THE last time Aimee Mackin agreed to do an In Focus interview with Gaelic Life, she was waiting on results from a knee scan.

That was back in July 2019 and the affable Armagh star was pencilled in to speak to this reporter the following day, all being well.

Only all wasn’t well. The scan results stunned Mackin – she has damaged her anterior cruciate ligament and that meant a year on the sidelines. Devastated as she was, the attacker was still willing to speak having already committed, but Gaelic Life offered to postpone given how difficult a time it was in her life.

The rearranged catch-up has been too long in coming, and the situation for Mackin could not be any more different.

Having made her return in Shane O’Neill’s colours last August – she would score 8-1 in half an hour in their Armagh Championship win over Crossmaglen a week later – Mackin would go on to entertain the nation with a series of thrilling displays as the Orchard county made it to the All-Ireland semi-final and pushed Dublin all the way.

Her gravity-defying point against Mayo, her Owen Mulligan-like goal against Dublin, it seemed like every week Mackin was going viral on social media and when the public talked about her, one phrase kept reappearing – ‘Aimee Mackin is putting on an exhibition.’

The 23-year-old already has two All-Stars to her name and would have undoubtedly snagged a third for her exploits in 2020 only for the Ladies Association to opt for Team of the Year selections at senior, intermediate and junior instead to mark the most unusual of seasons.

Mackin is also a two-time Gaelic Life Ladies Footballer of the Year for her performances with the Shane’s, while at school level she racked up the Ulster titles with St Paul’s, Bessbrook having represented the u-14, u-16 and u-19 teams at the one time. In April 2019, she hit 2-11 of Ulster University’s 2-17 tally in their Giles Cup final win over Waterford IT. Last week she picked up the Irish News Ladies Footballer of the Year award.

In short, the south Armagh woman is probably now the hottest property in ladies football right now.

It’s all very positive, as was the result from that day against Cork in 2019 when Armagh beat the Rebels for the first time at senior level in their championship group game.

That they did it without Mackin for half of it – she was replaced by Mairead Watters at the interval – was even more impressive, but it’s a day the Camlough girl can’t look back on with any real fondness.

“At the time when it happened I probably thought I could play on and come on in the second half,” Mackin said.

“I had never experienced an injury like that so I didn’t really know what to expect and I didn’t think it was going to be anything long-term to be honest.

“The scan was done then and it was the cruciate. It really hits you when you hear that word. I’ve read the stories about the players before who had it and the recovery process that went along with it.

“Things play in your head. You hear about some players who never come back from a cruciate.

“The news hit home but after a few hours I wrapped my head around it and I learned what I had to do. Everything is going on but when you put the work in, it becomes a step-by-step process and you have to trust that process.

“The time off from training, during the lockdown, probably allowed me to progress even further before the season started.”

It was a problem that needed solving, something Mackin was well used to accomplishing.

There was no Shane O’Neill’s ladies underage team when she first took an interest in the sport, but Mackin and a very talented group of girls forced the breakthrough.

Along with the Kenny girls, Moya Feehan and others, they would play against the boys and more than hold their own – something that didn’t go unnoticed.

Clubman Peter Lynch then led the drive for girls in the club to have a competitive outlet and now they possess one of the best teams in the Orchard county having reached the All-Ireland Intermediate final in December 2016.

This injury was a different kind of challenge though but as far as Mackin was concerned, one that she simply had to overcome.

The speed at which she returned to the gym after her operation amazed fellow GAA players who were also working out. She puts a lot of it down to the help and guidance of strength and conditioning experts Niamh McLaughlin and Ruairi Grimes.

Then on August 8, 2020, a year and 10 days after her injury, Mackin came on as the Shane’s defeated the Grange in a Division One game. That goal-scoring tour de force against the Rangers a week later would be a reminder that she was still very much the player she had been pre-cruciate.

“You aren’t really thinking of that comeback at the start, you’re just thinking about being able to walk properly again, being able to do movements around the house pain free,” she said.

“But as you progress and get over a few months of rehab the thought process starts to change and you start thinking about the comeback.

“I was building up to that (the Crossmaglen game). I got 20 minutes in a league game against Grange, that was the week before the club championship started.

“I had trained on the pitch obviously prior to that so I had been through everything I would go through in a match. I had built myself up, I had done it in training so I knew I could do it in a match.”

As Mackin was banging in eight goals in one part of Camlough, Caroline O’Hanlon was hitting six goals for Carrickcruppen against Dromahill exactly 0.5 miles away.

It’s hard to escape a passing of the torch feeling between the two stars, even if their clubs are massive rivals.

At 36, O’Hanlon, who can be regularly watched on Sky Sports with netball side Manchester Thunder, is more than likely on the home straight as far as intercounty football is concerned.

Also a three-time All-Star, she picked up the Player of the Year award in 2014 and, with Cora Staunton, was probably the most high-profile ladies player in the game for a few years.

Mackin, like all girls growing up in Armagh, pretended to be O’Hanlon in the backyard, and she believes that the support for the sport in the south Armagh village has helped players from both Shane O’Neill’s and Carrickcruppen to reach their potential.

“There’s not too much between the clubs now, although when our team was younger ‘Cruppen would have been the top side in Armagh,” she said. “They are still very much at the top, of course, but we’re progressing nicely.

“It’s always been a healthy rivalry but it’s weird too because we can hear their supporters down on their pitch, that’s how close it is.

“We have built ourselves up now. We’re in contention with the top teams in the county and that was all from the hard work from Peter and Caoibhe (Sloan). Peter had us from u-12s right the way through and the core of our senior team is from that u-12 team.”

That All-Ireland final defeat to Annaghdown, when the side was managed by current Down joint-managers Lynch and Sloan, still weighs heavily on the team, and the only release will be a first-ever Armagh Senior title.

They have watched rival’s ’Cruppen and Lurgan outfit Clann Eireann dominate for years, but the breakthrough of Armagh Harps in 2020 has raised hopes.

Shane O’Neill’s met the Harps earlier in the tournament and only lost by two points having led by the same margin at the break. Youthful inexperience probably played a part, but Mackin is confident that their day in the sun will arrive.

“It’s been the aim in every championship we have competed in, Junior Championship, Intermediate Championship and now Senior Championship.

“It’s a bigger challenge but last year but maybe showed to ourselves that we are closer. We won the league which was a big step for us, to win a Division One title.

“We are still young, I think the oldest is Moya Feegan at 24, 25 so we have that youth in our side. The only thing we can do now is develop further and if we don’t do that then we won’t get there.

“We just have to keep progressing every year. We need to take the experience of that Harps game from last year and try and build on it.”

That Shane’s team has always had a big support base. There was the almost eerie setting for their home All-Ireland semi-final against London side Parnell’s in 2016 when a dense fog took over the village. Still, the people came out in droves to try and see through the white layer.

The likes of broadcaster Jerome Quinn and local photographer Brendan Monaghan have been very proactive in promoting ladies football, club and county, in Armagh – and Mackin has noticed the rise in interest.

“Especially in our club, that’s where we noticed the added interest the most,” she said.

“Obviously ladies football, club football in general, is a very community orientated thing and we are lucky that our community is great.

“The year of the All-Ireland run brought in a lot of supporters who would never have been at ladies football games. They came to the All-Ireland semi-final and final and you still see them at the games.

“People maybe have a judgement of the sport before they see it, but the skill levels and the fitness levels are really progressing as the years go on.

“Last year, and for Armagh too, there just seemed to be a lot more publicity.”

Much of that, as far as the Orchard county was concerned, was down to their run to the All-Ireland semi-final where they gave Dublin a real fright. With TG4 covering most of the action, the exploits of Ronan Murphy’s side was a hot conversation topic.

Mackin hopes that when crowds are allowed back into grounds that Armagh will get new supporters through the turnstiles on the back of that exposure.

“It just gives you a bigger boost on the pitch when you have the fans in the ground. More fans, the roar after a score or a block, it makes a big difference.

“If we want to progress then more support will help. A lot of people would have tuned in but we want those people coming to see us too.”

People will come to see this exciting Armagh team, and they will come to see Mackin in particular.

Whether she likes it or not – and it’s clear that she is not totally comfortable with the suggestion – Mackin is now a massive name in Irish female sport, and quickly becoming a noted figure in Irish sport in general.

No longer is it a case of her being recognised as the best goal-finisher in the ladies GAA, but rather one of the best in the GAA outright.

Ross Carr and Paddy Bradley have been among those who have sang her praises, and they ought to know a thing or two about attacking play.

“To be honest I don’t really think too much about that,” said Mackin when asked about the extra pressure that comes with her standing.

“Going into a game it’s never something that would come into my mind. On the pitch we all have our own roles and I know my own and I try and do it as best as I can.

“There are 14 other players that have their role and it’s definitely not about one player, it’s about the team.

“Just look at our matches last year. Clodagh McCambridge at the back, players out the field, it is players all over the pitch making the difference.

“If I did overthink it, it would probably add too much pressure and that’s not what you want.”

Mackin’s confidence in the Armagh team as a whole is very genuine. They have been making great strides since her debut in 2015, but for the first time they seem like real All-Ireland contenders.

“I wouldn’t say the championship run last season surprised ourselves, but maybe after our league form prior to lockdown it was a big boost. The league hadn’t been going great.

“Over lockdown everyone put in the hard yards and came back from their clubs flying fit. That does bring great confidence as well.

“When we got into the team environment everyone gelled so well and I think you could see that on the pitch.

“Over the last few years it’s definitely been the best team environment with the best team ethics since I’ve been involved.

“There are a lot of young girls who have come up and really pushed for places. They need them to do that because they’ll be there for years.

“Maybe over the last few years you look to the Mayos, the Dublins, the Donegals and thought we were too far behind physically, but we have definitely started to catch up on that side of things. That’s to do with the work off the field, and a lot of girls have come on board with that.

“Last year was a good year, but that was only one year. There is no point having one good year then slacking off, we need to work harder and keep progressing.”

Amongst the young crew who have broken through in recent years in Aimee’s younger sister Bláithín.

In 2020, Bláithín played a new role that saw her line out at centre half-back but she was given a real license to break forward with the hard-working Shauna Grey usually providing some cover for her fruitful forays forward.

Aimee is proud of her sister’s efforts – and those of her brothers Connaire and Ciaran who are part of Kieran McGeeney’s Armagh men’s side – and she hopes she can push on even further.

“Last season she really came into her own with Armagh and people probably took note of that.

“She’s a real one to watch, just like a lot of our players. I’m very happy for Bláithín, I’m proud of what she has done. I saw first-hand how hard she worked during the lockdown.

“She is very composed on the pitch. She is very versatile too and can play probably any position. That makes her hard to mark. She’ll only get better.”

The enthusiasm of this team has also been helped by the fanfare of McKeever Park, Mackin says.

The project, spearheaded by ever-enthusiastic Orchard chairperson Sinead Reel, will see a training base provided for ladies teams in Killean right on the Armagh-Louth border.

The reports last week that Waterford were the first ladies team set to develop their own facility were technically correct as Armagh’s project will initially work off a 35-year lease – but there is no questioning that it was the Orchard county who have broken new ground, literally, in the pursuit of more standing for ladies football.

A pitch has already been laid and was in use last season, with changing rooms and other facilities to be added in the future. A February fundraising walking challenge is due to begin next week (check out Armagh’s LGFA social channels for details) and Mackin is delighted that the project is taking real shape.

“There is a lot of working going on behind the scenes. Sinead Reel and everyone in the county board are putting in a lot of hard work.

“When you see people behind the scenes putting in that sort of effort it reminds you what you have to do as a player. You need to match their efforts.

“There is a lot of talk about Armagh ladies now. Local people who never would have before have been calling up to the house after our games this year to say how enjoyable they were.

“Then you get talking to them and you get talking about the other things going on, like the new pitch.

“Like most county teams, it’s been hard to get grounds for training and matches so to have a base is massive. The pitch is in great nick and they’re trying to get lights in, which would be great for evening sessions.”

One thing you’ll see at McKeever Park is Mackin practising and doing her own extra work.

There is no special formula for her forte of goal-scoring. As boring as it may sound, the old ‘practice, practice, practice’ mantra has always been at play.

“It’s for other people to decide whether or not I am good at it,” she said.

“It is down to practice. From we were no age, me and Bláithín were always out practising. We would have put Connaire in nets, which he never liked, but we would have always have practiced against the boys in the house.

“I remember the Armagh 2002 final. We’d go down and practice the goal over and over again, the one where Paul McGrane tapped it down to Oisin McConville to finish.

“There were just things like that but the managers I’ve had would have been an excellent help too. It’s all about composure and knowing where you are going to put it.

“There are plenty of times when I miss and I want to kick myself so there is always room for more practice.”

One of the most likely reasons for her three-point accuracy is Mackin’s background in soccer.

Last week, TG4 announced that they would be showing matches and highlights from the Australian Football League Women’s (AFLW) now that 14 Irish ladies players are involved.

No Armagh player has made the switch to that code just yet, but Mackin can expect increased desire for her signature, especially as the calendar means that she could still represent her club and county.

It’s soccer though that remains the strongest pull, but it’s never going to be strong enough to overtake GAA.

Mackin has been involved in Northern Ireland squads and played in Euro Qualifiers against Switzerland and Georgia back in 2015. At club level she helped Newry City to a raft of silverware before they were wound up and has represented Sion Swifts in more recent times.

Across the Irish Sea, women’s soccer is on an extraordinary rise with the Super League finally getting the recognition and support it deserves. In another life Mackin may have wound up there if soccer had been her main focus, but it’s always been fighting a losing battle.

“I haven’t thought too much about it,” Mackin said of the sport.

“I was playing right up until I had my injury. Even before the injury it left a lot on the plate. Myself and Moya Feehan were playing for Sion Swifts in Strabane and that was a lot of travelling.

“Once I got injured I knew I had to focus on just one for at least a year and then the way everything panned out I was never going to mix the two when I came back.

“I did enjoy focussing on one sport, it made it a bit easier for me.

“Playing soccer professionally was talked about, especially when you were playing international football, and it’s still something I think about.

“I have felt comfortable with my decision to play Gaelic though, I’ve loved every minute of it. There’s nothing there I regret.

“Gaelic has always been my number one and even playing for my club is such a big thing for me. I love playing Gaelic for my club and county even if the other option was earning money playing soccer.”

That’s great news for Armagh fans, and fans of the GAA in general.

Over the coming years this Orchard side should continue to grow and, all being well, Mackin will get to tick off another one of her dreams – playing in Croke Park.

“Playing and winning there would be even better!”

With her skill and resilience both demonstrated in spades already, don’t bet against her.