Mayo manager Peter Leahy says he will speak to Cora Staunton about her inter-county plans for the rest of 2018 after his side’s Lidl Ladies NFL Division 1 final against Dublin this weekend.
The four-time All-Ireland winner recently returned to Ireland after impressing in the Australian Football League Women’s (AFLW) with the Greater Western Sydney Giants, who narrowly missed out on a place in the Grand Final.
Staunton, who captained Carnacon to a sixth All-Ireland senior club title prior to her departure, capped off a fine campaign Down Under by winning the club’s Goal of the Year award.
The Mayo star has yet to reveal whether she will resume playing inter-county football this year, but Leahy says he has been in regular contact with Staunton, and that the pair will discuss her situation after the league decider.
Speaking at the launch of the 2018 Lidl Ladies National Football League finals in Dublin, he emphasised that Staunton is "a pure and utter Mayo person" and that she does not want to take any attention away from the players competing in the final.
"Her angle and my angle is [to] leave it be, get the league final over and we’ll sit down and talk then.
"She’s honouring the girls that are there, that have done the job to get to a league final.
"She doesn’t want it to be about Cora Staunton, I don’t want it to be about Cora Staunton.
"I don’t want it to be about Peter Leahy either, this is about the girls that have got to a league final, who are playing outstanding football right now so that’s what it’s all about.
"The Cora issue is not an issue in any way shape or form. Cora is a Mayo person, she’s back in Mayo and I don’t think there’s anyone in the country who wouldn’t want Cora Staunton around, so at the moment we’re leaving it off and we’ll sit down next week and have a chat."
Sunday’s showdown promises to be an exciting affair as Mayo are hoping to win a first Division 1 title since 2007, while Dublin are still seeking a first ever top-flight crown.
It will also be a repeat of last year's All-Ireland final which was played in front of a record crowd of over 46,000 spectators in Croke Park.
Mayo stalwart Martha Carter has returned to training with Mayo recently, which will surely bolster Leahy’s squad, while goalkeeper Yvonne Byrne has yet to make a decision on her inter-county future for this year.
Leahy said that Byrne "has so much on right now" and is currently unable to commit to the team due to work and personal commitments.
"She works in Dublin, she lives in Cavan, he said, "it’s practically an impossibility for Yvonne [to play right now]. That’s another issue where we’ll chat away but it’s very hard for Yvonne."
Despite the absence of Staunton, Byrne and Carter at the start of 2018, Mayo managed to book their place in the Division 1 final after ending Cork’s six-in-a-row dreams at the semi-final stage on the back of a narrow victory.
Leahy said he is pleased to see other players stepping up to assume the leadership roles in preparation for the meeting with the All-Ireland champions.
"It was time for other people to step up"
"Cora, Martha and Yvonne have led the Mayo set-up for a number of years and it was time for other people to step up," he said.
"In ways it was very difficult, in ways it was a big help because these girls have to find themselves and they have found themselves.
"That can only help Mayo along the way right across the board. I’d be huge into empowering players to stand up and be counted when it matters, let them play externally and express themselves. I’m a huge believer in expression."
He added: "Our two inside forwards scored 0-16 between them the other day, that’s fair expression.
"The only wide we had was from one of our backs.
"Six people scored at the weekend, eight people scored the weekend before that and nine people scored the weekend before that. We’re getting a good spread of scores and that’s because we’re expressing ourselves.
"No-one gets given out to for taking a shot. No-one gets given out to for doing the wrong thing.
"As long as everyone openly expresses themselves, that’s the most important thing to me."
Lidl Ladies NFL Final Fixtures
Division 1: Dublin v Mayo; Parnell Park, 4pm - Sunday May 6
Division 2: Cavan v Tipperary; Parnell Park, 2pm - Sunday May 6
Division 3: Meath v Wexford; St Brendan’s Park, Birr, 4pm - Monday May 7
Division 4: Louth v Wicklow; St Brendan’s Park, Birr, 2pm - Monday May 7
