"It has been an amazing week, to have three fixtures in such a short space of time, to win them all was really important for us," Galway WFC U19 manager Phil Trill says.
A league and cup double was secured by Galway WFC U19s following victories over Athlone Town and DLR Waves. Sunday's cup final triumph over an admirably spirited DLR at Eamonn Deacy Park highlighted Galway's desire.
"If you look at the table we played DLR twice we beat them and they finished below Athlone Town - so a lot of people would have said that will be a handy win for Galway, but credit to DLR they were really well organised, we had to dig deep," Trill reflects.
"We continued to press on them, even when DLR went down to 10 they still dug in. Laura Heffernan had them well set up, we couldn't play through the lines in the first half. In the second half we created a bit more.
"We tweaked one or two things at half-time in order to create space, it was working. They got to extra-time, the longer it went on I wondered had we just wasted the player advantage, but thankfully the girls just never stopped, they really never stopped."
Ultimately Galway's patience and perseverance was rewarded when Rola Olusola's late deflected effort crossed the line. "I'm delighted for them all, they are phenomenal characters, that never say die attitude is something they have always had," Trill adds.
"It is something we pride ourselves on, we focus on getting the small things right because the result will take care of itself. Passing the ball a certain way, you are creating, eventually one of the opportunities will go in."
Developing players for Galway WFC's first team is one of the chief ambitions so how critical is acquiring underage silverware? "It is really important, but it is also important that they sample failure," Trill replies.
"This group of girls, a lot of them were involved in the inaugural U17 final, in a season when we lost it in Drom. That hurt. From then on they have a retained focus thinking that they can be the best in class. Their drive and determination is really important bringing them to five or six finals in four years.
"It is about these girls transitioning into the first team set-up, transitioning that thirst for silverware while moulding with the experienced players within the club. That will be the real success for this group of girls."
**Listen to the full interview with Phil Trill, Galway WFC's youth development manager, on this week's 'Cian on Sport' podcast available on Soundcloud, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
