Home comforts for Leitrim Ladies as Lidl LGFA National League fixtures revealed
Leitrim Ladies will have an early start to the 2023 season but at least will have little travelling to do after they have been drawn at home in three of their four games in the Lidl LGFA National League Division 4 campaign.
With new manager Jonny Garrity taking over the reins of the county senior team from Hugh Donnelly, there may be unhappiness among the Division 4 teams as the new schedule will have only four games with the Division split into two groups, one of four and one of five with London and Kilkenny joining the League.
Leitrim reached last year's Division 4 semi-finals before losing out to eventual winners Offaly in a dramatic semi-final in Kinnegad that went to extra-time.
Leitrim start their 2023 League campaign with a home game against Derry on Sunday January 22, who the Green & Gold Ladies beat 1-6 to 0-4 in last year’s campaign. Then follows a clash with Kilkenny, who did not field a team last year, on Sunday January 29, before a three week break when they host last year’s Division 4 finalists and All-Ireland Junior semi-finalists Limerick on Sunday February 19.
Their final and only away game is a chance for revenge as they travel to take on a Wicklow team on Sunday March 5, who shocked them in the first round of this year’s All-Ireland Intermediate Championship, the Leinster side winning 3-10 to 3-9 at the end of May.
It means a much shorter League programme for Leitrim, far shorter than most of their rivals in the Intermediate championship with those teams in the top three divisions playing seven games each.
But if the Green & Gold finish in the top two in their group in next year's campaign, they will qualify for the divisional semi-finals on March 26, with the final set for Sunday April 16.
The full list of Division 4 fixtures is as follows (first named team at home):
Group B
January 22: Leitrim v Derry; Kilkenny v Limerick
January 29: Derry v Wicklow; Leitrim v Kilkenny
February 12: Wicklow v Limerick; Kilkenny v Derry
February 19: Leitrim v Limerick; Wicklow v Kilkenny
March 5: Wicklow v Leitrim; Derry v Limerick
Group A
February 5: Antrim v Fermanagh; Carlow v London
February 19: London v Antrim; Fermanagh v Carlow
March 5: Fermanagh v London; Antrim v Carlow
Playoffs
March 26: League Semi-Finals (1st Group A v 2nd Group B; 2nd Group A v 1st Group B)
Sunday April 16: Division 4 Final