Bigger challenges down the road for Leitrim Ladies says Garrity after perfect start to the League

Leitrim may have scored 12 goals and 41 points in their two outings to date and conceded just 1-7 but manager Jonny Garrity, while delighted to have recorded two wins in his opening two games, warns of tougher challenges to come in this year’s Lidl LGFA Division 4 campaign.

The Green & Gold easily brushed aside the challenge of a Kilkenny team returning to senior inter-county level for the first time in three years and weakened by the absence of several players due to exams but while Leitrim’s final tallies are eye-watering, their manager is definitely not losing the run of himself!

“Two big wins and we’re delighted to record them but we’re realistic enough to know that there are going to be bigger challenges down the road for us,” the Fermanagh native told the Observer after Sunday’s 7-26 to 0-5 victory in Pairc Naomh Mhuire, stressing that he expects his team to maintain high standards.

Leitrim cruise to easy victory with destruction of Kilkenny newcomers

LEITRIM 7-26 KILKENNY 0-5

“For us today, it was about setting standards and making sure that we are adhering to them and maintaining them today. The Kilkenny team are on their own journey and they are starting out but for us, it was a matter of looking inward, ensuring that we are vigilant and that we got the most from ourselves and each other and I think we did that today.”

With the best will in the world, no team is going to be able to maintain the blistering form Leitrim showed in the first half, going in at the break with a mammoth 5-18 to 0-3 lead. Naturally intensity dipped but what really pleased Jonny was the fact that even with 13 changes, Leitrim still kept to their game structure.

“To be fair to the girls, they still aimed to play within the structure of our tactical game plan which is important because they could go out and do their own thing and possibly still get success from that. But we wanted them to play along the lines of what we will be playing against more competitive opposition. 

“I think we did that today and even though the intensity probably dropped in the second half, we still kept them scoreless from play and that is very pleasing.”

For the new manager, the first two games against Derry and Kilkenny are acknowledged as the two easiest in the group and Jonny expects much tougher challenges against Limerick and Wicklow: “It was two home matches against two teams that are on different paths and beginning to try to improve and develop. 

Ladies enjoy comfortable win over Kilkenny as fans cheer them on - GALLERY

Leitrim proved far too strong for Kilkenny in the second round of the Lidl LGFA NFL Division 4 campaign on Sunday afternoon in Pairc Naomh Mhuire as they cruised to a 7-26 to 0-5 victory and Observer photographer Willie Donnellan was there to capture images of the fans enjoying the action.

“We looked at the fixture list and maybe looked at it as a nice bedding in period at the start, maybe something like an extended pre-season and looking at these matches as helping develop the way we want to play. 

“We know now that any perception of an easy start is gone now and we have to be on it from now on and that is not to be disrespectful to the Gaels of Derry and Kilkenny, both of whom will develop and improve as the weeks go on.”

One aspect that must please Jonny is the talent available in his forward ranks with Leah Fox bagging four goals just a week after Vivienne Egan did the same against Derry and all with captain and taliswoman Michelle Guckian coming off the bench in both games.

“It is fantastic - I know Michelle and she will probably want to get in on the scoring act herself and she will probably do that herself and there are a host of other players who will want to do that. Leah is fantastic at finishing and she has got that in her locker, no question as does Vivienne and several others and it is great to get them scoring, great to get their confidence up.”

Leitrim hammer Derry to win opening round of Ladies football league

As for the rest of the League, Jonny is looking forward to the Limerick game: “We’re reasonably content with where we’re at the moment but I’m sure the Limerick match will tell us a lot about ourselves and where we’re at. We’ve got a two week window before that match and we’re going to use it to build up to that match and put all our focus into trying to come away with a win. We know it is going to be a difficult one but the build up starts today.”