Ulster players among travelling party on All-Stars trip to the US

FIVE Ulster players referee Maggie Farrelly are among the travelling party on their way to Texas for the 2023 TG4/LGFA All Star tour.

Armagh duo Aimee Mackin and Lauren McConville will be joined by Geraldine, Nicole and Niamh McLaughlin of Donegal.

38 of the game’s leading stars are making the trip to the US, with this tour rescheduled after it was postponed in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The local Celtic Cowboys will host the traditional exhibition game between the 2021 and 2022 All Star selections, which will be played at St Edward’s University on Easter Sunday, April 9.

The 2021 selection will be managed by former Meath supremo Eamonn Murray, who guided the Royal County to TG4 All-Ireland Senior championship glory in 2021 and 2022, with Kerry joint-manager Darragh Long taking charge of the 2022 team.

The match will be overseen by Cavan’s Maggie Farrelly, one of the most experienced whistlers on the circuit and referee for the 2014 and 2022 TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship Finals.

“For many of our players, the prospect of a TG4 All Star tour is a once in a lifetime experience,” said Ladies Gaelic Football Association President Mícheál Naughton.

“After the proposed 2020 tour was cancelled, we are delighted to now finally get the chance to visit Austin, Texas, and this trip is a brilliant reward for our players who have provided such wonderful football in recent times.

“The players making the trip are among the very best in our sport and to be selected as a TG4 All Star, or indeed nominated, is a huge achievement.

“This TG4 All Star tour is a lovely bonus for our players who provide us with such joy on the playing fields, and who continue to perform at extraordinarily high levels.

“It’s a lovely opportunity also for players to mingle with counterparts from other counties before they prepare for the big games that lie in store during the coming months.

“I would like to acknowledge our official broadcast partner and Championship sponsors, TG4, for their ongoing support and a special word of thanks also to representatives from the Celtic Cowboys, who have been busy preparing for our visit.”

The squad line-outs for the 2023 TG4/LGFA All Star Exhibition game are as follows:

All Star Team 2021
1 Monica McGuirk Meath
2 Emma Troy Meath
3 Mary Kate Lynch Meath
4 Leah Caffrey Dublin
5 Erika O’Shea Cork
6 Aoibhín Cleary Meath
7 Orlagh Nolan Dublin
8 Hannah Looney Cork
9 Máire O’Shaughnessy Meath
10 Hannah Tyrrell Dublin
11 Rachel Kearns Mayo
12 Niamh O’Sullivan Meath
13 Vikki Wall Meath
14 Emma Duggan Meath
15 Geraldine McLaughlin Donegal

16 Róisín Phelan Cork
17 Lauren McConville Armagh
19 Olivia Divilly Galway
20 Lyndsey Davey Dublin

All Star Team 2022
1 Ciara Butler Kerry
2 Shauna Ennis Meath
3 Kayleigh Cronin Kerry
4 Danielle Caldwell Mayo
5 Aishling O’Connell Kerry
6 Aoibheann Leahy Meath
7 Nicole McLaughlin Donegal
8 Cáit Lynch Kerry
9 Niamh McLaughlin Donegal
10 Niamh Carmody Kerry
11 Carla Rowe Dublin
12 Shauna Howley Mayo
13 Aimee Mackin Armagh
14 Stacey Grimes Meath
15 Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh Kerry

17 Sinéad Cafferky Mayo
18 Nicola Ward Galway
19 Anna Galvin Kerry
20 Mo Nerney Laois