Waterford defender Megan Dunford enjoys tackling the top forwards in ladies football.
Armagh's Aimee Mackin is the toughest she has come up against so far. Defending has always been her strong suit. "Unfortunately, my shooting isn't up to scratch! I've always been a defender. I'd love to be in the forwards but defending is my area for life now I think! I like being told to take up the opposition's key players. I get good pride in being given that role. It was a role that scared me when I first started playing, the responsibility of keeping them out of the game. Now, it's something that I look forward to."
Manager Pat Sullivan has been a big influence in her career. "Under 14 I played under Pat and all the way up with underage teams. He called me onto the panel in 2015, that was my first year. In fairness, he has done a lot for Waterford ladies football. He knows us better than anyone."
She looked up to Michelle Ryan and Elaine Power when she was younger. "Those were the players that I went to watch in Fraher Field and we went up to Croke Park for All Ireland finals with the club. Michelle was an idol who we all looked up to. Elaine Power was the defender I looked up when I was growing up. She was class. She still is, she would still make the panel if she came back!"
Waterford start their All Ireland championship campaign against Donegal in Birr on Saturday evening. They are determined to bounce back from their Munster championship loss to Cork last month. "What happened in Fraher Field wasn't the Waterford that we know and that we are. We have something to prove to ourselves."
