Collingwood Football Club and Cavan GAA star Aishling Sheridan spoke to Caradh on iScore today following the first game of the 2021 season, which saw Collingwood get the win over rivals Carlton Women's on Thursday.
The Cavan woman also kicked the first goal of the season in the AFLW. “I’m delighted to get the win and then obviously the goal” she told iScore today.
“I’m not going to lie, I was very nervous and I was talking to myself like…’Aishling you can’t miss this”.
The 2021 AFLW competition got underway this week and this season sees a total of fourteen Irish women involved. The rise in the number of GAA players making the move to the AFLW was highlighted last year when former Mayo Manager Peter Leahy told Mid West radio “there is a time that you should put your county first.”
When asked her thoughts on players having to choose semi-professional football over their county Sheridan said that “it’s quite unfair”.
“I was welcomed back onto the county team.
“When the opportunity comes to you to play semi-professional sport, experience a professional environment, like, it’s very hard to tell girls not to take that opportunity.
“If anything it develops you more as an athlete and a footballer”.
