By Niall McCoy

CAVAN star Aishling Sheridan has admitted that she is experiencing a difficult transition back to Gaelic football after recently returning from Australia.

The Mullahoran player was a key reason why Collingwood reached the preliminary finals of the AFLW in April, and she said that the narrow window has left her rusty as Gerry Moane’s side prepare to face Monaghan in Sunday’s National League Division Two opener at Clones.

“I’m not going to lie, the transition has been a little bit difficult,” said Sheridan.

“Last year when I came home (from Australia) I had a full 10 or 12-week lockdown to prepare myself whereas I kind of only had the 10 or 14 days to prepare myself this time.

“It’s been getting better. I’ve been doing my own extra bits every day just to get comfortable on the ball. Self-confidence is a big thing so just even getting more time holding the round ball as opposed to an oval ball can make a massive difference.

“I am delighted to be home and I’m delighted to be back home with family and back in with Cavan. We’ve a new set-up this year, a lot of new girls and a lot of new faces on the panel. It’s been a good challenge but I’m definitely delighted to be back.”

Lidl will again sponsor the National Leagues, and as one of their ambassadors, Sheridan said it was amazing to see the supermarket chain linking up with the Ladies Association to ensure 50 games over the coming weeks would be streamed free of charge – including this weekend’s Ulster derby.

“I think what Lidl have done with the Ladies Association in the past few years, they’re a credit,” she said.

“It’s absolutely outstanding. You see how much impression the ladies games in recent years, how much publicity it’s getting, how much coverage it’s getting in the media. I feel very lucky and very privileged to be part of this era now.”

Sheridan has confirmed that she will be returning to Melbourne before the year is out for a third season with Collingwood.

She expects that more Irish players will also make the journey in the coming years as the AFLW is set to expand from 14 teams to 18 for the 2023 season with the addition of Essendon, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide and the Sydney Swans.

“I actually do (expect more to join),” said Sheridan, who was one of 14 Irish players to compete in the AFLW last season.

“Maybe not next year given everything that’s going on, but with four new teams coming in that means they need 30 new players for each team. There might be older players on teams that might only have another year or two left out of them.

“I imagine in the next two to three years there will be a good few more Irish maybe looked at to come over.

“I’m sure they will go over. That’s their decision but they’ll have to take into account season changes and how that will impact their Gaelic football season. If it doesn’t impact then I imagine another one or two will be going over alright.

“Next season is starting a lot earlier although they’ve not announced any official dates. They’re hoping to get the first game off around early December whereas last season it was late January so it’s a full two months earlier.”

A dedicated platform has been developed to watch the streamed matches, and it can be accessed at https://page.inplayer.com/lidlnfl/.