Month: September 2021

FOR THE 15th time in history, traditional powerhouses Dublin and Kerry will meet in the All-Ireland football final following this weekend’s semi-finals. 

The Kingdom overturned a four-point half-time deficit as Stephen O’Brien’s 56th-minute goal propelled them to a 1-18 to 0-18 victory over Tyrone.

He guided the Kerry minors to three All-Ireland titles and now in Peter Keane’s first year in charge of the senior team, they’re back in their first decider since 2015.

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On that occasion four years ago, Dublin edged them out on a desperately poor day to start their current winning run in the All-Ireland SFC. Jim Gavin’s side haven’t lost a championship game since.

They sealed their place in the decider on Saturday following a convincing 10-point dismissal of Mayo.

Of course, Dublin are chasing a historic five-in-a-row and their opponents were famously on the cusp of the feat in 1982 when they were denied by Offaly. 

It’s the third time this decade the sides will meet in a final – the most since the 1970s when they clashed in the showpiece game on four occasions.

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IT WAS STEPHEN O’Brien who stole the headlines after Kerry’s dramatic All-Ireland semi-final win over Tyrone in Croke Park this afternoon.

The Kenmare man hit the all-important goal, tagged on two points and was named man-of-the-match but perhaps, most notably, was shown a black card as the clock ran down in their three-point win in front of 33,848.

The card for the cynical pull-down on Connor McAliskey comes as his third of the season, and rules him out of the All-Ireland final against five in-a-row chasing Dublin on Sunday, 1 September.

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But O’Brien says the Kingdom will appeal the suspension.

“I was aware of that going in,” he said when RTÉ Sport’s Marty Morrissey put it to him that he could now miss next month’s decider.

“But I think the black card in the Meath game was very harsh. I was running off the ball and there was an accidental head clash. We’ll be certainly looking to appeal that one. 

'We'll be looking to appeal that one' – Man of the match Stephen O'Brien retains hope of playing in the All-Ireland final against Dublin #RTEGAA pic.twitter.com/BQZoecBrQX

— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) August 11, 2019

Likewise, Kerry boss Peter Keane, who has steered the side to the decider in his first year in charge, was of similar sentiment.

“Well, I suppose if there’s a possibility of appealing it we will,” he noted.

When asked if he was concerned overall, Keane remained typically calm.

“Ah sure look, you want everybody that you can possibly have and Stephen is no different. He did well today.

“But look, the ebb and flow of every panel. You could be down training on Tuesday night and some fella gets a knock, some fella who isn’t with us today could be with us the next day. That’s a panel and that’s why you develop a panel.”

'Well, I suppose if there's a possibility of appealing it, we will' – Kerry manager Peter Keane tells @MartyM_RTE that Stephen O'Brien might still play in the All-Ireland final against Dublin.

Watch highlights tonight on RTÉ 2, and the RTÉ Player, from 9.30pm #RTEGAA pic.twitter.com/BV0H3ZmG5s

— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) August 11, 2019

On top of today’s and the one against the Royals, O’Brien’s first black card of the year came against Galway in the league — that came when he was on a yellow, so then turned to red.

Defiant, the player added on Kerry’s second-half revival.

“We’re happy with it. We definitely needed it at half-time. There were a few choice words at half time and we came out a different team, that’s they way we want to play going forward.

“Everyone knows that the substitution bench has a huge role to play in Gaelic football. There’s loads of lads pushing to be on the starting team and in the 26, that’s the strength of our panel.”

GOAL for @Kerry_Official !! Stephen O'Brien the scorer. pic.twitter.com/zjDqK90yN5

— The GAA (@officialgaa) August 11, 2019

The credit for his goal went to Dingle man Paul Geaney.

“Paul put it on a plate for me, I was kind of one-on-one. Just hit it and hope for the best.

“It’s a huge challenge in the final against Dublin so we’re really looking forward to a great occasion.”

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Cavan 3-12
Westmeath 1-7

By Gerry Buckley

CAVAN SECURED THEIR place in the TG4 All-Ireland senior championship again next year with a decisive win against Westmeath in Kinnegad this afternoon, while the Lake county ladies now face a winner-takes-all relegation final with Monaghan next weekend.

Cavan, who had the aid of a slight breeze in the first half, raced into a four-point lead by the seventh minute, with two of the points coming from Donna English. However, a well-taken goal in the eighth minute from Grace Halligan brought Westmeath back into contention.

Cavan led by a point, 0-6 to 1-2, when Ciara Finnegan found the net in the 16^th minute after Shauna Lynch and Aishling Sheridan had been denied by Lauren McCormack and the crossbar respectively.

A terrific goal from Lauren McVeety put the Breffni ladies firmly in control and Westmeath’s woes were compounded when team captain Fiona Claffey was yellow-carded on the half-hour mark. Cavan led by 2-8 to 1-3 at the interval and they never looked like they would be overturned in the second-half, despite a yellow card for Shauna Lynch midway through.

The gap was eight points when Cavan sub Geraldine Sheridan was fouled close to the Westmeath goalmouth and Aishling Maguire coolly slotted home the resultant penalty in the 57^th minute. Rachel Doonan was yellow-carded with a matter of seconds remaining, but the result was secured at that stage and Cavan could celebrate.

Scorers for Cavan: A Maguire 1-5 (1-0pen, 4f), L McVeety 1-1, D English 0-3, C Finnegan 1-0, A Sheridan 0-2, S Lynch 0-1.

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Westmeath: L Slevin 0-4 (4f), G Halligan 1-0, A Jones 0-1, N Feery 0-1, S Dolan 0-1.

Cavan: R O’Reilly; J Moore, R Doonan, S Reilly; S Greene, M Sheridan, S Lynch; N Byrd, S O’Sullivan; L McVeety, D English, C Finnegan; A Maguire, A Sheridan, L Fitzpatrick. Subs: G Sheridan for Finnegan (53), A Gilsenan for McVeety (57), N Daly for Maguire (59), N Keenaghan for Moore (60), K McIntyre for Fitzpatrick (60+4).

Westmeath: L McCormack; R Dillon, J Rogers, L Power; K Boyce Jordan, A Dolan, F Coyle; J Maher, MA Foley; G Halligan, A Jones, N Feery; L Slevin, F Claffey, V Carr. Subs: S Dolan for Halligan (36), K McDermott for Foley (43), L Brennan for Boyce Jordan (47, inj), J Hennessy for A Dolan (54), C Kelly for Maher (59). 

Ref: Kevin Corcoran (Mayo).

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1. Kerry’s second-half revival

IT WASN’T AS emphatic as Dublin’s turnaround yesterday, but the manner of Kerry’s response after half-time was highly impressive. Trailing Tyrone by four, the Kingdom looked worryingly devoid of energy and ideas up front.

Paul Geaney and David Clifford celebrate a late score.

Source: James Crombie/INPHO

The majority of their attacks came down the middle, which was meat and drink to Mickey Harte’s side. Of their 20 first-half attacks, Kerry registered five scores and just two from play.

Kerry edged themselves back into the game through a series of frees and pressed up high on Niall Morgan’s restarts. They started winning the battles in the middle third and cut out the supply of ball into dangerman Cathal McShane. Between the 54th and 57th minute, Kerry scored 1-3 without reply to go from two behind to four points up. 

Similarly yesterday, Dublin scored 2-6 without reply in the 12 minutes after half-time to virtually finish the game as a contest. Both Kerry and Dublin sensed blood, went for the jugular and maximised their momentum on the scoreboard.

The Munster champions had the smarts and experience to win a few important frees near the end and were happy to play keep-ball, greatly frustrating Tyrone in the finale.

2. Tommy Walsh impact

Tommy Walsh showed flashes of class during the league but he’s been largely kept in reserve during the championship. In the 50th minute, Kerry were a point behind when Walsh was introduced for Jason Foley. 

Kerry rejigged their team around and placed the former Sydney Swans player on the edge of the square. He gave the pass for scores from David Moran and David Clifford, before expertly dragging his man out of the square to leave the space for Stephen O’Brien’s crucial goal in the 56th minute. 

GOAL for @Kerry_Official !! Stephen O'Brien the scorer. pic.twitter.com/zjDqK90yN5

— The GAA (@officialgaa) August 11, 2019

Walsh made some hard runs to win a few vital balls and was fouled for a free under the Hogan Stand with time running out. Even when the game-time wasn’t coming his way, he kept plugging away and got his reward today.  

3. What went wrong for Tyrone?

This was Tyrone’s ninth All-Ireland semi-final to reach under Harte and their fifth defeat at this stage. He’ll be desperately disappointed with their second-half showing after they’d built up an early head of steam. 

Tyrone will find it hard to shake the feeling they left this one behind them.

Following their league win over Dublin, the Red Hand were optimistic they’d found a system and the personnel to take down Jim Gavin’s team. But they won’t get the opportunity for another crack at the champions following a second-half when they lost all creativity in their attack.

Tyrone scored just one point from play – Connor McAliskey’s 53rd-minute effort – between half-time and the 69th minute. Given their lack of a scoring punch it begs the question, should Harte have tried harder to accommodate talented forwards Lee Brennan, Ronan O’Neill and Mark Bradley this year? 

Cathal McShane leaves the field after the game.

Source: Laszlo Geczo/INPHO

4. Match-ups

Early on it looked like Tyrone had nailed most of their match-ups, but as the game wore on it was Kerry who were winning the majority of the individual battles. Ronan McNamee won an early ball off Clifford and held him to a point in the opening 35 minutes, while Padraig Hampsey had Geaney under control.

Man-of-the-match O’Brien endured a relatively quiet start on Kieran McGeary, before he took him to the cleaners in the third quarter to such an extent that his marker received the curly finger immediately after the game’s only goal.

Keane certainly won the sideline contest. Peter Harte had a forgettable afternoon being tagged by Tom O’Sullivan, Tadhg Morley did reasonably well on Mattie Donnelly and restricted him to a brace before he was pushed back onto McShane. 

Jack Sherwood was an effective half-time substitution and he clipped over a good point. Walsh had a major impact, as did Geaney with his three-point haul, goal assist and all-round link-up play. Clifford finished with 0-5 while O’Shea scored six of his eight shots at the posts.

Stephen O’Brien celebrates scoring his goal.

Source: James Crombie/INPHO

5. Kerry have forwards to hurt Dublin

Given the nature of Dublin’s clinical dismissal of Mayo, Kerry will need to up things another level or two in the final. It took a half-time grilling from Keane before they started showing the levels of aggression required at this level. 

On the plus side, their forward line is moving nicely. Dublin’s style of play means they give up plenty of scoring chances in defence. Clifford, Geaney, O’Brien – if he’s cleared to play – and O’Shea will ask plenty of questions of the Dublin rearguard.

Gavin White is built to mark Jack McCaffrey, while O’Brien will be tasked with running at John Small from early on to put him in card trouble.

Kerry enjoyed an 82% scoring efficiency after the break and they’ll need to remain in that ballpark to stand a chance of crushing Dublin’s five-in-a-row dreams. Walsh is now a real option and he may be a late addition to the starting team if Kerry want to go after the Dublin full-back line like they did in their league victory in February.

If James O’Donoghue can recover from a hamstring problem sufficiently to take his place on the bench, it would give Kerry a much-needed extra option for the final quarter when the Dubs tend to run riot. 

A mouth-watering final awaits and while Dublin are still strong favourites, it’s by no means a forgone conclusion. 

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WITHOUT USING IT as an excuse for their championship exit, James Horan bemoaned Mayo’s six-day turnaround between their win over Donegal and semi-final loss to Dublin.

Horan’s side enjoyed a thrilling round 3 Super 8s victory over the back-to-back Ulster champions in Castlebar, which arrived on the back of a taxing qualifier run.

Then they had just a matter of days to prepare for Dublin, who blitzed Mayo in the second-half in convincing fashion.

Dublin also faced a short turnaround but were able to rest almost their entire team the previous weekend against Tyrone, having already qualified for the last four.

“If you think about the journey we’ve been on this year and apply any common sense to it, the turnaround that they’re asking amateur players to do is crazy,” he said.

“I didn’t really mention it all year, I’m not at all in any way using it as an excuse but you know, coming back from games at 2am in the morning and guys being in work on a Monday. Just the whole what we’re asking players to do is very, very tough.”

Horan suggested that a two-week break between the games would be an obvious solution.

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“Maybe give them two weeks for a semi-final, that would be a start. Something simple.

“I just think the turnaround was tough. But look, Dublin today were fantastic in the second-half.”

Andy Moran may decide to call it quits this winter.

Source: Ryan Byrne/INPHO

The Ballintubber clubman is in his second stint in charge of the county team and admitted that h may lose a number of his older players to retirement during the winter.

Mayo had the highest age profile of the four All-Ireland semi-final squads and many felt this was the final shot for their ageing contingent to land the Sam Maguire.

Of the players who featured yesterday, Keith Higgins (34), Colm Boyle (32), Andy Moran (35), Chris Barrett (31), Tom Parsons (31), Seamus O’Shea (32) and Donie Vaughan (30) are in their 30s, while David Clarke (35) was an unused substitute. 

“There’s no question there’ll be changes in that Mayo group for next year,” said Horan.

“I think that’s clear but that will take its own course. We’ve a huge amount of players, young players, that are involved this year, and new players. If we use that right today, that’s a real learning to see where the top standard is.

“We have to use it that way, otherwise it’s a hopeless cause. But we’ll learn from today. A lot of new guys on the 26, and a lot of guys outside the 26 that are pushing hard that didn’t make it today. Today would be a significant learning for those guys.”

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LEADING HURLING REFEREE Brian Gavin admits that he is ‘amazed’ at times with the lack of understanding of GAA rules.

Brian Gavin during this year’s All-Ireland senior hurling final

Source: James Crombie/INPHO

Offaly native Gavin, who was in charge for this year’s All-Ireland senior hurling final, is hopeful that the new GAA referee handbook which was launched yesterday in Croke Park will help address the knowledge deficit that he believes exists.

“Even though, there is media launches every time there is a rule change, people still don’t seem to grasp it.

“And it is amazing being at football matches, I was at the All-Ireland final replay this year, and you hear people around you shouting out for black cards and you are just wondering what planet they are on.

“There is a terrible lack of understanding of the rules, even from players, would you believe, and managers, at times. If everyone gets this handbook and goes through it, it is a big help.

“The understanding is not out there with the general public and this will definitely help. It is another proper procedure going forward to help with the understanding of the rules.

Referee Brian Gavin with Tipperary’s Brendan Maher and Kilkenny’s Shane Prendergast

Source: James Crombie/INPHO

“The lack of knowledge out there from some players but mostly supporters, well it is frightening when I go to a match and am sitting down in the stand, and I hear these shouts.

“It is disappointing because you would think that people would have a better understanding of rules and they just don’t.

“I even heard someone say once after a player was penalised for two bounces ‘what’s that for? Three catches in hurling is another thing that people don’t know.

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“I would have experienced it in Offaly, even having rules tests for referees and you would be frightened by the results.

“When someone sees something with a pen and paper, they get a little bit mixed up but this just clears the pathway, the education is so black and white in it.”

Brian Gavin (centre) at the launch of The Referees Handbook at Croke Park

Source: Matt Browne/SPORTSFILE

Gavin admits that striving for greater consistency in the application of rules must be a target for GAA referees.

And he specifically referenced criticism of the decisions that referees make early in a game.

A black, yellow or red card is the same in the first minute as in the 71st minute. That’s where it comes back to consistency.

“Sometimes you might try and give the player the benefit of the doubt, whether there’s intent or not, but we’ll never get conistency if we shrug the issue.

“That’s what infuriates managers, spectators, players, so it’s up to us to make sure that whether it’s the first minute or the 71st minute we have to keep doing the same thing.

“Whether it’s the right choice in the player’s mind or not, it’s the rule and it’s what we have to do.

Defender Robbie Kiely is shown a black card by referee David Coldrick

Source: Tommy Grealy/INPHO

“Unfortunately you had a Tipperary footballer this year in the semi-final (Robbie Kiely in the eighth minute) but if it’s a black card it’s a black card, not matter what minute it is.

“That’s the unfortunate part. People think ‘it’s early on, use your common sense’ but that doesn’t work. We definitely won’t have consistency if we applied it that way.”

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MAYO GAA HAVE revealed that they spent €1.6 million on team administration expenses in 2016, nearly double their figurefrom 2015.

The increase of nearly 46% in the cost of running teams is the most eye-catching figure in the Mayo GAA account details which were revealed today but the county board still recorded a surplus at the end of the year as there was a 44% increase in income.

Mayo spent €1,632,448 in 2016 in running their teams in comparison to a figure of €880,316 in 2015.

Their senior footballers were in action this year until 1 October when they lost out the All-Ireland final replay to Dublin while in 2015 their season ended on 5 September when they were defeated by Dublin at the semi-final replay stage.

However it has to be factored in that several other Mayo sides had longer seasons this year, which contributed to the rise in expenses. Mayo’s U21 side won the All-Ireland football title while their junior team also reached an All-Ireland final and their minor side contested an All-Ireland quarter-final.

Mayo players celebrate their All-Ireland U21 title win.

Source: Donall Farmer/INPHO

In hurling, Mayo reached the Nicky Rackard Cup final and the All-Ireland U21 B hurling decider.

Drilling down further into the team administration expenses it’s clear that those extended campaigns were a factor

Travelling Expenses:

• 2016 – €580,547
• 2015 – €517,650

Catering

• 2016 – €447,280
• 2015 –  €172,367

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• 2016 – €360,785
• 2015 –  €31,227

Medical Expenses

• 2016 – €211,104
• 2015 –  €134,740

The new Mayo GAA jersey was launched today. What do you think? #mayo #gaa #gaelicfootball

A post shared by The42 (@the42.ie) on Nov 30, 2016 at 10:07am PST

The flipside was that Mayo still recorded a surplus this year of €87,329 after a surplus in 2016 of €94,979.

Total expenditure this year did rise from €2,035,082 to €2,989,659, but total income was also up 44% from €2,130,781 to €3,076,988, with notable increases in certain areas.

Commercial Income

• 2016 – €478,141
• 2015 – €218,033

Fund-Raising

• 2016 – €840,179
• 2015 – €600,086

Transfer Income (Team Expenses and Grants from GAA)

• 2016 – €715,506
• 2015 – €487,576

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FORMER HURLER OF the year Eoin Larkin has closed the book on a glittering 12-year career with Kilkenny.

Larkin picked up his first senior All-Ireland medal in 2006, a year after his debut, and would go on to play a key role in the most dominant hurling team of all-time.

The 32-year-old won eight All-Irelands, 10 Leinster titles, six National League medals and two All-Stars. He also won two All-Ireland U21 titles with the Cats, as well as the All-Ireland club title in 2005.

The James Stephens forward scored 8-134 in 58 appearances for the black and amber.

“After due consideration I have decided that now is the right time for me to announce my inter-county retirement,” Larkin said in a statement released by Kilkenny GAA this morning.

“I have enjoyed 12 of the best years of my life with success I could only have dreamed of.

“It was always my dream from a young age to play, captain and win an All-Ireland with Kilkenny and I’m proud and happy to say I lived my dream.

“I am content to walk away now knowing I gave everything I could for myself, but also the team every time I walked out on the training pitch or pulled on a Kilkenny jersey and left no stone unturned in the pursuit of perfection, although I never got close.

He also paid tribute to his family and Brian Cody for their influence on him during his career.

“I can never thank my wife Anne enough for the last twelve years of support, advice and often a little pick me up when things weren’t going so well. I also want to thank my children Mark, Holly and Ellie for their support and understanding for what I loved doing. It is certainly payback time now.

“My sister, two brothers, Paddy, Veronica, extended family and friends always showed me support and were always there to bring me down a peg or two if needed.

“I’ve played with and against some of the best players of all time and had the privilege of working with the best manager of all time for those years.”

“I want to thank Brian for the opportunity of playing for Kilkenny and will be forever grateful. I also want to thank all the selectors, backroom staff and medical teams that I’ve worked with. It was often a tough task to keep me fit but they were always more than up for the challenge.

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“I will continue to play for my beloved James Stephens for as long as I can and will go in search of further dreams.

“Lastly I want to wish Brian and the rest of the lads the very best in 2017. I will certainly be roaring on the black and amber.”

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LAOIS GAA HAVE unveiled the new jersey that their county teams will wear for the 2017 season.

The new Laois GAA jersey

The announcement came as the Midlands County confirmed that they have entered into a three-year sponsorship deal with MW Hire that will last until 2019.

Laois will have two new senior managers in charge next year with ex-Tipperary supremo Peter Creedon at the helm of the footballers while another Tipperary native Eamonn Kelly will guide the hurlers after steering the fortunes of Offaly last season.

Next year’s championship draw will see the Laois footballers face Longford in the first round in the Leinster with the victors taking on Kildare.

The Laois hurlers will partake in the round-robin series in Leinster next year along with Westmeath, Meath and Kerry.

What do you think of the new jersey?

MW Hire’s Matty Walsh & Laois GAA Chairman Gerry Kavanagh

Laois Senior Football Manager Peter Creedon, MW Hire’s Matty Walsh & Laois Senior Hurling Manager Eamonn Kelly

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Home

Source: Donall Farmer/INPHO

• Zaur Antia will stay on as Irish boxing coach for the next 5 years
• Kilkenny’s 8-time All-Ireland winner Eoin Larkin announced his retirement
• Mayo GAA team expenses rose to €1.6 million this year but they still had a surplus
• Pat Hickey set to return to Ireland as bond money for passport is received
• Joey Carbery will start at 10 as Leinster look to bounce back against Dragons

Away

Source: James Crombie/INPHO

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• Nico Rosberg has sensationally retired just days after winning the F1 World Championship
• Cristiano Ronaldo is accused of using an Irish company to avoid Spanish tax
• The final shortlist for FIFA Puskas award is announced
• The Brisbane coach says they’re not in the race to bring Robbie Keane to Oz

The Best Thing We Shared

The kids at a Cork school received a visit from John Kavanagh and the UFC lightweight belt.

Source: The42.ie/YouTube

On The Record

Nico Rosberg quits Formula One while he’s at the top.

Since 25 years in racing, it has been my dream, my ‘one thing’ to become Formula One World Champion. Through the hard work, the pain, the sacrifices, this has been my target. And now I’ve made it. I have climbed my mountain, I am on the peak, so this feels right.”

Source: David Davies

Where we were today

Shane Costello was at Leinster Rugby’s press conference at the RDS to hear from Leo Cullen and Isa Nacewa, while Ben Blake was at the Aviva Stadium to chat with new Shamrock Rovers signing Paul Corry.

Source: Ryan Byrne/INPHO

The Fixture List

• There are some big matches in the Premier League this weekend, including Man City against Chelsea in the early Saturday kick-off.
• In La Liga the Nou Camp is the venue for El Classico, Barcelona v Real Madrid, at 3.15pm on Saturday.
• It’s a relatively quiet weekend in the GAA world, although there’s a big game in Portlaoise where Cuala play O’Loughlin Gaels in the Leinster club SHC final.
• A number of Pro12 ties are taking place, with Connacht, Ulster and Leinster in action on Saturday.
• England play Australia in the final round of Autumn Internationals.
• We have a busy weekend of horse racing, with some big races at Sandown and Fairyhouse.
• All eyes will be on Tiger Woods this weekend at the Hero World Championships, while Paul Dunne is in action in South Africa.
• The Ultimate Fighter Season 24 Finale takes place, with Mighty Mouse up against Tim Elliot on Saturday night.
• Finally, there’s a full slate of NFL games on Sunday as the playoff picture should become a little bit clearer..

Showbiz, Baby!

Remember this game between Barca and Real in 2005? Ronaldinho scored two cracking individual goals and received applause from the Real fans.

Source: FC Barcelona/YouTube

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