Troy ready for battle with Dublin

There was a time when inter-county Gaelic football teams prepared for big games by doing endless laps around a pitch - and little else. There was a belief, admittedly way back in the 1960s and beyond, that players would be better off NOT practicing with a ball in the lead up to a game so that when the big match came around they would be "ball hungry" and therefore play that much better.

Now all has changed. These days teams are prepared very differently. Now there is a much more sophisticated approach involving exercises designed to fortify and buttress both the mind and the body for battle.

The Meath ladies football team have certainly worked hard in both areas to ensure they are ready as Emma Troy outlined when she spoke to the Meath Chronicle during the team's media night at Dunganny.

Edging close to 10 years now since making her senior debut for the county, Troy has seen a revolution take place in the ladies game in how teams prepare themselves. The Boardsmill woman spoke about the high level of physical fitness the players have attained under Eugene Eivers who, she points out with a sense of pride, is also from Boardsmill.

Then there is the mental preparation the players have put in under sports and exercise psychologists Kelley Fay. "It's about resetting, refocusing, the next ball, whether you make a great pass or a bad pass it's all about focusing on the next ball," explained the 26-year-old Troy, who works as a primary school teacher in Kilmessan.

"We would have a Zoom meeting with Kelley two or three days before a game and we'd go through everything, having the right mindset and all that. Some use visualisation, there are different strategies for different players, some girls write things on the hands."

It has all helped to raise the profile of a Meath team who are on a roll. Last December Meath won the All-Ireland IFC. In June they defeated Kerry in the NFL Div 2 final at Croke Park, now they are back there again for the senior showdown.

Troy has been there every step of the way as the team have surged upwards, putting in her characteristic, all-action, relentless, displays that have helped to drive the team on. She made the 2020 Intermediate Team of the Year, an honour that underlines her immense value to the team and looks a certainty for a 2021 Allstar.

She talks about how the players rely on each other to see them through. The culture surrounding the team is about encouraging, not criticising each other, when things go against them.

There is something else she feels is fundamental to the team's success. "There is a huge focus on enjoyment. Before every game the last thing we do before we go out is to remind ourselves to enjoy every minute, make the most of it, and that's what we have sought to do."

It's a philosophy that has worked a treat so far - and may do so again on Sunday.