Leitrim manager Jonny Garrity can't help but be confident ahead of Lidl LGFA Division 4 Final

In these days of circumspection and caution, it is refreshing to hear a manager come out and admit quite publicly that he is confident his team can win, just as Jonny Garrity does ahead of Leitrim’s Lidl LGFA Division 4 Final clash with Antrim next Sunday in Parnell Park, Dublin.

It is not a brash WWE sort of confidence, rather a confidence tinged with respect for the 2022 All-Ireland Junior Championship winners but there is no doubt that the Leitrim manager is fully confident that the Green & Gold can land the title for the first time since 2010 when they take on the Saffrons next Sunday afternoon.

“We are confident in as much as we will obviously pay nothing but the utmost respect to our opposition,” said Jonny when asked about his mood heading into the final, adding “opposition who have shown they have an All-Ireland medal in their pocket and an unbeaten run to the final, that they are a team worthy of respect.

Get your tickets for Leitrim's Lidl LGFA Division 4 Final next Sunday

“But I can’t help but be confident when I see my players, night in, night out, at training, see their attitude and the culture that we are building, the motivation that they’ve got coming into this game and to see the quality that they’ve got. 

“Of course, we’re confident but we know it is going to be an almighty battle and there will be nothing handed to us easily but we’re determined to go and take the initiative and hopefully on the day that will be enough.”

Neither does the Tyrone native lend much credence to talk of favourites or underdogs: “To be honest, it is not something I am even conscious about, I wouldn’t have been aware of who would be the so-called favourites or underdogs and it wouldn’t be something that would have a tangible effect on the game. 

“Everybody is entitled to have an opinion but to us, the only opinions that matter are those within the circle and we’re not buying into favourites or anything else, it is a matter of going out and trying to implement our performance as best we can. And if we do that, we know we’re going to be incredibly difficult to beat.”

What Garrity is looking for, first and foremost, is a performance - even if he is conscious of how much the occasion will mean: “Absolutely looking forward to it, it means a lot to everybody to be in a final, a culmination of a lot of effort and a lot of work and the girls should be very proud of themselves and happy to be there.

“But ultimately, it is another game and the focus is on getting the performance out of them on the day. It is as simple as this is another game and we’ve got to perform because ultimately, you’re still within the chalk lines of a football field with two sets of goalposts and another team.

“The end goal remains the same, to go out and score more than you concede and we must reduce it to the elements that make up a performance and that’s what we’re doing.”

Manager Jonny Garrity delighted with Leitrim Ladies battling spirit

That should help with Jonny’s belief that concentrating on what is in front of you rather than the occasion is the main aim for the Leitrim players: “Of course, there is more scrutiny on this game, a bit more interest, maybe there is more attention but that will add to the expectation and adrenaline for the girls and it is a case of bringing that in in a positive manner and a focused way.

“If you can reduce it to winning your individual battles in front of you in any moment in the game and then refocusing on the next ball straight away, taking it one moment after the other for the entire 70 minutes, that’s the way you’ve got to do it because you can play yourself out of a game if it is not going your way and that is what we will be encouraging the girls to do.”

Antrim have been regular opponents in recent years, even more so for Jonny in his former role with Fermanagh: “We would know Antrim very very well. We would have played them a lot when I was with Fermanagh and I think the first year in 2019, I think we played them five times with Fermanagh. 

“They’re a team I’d have a lot of respect for, players who are of good character and good ability but at the same time, we have got full faith in our players. We’re going out very much looking at ourselves and trying to make the most of what we’ve got.”

The Leitrim manager agrees with the suggestion that Antrim will be a step-up on what Leitrim faced in the semi-final against Fermanagh: “I think that would be a safe assumption - the quality of their players is probably greater than Fermanagh on average. That will mean a step-up in quality and they showed that in the All-Ireland Final last year when they beat Fermanagh and beat everyone in the group stages and that’s the reason I say that.

Leitrim emerge from extra time thriller to book place in Lidl LGFA Division 4 Final

LEITRIM 1-12 FERMANAGH 1-10 (AET)

“I think ultimately that the best two teams have risen to the top in the division and it makes for an exciting final. We respect them but we believe that we are worthy of respect as well and it is going to be a great game.”

Leitrim were in this final two years ago, losing out to Louth but Jonny urges his players to concentrate on the here and now rather than looking to the past: “It is not something that I think we need to fixate on. That experience is in the past and it is up to these girls to make their own future. 

“They’ve got every opportunity to do so looking at the fantastic chance they’ve got coming into this weekend. Looking back at a match a couple of years ago isn’t going to have any effect on what we do going forward. Two years ago is not something we will be talking about, we will be very much concentrating on our performance on the field next Sunday.”