Patience pays off for GAA ladies

A LONG-AWAITED first win for the Drumquin GAA senior ladies team has been a little bit like the old story about the London buses – you wait around for one to come, and then two arrive at the same time.

The Wolfe Tones ladies did wonder whether their reward would ever arrive, especially after numerous narrow losses in the five years since being reformed.

But all that has changed in the past few weeks, and they are now celebrating two wins in a row.

First up was a league win over Stewartstown, and it has since been quickly followed by a second victory over Urney. It was a success which came as a relief for the players, in particular those who have persevered through the disappointing results of recent years.

Among them was Fianchea McCallion. She said it has been a ‘long and hard road’ trying to keep the momentum going.

“It has definitely been a bit soul-destroying losing so many matches, but we’ve kept things going, and thankfully got our first reward,” she said.

“In our first year back, we were just content to field. In the second year, the team became more competitive, and then last year, we should have done better. This year, finally, the results are beginning to go our way.

“A lot of work has gone into the development of ladies football at underage level. Those younger players are now coming through, and some of them are the daughters of some of us who are still playing. That’s what has kept us going.”

Drumquin have been in the competitive Junior B league since their reformation, and the two first wins have certainly been relished, according to Fianchea.

“There was a big sense of relief because we had lost the previous game by just a point. The confidence that the victory gave us was immense, and hopefully we can build on that now.”