McLaughlin highlights 'special bond' as a key factor to Termon's success

Geraldine McLaughlin knows what it’s like to be a winner and has experienced the highs in GAA all before.  

And although she’s not giving up yet, she wants Termon to continue their success story by guiding younger players on their journey and delivering trophies for them so they can learn and eventually take over the mantle when she one day hangs up her boots. 

Even on Sunday in MacCumhaill Park, it was McLaughlin who was the shining star following her team's 5-13 to 2-4 victory over Aodh Ruadh Ballyshannon in the Division 1 league final. 

And with the, the wheels of success continue to turn in Termon. 

“It was a different team we were up against today, normally it’s a team like Glenfin or Moville, so I think it was good to play a new team like Aodh Ruadh who brought a different set of challenges, and we had to deal with that,” McLaughlin said following her side’s win. 

It was a McLaughlin-inspired win, with the full-forward kicking over 1-6, but she felt, despite her team’s 18-point victory, the scoreline did not reflect how tight the game was. 

“We saw that Aodh Ruadh were super-fast and fit, and to their credit, they worked right to the end. I know the scoreline showed a big margin but I don’t think it really reflected how tight the game was and how Aodh Ruadh stuck with us right to the end,” she said. 

The win highlighted that the ladies from the Burn Road are still as dangerous and are still the top dogs in Donegal, with McLaughlin acknowledging the bond between the players – young and old – as the key to their success. 

“When you have the likes of Meabh Brady, Jodie McFadden, Roisin Friel, Megan Ryan, players like that all across the field it comes easier to you. I think any county team would be happy to have any one of those players on their side,” McLaughlin admitted. 

“When we work well together you can see what we can achieve. That comes from the team setting a high standard. We even had a few young players that came on today and it didn’t weaken the team at all. 

“I think the key is that we all love it. We love going to training, we love playing, and you can see how close the girls on the team are. We really have a talented team and the closeness we have helps us because we all fight for each other, and with that you can see the club bringing in the youth and mixing that with the more experienced players, which is great. 

“We have players in the team that are only 14, and they bring a level of standards because they’re the players that you’re now trying to beat in a race, so it’s the younger players pushing us on, and at the same time, we don’t want to lose our spots so we are trying to push on too. And with that, we have a great unit that loves playing together and having fun.”