A Year in review of Limerick Ladies Football from county to club

IT has been an up and down season for the junior Limerick ladies football team with glimmers of positivity scattered throughout. Sean Kiely and Mike Quilligan’s side faced tough battles throughout the year with the side capturing their only cup this year in the Munster LGFA Senior 'B' final, with a 1-10 to 0-7 win over Cork. They will also play in Division 3 of the National League next year after gaining promotion in 2024.

This was to be the Limerick Ladies only taste of silverware this season as they came up just short to Carlow in the Lidl Ladies Football National League Division 4 final in April after a turbulent league campaign which saw them draw with Wicklow in their opening game of the campaign, 1-3 to 0-6. 

They then went onto produce huge victories over Derry and Kilkenny at home in the next two rounds while registering another draw against a testing Longford outfit. 

Limerick’s first defeat of the league came at the hands of Leitrim, where home support proved vital for the O’Rourke County who gained a 2-11 to 1-7 win over the Treaty side. This loss was followed by another as Fermanagh got the better of them in round five of the league, leaving their final group game against Carlow one of the most important games of the year. 

A win against the Dolmen County would assure Limerick a place in the semi-finals of the Lidl Ladies Football National League and the Treaty ladies came out and did just that, putting up a stellar performance to come out 1-11 to 1-9 victors. 

This booked them a semi-final spot against Leitrim, who had got the better of them earlier in the season. With this mind Limerick produced another standout performance to send them into the league final, while also gaining promotion to Division 3 in 2025. Stalwarts of the game Yvonne Lee, Roisin Ambrose and Deborah Murphy were all named on the Division 4 2024 Lidl Ladies NFL Team of the League. 

After a tough loss to Carlow in the National League final in extremely testing conditions, Limerick dusted themselves off again and in the period before the TG4 All-Ireland junior championship they competed in the Munster Senior ‘B’ championship.

Limerick made light work of Kerry opponents in the opening round with a huge 5-21 to 0-10 win. This fast tracked them through to the Munster ‘B’ final against Cork where they came out triumphant after a fabulous display of football.

With this Munster championship win in their back pocket the Limerick ladies had great momentum going into the main event of the season, the TG4 All-Ireland Junior Ladies Football championship.

First up was an away fixture against Longford with the journey proving not to be a problem for Limerick who came away with a vital 1-12 to 0-8 opening round win. 

The Treaty Ladies winning streak would come to an abrupt end in the second round of the junior championship as Louth proved too strong for them.

Sean Kiely and Mike Quilligan’s side were back to winning ways in the next round as they eased past Kilkenny, after beating them already earlier in the year. 

With two victories and a defeat Limerick were left in second place of group two in the Junior championship, leaving them to face formidable Fermanagh in the All-Ireland semi-final.

An All-Ireland final place for the second year-a-row was on the cards for Limerick, but Fermanagh produced an incredible performance against Limerick in Pearse Park in Longford to move on to the All-Ireland final against Louth. 

Fermanagh would eventually be crowned Junior All-Ireland Champions of 2024, but Limerick’s efforts against the All-Ireland winners was hugely admirable, only losing out by a mere two-points in the end.  

Roisin Ambrose and Deborah Murphy captured more individual accolades after being chosen on the 2024 Junior Team of the Year for their performances throughout the championship. 

With the county season finished in July, all attention turned to the club scene where St Ailbe’s were marking their mark on the senior ranks. 

Ailbe’s remained unbeaten in the league and the championship, getting the better of Monagea in the Senior semi-final. Ballylanders were the only opposition standing in their way of their second cup of the year and Sile Moynihan’s side made no mistake in the Limerick Senior Final with a 0-13 to 1-7 win in the final. Their unbeaten season came to an end when they met O’Donovan Rossa of Skibbereen in the Munster Intermediate Final, with the West Cork team going through to the All-Ireland series. 

Elsewhere it was unbeaten Mungret St Paul’s who got the one-point victory over a battling Knockainey in the Limerick Intermediate final. This win kickstarted an incredible run for Mungret who overcame Abbeydorney to put themselves into the clubs first ever Munster Final. 

John Horgan’s charges did extremely well to get the better of Cork junior champions Midleton to claim the Munster crown, moving them onto an All-Ireland semi-final against Coolrea Strandhill. 

It was Mungret that emerged triumphant after an extra-time battle saw Limerick side win the decider on free kicks. The team on the rise were eventually crowned AIB Junior All-Ireland Champions with an incredible 0-12 to 0-4 display in the final.