IF there is a job to done, no matter what, Eve Lavery will not give it a second thought, as long as it means she can help get Armagh over the line.
The Ballyhegan player is happy to be playing anywhere for Gregory McGonigle’s side and knows how important it is to take your chance when you get it.
Should she take up a place in the starting line-up against Kerry in this Saturday’s All-Ireland senior semi-final (Glenisk O’Connor Park, Tullamore, 7.15pm) she will do everything in her power to help Armagh reach a first senior final since their one and only appearance in 2006.
“I’m happy to be playing anywhere, I’m very grateful to be on the field at all,” she said, indicating that her preferred position would be half-forward but you will easily find her anywhere between midfield (and tracking back to help her defence) and full-forward.
“It’s similar with Ballyhegan and Armagh I find myself being slotted in anywhere where I’m needed. In my uni, days I even found myself playing full-back.”
Lavery, who is a secondary school teacher, made her senior inter-county debut in 2014, coming on as a sub against Tyrone in the Ulster quarter-final, and won her first provincial medal not long after when Armagh the Ulster title, under James Daly, for the first time since 2007.
So, while her debut was 10 years ago, she has missed a few years, in 2015 and 2017, and although since 2018 has been part of the set-up, she has not always been able to establish herself in the Orchard starting team.
However, when she gets her chance she certainly has shown her worth and in the last three championship games, she has hit 11 points – five against Meath and three against Tipperary in All-Ireland group stages and three against Mayo last day out in the quarter-final.
Patience is a virtue and Lavery has learned just that.
“It’s unreal the depth we have in the squad. There are so many girls that can easily be in the starting 15, I’d hate to be part of any management meetings in regard to picking the team,” she said.
“Patience and commitment are something I have found are very important. You can’t just wait about for your opportunity to be given to you, you have to show you want it and earn it. I think that’s shown at training and when you get your chance in matches. Anytime I’m given the opportunity to play I just put the head down and work as hard as I can for the team.”
Hard work will be among the key ingredient required if Armagh are to overcome Kerry for a third time this season after wins in the regulation stages of the league and then Division One league final, when they landed their first Division One title, as well as the confidence gained from the win over Mayo in the quarter-final to reach the last four for the first time since 2020.
“That quarter final win was amazing. We’ve always wanted to show that we are capable of being one of the top teams and we have recently been coming up short in quarter-finals so to get to the semi-final is great. But we believe we have another gear in us and hopefully we’ll get to the level we need to on Saturday to secure a spot in the All-Ireland final.
“Kerry are a very strong team and will have learned a lot from their defeats but we’re very familiar with each other and we expect it to be another really tough game.
