'It drives me mad': Ailish Considine on the state of women's football

Michael Bolton

Ailish Considine reckons the GAA and LGFA can learn from Aussie Rules when it comes to promoting women's football.

Considine is back playing football with Clare after her successful time in Australia, where she won two Premiership titles with Adelaide.

From playing in front of huge crowds to televised coverage, the 32-year-old was hugely impressed by how Australia promoted the AFLW.

With the number of Irish players in the AFLW increasing annually, Considine hopes the GAA can learn from the Australian model.

"They have done such a great job over in Australia promoting the games and having them on free-to-air all the time, so I think certainly on the scheduling side of things, they can pick up a few tips from the AFL.

"They are quite similar cultures - the GAA and AFL - people love their footy over there, and we love our GAA here. There are a few things you can learn from the AFL."

Now back playing football with Clare, Considine admitted her frustration at returning to the same problems in the game that existed years ago.

"It drives me mad, to be honest, especially the pitches. I really expect that county games should be played on county grounds.

"It is something so small and probably so minute to the GAA that they don't even realise it's such a big deal for us.

"It gives the game a bit more status when you have it in county grounds, but I don't think we played a league game this year in Cusack Park or Páirc Chíosóg, which is unfortunate because we played most of our games there last year.

"There probably were just clashes this year between the GAA and LGFA. But it's something that can be worked on. Hopefully, the merger will happen soon enough, and that will help with the scheduling issues.

"It's something you can learn from the AFL. The clubs over there often play twice in one weekend, and they still get supporters to attend both games rather than making them choose one or the other."

The professional setting, and being paid to play the sport you love, would attract any athlete to Australia.

With some of the best players leaving inter-county football every year, it's no surprise to the Clare woman that so many Irish players are making the move.

"It's definitely a threat to the GAA and the LGFA. It is a threat to the game, losing your best players, but then again, it's such a good opportunity to pass up, so you can't not take it if it comes."

After relegation to Division Three, Considine and her Clare teammates are focused on the All-Ireland championship.

After years of near misses and lost finals, Clare will be aiming to take that final step to All-Ireland glory.

For Considine, transitioning away from professional sport has been a challenge, but it has also brought more balance to her life outside of football.

"When I started playing for Clare, like everyone who starts playing county, it is everything; it means the world to them.

"I did that for so long, and then I did it in Australia. They had a more relaxed mentality of playing, and it was funny because that’s the professional set-up.

"They were all about work-life balance and how you can achieve greater things when you have more of a balance outside of sport.

"I brought that perspective back this time around. I'm a little bit older. I'm at a different stage of my career at this point.

"While I still keep high standards and still train hard and do everything I need to tick off, I probably have a bit more balance outside of sport."