DOWN ladies are set for the biggest match of their careers. They will face Roscommon in the All-Ireland Intermediate Final at St Loman’s Park, Mullingar, at 2pm on Saturday.

They booked their final spot with a comfortable win over Clare in Breffni Park. Down have eight survivors from when they last competed in a National final in September 2000 when they successfully brought home the Junior Title.

Michaela Downey, Aoibheann Downey, Michelle Fearon, Elanie McCourt, Brenda Russell, Bronagh McCurry, Karen Keown and Aine Keary, all have the experience of being successful in an All Ireland decider.

The present Down side are in a transition phase and manager Gregory McGonigle admits that their march to this inaugural Intermediate final has come somewhat of a surprise.

"If anyone had said at the start of the season that we would be in a national final in September you would not have believed them.

"This intermediate Championship has proved to be a good venture for us but then again it’s only been good because the girls have been willing to put in the time and effort.

" Down have had to cope with losing the talents of Lisa Morgan and Cora McKibben to injury and with Emma O’Reilly travelling stateside this summer manager McGonigle has had to reshuffle the pack on a number of occasions and some exciting new players have emerged.

Kyla Trainor, Grainne McClean, Deirdre Quinn, Emma Madine, Aileen Pyers and Lyndsey Cunningham are all eighteen years of age or younger. Eliza Downey at full back is only a year older Captain Eilis McConville, Denise Maguire, Aveen McEvoy, Patricia and Orla McKibben, Niamh Lennon, Sinead Murphy, Geraldine Campbell and Irene Moore complete the youthful panel.

All season long McGonagle has described this campaign as being a learning curve. "This extension to the season has come as a welcome boost and should stand the players in good stead as they prepare for their upcoming National League campaign and the Ulster Senior Championship next Year.

" The team stepped up their training programme after exiting from the senior championship. "It was agreed that if we were to enter this competition then we had to be in it to win it, that there was no point in going in half-heartedly," added the manager.

Team selection will have to wait until after the weekend with many of the players involved in club competitions but the resounding semi-final victory over Clare at Breffni 8-18 to 1-09 suggests little change in the line-out, bar any further injuries.

Player of the match in that game Micheala Downey and versatile captain Eilis McConville might remain in the forward line with the strong running Denise Maguire the likely partner for Aoibheann Downey in Midfield.

Looking ahead to the final in Mullingar. The Down camp are aware that Roscommon will provide stiff opposition. Roscommon beat Tyrone early on in the National League while Tyrone defeated Down in the Senior championship in the summer, albeit by the narrowest of margins.

The noises coming out of the Down camp at the moment are all very positive with no element of preparation being left to chance.