MARY Jo Boyle has made history with her appointment as the first female Ladies Gaelic Football Chairperson in Derry.
“To get to this point at this stage of my life, I’m honoured. I see it as a massive step forward,” Mary Jo told Local Women Sport.
“What really changed things for me was when I had my own daughter in 2015. I have six children, five boys and one girl and before it would have been about what I needed as a player, for myself. When I became a mother of a girl, it changed my outlook. I saw a different perspective, I needed to do stuff off the field to really inspire future young girls.”
Not only has Mary Jo enjoyed a very successful football career, boasting 12 winners’ medals in the senior championship with Glen, having captained the first of three Ulster winning teams, two Ulster medals and being crowned international player of the series in 2003. She has had much success off the field as well and in 2017 started a Ladies football team in Lavey, the place she was married.
The club is a dual side, playing both football and camogie, and has teams for all ages, from primary school to seniors.
“The girls in Lavey are all totally committed and euthanised. The massive thing is we have an 80/90 percent dual participation, playing multi-sport young is massive. What we achieved at Lavey together with the camogie is phenomenal.
“I’ve always said to the young girls, it has to be about so much more than winning and medals. I’ve always promoted it as if we can get as many young girls up around the club, playing and participating then what they will learn will sustain them for life.
“Derry has been in a very good place for the last 20-30 years, there has been a lot of achievement and a lot of people the length and the breadth of the county doing great work.
“But I suppose my main goal as chair is to touch places that don’t have Ladies football and try to encourage more and more young girls to try the sport and get involved. I honestly see this first and success second. Everyone wants success, when you go into something it’s ‘how many medals can you win?’ But I’m looking at participated as I think that’s what will inspire the next generation and that’s my main goal.
“It’s a bit rich me talking about participation and not caring about medals when I was so competitive myself. Anyone who knows me would say there is no one more competitive or driven. What I would say is, Ladies’ football is my passion. I’ve put a ridiculous number of hours into its promotion and yes, into winning myself.
“Now it has set in, there is a degree of satisfaction that maybe I am the right person to try carry everything forward because of my achievements and since I started it in Lavey and had a brilliant seven years there, bringing it to its heights.
“Now, we need to go bigger again. It’s time for me to bring what I have done, won, and achieved, and, as a mother of young children, to help grow the sport.”
