ‘ah we have it anyway’ so at no point did I see it coming.

“What were we, eight points ahead? I didn’t even see it coming to be honest with you because we kicked a lot away and I think there was a period in the second half where we were trying to do game management and took a foot off the pedal a bit too early. 

“We focused a bit too much on the clock, it was at 30 minutes and he played six extra minutes so we probably kicked into game management too soon and they used that opportunity to come back at us.”

Those final minutes were frantic but Charlene felt that Leitrim’s hard won experience played it’s part in the dramatic conclusion to Sunday’s Semi-Final: “It was chaotic. Defensively, this year, I think it is the best we’ve ever been and it was a bit chaotic there in the last minute or two, I’m not going to lie. 

“There were girls cramping all over the place but all we wanted to do was protect the goal. I think we learned a lot from the Limerick game in the League when they got the goal in the last dying seconds of the game but I think we know how to hold onto games thank God. They kicked a wide I think that would have levelled the game but sometimes it comes down to a bit of luck on the day.”

LEITRIM FINISHING LEFT MANAGER JONNY GARRITY WORRIED

Perhaps one of the best reactions the Observer has ever got to a question was Charlene’s response when told who Leitrim would be facing in the final! “Tyrone, shut up, is it Tyrone!” before revealing that there was a feeling Leitrim would cross paths with the Oak Leaf County once more in the championship!

“Somebody said it to me when we beat them that they had a feeling it was going to be Tyrone in the All-Ireland Final. We’re in for an almighty battle because I don’t think they came to Ballinamore with any notion of us beating them that day. I think they know what’s in store from us now so it is going to be a cracker of a final - can’t wait.”