Kerry All-Ireland winner Kayleigh Cronin set for AFLW move
Kayleigh Bound: Kerry's Adelaide Picture: ©inpho/laszlo Geczo Cronin
2024 All-Ireland final Player of the Match Kayleigh Cronin is set for a blockbuster move to AFLW outfit Adelaide Crows.
The Kerry All-Star will join two Irish players at the club. Donegal’s Amy Boyle-Carr, who also represented the Republic of Ireland in soccer, and Mayo’s Niamh Kelly are both currently on the list. Adelaide reached their fifth consecutive preliminary final this season where they were beaten by Brisbane.
The Dr Crokes woman was a crucial cog for Kerry as they ended a 31-year wait for All-Ireland glory. She won an All-Star and was shortlisted for Footballer of the Year after that final win over Galway.
Cronin is understood to be working with talent identifier Mike Currane of AFLW Ireland. Currane worked with Waterford star Kellyann Hogan for her move to Collingwood which was confirmed this week.
“Kellyann will be a great addition to the group as an athlete who possesses outstanding work rate and athleticism as well as natural leadership traits,” said General Manager of Women’s Football Jess Burger.
Per AFL.com, Kildare’s Neasa Dooley is also set to join Brisbane as a rookie ahead of the 2025 season.
This pathway is increasingly the most common route to Australia for Irish players. The route that brought recent AFLW champions Vikki Wall and Erika O’Shea Down Under came through Currane.
Wall and O’Shea helped North Melbourne to a 39-9 triumph over Brisbane in the Grand Final last weekend. Two-time Meath All-Ireland winner Wall kicked two goals on her way to the title.
The understands that Carlton are also set to announce two Irish signings shortly, Clare’s Siofra Ní Chonaill and Aisling Reidy. The St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield duo were named on the team of the Division 3 league for 2024.
Elsewhere, Collingwood confirmed the departure of Cavan’s Aishling Sheridan. Sheridan helped Mullahoran to an All-Ireland IFC semi-final this year after spending last season on the inactive list. The club confirmed she had, “decided to remain in Ireland for the foreseeable future.”
Not including Sheridan, there were 33 Irish players spread across 13 clubs for the 2024 season. Another two, Aimee Mackin (Armagh, Melbourne) and Erone Fitzpatrick (Laois, Carlton) spent the year on the inactive list after suffering ACL injuries.
The number of new recruits is likely to rise too. The AFLW draft will be held on Monday, December 16. Irish players have been recruited through this process in the past. It is the first fully-national draft as the league continues to grow.
As part of that, the 2025 season will commence two weeks earlier with Round 1 set for August 11. It means leading ladies Gaelic footballers will find it increasingly difficult to balance playing for their counties with AFLW.