ALL-IRELAND FINAL COUNTDOWN: Boardsmill's most famous daughter gets ready for another big day
ANYONE travelling to a GAA match in Boardsmill and not familiar with the venue would be more inclined to ask for the hurling pitch rather than the football pitch!, writes Sean Wall.
Boardsmill is not exactly a football stronghold, it operates out of the junior ranks, but has a proud and rich hurling tradition. It has six senior hurling championship titles to its credit, the same number as current Jubilee Cup champions Kildalkey, the first in 1958 and the last in 1975. The club was crowned Intermediate champions in 2021 to claim back their place in the top tier.
Undoubtedly their most famous son is TJ Reilly, former star player, Hurling Board chairman, county manager, County Board delegate and everything else in between. TJ was recently inducted into the Meath GAA Hall of Fame for his services to the Association over many years.
However TJ now has competition in Boardsmill's most famous daughter! A very talented footballer, a tigerish defender who loves to bomb forward to either set up or take a score whether it be in Pairc Tailteann or the wide open spaces of Croke Park. Even TJ in his heyday would have difficulty keeping pace with her!
In everyday life she is not as recognizable and hasn't as high a profile as some of the other members of the team. An unsung hero in many regards but once she takes to the pitch she never fails to make a crucial contribution to the cause.
Emma Troy is an integral part of the Meath ladies set up and has shared in all the recent successes.
The 27-year-old Kilmessan primary teacher made her inter-county debut as far back as 2012 and has tasted the good the bad and the ugly over those many years. She quit the intercounty scene for a spell but when present manager Eamonn Murray came calling it was difficult to say no. It is a decision she's glad she made.
Eamonn is also from Boardsmill and according to Emma is a huge figurehead in the club. Another member is conditioning coach Eugene Eivers, giving the south Meath club a fine representation on All-Ireland final day.
The changes that have taken place over the past number of years has been phenomenal according to Troy. "I've been there through some of the lean times and it is great now over the last number of years how the team has progressed and the young players that has come through.
"The younger players have really pushed the rest of us on and it is great to see the development of underage players in the county. The number of girls and teams now playing in the county hit an all time high this year so it is fantastic to see this coming on stream.
"We are also blessed with the management we have and the work they have done with us and we are thrilled at where we are today. We have been on an upward curve for the last while and it is just brilliant and everyone is enjoying every moment of it."
Awarded Player of the Match for her performance in the NFL Div 2 final win over Kerry in 2021, Emma's rich vein of form continued throughout the championship campaign culminating in that never-to-be-forgotten All-Ireland final victory over Dublin. Despite playing with the number two on her back Emma got forward to score two crucial points.
Her displays were recognized when she was nominated for Player of the Year alongside team mates Vikki Wall and Emma Duggan, making it a clean sweep for the Royal County.
Troy was one of eight Meath players rewarded with All-Star awards and she has followed that up with a NFL Division 1 title earlier in the year.
Indeed her talent was evident from a much earlier age and she picked up the Player of the Match award as St Patrick's College Drumcondra defeated Mary Immaculate College to win the Giles Cup final back in 2016. She also won a Ladies HEC All Star that year.
One main difference this year for Troy is that she now lines out at centre back, though she is not exactly sure how that came about.
"The management must have saw something to put me out there from corner back. I'm happy to play any position on the team. I still have opportunities to attack up the pitch. We are not restricted in our roles, everyone gets up, everyone gets back. Even Niamh O'Sullivan and Stacey Grimes were back defending when needed in the semi-final against Donegal. Players are up and down the pitch the whole time."
Troy admits that Meath has yet to reach the heights of 2021 but are hoping to peak in Croke Park next Sunday. "I think it has been a slow season for us. We haven't built up the momentum that we had last year as quickly but we are definitely on the right path and we showed it in that third quarter against Donegal. We made up our minds at half-time that we didn't want to get knocked out not performing to our capabilities.
"We always have a good seven or eight minutes to ourselves in the dressing room where players can speak up and say this is what we need to work on and we take everyones advice on board. We didn't push up on the kick-outs in the first half and when we did in the second half that made a huge difference.
"The focus is all about the final now and we will be trying to concentrate on our own game and making certain that we perform and play to the best of our ability."