WHILE most girls wouldn't let anything stop them from leaving their Debs, one Laois teenager made a swift departure for a very special reason.
Emma Finlay was due to celebrate leaving school with her friends on Monday, August 8 at their school Debs in Thurles, Co Tipperary.
While Emma did turn up in a beautiful blue strapless gown and posed for pictures with friends, she bowed out of joining them on the bus to the hotel - so she could play in her club's GAA match.
Emma was quick to don her Shanahoe Ladies Football club colours for the 7.30pm match, and even managed to maintain her make up and hairstyle.
Her club praised her afterwards, saying, "Well done to Emma who left her Debs this evening to help Shanahoe to an emphatic 3.11 to 0.01 win against Graiguecullen in the Laois People's First Credit Union Intermediate Championship semi final!"
Emma, who has been playing since she was eight years old and currently plays corner back for the team, has explained why she left her Debs to play.
"At the start of the football year we set a goal of winning the county final, and we began training twice a week, enduring long hard sessions to try achieve this goal. And when the opportunity comes up to get to that goal, you don't pass it up, no matter what."
"I couldn't let the girls down either," she continued, "We're more than just a team at this stage."
Not many people could manage to squeeze a Debs and a GAA semi final into one evening, but somehow this Shanahoe star did both - and rejoined her friends at the Debs before 11pm.