Sister and father act key to Kilkerrin-Clonberne's All-Ireland treble dream

Family and community ties are the bedrock of Kilkerrin-Clonberne's success.

The Connacht champions are chasing a third All-Ireland ladies senior club football title in a row tomorrow and have a team featuring multiple sets of sisters, like the Noones [Eve, Hannah and Lynsey], Divillys [Niamh, Olivia and Siobhán] and Ward twins Louise and Nicola.

Michael Divilly and Gerry Noone are selectors while Willie Ward is manager of the club representing two north Galway villages. But they needed technology to save the day in the dramatic semi-final win over Kilmacud Crokes when a virus meant Willie was unable to travel to the capital.

"He was unwell Friday, Saturday, and Sunday," Louise told RTÉ Sport of her father. "He got up early Sunday and couldn't travel. I had it two weeks before mam and dad. I am probably the one to blame.

"We had our stats man, TP, in the stand and Michael Divilly took the bainisteoir's bib. Dad was able to watch the stream and still phone in. We still had different angles looking at the game, which wasn't a bad thing either. But when the stream acted up for the first 10 minutes, there was carnage at home!"

Former Galway boss Willie has thankfully recovered to take his place on the sideline for tomorrow’s decider against Ballymacarbry at Croke Park, secured after an extra-time epic in Parnell Park a fortnight ago.

"I think he felt he missed out a little bit, especially when you win a crunch game like that," said Louise. "The supporters flooded the pitch. There was so much emotion. You could really feel the community spirit. So when he got back to training on Tuesday, he was raring to go.

"The last day was the biggest test we have got in a long time, probably since Mourneabbey [All-Ireland final] in 2021. We only