Eimear Scally hoping to banish the memories of 2016

It says something about the strength-in-depth of this Cork ladies football set-up that Eimear Scally has had to wait four years for her first championship start.

Eamonn Ryan’s preference was to use the Eire Óg forward off the bench, a role she would come to perfect during the final years of Ryan’s tenure — hers was the goal that completed Cork’s remarkable comeback in the 2014 All-Ireland final. Scally was just 17.

She’d kick 1-2 when introduced during the following year’s All-Ireland semi-final and was also among the scorers in the final win over Dublin. 2016, though, was something of a write-off. In November of 2015, Scally was diagnosed with glandular fever. She convinced herself that she was ready to return to the Cork fold for the concluding stages of their league campaign, but broke down once more after the league final win over Mayo.