01 October 2004 Sharpshooter O' Reilly to take it all in her stride Share this Article 0 0 0 Shares! 0 Shares! Sharpshooter O’Reilly takes it all in her stride By Liam î Maoldhomhnaigh Click on above image to go to web site A team that reaches an All-Ireland final, with intentions of taking silverware, cannot afford to rely on the input of just one player. But every All-Ireland finalist can point to one player who has made the greatest difference en route to the decider. The player that has made an incredible difference for the Sligo Ladies Gaelic footballers – now just one game away from an All-Ireland Junior title – is Geevagh’s Stephanie O’Reilly. The 17-year-old, a Secondary School student at Coola Post Primary School, is the team’s leading scorer, having supplied an awesome 7-19 (40 points) in four games. Her biggest tally came in the All-Ireland semi-final against Cork. Sligo notched 7-7; O’Reilly scored 4-4. But O’Reilly, who has won two All-Ireland medals in the Coola colours, doesn’t imagine that she will be expected to do anything spectacular in Croke Park next Sunday. “I don’t put pressure on myself before games. I try to play my normal game and things have gone well for me so far this year. If everyone does their bit then the team have a good chance,” she said. Stephanie O’ Reilly with family and friends after receiving the 2003 Connacht Young Player of the year When reflecting on the demolition of Cork, the game that saw her score eight times, including four goals, O’Reilly stated: “We were always on top in that game. It worked out well for me – but the supply was good the whole time.” But O’Reilly, whose scores helped Geevagh win the Sligo Junior Championship, still rates this year’s Post Primary Schools All-Ireland Senior ‘C’ Championship final as the year’s highlight. Coola Post Primary School, Junior ‘C’ winners in 2003, defeated St Brigid’s Presentation Secondary School, Killarney. O’Reilly, Coola’s captain, splendidly notched 3-7 from her side’s total of 3-13. O’Reilly, holder of two All-Ireland medals and the recipient of numerous ‘Player of the Match’ awards, is delighted what 2004 has brought at inter-county level – under Kathleen Kane’s tutelage. “We have improved since the beginning of the year. I suppose after a few months there was a sense that things could go well for us. Having a number of team-mates from Coola in the [Sligo] squad does help, but everyone gets on well together.” “In all our games so far we haven’t been in trouble but I think we didn’t realise just how good we can be – if we work hard.” “There has been a huge commitment this year – everyone wants to be in the starting 15,” she added O’Reilly is also impressed by the application of manager Kathleen Kane, who is in her first year of inter-county management. “It is great because Kathleen has played at county level and she knows what it feels like to be a player. It has been a massive step for her to guide a team, but we all respect her and what she has done for us so far.” Sligo’s Top Scorers Sligo’s scorers are as follows: Stephanie O’Reilly (7-19), Louise Brett (3-13), Therese Marren (4-1), Noelle Gormley (3-1), Imelda McNulty (1-5), Niamh Mannion (1-3), Angela Doohan (1-2), Louise Harte (0-3), Bernice Byrne (1-0), Karen Maloney (0-2), Aisling McTiernan (0-1) This article was kindly given to us by The Sligo Weekender Newspaper Stephanie O’ Reilly as captain of Coola receiving The Schools Cup from ladies President Geraldine Giles Share this Article 0 0