Can St Conleth's go back-to-back for the first time in their history in Laois LGFA SFC County Final?

County champions St Conleth’s are once again preparing for a familiar showdown, set to face Portlaoise in a Laois LGFA Senior County Final for the fourth consecutive year. Captain Aoife Kirrane is looking forward to the challenge.

"We're absolutely delighted to be back in another final this year, a fifth in a row. Preparations are going well, we're very excited, and looking forward to the day. Two weeks to go now, so just knuckling down and working hard with the group," Kirrane said.

Having never won back-to-back titles, Kirrane says her side is motivated to make history.

"We would love to go back-to-back; we've never done it in the history of the club. We hadn't been in a final until five years ago, so it would definitely be another first for this group and for the club, so we're really hungry for it," she added.

Despite a loss to Ballyroan in the group stages, Kirrane believes the competitive nature of this year’s championship has strengthened her squad.

"We knew coming into the championship that it's really strong this year, probably even stronger than it had been last year with Joseph's up in senior this year. We were under no illusions at the start of the year that it was going to be a walk in the park for anyone at all. We learned from our defeat in the first game and then we went on to the semi-final, and we beat them so it was great for us to learn from our mistakes and move on and get into another final," Kirrane ended.

Veteran player Aine Haberlin highlighted the impact of returning county players and the emergence of younger talent.

"It's great to be playing with this group of girls... When they came back into the fold after the All-Ireland, it was just an injection of speed and energy, and it was brilliant to have. Then the younger girls have been absolutely amazing this year... They've been really putting us through our paces, and yeah, it's been absolutely brilliant to have that mix," Haberlin said.

Looking ahead, Haberlin hopes the team can extend their success beyond the county.

"It would mean a huge amount. To be in a fifth county final is just an amazing achievement, and to go back-to-back would be amazing as well. We’d love to get a win in Leinster, it’s not something that we’ve managed to do yet, but to be honest, we're just focusing on our next challenge over the next two weeks and trying to get ourselves right and to focus on that next game," she added.

Manager Chris Lynch knows Portlaoise will provide a stern test but is confident in his squad’s resilience.

"We know it's a new year. Portlaoise are actually a lot stronger this year than they were last year in the championship. They're unbeaten, whereas we lost a game in the championship. Portlaoise are the form team here, so we know we have a battle on our hands," Lynch said.

Reflecting on the team’s leadership, Lynch credited players who stepped up after the group-stage setback against Ballyroan.

"We've a lot of leaders there, even from young girls to some of the older girls, they all stood up and were accounted for. We got ourselves together again and just built from there, and thankfully, we’re in another county final, which is great," Lynch added.

The manager also praised the depth of the panel and the impact of the returning county players.

"I've always said that's where our panel comes in. Our panel brought us through the league stages and the early stages of the championship, so it's great that we have such a good panel. Only for those girls, we wouldn’t be here today. Getting the Laois girls back was great as they bring good quality, but like we've quality right through our panel, so it's great that they just added to it," Lynch commented.

On the injury front, Lynch confirmed minor setbacks but a largely healthy squad.

"This time of year, the girls will be tired. Unfortunately, we lost Alanna Havill, our captain from last year, and Aimee Kelly for two different reasons. They are two big losses for us, but no clean bill of health, so hopefully, please god, two weeks to go, so we'll see how we're fixed," he said.

Looking to the final, Lynch stressed the need to raise their performance to match Portlaoise’s hunger.

"We're always trying to improve. We know what Portlaoise are going to bring. They're going to bring hunger and determination. We know we have to up our game to the next level, but in fairness, the girls are working hard. We’re in this together for the next two weeks, so we're ready for a battle and we’ll see where it takes us," Lynch ended.

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