Danielle O'Leary believes new ladies football rules will suit Kerry 'big time'

12 new rules will be trialled during this year's Lidl National Football League

Lidl Ireland has reaffirmed its commitment to the LGFA by announcing the extension of the partnership to 2030, and making a fresh €7.5m investment in the game. Pic: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

Danielle O’Leary believes ladies football did not require radical surgery unlike the men’s game but the Kerry All-Ireland winner is glad the sport is receiving a facelift.

Twelve rules will be trialled in this year’s Lidl Ladies Football League. Six come from the men’s game: the kick-out mark, three players up at all times, the two-point arc, solo and go, and stricter sanctions for delaying play and dissent.

The rest include an enhanced tackle, controlled contact, and tougher action on persistent fouling.

“Whenever you're playing Kerry, it's obvious enough you're trying to slow down that fast attack, trying to get bodies back to surround the likes of Siofra (O’Shea) and Rachel Dwyer,” said O’Leary.

“It's fine. It's probably something we did get used to and something we tried to counteract. But I do think the new rules are going to suit us big time in trying to help us with that.” 

Frustration had been growing for O’Leary in recent years.

“You're just getting sick of being pulled and dragged and teams just not letting you play the game that you want to play — that old style, catch and kick,” she said.

“I don't think we needed to change the rules as much as the men because the last few years, people actually started turning over to watch the women's football because it was that faster pace and it was that free-flowing.” 

Armagh’s Aimee Mackin hasn’t felt the same frustration, but she also believes the tweaks could improve the spectacle.

“It was just the nature of the game and you just had to adapt to certain tactics and some tactics were more defensive,” said Mackin.

“Not so much frustration, obviously you don’t like playing against a blanket, it is really hard to break down. It was just part of the game, and there is a new part of the game now and we just have to adapt.

“I am the type of personality who goes with the flow. Change is good, you see in the men’s game, it has been trialled. That’s a good thing for our game, it has been played for a year so we know a lot about it. It will freshen it up, and add more excitement."

Neither of O’Leary nor 2020 player of the year Mackin have played competitive games under the new rules. When Kerry face Dublin on Saturday and Armagh play Waterford on Sunday, it will be a relative step into the unknown for both. Mackin has played in-house games with “unofficial referees”. How the new tackle rules will be applied by the real whistle blowers is uncertain.

“In the in-house games, the game didn’t feel a whole pile different, just the pace of it, with the solo and go, you could feel more intensity,” said Mackin.

Adapting to the two-point arc, especially with unfavourable conditions during the early part of the season, will take time. Kerry manager Mark Bourke joked to O’Leary during pre-season that there were to be “no two-pointers until after Christmas”.

“We're so used to playing fast, free-flowing football that we always usually have three up anyway — some of the things don't change," said O'Leary.

"We'll definitely utilise solo and go the most and it just brings back the catch and kick football as well, which we love. Like the men, hopefully we'll utilise it as much as we can.

“It is a big, big year and I suppose whatever team utilises the rules the most will (benefit) at the end of the year.”