Nicola Ward not taking success for granted with Kilkerrin-Clonberne

Michael Bolton

As Kilkerrin-Clonberne seek their fifth straight All-Ireland ladies' football title on Saturday, Nicola Ward knows the good times will not last forever.

The 2024 footballer of the year has been crucial to the Galway side's success, which has seen them win 52 championship games in a row.

However, like many at the club, she can remember a time when this wasn't the case, and will never take it for granted.

Having lost the 2019 All-Ireland final, they did not let the disappointment bring them down, with 10 of that side playing in this year's semi-final.

For Ward, the team sticking together has been crucial for success.

"I think those experiences and those losses stand with us going forward.

"There's no sign whatsoever of the motivation dropping. You'd see that in training, never mind in the matches. It's very easy to keep going year after year when you're coming back to a successful club.

"We're all very competitive and just want to stay on top for as long as we can because we know it's not going to last forever, and there is going to be a day that our team will knock us off the top.

"I think the success of this team and of our club is keeping everyone together. Nobody that I know has intentions of going abroad or to Australia."

While this occasion has become a routine for Kilkerrin-Clonberne, it is a first final for Moneyglass, who have shocked everyone on their route to Croke Park.

A shock win over Kilmacud Crokes ensured there would be no repeat of last year's final. While all fans appreciate an underdog story, Ward is confident they will adjust quickly to playing a new side.

"When you're playing a new team, it is quite unfamiliar, and it will take a little bit of time to weigh them up and get to know them. So in that aspect, there might be a bit of anxiety at the start, as expected, but hopefully we'll get to grips with them early enough.

"It's nice to see someone new win and someone else get a chance at silverware or an All-Ireland medal, but in our team, we don't associate ourselves with anything that anybody else is saying outside our own core group.

"We have no intentions of handing our trophy over to anyone else anytime soon. As I keep saying, we've experienced about 10 years of the journey of trying to win our first All-Ireland medal."

The mental strength of this team has been put to the test in the past couple of years, with Galway coming so close but yet so far to ending their draught for an All-Ireland title.

Several club players were involved once again this year as Galway were edged out by Dublin in extra-time of the semi-finals.

For Ward, the environment has been key to overcoming setbacks in their county.

"It's very easy on the back of losing with Galway. It has been a disappointment for us with Galway. So you want to try and get it out of your system as soon as possible and get back.

"We might have taken two weeks off, and you just want to get back to playing football so you can erase it from your mind, more so.

"Everyone at the end of the year knows they're going to be coming back to the club in September because they don't want to miss out on this, I suppose, golden era that we've been going through."