After an early flurry of re-signings in the off-season, and a couple of eye-catching additions in recent weeks, pre-season is well underway for Phil Trill and the Galway United Women. Taking charge of his third season, the United manager acknowledged a later restart than some other teams.
“We’re back since the 11th of January. We probably gave a few extra weeks off. When you look around the league, some teams were back training in the first week of December, which I thought was madness.
“It’s going really well. I’ve been impressed this early on with how sharp the players are. We probably feel that we left a bit behind us last year in certain games so it’s to their credit that everyone has come in with a very focused drive.
“I think we were probably the earliest club in terms of getting players re-signed quite early in the off-season. There is a sense of pride in that from our perspective as we are trying to align the women’s game to the level of professionalism that is in the men’s game.
“To keep a lot of key talent is important. There are some people who have moved on as well. The most important thing is that we were able to get people in very early in the window.”
It was important too that the squad would be infused with additions, not least since the departures of stand-out performers Jessica Berlin and Jenna Slattery who each made massive contributions to the success of previous seasons.
“Nicole [Nix] was a player that I would have looked at over the last two or three years. We were very close to her signing before. Likewise with Niamh [Farrelly]. She is a player I would be a long-time admirer of. Both of them have come in and done really well. We have one or two more coming in, we might have three more max by the end of the window on February 22.
“We have a very clear market in terms of the people we want to attract. We want to attract people that have been there or thereabouts in terms of trophies and leagues, that can bring in a bit of experience. Also, we want to make sure that the talented players from around the area are looking at Galway as a destination.
On losing some stalwarts, Trill is pragmatic. “I think it’s a blow but also, we were very clear from day one in terms of where we are in the football ecosystem. In terms of professionalism, people within the club, the staff and players, the environment is as professional as you could get. There are two-to-three gym sessions a week. They’re on the pitch training three days a week, four in pre-season.
“There is no lack of professionalism, but the financial rewards are not there within the league. When players can go on and get full-time remuneration in other leagues and progress themselves that way in terms of career, all you can do is wish them all the very best.
“Our job is to develop these people and get them to the next stage. It’s our job now to get the next player in and repeat the cycle. You’ll see that again this year with two more academy graduates, Heather Loomes and Ava Mullins.”
The pre-season planning has not gone without a hitch as United have struggled to line-up willing opponents, something Trill takes as a compliment.
“Teams don’t want to come to Galway. We’ll be playing Cork City towards the end of February, and we’ll be playing Sligo Rovers the week before the start of the season. We are trying to pencil in another fixture around the kick-off of the men’s league. No one wants to come to Eamonn Deacy Park which is a good thing in a way. We are trying to get one or two teams in to fill that schedule.”
There is still some business to be done in the transfer market but one definite change for next season is the move to a 12-team league, Waterford FC the latest entrants. The manager is enthusiastic about the new arrivals and the fact that an even number of teams will mean no more down weekends.
“It’s another step towards professionalising it. There’s no such thing as off weekends in the top leagues around Europe so we don’t want one. It’s a statement of intent from Waterford, their manager is a full-time manager. They’ve been clear in terms of their backing. I wouldn’t be expecting them to be coming in and being at the bottom. Gary is a good manager with great experience.
“I’m expecting it to be a very competitive league. Last season, ourselves, Athlone and Shelbourne pulled away a bit. I think the talent pool is a bit more spread now. The next couple of weeks will tip where we, and other teams, are going to end up in terms of the table. We’ll be hoping that we can attract one or two more players to help bolster the squad. It’s hard to compete with Shelbourne, in terms of where they are, their finances and their history but we’ll do what we normally do, we’ll go and play ball and see what happens.
“It’ll be interesting to see what happens in Athlone, it’s all change there in terms of management and personnel. Quite a lot of players have left their club. We are hoping for that big crowd again in Eamonn Deacy Park against DLR Waves and if we could get off to a good start you just don’t know where you will end up.”
With the English window closing tomorrow, an uptick of transfer talk should be seen from next week onwards. United have every right to believe that a few key signings could set them up for another tilt at the top.
