AND SO, IT begins.
The 2020 Lidl Ladies National Football Leagues kick off this weekend, as Cork launch the defence of their Division 1 crown at Páirc Uí Chaoimh this evening.
The Leeside venue plays host to an historic double-header, in which Ephie Fitzgerald’s 12-time league champions welcome Westmeath for round one [throw-in 4pm].
Elsewhere in the top tier on Sunday, three-in-a-row All-Ireland senior champions Dublin host 2017 and 2019 intermediate winners Tipperary in the capital, Connacht kingpins Galway and newly-promoted Waterford go head-to-head out West, and Mayo kick off their 2020 against Donegal.
While Dublin have lifted the Brendan Martin Cup in Croke Park for the past three Septembers, Mick Bohan’s Sky Blues only won their first Division 1 league title in 2018.
Last year, themselves and Cork met three times in the league — a round-robin game, a semi-final, and a semi-final replay — with Cork coming out on top in two of the three thrilling encounters.
The powerhouses’ rivalry was re-ignited in the All-Ireland semi-final, and we all know how that one went. Their round three meeting at HQ on Saturday, 8 February, is already highly-anticipated, though there are plenty of crackers in store in the race for early-season silverware.
Galway, after reaching two national finals last year, will be back all guns blazing, while Mayo — though decimated by the loss of four key players to the AFLW — will hope to start on the right foot.
After staying up last year, Shane Ronayne’s Tipperary will be eager to establish themselves as a top-tier outfit, and Donegal plan on bouncing back after a disappointing end to 2019.
Westmeath and newly-promoted Waterford will also be looking to make their mark on Division 1; which goes to a straight final on 18/19 April after the semi-finals were scrapped this year.
(Fixtures available here)
But, who do you think will win this year’s Division 1 ladies football league title?
Poll Results:
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