Galway are back in Division 1 of the Ladies Football National League

GALWAY are back in Division 1 of the Tesco-sponsored Ladies Football National League after their 3-10 to 0-9 win over Westmeath in the Division 2 final at Parnell Park, Dublin last Saturday.
It means that Galway will be competing next year in the premier division along with the likes of Cork, Dublin, Kerry, Mayo, Monaghan, Laois and Tyrone.
Two penalty goals by Annette Clarke and a goal from play by Barbara Hannon were the big scores in the Division 2 final as Galway maintained their unbeaten run in the competition.
It was fitting that long-serving midfield stalwart Clarke should play such an important role on the big day. The 2004 All-Ireland winning captain has remained the anchor of every Galway team since.
This victory was very badly needed. Although Galway won back-to-back Connacht Championship titles in 2012-13, they came up short outside their own province in the All-Ireland series and in the last two years they also lost to Mayo and Kerry, respectively, in the League Divison 2 finals.