PREVIEW | Limerick and Offaly do battle in Ladies Football League final with promotion on the line

Limerick meet Offaly in the Lidl National Ladies Football League final this Sunday afternoon in Birr.

Graham Shine’s side had the upper hand when the sides met in Martinstown in February but the teams meet this weekend with silverware on the line.

It could potentially cap a memorable weekend for Limerick football with the senior mens team in the division three final against Louth the previous day in Croke Park.

Limerick are back in the League final for the first time since 2016, when they defeated Antrim in the decider.

Dymphna O’Brien proved the matchwinner with the captain bagging 2-5 in Limerick’s 4-8 to 1-10 win in Clane.

It was victory at last for the Shannonsiders who were beaten in the 2010, 2012 and 2015 League deciders.

However, Limerick dropped back to the bottom tier, failing to pick up any points in Division 3 the following year.

Since then, Limerick contested semi-finals in 201, 2019 and 2021, where they were beaten each time.

However, Graham Shine’s side were able to break the streak earlier this month as they saw off Fermanagh in a repeat of the 2019 last four clash where Limerick were bested.

In this year’s clash in Kinnegad, Fermanagh hit the ground running with Blaithin Bogue netting inside three minutes.

Sixteen minutes into the clash, Mairead Kavanagh raised a green flag for Limerick but Bogue hit back for the Ulster side with her second goal.

Cathy Mee had Limerick’s second goal as Shine’s side trailed by two at the break.

With a quarter of an hour to play, Fermanagh were five clear but again Kavanagh pounced in the box for her second goal.

Rebecca Delee followed suit with time running out to give Limerick their first lead of the day as Catriona Davis applied the final point of the day in an absorbing 4-10 to 3-9 win.

Reflecting on the game, Shine was delighted with the effort of the players as their attention quickly turned to the league decider.

“Limerick’s target at the start of the year was to get to the final, If any day you get to that final you have a fifty/fifty chance and that’s what we have been banking on. We are there now, we have two weeks to focus in on the final and we will give anyone a run for their money in the final.”

At the same time, Offaly needed extra time to see off 4A table toppers Leitrim, eventually earning a 2-16 to 3-10 win.

And the faithful county will have revenge on their mind, having been beaten by Limerick in February. On that day, second half goals from Iris Kennelly and Mee within minutes of each other turned the contest.

In difficult conditions, the sides split just two scores between them in the first quarter. Offaly were leading 0-4 to 0-3 approaching the half time whistle before Davis found the net as Limerick took a three point lead into the half.

Offaly controlled the fourth quarter to retake the lead but Kennelly and Mee ensured Limerick maintained their 100% record with a 3-4 to 1-6 result.

That was Offaly’s sole setback as they seek to return to Division 3 from which they were relegated from in 2019.

The sides also met in the 2021 group stages where Offaly were five points winners, with Limerick having four to spare last month and the reward for the winner in the trilogy decider is promotion.