Leonard and Seoighe call time on inter-county careers ahead of league opener
By Ivan Smyth
NEW Galway ladies football manager Daniel Moynihan understands the task at hand. The Ballinasloe man is aiming to initiate a rebuild of sorts in a highly competitive Division One of the National League.
With the Galway supremo confirming that the Kilkerrin/Clonberne contingent may not be filtered back into action until the end of the month at least, this Sunday’s tricky opening round game against Cork in Mallow (throw in 2pm) presents an opportunity for Moynihan to run the rule over new candidates.
The former Galway minor manager is aiming to blood new players from last year’s All Ireland winning minor side and key personnel from the 2022 outfit that reached the U-18 national decider. Moynihan takes a pragmatic standpoint as he aims to implement his own ideas within the set up.
“It is a process. Maghnus (Breathnach) and Fiona (Wynne) had their way of playing. We have an idea of how we want to play. It will take time to bed in and let the girls know what aspects we want implemented into our game. We are not going to jump in and have everything perfect from the first moment. It will take time and it is a process of learning. If we get time and patience, we hope to be challenging the best teams.”
In what will be a more youthful Galway squad in the weeks ahead, Moynihan has lost considerable experience in the dressing room. Tracey Leonard and Mairéad Seoighe have departed after announcing their retirement from inter county duty during the off season.
Seoighe kicked two goals in Galway’s All-Ireland semi final win over Mayo in 2019 but has been disrupted by injury in recent times. Leonard proved time and again that she was one of the finest to don the maroon and white jersey with the pair’s absence a sizeable blow.
Pictured: The long serving Galway attacker Tracey Leonard who has retired from inter-county ladies football.