Football fever and a festival atmosphere filled the pitch at Claregalway this week as supporters rallied ahead of Galway's clash with Kerry in the ladies All-Ireland senior football final on Sunday.
Clubs from across the county gathered in anticipation of the action this weekend with entertainment from Lackagh Comhaltas.
Enthusiastic players trained and ran drills, kicking the ball high over the ball, all of them too young to have ever seen Galway claim the Brendan Martin Cup.
Niamh Duggan was a member of the team the last time Galway won in 2004.
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She is optimistic for this year’s team especially as some players were on the panel in 2019 when Galway last reached the final and believes they’ll bring that experience with them on Sunday.
Over the last 20 years Niamh has seen firsthand a lot of changes to the approach in the sport.
"It seems like a lifetime ago now but at the time there was very little strength and conditioning, you were rarely in the gym it was all on the field.
"That side, in terms of fitness and physicality there’s been great inroads made into that side."
During that period social media has also evolved and enhanced awareness about the sport and what the ladies are doing, but Niamh believes there’s always going to be room for improvement.
"There’s always a window there to try and get ourselves a bit higher up on the pecking order in terms of sport.
"With the Olympics on, with soccer going well, with Gaelic football we just have to keep putting the best side out."
Young players from across the county are full of admiration for the Galway team and what they’ve achieved, despite a tough season and relegation.
Twelve-year-old Claire McLaughlin who plays for Corofin is predicting Galway will be able to pull through in the last few minutes of the match and win by two points.
"I just think it’s great that Galway’s women’s football is doing so well because it’s really inspirational to every one of us here to see people we look up to doing so well.
"It would be brilliant if they could win."
Excitement is building and "rolling with good momentum" in every club across the county now, according to Galway LGFA Chairperson John Devlin.
He said there’s a good run on tickets and a lot of clubs have organised for busloads of people to travel to the match on Sunday.
"It’s fabulous to see so many interested. In this day and age, it’s very important for young girls to stay in sport.
"We lose a lot of them around the age of 16 and I think the more we keep them involved the better."
But when it comes to whether or not the players have any tricks up their sleeves for Sunday, John is keeping tight lipped.
"I wouldn’t be privy to any of that information to give any secrets away."
Milltown club member Robin Hynes, 15, has been playing football as long as she can remember and absolutely loves it.
She can’t wait to go to the final: "Hopefully they’ll bring it home, give us a bit of glory when the lads couldn’t do it. Hopefully they’ll beat Kerry, especially after beating Dublin, I hope they do it."
Robin and other young players who love the sport have role models and players they aspire to be like and have hopes to represent their county one day.
There are huge differences now for young players than when the sport was in its infancy.
The first chairperson of Galway LGFA Frank Carney remembered how when it started in 1974 "it was just a novelty at the beginning".
Galway got to the second All-Ireland final in 1975 but lost to Tipperary.
He said the team, preparations, standard of play, involvement, support, and finances are all so drastically different in today’s game compared to then.
"One couldn’t even imagine at the time how the game would grow from those humble beginnings when a small group of people got together starting the LGFA to what it is today."
The Secretary of Connacht LGFA and Galway LGFA’s delegate to Central Council Mary Hernon remembers when there were only four people involved in organising all the preparations in 2004 compared to the committee now.
She believes the sport has come a long way, even in terms of securing pitches for training.
"You’d get a sort of 'women?’ response, whereas now there isn’t a single club in the county that wouldn’t welcome the Galway ladies or any ladies team, it’s just fantastic," she said.
After being crestfallen when they were relegated from the first division of the national league after their match against Waterford earlier this year, Mary believes they’ve been building and bonding ever since and hopes their crescendo is Sunday.
