Dublin Ladies Football stars Sinéad Goldrick and Niamh McEvoy are to join what is becoming an exodus of women taking up the opportunity to play sport at semi professional level in Australia.
The move was announced yesterday as part of a slick marketing exercise from Melbourne Football club who have clearly been in discussion with the stars for some time but who did not want to reveal the coup until after this year’s TG4 All Ireland Championship.
“This is a significant announcement not only for our women’s program, but for our football club in its entirety,” said Todd Patterson from Melbourne.
“Over the past six to eight years, Sinead and Niamh have created impressive on-field profiles through their hard work and team success, and as a result, have become two of the best-credentialed female athletes in the country.”
“They are terrific people, who we think will truly align with the values of our club, and with Dublin GAA being the closest thing you can get to a professional sporting organisation in Ireland, we have full confidence they will be well prepared for the demands of AFLW.”
Irish Rugby may argue with that point about professional sporting organisations but the level of training and physicality that Ladies Football is now at makes it a potential fertile hunting ground for other clubs.
Cora Staunton and Sarah Rowe both played in the Australian League in the past year. Rowe returned to play for Mayo in the Championship though Staunton was injured and is unlikely to have been part of county plans anyway.
The overlap of competitions allows for a split season and both Goldrick and McEvoy had discussed their plans with Dublin management in advance. It is expected for now that both will return to Dublin for next summer.
Goldrick has been working as an Account Manager with Dublin agency Wilson Hartnell.
“I’ve always been a fan of AFLW and in many ways, they have been setting the standard in women’s sport globally,” she said yesterday.
“To be able to have the chance to join a team, and live and train in a professional environment in a sporting city like Melbourne, is something that I’m extremely fortunate to be able to try.”
“There are so many transferable skills between the two games, the high fielding and foot passing in particular, and I am hoping my direct running and tackling can add something to the team.”
McEvoy is a teacher in Dublin and will be able to take a career break to see how things work out.
There is a personal side to the decision as well that is not unrelated to the wider Dublin GAA community. McEvoy’s partner is Dean Rock while Goldrick’s is Dublin hurler David Treacy.
Melbourne’s principal sponsors are Zurich and Jaguar, both high end brands with a tradition in sport and no doubt keen to make the most of the two Dublin star’s arrival down under.
It is a massive opportunity for both players, one that they could hardly pass up but one which puts Ladies Football on even more heightened alert that the development of players over their young lives and into inter county careers can be seen as providing a perfect schooling for a life away from the sport in time.
