SSE Airtricity Women's National League
SATURDAY 12 MARCH
Sligo Rovers v DLR Waves, The Showgrounds, 2pm
Treaty United v Cork City, Markets Field, 5pm
Bohemians v Athlone Town, Dalymount Park, 6pm
Galway WFC v Peamount United, Eamonn Deacy Park, 6pm
Wexford Youths v Shelbourne, Ferrycarrig Park, 6pm
Watch all games live on LOITV
It's the second week of games in the season and Rachael Kelly is hoping Bohemians can pick up their first win when they host Athlone Town on Saturday evening.
Back in the SSE Airtricity Women's National League following six months based in Sweden, the agile shot-stopper made her competitive debut for the Gypsies in last week's narrow loss to champions Shelbourne.
Now, the focus is on getting off the mark for the 2022 season.
"We were unlucky not to get a draw against Shelbourne, but we will take the positives from that performance and hopefully create some more chances and get our first win on Saturday," said Kelly.
"As a team we would like to finish higher than the club did last year and go on a longer FAI Cup run, but we are taking each game as it comes and the Athlone game is the only one that matters now.
"It's fantastic that we will be getting to play in Dalymount Park under the lights. Bohemians have done a huge amount of advertising for the game and we're hoping that a big crowd will be there cheering us on.
"It shows how much the league is growing that we will play in such a fantastic stadium on a Saturday evening. It is actually a huge motivator for the girls, because you notice the difference when a crowd is really loud and cheering you on."
Kelly is excited to get going following a spell with P18 IK in Visby, which is a small island on Sweden's south-east coast.
During that time away, she watched WNL games on LOITV and followed the latest news on social media. In her words, the coverage of the League has "blown up" and she reckons it is a boom time for women's football in this country.
"I think we can all be so proud over how far the league has come. It's clear that people are putting more time into promoting it and that is fantastic for everyone involved," she said.
Kelly, who is competing with long-time friend Courtney Maguire for the No 1 spot, reserves special praise for Bohs goalkeeping coach Pat Trehy after helping her to quickly adjust to being with a new club.
"Pat is great, he is a fantastic coach who shares everything with you. He has great respect in football and he deserves it because he puts the work in week in, week out," said Kelly.
"The training sessions are quite consistent, but there are a few competitions thrown in here and there to keep us on our toes. He creates a great atmosphere for everyone to get the best out of them.
"I have to say that everything is great since I came to Bohs, with Sean (Byrne) and Pat (Trehy) and all of the players. The club are doing a lot of promotion, so it's up to us to just take advantage of it now."
Elsewhere this weekend, Kelly's former club, reigning champions Shelbourne will be hoping to gain revenge over their FAI Cup final conquerors Wexford Youths.
Sligo Rovers host UCD Waves and Peamount travel to Galway. Sligo Rovers host DLR Waves and Peamount travel to Galway. The game between Treaty United and Cork City at Markets Field was postponed on Saturday morning however.
