FORMER AFLW PLAYER Aishling Sheridan says she is content to close the chapter on her time in the sport Down Under despite receiving some recent contact from clubs.
Sheridan enjoyed five seasons with Collingwood but opted to return to Ireland at the end of 2023. There are growing fears in Ireland around the talent drainage to the sport in Australia, with a record 39 Irish players involved with AFLW teams for the 2025 season.
Sheridan’s Cavan teammate Ellie Brady is among those signing a deal for the upcoming campaign, joining Sheridan’s Collingwood. Cork dual-star Aoife Healy is linking up with the Fremantle Dockers while Waterford’s Emma Murray is heading to Geelong, and Tyrone’s Aoife Horisk has been recruited by Melbourne.
Sheridan, who was still in contract when she came home to Ireland in 2023, placed herself on the club’s inactive list while considering her future in the sport. She committed to her club Mullahoran for 2024, and spent some time travelling before returning to the Cavan panel last season.
After almost three years away from the AFLW, she’s confident that she is happiest at home.
“I’ve had contact from clubs probably this year gone by, seeing would it ever spark my interest again. But when I came home at the end of 2023, I knew I was ready to come home and get back into football, and settle myself back at home.
“I had done five seasons and I did enjoy it. But it wasn’t my first love and I was happy being at home with my family.
“Maybe I miss the weather, but the sport itself? No. It’s brilliant to see the success of all the Irish girls and sometimes you might think, ‘Oh could that be me?’ But in that moment, I was looking forward to getting home. The grass is always greener where you water it.”
The 19-year-old Brady has signed a rookie deal that will run until at least the end of 2027. A former minor captain, Brady played alongside Sheridan last season as Cavan won a Division 3 title as well as the Ulster intermediate crown.
Sheridan says she was delighted to be a sounding board for Brady after relying on the advice of Mayo’s Sarah Rowe when she first joined Collingwood in 2020.
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“Ellie’s great, and it was her first year on the [Cavan] senior panel last year. When I was going, it was very nice I had Sarah Rowe to ask all these questions to.
“Ellie is so young making a big move to Australia, so there’s all those little bits you probably wouldn’t think of. I was probably able to be that helping hand, or point her in the right direction.
“I’d be so excited to see how she gets on.”
Sarah Rowe provided assistance for Aishling Sheridan when she first came to Collingwood in 2020. Ryan Byrne / INPHO
Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO
Despite the ongoing concerns, Sheridan anticipates that even more Irish players are likely to make the switch to the AFLW, and says she would advise anyone presented with the opportunity to “give it a go.”
However, she also points to the rise of home grown talents in Australia since the AFLW’s inaugural season in 2017. She suspects that this could make it more difficult for Irish players to make the transition in the future.
“The AFLW is in its 10th year now so there was a stage where there was a massive gap. I remember asking some of my teammates, and because it was such a physical game and there was no age group for women, they then transitioned to other sports.
“So, as more youth are coming through, they’re going to be playing the sport right up [through the grades]. There will probably be a stage where there’s going to be enough Australians and [there] mightn’t be as much Irish. I just don’t know when that’ll be.”
Controversies around late venue changes have blighted both the Ladies football and camogie leagues in recent weeks. The Division 1B camogie game between Clare and Wexford was moved from Clareabbey to Meelick. However, photos of the alternative venue showed the pitch to be in poor condition ahead of throw-in. In Ladies football, the Division 3 clash between Down and Roscommon was moved from Páirc Esler in Newry to a 4G pitch in Cherryvale, Belfast.
“It’s very hard on players,” says Sheridan.
“I see it even now with us trying to find grounds for training. We could get a message an hour before training started saying training’s moved. It’s the unpredictability of the Irish weather and it is really unfortunate for a last-minute change, especially if you’re a travelling team.”
Cavan are top of Division 2 after five rounds of the league, and are the only unbeaten team left in the second tier with two rounds to go. They’ve picked up wins over Monaghan and Donegal along with a draw against Mayo in the opening round. Third-placed Tyrone are still to come along with Westmeath in the concluding rounds.
“We were nearly focusing on seeing how we get on in Division 2,” says Sheridan, “Seeing can we hold our status there? As the games progressed, maybe it instilled a bit of belief in ourselves that maybe there is a chance that we can actually progress into Division 1. That would be an absolute bonus.”
Cavan won the Ulster intermediate final last year, crushing Down by 6-10 to 1-8 to secure a first provincial title since 2011 with Sheridan scoring 2-2 from play. Their season ended at the All-Ireland quarter-final stage, losing out by one point to Westmeath.
The Breffni county were last crowned All-Ireland intermediate champions in 2013 when Sheridan was a young panellist at 17, having just completed her Leaving Cert that summer. Her sisters Mona and Geraldine were also involved, along with her father Gerry who was a joint-manager.
“To be honest,” Sheridan recalls of that time, “I could say that I have an All-Ireland medal but it was my first year on the panel and it took me a few years to get my place, so it nearly flashed by. I nearly forgot about it or didn’t understand the importance of it back then as I do now.”
Rectifying the mistakes of last year remains the key goal for Cavan as championship looms.
“We feel like we probably didn’t do ourselves justice in the championship last year. I think a big focus would be Ulster championship and then hopefully the All-Ireland series.”
Born from a whisper in 1974 at Hayes’ Hotel, not just a sport – but a movement.
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Cavan star had 'contact from clubs' but happy to close AFLW chapter after five seasons
FORMER AFLW PLAYER Aishling Sheridan says she is content to close the chapter on her time in the sport Down Under despite receiving some recent contact from clubs.
Sheridan enjoyed five seasons with Collingwood but opted to return to Ireland at the end of 2023. There are growing fears in Ireland around the talent drainage to the sport in Australia, with a record 39 Irish players involved with AFLW teams for the 2025 season.
Sheridan’s Cavan teammate Ellie Brady is among those signing a deal for the upcoming campaign, joining Sheridan’s Collingwood. Cork dual-star Aoife Healy is linking up with the Fremantle Dockers while Waterford’s Emma Murray is heading to Geelong, and Tyrone’s Aoife Horisk has been recruited by Melbourne.
Sheridan, who was still in contract when she came home to Ireland in 2023, placed herself on the club’s inactive list while considering her future in the sport. She committed to her club Mullahoran for 2024, and spent some time travelling before returning to the Cavan panel last season.
After almost three years away from the AFLW, she’s confident that she is happiest at home.
“I’ve had contact from clubs probably this year gone by, seeing would it ever spark my interest again. But when I came home at the end of 2023, I knew I was ready to come home and get back into football, and settle myself back at home.
“I had done five seasons and I did enjoy it. But it wasn’t my first love and I was happy being at home with my family.
“Maybe I miss the weather, but the sport itself? No. It’s brilliant to see the success of all the Irish girls and sometimes you might think, ‘Oh could that be me?’ But in that moment, I was looking forward to getting home. The grass is always greener where you water it.”
The 19-year-old Brady has signed a rookie deal that will run until at least the end of 2027. A former minor captain, Brady played alongside Sheridan last season as Cavan won a Division 3 title as well as the Ulster intermediate crown.
Sheridan says she was delighted to be a sounding board for Brady after relying on the advice of Mayo’s Sarah Rowe when she first joined Collingwood in 2020.
“Ellie’s great, and it was her first year on the [Cavan] senior panel last year. When I was going, it was very nice I had Sarah Rowe to ask all these questions to.
“Ellie is so young making a big move to Australia, so there’s all those little bits you probably wouldn’t think of. I was probably able to be that helping hand, or point her in the right direction.
“I’d be so excited to see how she gets on.”
Despite the ongoing concerns, Sheridan anticipates that even more Irish players are likely to make the switch to the AFLW, and says she would advise anyone presented with the opportunity to “give it a go.”
However, she also points to the rise of home grown talents in Australia since the AFLW’s inaugural season in 2017. She suspects that this could make it more difficult for Irish players to make the transition in the future.
“The AFLW is in its 10th year now so there was a stage where there was a massive gap. I remember asking some of my teammates, and because it was such a physical game and there was no age group for women, they then transitioned to other sports.
“So, as more youth are coming through, they’re going to be playing the sport right up [through the grades]. There will probably be a stage where there’s going to be enough Australians and [there] mightn’t be as much Irish. I just don’t know when that’ll be.”
Controversies around late venue changes have blighted both the Ladies football and camogie leagues in recent weeks. The Division 1B camogie game between Clare and Wexford was moved from Clareabbey to Meelick. However, photos of the alternative venue showed the pitch to be in poor condition ahead of throw-in. In Ladies football, the Division 3 clash between Down and Roscommon was moved from Páirc Esler in Newry to a 4G pitch in Cherryvale, Belfast.
“It’s very hard on players,” says Sheridan.
“I see it even now with us trying to find grounds for training. We could get a message an hour before training started saying training’s moved. It’s the unpredictability of the Irish weather and it is really unfortunate for a last-minute change, especially if you’re a travelling team.”
Cavan are top of Division 2 after five rounds of the league, and are the only unbeaten team left in the second tier with two rounds to go. They’ve picked up wins over Monaghan and Donegal along with a draw against Mayo in the opening round. Third-placed Tyrone are still to come along with Westmeath in the concluding rounds.
“We were nearly focusing on seeing how we get on in Division 2,” says Sheridan, “Seeing can we hold our status there? As the games progressed, maybe it instilled a bit of belief in ourselves that maybe there is a chance that we can actually progress into Division 1. That would be an absolute bonus.”
Cavan won the Ulster intermediate final last year, crushing Down by 6-10 to 1-8 to secure a first provincial title since 2011 with Sheridan scoring 2-2 from play. Their season ended at the All-Ireland quarter-final stage, losing out by one point to Westmeath.
The Breffni county were last crowned All-Ireland intermediate champions in 2013 when Sheridan was a young panellist at 17, having just completed her Leaving Cert that summer. Her sisters Mona and Geraldine were also involved, along with her father Gerry who was a joint-manager.
“To be honest,” Sheridan recalls of that time, “I could say that I have an All-Ireland medal but it was my first year on the panel and it took me a few years to get my place, so it nearly flashed by. I nearly forgot about it or didn’t understand the importance of it back then as I do now.”
Rectifying the mistakes of last year remains the key goal for Cavan as championship looms.
“We feel like we probably didn’t do ourselves justice in the championship last year. I think a big focus would be Ulster championship and then hopefully the All-Ireland series.”
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* Aishling Sheridan was speaking at the launch of the LGFA’s ‘For The Love of our Sport’ campaign
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