Bertie kicks off Ladies Football championship

THE Ladies Football Championship was launched in Croke Park yesterday with the news that TG4 will continue their sponsorship until 2006.

A measure of the increased profile of the code was evident in the fact that An Taoiseach Bertie Ahern was in attendance, along with a representative from each of the 32 counties.

Last year was the most successful year yet for the sport, now in its 29th year. 33,000 supporters attended the All-Ireland finals in Croke Park while 175,000 watched them on television, a record audience for TG4 programming.