February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By Pierce O’Reilly
The refrain "My bags are packed, I’m ready to go" was playing on the radio one recent afternoon as New York All-star Gillian Bennett headed to the JFK Airport.
The Meath native wasn’t turning her back on New York GAA or Cavan women footballers. Rather, she was looking to the future — her career as a possible physical education teacher and, more important, an All-Ireland women’s senior football medal with her native county.
"It’s never easy going home," she said as she put her football boots into the gear bag for the last time in Woodlawn. "I’ve being here now almost three years and the girls have been just magnificent.
"I had to make a decision and it was either now or never. I just hope it’s the right thing to do."
The Cavan No. 14 jersey was folded neatly and placed to the right of the multi-stud puma king boots. No one can blame the lethal forward for heading home, but she will be missed. She truly was a treat to behold when given the opportunity at Gaelic Park. In every game she played, her prowess in front of the goal sent shock waves through the opposing defense.
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Bennett stood head and shoulders above the opposition. Her superb skills — fielding, kicking, shooting, tackling and passing — set her apart from the rest. She simply lit up Gaelic Park every time she graced the hardened sod.
"It’s a huge blow to us," Cavan’s chairperson, Rosie O’Reilly, said. "Gillian is an outstanding player and it will be hard to replace her."
But Bennett believes she made the right decision.
"I’m heading back to college in September to study sport and leisure in Dublin, so I have to get my head sorted out before that," she said.
It’s not easy to walk away from your friends and club, but the 22-year-old still has a lot of unfulfilled ambitions.
"One of my goals is to win a senior All-Ireland ladies medal with Meath and, hopefully, I’ll get that chance now," she said. "When I arrived here three years ago, ladies GAA in Ireland wasn’t that good. Today every team is so much fitter and way more professional."
The New York Cavan women, who walloped Mayo in the Anne Kearney Cup Final, will sorely miss the Meath native.
"The show must go on," O’Reilly said. "You have to remember that we won six championships before Gillian arrived, so we’re still good enough to win another one without her. The other girls will just have to up their game a bit more."
Regarding the standard of football in New York, Bennett said she was impressed during her stint here.
"Cavan and Mayo may have dominated of late, but there are a lot of other good teams waiting in the wings, and if they continue to develop and progress, the championship will be a lot better in the future," said the New York Ladies GAA Player of the Year in 1999.
Bennett said her only grievance while in New York was her belief that the LGAA sometimes gets kicked about by its male counterpart.
"We should have better access to Gaelic Park — that’s the only place where you can really work on your skills," she said. "We should have our own field. Van Cortlandt Park isn’t acceptable any longer."
The Moynalty women’s junior GAA team in County Meath is no doubt delighted that Bennett will be around to bolster the side.
"I saw them play recently and it’s amazing the improvement that has come about in such a short period," Bennett said of her home club.
Three years ago, Gillian Bennett arrived in Pennsylvania from Kells on a soccer scholarship. But she didn’t like the setup at Mercyhurst College and gradually worked her way to Woodlawn in the Bronx. Living with Cavan women she had no other choice but to line out for them in the championship. When she played, the Breffini girls were amazed.
A bylaw in the LGAA rulebook may open the door later in the year for her return.
"You can play three games for your county in Ireland and still come back and join your original club," Bennett said. The provision will be scrutinized between now and the semifinals. Bennett may be back then for the championship, if Cavan need her.
"I really don’t know if will I be back or not," Bennett said. "If I can help out then, we’ll see."