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EIGHT MEN WHO COULD MAKE THE DIFFERENCE - PAGES 24 +25 

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August 3, 2007 | Gaelic Life 

This Week 

Kelly’s eye 

Antrim star Sean Kelly looking 

for silverware at Croker 

PAGE 7 

Corey can 

Versatile Vinnie 

making an impact 

PAGES 16 + 17 

TheRant 

The team 

I hate to love 

Head to Head 

How Tyrone and - 

Meath match up 

Minor mater 

Tyrone on 

All-Ireland trail 

Meath’s single-minded approach 

means they should be admired 

PAGES 20-21 

No quarter 

Eight men who can 

lift their sides 

PAGES 11 + 12 

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PAGE 46 


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COMPETITION WINNER 

- SEE PAGE 26 

FANTASY 

»LEAGUE 

Every nation and every sport has 

teams that you are supposed to 

hate. I’m not talking about the 

kind of knee-jerk reaction that 

over-hyped glamour sides like the 

Dublin footballers, the New York Yankees 

or Manchester United inspire in 

those of us who can see that the emperors 

clothes are all too often a facade. 

I’m referring to the sides practised 

in the dark arts who seem to actively 

court a reputation as relentless, 

ruthless performers. Teams 

who’ll do whatever takes to 

make sure they’re on the 

right end of the scoreline 

come the final whistle. 

In American football 

you have the Oakland 

Raiders, rugby has the 

Springboks, and soccer 

Leeds United - 

the unpopularity of 

these teams is rooted 

not in jealousy 

but, rather, their 

uncompromising 

attitude to their 

chosen sport. In 

football we have 

Meath. 

While the 

characteristics 

these teams display 

alienate much 

of the sporting public there 

is a twisted minority, of which I am a 

member, who admire their singleminded 

‘damn the lot of ye’ approach. 

In the same way that I’ve always preferred 

Argentina to Brazil, I’ve always 

preferred Meath to the likes of Kerry or 

Dublin. To me, the Royal county has always 

been like the lost tribe of Ulster. 

While the likes of Laois and Kildare 

play pretty but ultimately ineffective 

football Meath have always went for the 

jugular. Meath in Leinster have been 

the GAA equivalent of a pre-operative 

transsexual, a man trapped in a lady’s 

body. 

Take a look at their players, beasts of 

men. Meath footballers don’t go in for 

bleached highlights and white boots, 

it’s a short back and sides and the 

traditional Puma King all round. 

The closest a Meath player has ever 

come to a stylistic flourish was 

when Colm O’Rourke used to sport 

a support brace on his dodgy left 

knee. Indeed I think it would suit all 

hands if we could come to some kind 

of trade where Ulster absorbs the Royal 

county, giving Ulster 10 counties and 

Leinster 11 rather than the current 9/12 

split. 

Perhaps it’s because intercounty football 

played in the Meath style reminds 

me so much of the often brutal world of 

Derry club football where the ability to 

withstand a belt is almost as important 

as the ability to thump the ball over the 

bar but I can’t help admiring them. 

I know that no right thinking person 

should really harbour any affection for 

the Royal county but to reverse the old 

adage, they’re the team I hate to love. 

STYLE ICON...Colm O’Rourke’s 

knee brace is the closest 

thing to fashion statement in 

Meath football

Gaelic Life | August 3, 2007 

NEW BREED...The current Tyrone side no longer carry the psychological scars sustained in their’s 1996 semi-final defeat by Meath 

By-gone battles not an 

issue says ex-boss Ball 

Infamous semi-final of no relevance to current Tyrone side 

BY RONAN SCOTT 

r.scott@gaeliclife.com 

THOSE Tyrone fans who want to 

hype tomorrow’s All-Ireland 

quarter-final against Meath as a 

chance to exact for revenge for 

the beating they took in 1996 

need to get their facts right. 

The Red Hands already wasted 

their opportunity to rectify that 

result only six months after the 

infamous ’96 game when Meath 

came to Clones to play in a National 

League relegation play off. 

In a game that lacked the controversy 

of their previous match, 

Tyrone managed to keep the All- 

Ireland champions scoreless for 

the first 14 minutes but two goals 

from Stephen Dillon and Evan 

Kelly were pivotal in the 2-9 to 1- 

9 Meath victory. 

Danny Ball was manager that 

day, the last man to coach Tyrone 

against Meath. 

“At the time the game wasn’t 

really about the incidents 

of ‘96. Although there 

were a lot of people unhappy 

that Martin O’- 

Connoll was playing,” 

he said. 

Eleven years may 

not be enough to dull 

the majority of Tyrone 

fans’ memories but Ball admitted 

he can barely remember 

the team that played that day, 

never mind the score line. 

What he does remember is the 

relationship he had with the then 

manager of Meath Sean Boylan. 

“I still regard him as a friend 

even after the game in 1996 I will 

always hold him in high esteem. 

From ’96 people would say that 

Meath did wrong but to be honest 

Tyrone had the same opportunities 

to win and they didn’t 

take them,” Ball said. 

“Times have moved on since 

then. Tyrone are a different team 

than they were in ’96. I would be 

very surprised if Tyrone allowed 

Meath to do what they did in 

1996.” 

One of the reasons 

why people recall 

the ’96 game but 

have allowed the ‘97 

defeat to slip their 

memory is that the 

League has never 

DANNY BALL 

... Wounds 

have healed 

Tyrone are a different 

team than they were in 

’96. I would be very 

surprised if Tyrone 

allowed Meath to do 

what they did in 1996 

been held in the same regard as 

the Championship. 

“The league was not really 

that important back them. The 

only interest in it was in the result 

afterwards. These days 

games are on TV more and there 

is more public interest in the 

matches. How many live games 

are on TV this weekend Back 

then all you got was the headlines,” 

he said. 

Ball also explained that memories 

from either game, ’96 or ’97, 

will not have any factor on tomorrow’s 

performance. 

“It won’t have any special significance. 

Brian Dooher played 

an important role back then but 

I can assure you that he will not 

be thinking about that game. It 

will be the furthest thing from 

his mind. So much has passed 

since then that it won’t matter,” 

he said. 

History aside Tyrone are in 

the driving seat to reach this 

year’s final. Currently the bookmakers 

have priced them at 9/4 

to win the title and they are odds 

on to beat Meath and that is 

without players like Stephen 

O’Neill and Dooher. 

“In my opinion they haven’t really 

played well up to now. If they 

play well for 70, even 60, minutes 

then I have no doubt that they 

will win. You have to look at how 

Meath have done so far. They 

drew with Dublin and then lost 

the replay. Tyrone have already 

went down to Dublin and beat 

them,” he said. 

However there are a few aspects 

that worry Ball. He said his 

main concern was with Meath’s 

forward line and how Tyrone will 

mark them. Furthermore the 

lack of players available could 

have a negative effect on the Red 

Hands. 

“Injuries may take their toll, 

and that means that the strength 

and depth of the team will be important. 

But I’m not that confident 

about that. However, as long 

as we have 15 players who want 

to reach an All-Ireland semi-final 

then we should be fine,” Ball 

said. 

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Aussie exodus 

can’t be stemmed 

claims coach 



STEVEN McVeigh, the coach of the St Louis Kilkeel 

team that Aussie rules starlet Martin Clarke played on, 

has revealed that there is nothing the GAA can do to 

stop an exodus of players down under. 

In the same week that Nickey Brennan slammed AFL 

clubs who said they may up their recruitment drive for 

Irish players, McVeigh admitted he would actively encourage 

footballers to make the switch. 

“It would be hard for me, as a teacher, to stop them 

from taking those opportunities, it’s a chance for young 

players to see the world. For the better players it would 

be hard for them to turn down that type of opportunity,” 

he said. 

Last year McVeigh watched Australian rules side 

Collingwood lure Martin Clarke down under. 

“For Martin, if he had have stayed he would have been 

in great demand from a lot of teams and if he had have 

stayed he would be playing a lot of football. I think Martin 

was ready for a new challenge. But I have to say that 

this is only going to happen to players who have Martin’s 

ability,” he said. 

Clarke is one of five Irish boys plying their trade in 

Australia, along with Tadgh Fennelly, Colm Begley, Setanta 

and Aisake O’hAilpin. 

Some clubs in Australia have intimated that if the International 

rules series is dissolved then they will recruit 

even more as it easier to get good players from Ireland 

than through their own draft system. 

“I know that two or three years ago there was trials 

on and the players that went down didn’t go there for 

fun. It was a serious opportunity. A lot of them are taking 

a year out to go away travelling before they go to 

university. If they can see the world then I would be totally 

for that. If you ask me, the likes of Colm Begley and 

Martin Clarke are making the right decision by going 

away.” 

Yet according to McVeigh it’s a bit early to start locking 

up our sons. 

“What I would say is that I have spoken to Gerry Skelly 

who organises things for the training camps and he 

would maintain that the amount of players going to 

Australia is only a trickle. The loss of Gaelic football 

players to soccer is a lot greater. The similarity would 

be that young people are enticed by an opportunity to 

play sport at a higher standard,” he said. 

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4 NEWS 


Scars of ’96 still 

rankle with Red 

Hand nearly men 

McCallan rues close calls where Tyrone 

came close to claiming Sam Maguire 

BY ALAN RODGERS 

a.rodgers@gaeliclife.com 

MEATH 

MASTER 

MIND... 

Sean 

Boylan 

So many things have 

changed since Tyrone’s last 

meeting with Meath in the 

All-Ireland Championship 

inflicted scars which are lingering 

to this day. 

Croke Park on the major occasions 

still held plenty of fears for 

O’Neill county a decade ago. But 

that semi-final in August 1996 finally 

showed them that a history 

of glorious failure was no longer 

enough. 

Key details of that game are 

being recalled this week as the 

counties prepare to renew acquaintances. 

The sight of Brian 

Dooher and Ciaran McBride 

sporting head bandages, the injury 

to Peter Canavan and the 

top notch performance from 

Gerard Cavlan are the most 

abiding moments. 

It is fair to say that the negative 

energy generated from 

the defeat lasted until Tyrone 

finally banished the ghosts 

of Croke Park disappointments 

in 2003. By then, one 

of the key men against 

Meath seven years earlier 

had just departed the 

scene. 

During an illustrious career 

with club and county, 

Seamus McCallan, was 

justifiably regarded as a 

‘man of steel.’ The Carrickmore 

player regularly 

dominated matters 

from centre back or midfield, 

as emphasised by 

three Ulster medals, six 

Tyrone county medals and numerous 

other honours. 

And, he still remembers well 

the sense of disappointment 

which permeated the ranks following 

that 1996 loss. 

“It was another nightmare in 

a lot of ways,” he says. “I remember 

us playing Meath in a 

challenge game a few weeks before 

the Ulster final in 1996 and 

it was a great match on a sunny 

Friday evening. 

“Sean Boylan definitely had 

his homework done for when we 

met again in the championship. 

He learned the lessons and we 

probably conceded a couple of 

scores at important times which 

proved crucial. 

“It’s funny how things work 

out because that team definitely 

could have won two All-Irelands. 

Annoying and disappointing 

is how I would describe 

it. 

“The 1995 All-Ireland final 

was a missed opportunity 

as well. With all due respect 

to Dublin, they were 

a very beatable team. But 

unfortunately we probably 

did not function properly 

in the match. It’s a 

pity that we didn’t get 

that title because that was a 

great team. 

“There were a lot of parallels 

between the teams of 

those years and then in 2003 

as well. It probably helped to 

instil a real hunger that you 

need after defeats to go on 

and make the grade,” he 

added. 

Of course, those years 

also saw the introduction 

of Gerard Cavlan and Brian 

Dooher to the Tyrone team. 

They soon established 

themselves, going on to 

play crucial roles in the 

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NEWS 5 

NEAR MISS...Seamus McCallan tackles Seamus McCallan during the 1995 All-Ireland final. 

Brendan Moran/SPORTSFILE 

subsequent Sam Maguire Cup 

triumphs. 

History has, of course, a funny 

way of repeating itself. That 

controversial decider will be remembered 

for a number of decisive 

incidents, not least the 

Dublin goal from Charlie Redmond 

which saw him evade the 

attentions of Seamus McCallan. 

Ironically, eight years later 

another rock-solid Carrickmore 

defender produced a matchwinning 

block in the All-Ireland Final. 

By 2003, though, Conor 

Gormley was grabbing the headlines 

as Seamus McCallan celebrated 

from the sidelines. 

“One of my big regrets was 

retiring at the start of 2003. Obviously, 

if I had known that Tyrone 

were going to go on and 

win the All-Ireland I would have 

stayed with the squad and ended 

up getting my All-Ireland 

medal,” he adds. 

“A lot of the success in 2003 

was down to the professionalism 

that was coming into the game 

at the time. Mickey Harte definitely 

brought things to a new 

level in terms of preparation. 

“The other thing which has to 

be remembered is that there 

were a lot of good youth teams 

in Tyrone from the mid-nineties 

on and they were starting to 

come through. There was a good 

blend of youth and experience, 

with a sprinkling of players like 

Brian Dooher, Peter Canavan 

and Gerard Cavlan who had the 

experience from 1995 and 1996. 

“But that’s the way things 

worked out and at the time I just 

felt that I wasn’t capable of competing 

at that level to the same 

extent. I kept on playing club 

football until the end of 2006, but 

it was tougher to stay free from 

injury. 

“As well as that, my priorities 

were changing with work, and 

having a wife and two children. 

At some point in the future I 

would like to get involved in 

coaching and management, 

maybe working alongside someone. 

We played Meath in a 

challenge before the 

Ulster final and Sean 

Boylan definitely had his 

homework done for when 

we met again in the 

championship 

“I remember how I came into 

the senior squad in 1992 when 

John Donnelly phoned me a couple 

of nights before that year’s 

National League final. It was 

great to get into a panel which 

still included the likes of John 

Lynch, Damien O’Hagan and 

Plunkett Donaghy and that was 

a very optimistic team for Tyrone 

football.” 

Away from the county scene, 

1996 saw Carrickmore win a second 

Tyrone title in a row in a 

new era of dominance for the 

club. No wonder, the 34 year old 

has such fond recollections of 

lining out with the famed St 

Colmcille’s. 

“My career coincided with a 

good era for us. It was a fantastic 

time when we were all like a 

family on and off the field. It was 

a lot like Crossmaglen, although 

we didn’t manage to translate it 

onto the Ulster stage. 

“Ten years took a lot out of all 

those players, but I wouldn’t 

have any regrets because you recall 

those who didn’t manage to 

win a county title. 

“My abiding memory from 

that period would be the 2001 

County final when we defeated 

Errigal Ciaran. It had been a 

couple of years since we had 

won the title and a lot of us were 

wondering if we could bridge 

that gap. 

“For that reason, it was one of 

the most satisfying of all. I remember 

talking to the late Martin 

Rafferty who told me how 

proud he would be to play for 

Carrickmore and he trained 

hard and eventually got into the 

team at corner-back. 

“A second abiding memory 

was the 1995 All-Ireland final because 

it was only our second and 

the first since 1986. There were 

no backdoors or anything like 

that then and the build-up is 

something I’ll always remember,” 

he continued. 

Now the former centre back 

will be watching from the sidelines 

as the latest generation of 

Tyrone players bid to turn over 

their Meath rivals. 1996 has not 

been totally forgotten by the 

past players or those who will 

line at Croke Park tomorrow. 

Seamus McCallan came within touching distance of the Sam Maguire 

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6 NEWS 


Derry 

spring 

Under 21 

shock on 

Antrim 



A SEASON of surprises on the U- 

21 hurling front took a further 

twist this week when Derry became 

the latest team to make 

their mark by capturing the Ulster 

title. 

Just when people were expecting 

the fancied Antrim side to fulfil 

the promise of their Minor 

days, up stepped the Oak Leafers 

to record a 2-16 to 1-18 victory. It 

puts them through to the All-Ireland 

semi-final clash against 

Dublin in a few weeks. 

But according to Derry’s Hurling 

co-ordinator, Joe McGurk, the 

memory of past meetings against 

Antrim inspired their young stars 

to clinch the provincial crown. 

“We knew that we’d be on track 

if we managed to stay with them 

in the first quarter or so. That’s 

how things panned out and we’re 

delighted with the win,” he said. 

“What makes it even more special 

is the fact that we were missing 

a few players. But the win is a 

reward for the work at youth level 

and the policy of introducing a 

lot of the young players into the 

senior squad. 

“This win hopefully shows that 

Derry are on their way back as 

genuine challengers at senior level. 

There’s a lot of work going on 

at youth level and it’s beginning to 

pay dividends,” he added. 

Close calls against Galway and 

Limerick in the All-Ireland Minor 

quarter-finals during the past two 

years had many forecasting an 

Antrim win. 

But Derry’s triumph follows hot 

on the heels of the shock in Leinster 

which saw Dublin and Offaly 

rather than the traditional powers 

contest the provincial decider 

there. 

Now Derry will be aiming to 

make their mark against the Dubs 

at the penultimate stage in the 

All-Ireland. That game is fixed for 

August 18. 

In a legend’s footsteps 



IRELAND’S top hurlers from the 21st 

century will be walking in the footsteps 

of the man of the moment, Cu 

Chulainn, in the 5th Century BC at the 

annual An Poc Fada which takes place 

this weekend. 

A traditional 5km route around the 

Cooley Mountains will see Brendan 

Cummins, Davy Fitzgerald and Eoin 

Kelly among those bidding to emulate 

the legendary young Setanta. The 

event takes place tomorrow (Saturday) 

and is once again expected to draw a 

large attendance for the popular event. 

Ulster will be represented by Down 

goalkeeper, Graham Clarke and Fermanagh 

midfielder, Jason McManus. 

But the favourites to win the competition 

outright is reiging champion Brendan 

Cummins, with Davy Fitzgerald 

aiming to regain the title he last won 

earlier this decade. 

“There’s no corporate boxes on the 

Cooley Mountains, so we’re encouraging 

people to dress appropriately for 

all kinds of weather,” said one of the 

organisers, Pat McGinn. 

“Over 100 people will be involved in 

Ireland’s top hurlers follow the 

path trodden by Cu Chulainn in 

tomorrow’s Poc Fada 

There’s no 

corporate 

boxes on the 

Cooley 

Mountains 

the running of this event on Saturday. 

We always like to get young people involved 

and that’s again the case this 

year. 

“It’s amazing that both Brendan 

Cummins and Davy Fitzgerald 

have been in the news a 

lot this year. So, I’d say 

they’ll be anxious to do well 

in the Poc Fada,” he added. 

As well as the main senior 

competition, there will also 

be action in the U-16 grade 

and camogie, where 

Antrim’s Jane Adams is the 

Ulster representative. 

Others in the event, which 

is sponsored by M Donnelly, are James 

Skehill, John Grealish and Keith Carr 

of Galway, Albert Shanahan, Shane 

O’Connor of Offaly and Pat Mulanny of 

Laois. 

The Poc Fada was re-established in 

1961 and relives the legend of the 

young Setanta pucking the sliotar 

through the Cooley Mountains 

without it hitting the ground. 

Brendan Cummins currently 

holds the 

course record and looks set to maintain 

his recent dominance of the competition 

this year. And, the race for the 

title is set to take the very best out of 

every competitor over the Annaverna 

Mountain. 

An Corn Cuailgne ("The 

Cooley Cup") is awarded to 

the player who takes the 

lowest number of pucks. 

Ties are broken by the distance 

by which the player's 

last puck crosses the finish 

line. 

There is also the comórtas 

beirte (pairs competition) 

in which the competitors 

are randomly assigned partners, 

the pair with the lowest combined 

score winning An Corn Setanta 

("The Setanta Cup") and the 

Corn na Craoibhe Rua ("The 

Trophy of the Red Mountain"). 

HUNTING WITH THE HOUND...Tipperary's Brendan Cummins on his way to winning in last season’s Poc Fada. 

“This is a unique cultural and sporting 

event. While hurling is a team 

sport, this is the only occasion in which 

the players compete on an individual 

basis,” added Pat McGinn. 

“Armagh, Louth and Down are the 

counties covered by the Cooley Mountains 

and the aim of the Poc Fada has 

always been to promote hurling in 

those areas where it mightn’t be the 

main sport. 

“The competitors have qualified 

from each of the provinces and we’ve a 

couple of wild card entries as well. The 

Annaverna Mountain course is difficult 

and includes a 250ft ravine. 

“Each of those will be attempting to 

match the legend of Setanta going 

across the Cooley Mountains and it’s 

great that we can have the top hurlers 

in Ireland, as well as those from some 

of the weaker counties, competing together.” 

Come Saturday night a new champion 

will have taken the Setanta Cup 

down the mountain, a route followed in 

the past by such modern-day hurling 

legends as Ger Cunningham of 

Cork. Ollie Walsh of Kilkenny and 

Pat Hartigan of Limerick. 

Brian Lawless / SPORTSFILE 

MO’S 

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Main Street, Fintona 

Tel: 028 8284 0032 

WISHING TYRONE 

ALL THE BEST!! 

North Antrim golf 

classic takes 

place next week 

YOUTH development will 

be one of the main beneficiaries 

of the Golf Classic 

being organised by 

the North Antrim Board 

on Sunday August 12 

next. It will take place at 

Ballycastle Golf Club and 

is the brainchild of hard 

working chairman Niall 

Kearney and PRO Cormac 

O’Loan the competition 

will be made up of teams 

of four. The entry fee of 

£160 per team (£40 per 

person) includes green 

fees and a meal afterwards 

in the Ballycastle 

Golf Club restaurant. 

Anyone interested in taking 

part should contact 

Niall on 028 21771755 or 

Cormac on 028 

21758693.


NEWS 7 

LEAVING...Brian McIver has walked away from the Donegal job following last 

Saturday’s loss 

to Monaghan. 

Oliver McVeigh / SPORTSFILE 

Departing McIver dismisses rumours of a lack 

of commitment by players 

Discipline was fine says Brian 



RUMOURS of indiscipline among the 

Donegal players have been rejected 

by their former manager who is now 

preparing for footballing life outside 

the wire. 

Recent weeks have seen the National 

League champions go from 

genuine championship contenders to 

also-rans. Their collapse has come 

amid reports of player defections and 

unrest in the camp. 

Fuel has been added to the fire of 

condemnation by their heavy defeats 

by Tyrone in the Ulster semi-final 

and then Monaghan in the All-Ireland 

Qualifiers. 

But their now ex-manager, Brian 

McIver, has rejected the suggestions. 

Instead, the Ballinderry clubman 

maintains that the preparations of his 

Donegal charges were every bit as 

diligent as in other counties. 

“Any problems or issues within our 

squad weren’t different from those 

experienced in other county teams. 

Our preparations were up to the standards 

required,” he said. 

“The players gave the level of commitment 

demanded and I would have 

to say that the attendances at training 

were high throughout the campaign. 

Any problems or issues 

within our squad weren’t 

different from those 

experienced in other counties 

“Sacrifices were made by the players, 

they got a reward by winning the 

National League, but unfortunately 

didn’t make the grade in the championship. 

But I can’t complain about the 

discipline or commitment of the 

whole panel,” he added. 

Defeat by Monaghan on a 2-12 to 1- 

7 scoreline at the weekend ended 

McIver’s two year stint with them and 

» CARELESS WHISPERS.... 

FACT OR FICTION: In the 

aftermath of Donegal’s 

draw with Dublin in the 

2002 All-Ireland Quarter 

Final, it was rumoured 

that some players 

enjoyed themselves to 

excess in the capital. 

FACT OR FICTION: Card 

schools were nutorious 

within the England 

squad during the 

management term of 

Terry Venables. 

FACT OR FICTION: When 

Alex Ferguson took over 

Manchester United in 

1986 after Ron Atkinson, 

a series of players were 

dropped not for their 

lack of ability but for 

their fondness of the 

also appears to have mark the conclusion 

of his tenure as a manager. 

Success at All-Ireland level with St 

Pius in Magherafelt came in tamdem 

with a number of Tyrone success 

with his native Ardboe. Each was a 

preparation for leading Ballinderry to 

the glory becoming All-Ireland Club 

Champions after they defeated Nemo 

Rangers in the 2002 decider. 

Less than a year later he was 

passed over for the job of managing 

Tyrone before Donegal came calling 

at the beginning of the 2006 season. 

“Last Saturday night I told the players 

that I wouldn’t be managing any 

other county team. I intend sticking 

to that decision because Donegal put 

good life. 

FACT OF FICTION: During 

their 1990s hey-day 

Offaly hurlers were 

reupted to enjoy a full 

social life not that it 

stopped them winning 

All-Ireland titles in 1994 

and 1998 

their faith in me and it’s time to take 

a break,” he added. 

“I have been in management for 20 

years now and I just want to enjoy 

football from a different perspective. 

My son Michael is in the Derry panel 

and I’d like to watch a few of his 

matches. 

“Managing Donegal has been a 

good experience and maybe what 

they need is that little bit extra mental 

toughness. 

“There is certainly plenty of talent 

in the county and progress has been 

made. 

“Winning the National League was 

a step forward, although maybe the 

games against Kildare, Mayo, Armagh 

and then Tyrone removed a bit 

of the edge from our game. They each 

came very quickly after each other. 

“It’s hard to pinpoint where things 

might have gone wrong. Against Armagh 

the team fought back from a 

couple of points down to get a win, 

but unfortunately that didn’t happen 

against either Tyrone or Monaghan. 

“That’s something that needs to be 

worked on because against Monaghan 

I believed that we would have 

gone on to win when we got the goal 

at the start of the second half.” 

The defeat before an attendance of 

almost 20,000 at Omagh brought a 

premature end to Donegal’s season 

and the involvement of McIver. Nevertheless, 

their achievement of ending 

a dismal record in major finals 

will stand as a fitting testament to his 

contribution. 

Prior to their win over Mayo at 

Croke Park, Donegal had lost in 

twelve major finals on the Ulster and 

national stages. And, McIver is in no 

doubt about the value of breaking 

that bad run. 

“Going into that match against 

Mayo, it was a major incentive for us 

to end that losing streak. Afterall, 

many of the players had endured a lot 

of losses and that affects your confidence,” 

he continued. 

“In terms of the team’s development, 

winning that match was crucial 

and the victory took the monkey of 

losing finals of our backs. It’s now a 

case of trying to build on that for the 

future,” he added. 

From next year on Brian McIver 

will be watching their fortunes from 

afar. 

One thing for certain is that his interest 

in their continued efforts will 

remain intense. And, if the Donegal 

men eventually do manage to reach 

the pinnacle by winning the Sam 

Maguire Cup again, then the contribution 

of past managers like Brian 

McIver will no doubt be acknowledged. 

Fantasy 

Football ...check out this 

week’s results on page 26

8 COLUMNIST 


JARLATH BURNS 

The women’s game may not garner the same publicity as 

the men’s game but there is much to admire about it 

We can learn a lot from the ladies 

Ok, so I know we had a great 

weekend of football and 

hurling and there are a 

hundred angles I could 

take on the matches we saw and 

I know the Monaghan ones are 

ripping at me for apparently ignoring 

their odyssey this year, so 

this week I am going to make 

myself even more popular and 

write about ‘ladies’ football’ because 

after all, they deserve a bit 

of coverage too, don’t they 

For those who are interested, 

we are currently in the group 

stages of the All Ireland series of 

Peil na mBan and you have to 

hand it to the ladies’ crowd. 

They refuse to copy their male 

counterparts and in doing so, 

have offered us a refreshing look 

at how we could do business if 

we weren’t tied down by the age 

old rituals and customs which 

are holding back the men’s 

game. 

Let’s start off with the lift ball, 

which doesn’t exist in women’s 

football and has led to a speedier 

game with less opportunity for 

the player who thrives on coming 

in with the boot just as another 

has their foot under it. While we 

in the men’s game talk about removing 

the rule, the girls don’t 

have it at all and as a result, it’s 

tidier, faster and gives a slight 

advantage to the person on the 

ball, leaving it harder to create 

congestion particularly around 

the middle of the field. 

Secondly, the countdown 

clock. Another great idea, since 

everyone knows exactly where 

they stand regarding how long’s 

to go and thus we are spared the 

routine of refs who will always 

allow just one more move up the 

field to the team who need that 

last desperate point to level the 

match. Remember, the announcer 

always says ‘There will be at 

least x number of minutes extra 

time. This covers a multitude 

and allows for a last foray up the 

field for the equaliser, but is in 

reality a complete refeering cop 

out. The countdown clock is clinical, 

cold and cruel, but is not 

controlled by the referee, so 

when the game’s over, it’s over, 

even if a team is bearing down 

on goal. 

Then there’s the ‘sinbin’. The 

GAA tried this one out a 

few years ago, but 

buckled under 

pressure from 

the managers. 

Imagine that. 

Allowing managers 

to set 

the agenda of 

the association 

when of 

course we 

know they’ll 

do everything, 

High 

Court included 

to get their 

players from 

getting a suspension. 

In the 

ladies’ game, you get 

sinbinned after a yellow 

card, so there is no 

wriggle room for the 

client who feels he has let 

people down if he hasn’t got 

booked in each match he plays 

in. Within the rules of the 

GAA, you are perfectly allowed 

to give someone a 

right aul smack in every 

single match with absolutely 

no punishment 

whatsoever. This is one 

of the rules we’ll look 

back on in years to come 

and ask ‘Why’ A simple 

decision to carry yellow 

cards over to a one match 

suspension, would solve 

that one, or a renewed 

relationship 

with the sinbin 

would cut it out 

completely. 

Lastly, 

there’s the 

‘Champions’ 

League’ format 

which kicks in after 

the provincial 

series is over. For 

those who follow 

the ladies’ game, this 

has led to some absolutely 

intriguing 

contests and given us 

cracking matches. I 

was in Clones last Saturday 

when Laois finally 

shook off a feisty Sligo 

challenge and Armagh and 

Meath had us biting our nails 

right up until the final whistle, or 

WORTH WATCHING...Caroline O'Hanlon and her Armagh ladies team-mates play a skilful 

exciting brand of football. 

Matt Browne / SPORTSFILE 

hooter I should say. Live on TG4, 

all four teams dripping with attitude 

and professionalism, lots at 

stake in each match but only one 

thing missing. Fans. 

In even the most insignificant 

under ten match, you’re at least 

guaranteed to have the parents 

of the players present and a few 

diehards from the club. I swear, 

in the first match, I couldn’t 

count one person from Sligo who 

could be termed a supporter. 

What is going on Clones is a 

great place when heaving with 

the prejudicial roars of thirty 

It’s time the women of this 

country woke up, stopped 

yapping about ‘rights’ and 

got their asses out to 

support their sisters 

thousand, but there was less 

than thirty at that game. Laois 

and Meath fans are tramping the 

roads after their teams all year 

and both their mens’ teams were 

in action at the weekend, but Sligo 

have no excuse at all, since 

they are still dining out on their 

mens’ team’s odyssey which 

landed them their first Connaught 

title in thirty years. 

Surely there is some sort of crest 

of a wave that would have included 

the aul females this year; the 

junior All Ireland champions, 

who are now plying their trade 

with the big girls. At least Armagh 

were able to muster up 

around a hundred souls to cheer 

on their team and they certainly 

enough noise to make up for the 

lack of numbers. 

Ladies football is going well all 

round the country and indeed 

across the world. It has everything, 

great athletes, action, tension, 

even bloody live TV coverage 

which other sports would die 

for. 

It’s time the women of this 

country woke up, stopped yapping 

about ‘rights’ and got their 

asses out to support their sisters 

who are performing heroics in 

front of official attendances of zero. 

Until they do this, peil na 

mban will always be seen as a 

minority sport.


NEWS 9 

TopTen » PLAYERS WHO MISSED OUT DURING THIS YEAR’S ULSTER C’SHIP 

Would the battle for the Anglo-Celt have turned out any differently had these 

key men played any part for their counties in the race for provincial success 

1RONAN CLARKE (Armagh) Armagh’s 

season of disappointment 

began when Clarke revealed 

that he could not follow 

up on his All-Star winning season. 

2BRIAN McGUIGAN (Tyrone) One 

of the most gifted footballers 

in the Ulster game yet again 

had another disappointment 

this season when injury ruled him 

out of all action. 

3KEVIN McGOURTY (Antrim) A 

key player during Queen’s 

Sigerson Cup win, everyone 

expected McGourty to be a big 

part of Antrim’s season, however 

Jody Gormley did not select him. 

4MARTY McGRATH (Fermanagh) A 

freak accident at work cut short 

McGrath’s season and soon after 

Fermanagh were dumped 

out of the qualifiers by Wexford. 

5KEVIN McGUCKIN (Derry) One of 

the biggest blows to Derry’s 

season was a leg injury to 

their captain, Kevin McGuckin. 

Perhaps his presence may have got 

them past Monaghan. 

6EOIN BRADLEY (Derry) A clash of 

wills led to Bradley opting out 

of the panel. The debate on 

whether he should be allowed 

back rages on. But he could yet make 

an appearance. 

7FRANCIE BELLEW (Armagh) 

What would have happened if 

Bellew had played this season 

Would they have conceded that 

goal against Donegal 

8STEPHEN O’NEILL (Tyrone) Tendonitis 

and a hamstring injury 

cut short most of O’Neill’s season 

even though Tyrone managed 

alright without him. 

9LIAM DOYLE (Down) The 

Mourne County attacker, and 

one of the leaders on the team 

had his season cut short because 

he had to have surgery on his 

ankle. 

RABBITTE (Cavan) 

A hamstring injury forced 

Rabbitte out of the panel. 

10DARREN 

He was the only high profile 

player missing at the start of 

their campaign. 

Bite Size Championship 

ALL IRELAND QUARTER-FINALS 

DERRY: Not surprisingly Paddy Crozier has gained 

an altogether brighter demeanour since his side 

have turned the tables following their semi-final 

defeat. “After the Monaghan game if you had 

asked us if we were going to be in the last eight I 

would have laughed at you. We didn’t know what 

to expect from Mayo and it has been six years 

since we beat Laois,” said Crozier. 

DUBLIN: The county selector Brian Talty revealed 

this week that Dublin are currently without any 

injuries for their quarter-final meeting with Derry. 

He also said: “It didn’t really matter who we were 

drawn out against because at this stage you were 

always going to be facing a good team. Derry have 

form and they are on a roll at the moment which is 

a dangerous thing and they have some great 

players like Paddy Bradley and Enda Muldoon.” 

KERRY: There was nothing new to report from Pat 

O’Shea who is still bemoaning the amount of 

time between their provincial final win and the 

championship quarter-finals.“It is always a worry 

how the team will react after such a spell, but 

hopefully there will be a bit more freshness and 

hunger in the side with the lay-off. It’s a tough 

draw. I have been really impressed by their form 

in the Ulster and All-Ireland Championship,” he 

said. 

MONAGHAN: Following on from their win against 

Donegal, the Oriel men face an even tougher 

challenge against Kerry yet that hasn’t dampened 

Tommy Freeman’s spirits.“We’re playing well at the 

moment. To be in the last eight is fantastic. We’ve 

worked hard and the next big challenge lies ahead. 

At this level you want to play against the best to see 

exactly how far you have come on,” he said. 

SLIGO: Connacht champions Sligo look set to 

have a full squad available for Saturday's All- 

Ireland SFC quarter-final against Cork. Prior 

injury concerns over John McPartland (ankle) 

and key man Eamonn O'Hara (knee) have eased 

and both players are set to be named in the 

starting XV for Saturday's Croke Park clash. 

CORK: County Chairman Mick Dolan has expressed 

his disappointment that their football and hurling 

quarterfinals have not been scheduled for the same 

day. “It’s not an ideal situation,” Dolan said. “We 

were hoping that we could be accommodated on 

the one day for the sake of our fans, but that is the 

decision made now and we will have to go with it.” 

The footballers will play Sligo at 2pm on Saturday, 

while the hurlers will face Waterford in their 

quarter-final replay on Sunday at 4pm. 

TYRONE: The rumour mill over Tyrone’s injured 

stars continued this week with renewed 

speculation that Owen Mulligan, Gerard Cavlan, 

Brian Dooher and Cormac McGinley who are all 

doubts for Saturday’s meeting with Meath. 

Dooher is an extreme worry. His recurring groin 

problem has caused a stir with Tyrone’s doctors 

baffled as to how to treat it. He had to pull out of 

a training match last weekend. 

MEATH: Just like Tyrone, Meath have their own 

injury woes ahead of tomorrow’s quarterfinal clash. 

Centre back Kevin Reilly is a major doubt as he is 

carrying a knee injury sustained during their 

qualifier meeting with Galway. Also on the injured 

list for Meath is Eoin Harrington and Seamus Kenny 

who are both definitely out. Padraig Howard is also 

sidelined after breaking his thumb in a club game. 

TOMMY MURPHY CUP 

ANTRIM: St Galls player Sean Kelly believes that 

good performances in the Tommy Murphy Cup 

will only help them gain promotion from Division 

Four next season. “A lot of the teams we are 

playing in this competition will be in Division 

Four so getting wins over them will give us the 

mental lift that we know that we can beat them. 

That will be what we are looking for next year to 

get out of Division four and move up,” he said. 

WICKLOW: Mick O’Dwyer was just a little 

disgruntled that the Tommy Murphy Cup final didn’t 

get top billing on Saturday ahead of the two 

quarter-final matches. “You’ll have no atmosphere 

at 12.15 in the morning,” O’Dwyer fumed.“It is a bit 

of a nuisance to 

them (the GAA 

fixture makers). 

When they were 

about it, they 

should have taken 

us up to Croke Park 

at 8am if they just 

wanted to get us 

out of the way.” 

E.M. 

CARAVANS 

Sales - Hire & Accessories 

Prop. Eugene Maguire 

Gortin Road, Omagh 

Telephone: 028 8224 3949

10 FEATURE 


HUNGRY FOR SUCCESS...Kevin McCloy (fourth from right) and Enda Muldoon (far right) have enjoyed some extended runs in the Championship but Derry have not lifted summer silverware in nearly a decade 

Oak Leaf stalwarts seek 

Enda Muldoon and Kevin McCloy 

are tired of finishing lengthy 

campaigns empty handed 

BY CHRIS MCCANN 

c.mccann@gaeliclife.com 

Few teams are more experienced 

at exploiting the avenues 

of opportunity afforded 

by the qualifier system 

than Derry. Twice, in 2001 and 

2004, the Oak Leafers have recovered 

from provincial pastings to 

make it to the semi-final stage of 

the All-Ireland Championship in 

what were viewed as reasonably 

progressive seasons. 

But two veterans of those runs 

to the last four, Kevin McCloy 

and Enda Muldoon, say that 

making it to latter stages is no 

longer enough to qualify as a 

successful summer. 

Certainly Muldoon believes 

that success can only be measured 

in terms of medals and the 

Ballinderry man hasn’t collected 

one of those with the county 

since a National League triumph 

over Laois some seven years ago. 

“It’s comin’ near the time 

when I need to be winning something, 

it’s getting late on in my 

career anyway and probably for 

a lock of other boys too,” he said. 

“Johnny McBride was right 

last week when he said that getting 

to semi-finals is nothing to 

be overly proud of. He gave great 

service to his county for over a 

decade and got very little out of 

It’s comin’ 

near the 

time when I 

need to be 

winning 

something, 

it’s getting 

late on in 

my career 

anyway and 

probably 

for a lock of 

other boys 

too 

it winning wise.” 

Muldoon’s stance is one which 

defensive lynch-pin McCloy is 

very much in agreement with. 

“Nobody remembers semi-finals. 

When you get to this stage 

you want to go all the way. People 

say Derry’s the best back 

door team there is but we’ve only 

ever got to the semi-finals and 

the last time was three years 

ago,” he said. 

“Everybody enjoys playing at 

Croke Park but we have to keep 

the boys’ feet on the ground, it’s 

just another pitch at the end of 

the day and we’re looking further 

than just getting to Croke 

Park. We need to step up but at 

the minute but we can’t be looking 

beyond the quarter-final.” 

Derry will be very much the 

underdogs as they go into that 

quarter-final against a Dublin 

side that has just collected its 

third consecutive Leinster title 

but Muldoon believes it would be 

pointless for the Oak Leaf men to 

even line out for that game did 

they not harbour lofty ambitions. 

“I can’t see why we shouldn’t 

have that belief. At the start of 

the year everybody was tipping 

Armagh and Mayo to go close to 

winning the All-Ireland and 

we’ve beaten them. I’m not saying 

we’re in with a deadly chance 

of winning it but obviously we’ve 

given ourselves a bit of hope. You 

can get on a roll, playing week in 

week out, like we have, and you 

never know where it can take 

you,” he said. 

That Derry are still even in the 

hunt for Championship honours 

at this stage of proceedings is remarkable 

enough in itself given 

that they looked abject in defeat 

to Monaghan when they bowed 

out of the Ulster Championship. 

Certainly there wasn’t much 

belief in the county after that 

game with only around 500 Oak 

Leaf fans travelling to the first 

qualifier game against Armagh. 

“I know the supporters had 

every right to jeer us after the 

Monaghan game and if I was a 

supporter I probably wouldn’t 

have travelled to the Armagh 

game either. With a couple of 

wins the momentum has picked 

up and we’d great support there 

against Laois at key times in the 

game they really got behind us 

and hopefully we’ll pick up a few 

more for the next day in Croker,” 

noted McCloy. 

Although he feels some of the 

criticism after the Monaghan 

game was overly harsh, Muldoon 

admits that the way the team 

was crucified in the media stung 

their pride and that they knew 

they had to respond. 

“I suppose after that Monaghan 

game people were saying 

things about us on tv and writing 

things about us in the paper and 

you can be a bit hurt by it. A few 

went over the top but it’s hard to


FEATURE 11 

TopTeam » 

PAUL McCORMACK 

PICKS HIS DREAM 15 

Armagh hurling captain, 

Paul McCormack, took time 

out from preparing for next 

Sunday's Nicky Rackard Cup 

final to name his Dream 15 

GRAHAM CLARKE 

(Down) 

MICKEY KETTLE 

(Antrim) 

NOEL HICKEY 

(Kilkenny) 

OLLIE CANNING 

(Galway) 

LIAM HINPHEY 

(Derry) 

CIARAN HERRON 

(Antrim) 

SEAN ÓG ÓhAILPIN 

(Cork) 

HENRY DOWNEY 

(Derry) 

JAMES YOUNG 

(Laois) 

DAN SHANAHAN 

(Waterford) 

OLLIE COLLINS 

(Derry) 

HENRY SHEFFLIN 

(Kilkenny) 

JOHNNY McINTOSH 

(Antrim) 

PAUL BRANIFF 

(Down) 

DECLAN COULTER 

(Armagh) 

silverware 

SUBS: 

Mickey Collins (Derry) 

Barry McCormack (Armagh) 

Chris Hamill (Antrim) 

Phillip Kirk (Armagh) 

Kevin McCloy (Derry) 

blame people for what they said 

after the Monaghan game. We 

showed no passion that day and 

not near enough pride in the jersey, 

we’ve restored a wee bit of 

that but we’ve a lot more work 

left. We had a bit of a point to 

prove and hopefully we can go a 

bit further,” explained the big 

Ballinderry man. 

It was the queries over the 

players’ character that stung 

most after the provincial exit but 

both McCloy and Muldoon believe 

that Derry have answered 

the doubters in that regard. 

“A lot of people have questioned 

the character of the side 

and how we would react after 

heavy blows like conceding goals 

at certain stages. I think we answered 

that against Laois. But 

there are still a lot more questions 

for us to answer,” he said. 

As Muldoon points out on both 

occasions that Laois found the 

net on Saturday past, Derry responded 

with a flurry of scores 

of their own. 

“It was a hell of a game. You 

don’t really see it when you’re 

playin’ in it but I’d say the spectators 

enjoyed it all right. 

“The two goals came at good 

times for them but we showed real 

heart to come back after both 

goals. We managed to tag on a 

few points after they scored to 

make sure and sneak through.” 

And while other counties are 

losing players to injury as the 

summer progresses Paddy Crozier 

hand appears to be getting 

stronger. 

Team skipper Kevin 

McGuckin returned to action 

against Laois and livewire forward 

Eoin Bradley is back on 

board. Normally a player wouldn’t 

be best pleased at having to 

give up the county captaincy but 

vice-skipper McCloy is delighted 

to be deferring to the fit again 

Shamrocks corner-back. 

“I’ll give Kevin the armband 

any time he wants as long as he’s 

standing in beside me. To have a 

man like Kevin coming in along 

side you there halfway through a 

second half is an amazing boost 

for any team,” he said. 

“Things are shaping up well, I 

think before today we hadn’t 

seen the best of Enda and Paddy 

they’ve had injury problems but 

they are back to top form now.” 

Muldoon also feels that things 

are coming together for Derry at 

just the right time and is hopeful 

that they can maintain the momentum 

that has gathered 

around them. 

“Those boys coming back has 

left us stronger and created 

healthy competition for places 

and when you’ve men fighting 

for place in training it can only 

be good for the team. 

“Thankfully those boys are 

back and hopefully we can push 

on from here.” 

ATTACKING FLAIR.. Coulter and Shanahan 

CAPTAIN FANTASTIC... Paul McCormack 

» SCORING POWER 

KEY TO SUCCESS 

It's hard doing a dream 15 without mentioning 

some of the players I have competed 

alongside or against. The only four 

I haven't yet managed to play against are 

Noel Hickey, Dan Shanahan, Henry Shefflin and 

Eoin Kelly and it goes without saying that I'd 

love to meet them at some stage. Declan Coulter 

has been in superb form for us [he scored 3-8 in 

the semi-final against Donegal] and he thoroughly 

deserves his inclusion in the full forward line.

12 PREVIEWS 


Experience gives 

Red Hands edge 

Meath will push Tyrone hard but Mickey Harte’s men 

should have the composure to claim a semi-final spot 

BANK OF IRELAND FOOTBALL 

ALL-IREALND QUARTER FINAL 

Tyrone v Meath 

Croke Park (Saturday 4pm) 

CHAMPIONSHIP draws have a 

habit of producing intriguing ties 

along the lines of this one which 

pits these two counties on the 

All-Ireland stage for the first time 

in eleven years. 

Few could have forecast this 

particular pairing when the race 

for the Sam Maguire began or 

how close it’s expected to be. 

Back then Meath were not really 

being tipped as potential challengers 

and Tyrone were looking 

good following wins over Fermanagh 

and Donegal. 

But events in the intervening 

period have altered the status 

quo to the extent that this clash is 

certain to produce a very keenly 

contested match. A look through 

the facts and figures show that 

both have justifiable hopes of 

reaching the last four. 

The first signs of Meath’s 

resurgence became apparent in 

their two-game thriller against 

Dublin at Croke Park. Only a couple 

of controversial decisions prevented 

them from going through. 

Since then, however, their 

progress has continued apace. 

Good wins over Down and Fermanagh 

set them up perfectly for 

a meeting against Galway which 

has emphasised their potential. 

In particular, their run has also 

heralded the arrival of a number 

of new players on the scene, particularly 

in attack. The likes of 

Cian Ward, Shane O’Rourke, Brian 

Farrell and Stephen Bray all 

appear to have the ability to 

Predictions» EXPERTS’ FORECASTS 

JOHN LYNCH (TYRONE) - 

To be honest, I would be more 

satisfied with playing Meath than 

either Derry or Monaghan when 

you would have the whole Ulster 

rivalry factor. It’s a game which 

we can win if all our players are 

available and I believe the 

strength is there to get to the semi-final. 

The one thing that I 

would say is that players should 

be in their best positions. For instance, 

Sean Cavanagh did well 

in a more advanced position in 

the Ulster final, but his best place 

is still midfield where’s he one of 

the two best in the game. Meath 

is going to be a toughest test, but 

I believe we’ll come through. 

MARKING MUGSY...Darren Fay is likely to be assigned the ask of 

marking Tyrone sharpshooter Owen Mulligan Ray McManus / SPORTSFILE 

MARTIN O’CONNELL (MEATH) - 

Meath have to be given credit for 

the way that they have come 

through the Qualifiers this year. 

But I think that Tyrone this weekend 

will be a different story. 

They’re one of the top teams with 

a successful record, they play 

with great intensity, getting men 

behind the ball to defend and 

then breaking forward at great 

speed. People have been critical 

of Tyrone’s style, but I’ve a lot of 

admiration for them and Mickey 

Harte. Obviously, I’m hoping that 

Meath will win, although Tyrone 

have developed a lot and won’t be 

complacent like they maybe were 

when we last met in 1996. 

make it at the top level. 

Add in the experience of Darren 

Fay, Graham Geraghty and 

Nigel Crawford and it soon becomes 

clear why Tyrone will be 

entering this game with a certain 

amount of apprehension. 

One area which could be crucial 

is the battle between the Tyrone 

defence and the Meath attack. 

Those new kids on the block 

appear to have the potential to 

cause serious problems for established 

players such as Conor 

Gormley, David Harte, Philip Jordan 

and Dermot Carlin. However, 

their experience and running 

game should have the ability to 

cope with whatever problems 

arise. 

Of more immediate concern for 

them, though, could be the situation 

at full-back, especially if Graham 

Geraghty is employed on the 

edge of the square at some stage. 

Ciaran Gourley struggled against 

Vinny Corey while Cormac 

McGinley has also failed to really 

impress in the position this year. 

As a result many will be expecting 

Joe McMahon, who 

manned that station in the 2005 

All-Ireland final to return there 

for this Croke Park clash. Alternatively, 

Conor Gormley also has 

the versatility to man this vital 

position. 

Elsewhere, Sean Cavanagh and 

Kevin Hughes should have the 

edge at midfield, while up front 

Tyrone also look to have an advantage 

despite recent injury 

concerns. 

The absence of team captain, 

Brian Dooher is a big blow considering 

his form against Donegal 

in the Ulster semi-final. This 

means that the availability of 

Stephen O’Neill could be absolutely 

crucial. 

The Clann Na nGael clubman 

hasn’t been a regular this season 

so far due to injury. But if he can 

recover in time to play a part 

against Meath, then it would represent 

a major boost for the Ulster 

Champions. 

However, a lot will be expected 

and demanded from others as 

well. Owen Mulligan started well 

and then faded against Monaghan 

and will hope to have a far 

more consistent and influential 

role. Colm McCullagh is sharp 

and Mickey Harte will also have 

options for Colm Cavanagh, Tommy 

McGuigan, Niall Gormley and 

the more experienced Enda 

McGinley and Gerard Cavlan. It’s 

an impressive list, all with a 

proven record of producing the 

goods on the big occasion. 

Key questions centre on the 

form of the two teams. Some will 

point to how Meath have struggled 

to defeat relatively poor opposition 

including Down, Fermanagh 

and especially a Galway 

team which failed to impress. 

They will say that the Royals are 

still some way off the finished 

product. 

Others will point to a Tyrone 

side which has often flattered to 

deceive and could be vulnerable. 

While the win over Donegal was 

top quality, they failed to make 

the desired impact for long periods 

against Fermanagh in the 

Few could have forecast 

this particular pairing 

when the race for the Sam 

Maguire began or how 

close it’s expected to be 

first round and then Monaghan 

in the Ulster final. 

It means that Mickey Harte 

and Colm Coyle will have plenty 

of incentives to drive their players 

on. And, among them could 

be the memory of the last championship 

meeting between the 

counties in the 1996 All-Ireland 

Semi-Final. 

On that occasion Meath swept 

aside their weaker opponents in 

a no-nonsense and at times controversial 

fashion. It’s a game 

well remembered in Tyrone, despite 

the passage of time. 

A much tougher and more experienced 

Tyrone team will line 

out when they renew acquaintances. 

The tables have turned 

and it’s the Ulster Champions 

who are now in the driving seat. 

As a result, their recent record 

of two All-Ireland titles, the drive 

for a third and the glimpses of 

their real form suggest that they 

have the ability to emerge confidently 

from this latest challenge. 

There will undoubtedly be worrying 

moments along the way, 

but in the end it’s the Ulster 

Champions who are tipped to secure 

their semi-final place with 

three or four points to spare. 

Two To Watch 

STEPHEN BRAY - 

The young Meath corner forward burst 

onto the scene in sensational fashion 

when he scored 2-2 against Galway 

last time out. His height and strength 

were matched by a superb ability to 

take opportunist scores and he will be 

aiming to make the similar impact at Croke Park 

against Tyrone. Very much a corner-forward in 

the traditional Meath sense and his ability to 

roam into good positions as well as take scores 

could cause problems for the Tyrone defence 

when this Quarter-final reaches a critical 

stage.


PREVIEWS 13 

FORWARD THINKING...Given Tyrone’s injury problems in the forward line Stephen O'Neill and Colm Cavanagh will have to step 

up to the mark against Meath 


» THE STATS 

MEATH 

TYRONE 

Provincial C’Ship Top Scorer Stephen Bray (10, 0-10) Colm McCullagh (9, 0-9) 

PHILIP JORDAN (TYRONE) - 

The Moy man has consistently impressed 

with his ability to make 

speedy runs down the wing and 

defend effectively when required. 

Like many of the Tyrone 

team, he has regularly displayed 

his best form at Croke Park 

and will be aiming to repeat the feat against 

Meath. It’s the type of game which is sure 

to suit Jordan. His experience, composure, 

strength and mobility are qualities which 

could give him and Tyrone a vital edge 

against opponents renowned for making 

life difficult for the top teams. Expect 

him to play a starring role. 

Last competitive result Beat Fermanagh 0-11 to 0-9 Beat Monaghan 1-15 to 1-13 

(Qualifiers) 

(Ulster Championship final) 

Previous encounter 1997 National League relegation play-off, Meath won 2-9 to 1-9 

Who's in 

Stephen MacGabhann, Niall McLoughlin Ger Cavlan, Owen Mulligan and 

Chris O’Connor 

Cormac McGinley 

Who's out Kevin Reilly - knee injury, Brian Dooher and Stephen O’Neill 

Padraig Howard - broken thumb are unlikely to start 

What the manager said 

We’ve lost the right side of our defence. They have a fair handle on Ulster 

Eoin Harrington is out and so too is football as they took care of Down 

Seamus Kenny. When you’re playing so and Fermanagh. So we’ll be no 

many games you’re going to get knocks. strangers to their type of football. 

What the message board said With Reilly out then Geraghty would I know injuries is a bit of an 

have to start. I was not convinced over used excuse but if we line out 

when watching the Galway game that without Dooher (prob), Block 

he can last the full 70. He’d be more (hopefully not), McGuigan (def) and 

effective coming on in the 2nd half. SON (prob) I can’t see us winning. 

PREDICTED SCORE BASED ON 

PREVIOUS PERFORMANCES 1-10 1-11 

SCORING AVERAGE 

IN LAST FIVE GAMES 0-14 0-15 

POINTS CONCEDED 

LAST FIVE GAMES 2-52 7-45 

BETTING ODDS (STAN JAMES) 5/2 to win (a draw is 15/2) 2/5 to win 

16/1 to win Sam 9/4 to win Sam

14 PREVIEWS 


CROKER CLASHES...Kenneth Sweeney will be looking cause an upset when Connacht Champions Sligo meet Cork, Richie Keogh’s Wexford will be up against it when they face All-Ireland Champions, Patrick 

Men in black to feel hurt 

Cork can be 

vulnerable 

when they 

arrive at 

Croke Park 

A defeat by 

Fermanagh 

and their 

collapses to 

Kerry are 

examples 

BANK OF IRELAND FOOTBALL 

ALL-IRELAND QUARTER FINAL 

Sligo v Cork 

Croke Park (Saturday 2pm) 

ON the last occasion that Sligo 

lined out at Croke Park as Connaught 

champions in 1975 they 

received a real hammering from 

a Kerry team on the verge of 

greatness. A repeat of that result 

is very unlikely indeed tomorrow. 

The newly crowned provincial 

champions have proven their 

worth with that big win over Galway. 

And, they have the players 

to cause a few surprises against 

the defeated Munster finalists. 

Michael McNamara and Johnny 

Davey are part of a tenacious 

and speedy defence. Eamon 

O’Hara dominates from midfield 

and Mark Breheny and John Mc- 

Partland are each very capable 

attackers. 

Sligo’s momentum from Connacht triumph might not be 

Injury concerns over McPartland 

and O’Hara have eased this 

week as Sligo’s momentum from 

their Connacht triumph is sure to 

be worth a lot. 

Cork can be vulnerable when 

they arrive at Croke Park later in 

the championship. A defeat by 

Fermanagh and their collapses to 

Kerry are examples. 

Whether or not the defeated 

Munster finalists have got their 

act together this season remains 

to be seen. Nevertheless, under 

Billy Morgan they are justified 

favourites to come through this 

game and could well be dark 

horses when this year’s championship 

reaches its climax. 

Players of the quality of James 

Masters, towering full-forward, 

Michael Cussen, Kevin McMahon 

and Graham Canty, Anthony 

Lynch and Derek Kavanagh will 

spearhead their challenge. Each 

of them have a proven ability at 

this level and will be particularly 

anxious to make their mark after 

the failings of recent seasons. 

It will be interested to see how 

this game develops as a result. 

Sligo’s, who defeated Tyrone in 

2002, will have a huge support 

and their positive attitude will be 

a factor. However, Cork’s overall 

strength and desire to realise 

their undoubted potential at this 

level indicates that they should 

emerge victors after a close contest. 

GUINNESS HURLING 

ALL-IRELAND SEMI FINAL 

Wexford v Kilkenny 

Croke Park (Sunday 2pm) 

HOW much has changed since 

the Leinster final mis-match between 

these two counties will only 

become apparent when the ball 

is thrown-in on Sunday. 

Wexford’s win over Tipperary 

has boosted their confidence and 

they will aim to put up a much 

better performance and perhaps 

even cause a shock. 

A good start for them is going 

to be essential and perhaps even 

decisive. If Kevin Rossitter, Darren 

Ruth, Darren Stamp and Rory 

McCarthy can find their form 

early on, then the Slaneysiders 

might have a chance. 

Up front it’s important that 

Michael Jacob, Barry Lambert 

and Stephen Nolan take every 

possible opportunity. 

However, the simple fact remains 

that Kilkenny are raging 

hot favourites. Their win over 

Galway shows just how dangerous 

they really are and why nothing 

less than another big win will 

be a big shock. 

A look through their team indicates 

how strong they are. Noel 

Hickey, Jackie Tyrell, JJ Delaney, 

Tommy Walsh, and Derek Lyng 

form a strong defence, the 

promptings of Eddie Brennan 

and James ‘Cha’ Fitzpatrick can 

turn things dramatically around 

and that’s not to mention Henry 

Shefflin, Eoin Larkin and Martin 

Comerford in the forwards. 

The speed at which they can 

execute the skills, switch play


PREVIEWS 15 

Cronin and Tony Browne will meet in again as Croke and Waterford hurlers replay, Antrim’s Kevin Niblock will be seeking a famous win at Croke Park in the Tommy Murphy Cup final 

after meeting dark horses 

enough to see off Cork challenge 

from one end of the field to the 

other and generally cause havoc 

is something only Cork have 

managed to successfully combat 

during the past few years. 

As a result, it’s hard to see 

them slipping up in this one, despite 

the hopes that Wexford 

might produce a better showing. 

And, producing a better showing 

is, unfortunately for them, the 

best that John Meyler and his 

players can really hope for. 

GUINNESS HURLING 

ALL-IRELAND QUARTER FINAL 

REPLAY 

Waterford v Cork 

Croke Park (Sunday 4pm) 

THIS is the fifth time that these 

two counties will have met in 

league and championship so far 

this year, with the Deise still 

awaiting their first championship 

win at Croke Park since their 

breakthrough a few years ago. 

Justin McCarthy and his players 

only survived by the skin of 

their teeth a week ago when Seamus 

Prendergast’s late goal and 

the equalising point brought 

them back from the brink of defeat. 

Suffice to say that another 

close finish can be anticipated 

this Sunday and it’s very difficult 

to see where the tie could be won 

or lost. 

A lot will depend on the success 

of the Waterford backs in 

combating the Cork forwards, especially 

considering how they 

ran riot at a critical stage last 

week. The likes of Tony Browne, 

Eoin Murphy and Ken McGrath 

will know what’s expected from 

them. 

In the drawn game the Cork 

half-back line of John Gardiner, 

Sean Og O’hAilipin and Ronan 

Curran also excelled. This puts 

the pressure on Seamus Prendergast, 

Kennedy and Paul Flynn to 

make their mark. 

Not surprisingly, this promises 

to be another intriguing tussle. 

And, once again the heart opts 

for Waterford while the head suggests 

that Cork still hold that 

winning edge when it comes to 

the most major matches. 

TOMMY MURPHY CUP FINAL 

Antrim v Wicklow 

Croke Park (Saturday 12.15pm) 

JODY Gormley named his team 

for this Tommy Murphy Cup final 

on Wednesday of this week. 

Justin Crozier’s inclusion raised 

a few eyebrows as Conor Mc- 

Goldrick loses out. 

Crozier, who won a Sigerson Cup 

medal with Queens this year, is 

definitely one of the new breed of 

players coming through in 

Antrim. Strong on the ball and 

with bags of confidence he and 

other young players coming 

through are clearly part of Gormley’s 

long term plan to inject 

youth into the side. 

Ciaran Close and CJ McGourty 

are in the corners for Antrim and 

so much is expected from both 

players against a Wicklow team 

who are known for their battling 

qualities. 

Leighton Glynn is the anchor 

for their defence and is so often 

the man of the match not only for 

his defensive attributes but also 

for what he brings to their attack. 

However, the key to Wicklow’s 

success must be with their talismanic 

leader, Mick O’Dwyer. He’s 

the type of manager that players 

will always respond to because of 

his wealth of experience and reputation 

as a no nonsense manager. 

How interesting it is that Jody 

Gormley goes into his first final as 

an intercounty manger against 

one of the legends of the game. 

Expect Wicklow to come out 

and employ spoiling tactics to 

Antrim’s style of flowing football. 

O’Dwyer’s boys should edge this 

game because of their strength at 

midfield but if Antrim’s CJ Mc- 

Gourty can provide another outstanding 

performance it might be 

close. 

O’Dwyer’s 

boys should 

edge this 

game but if 

Antrim’s CJ 

McGourty 

can provide 

another 

outstanding 

display it 

might be 

close

16 FEATURE 


Dual role no problem 

Full-back or 

full-forward, 

the only 

thing that 

matters is 

winning for 

Monaghan 

utility player 



MATCH-WINNING switches 

in the rest of the 

championship 

will 

do well to compare 

with the 

one which has 

seen Vinny 

Corey move 

from full-back 

to full-forward 

in recent 

games. 

It has been 

among the talking 

points in a season which 

has captured the imagination of 

a county enjoying the feelgood 

factor of footballing success. 

And, the performance of the 

Clontibret man when moved to 

opposite ends of the 

field against both 

Tyrone and 

Donegal has 

given Monaghan 

an exciting 

extra dimension. 

Last Saturday the men 

from the north west were the 

latest to fall in the face of Seamus 

McEneaney’s resurgent 

troops. A 2-12 to 1-7 final scoreline 

highlights their dominance 

before almost 20,000 at Omagh. 

Eye-catching performances 

throughout the field indicated 

Anyone who looks at the 

team at the moment will 

see that there’s a lot of 

competition for places. 

There’s been a few 

changes and everyone 

knows what is required 

BIG IMPACT... Vincent Corey’s switch to full-forward has revitalised the Monaghan attack 

their supremacy. Dessie Mone 

and Gary McQuaid lauded proceedings 

in defence, Rory Woods 

excelled and Tommy Freeman 

ran riot. Not surprisingly, too, 

Vinny Corey’s efforts made a 

huge impact. 

A roving role, some great 

catches and the grand total of 1-1 

gives some indication of the 

problems caused by him. Nevertheless, 

the man himself is just 

delighted to be relishing the 

prospect of lining out in an All- 

Ireland Quarter Final. 

“It was hard to know what to 

expect against Donegal after los-


for Vincent Corey 

ing the Ulster Final. But I was delighted 

that we won reasonably 

comfortably,” he said after enjoying 

the exhilaration of seeing 

thousands of Monaghan fans invade 

the Healy Park pitch. 

“We knew that winning or losing 

was going to be down to the 

attitude of the players. Losing 

the Ulster Final was a big disappointment, 

so there was a big incentive 

for us to put things right. 

“Our display showed that we 

learned the lessons from the Tyrone 

game well and hopefully we 

can keep that momentum going 

now for the quarter final. 

“We came out fairly confident 

from the Ulster Final and the one 

thing we knew was that we were 

going to have passion. We got together 

in training in the last 

week or two and decided as a 

team that we were going to 

throw everything into the Donegal 

game. 

“To be honest, I don’t really 

mind moving from full-back to 

full-forward. The real aim is to 

get playing and stay on the team, 

and where you line out isn’t really 

an issue. 

“I have had experience of playing 

at full forward before. I’ve 

played there with the club, so it’s 

not as big a transition as you 

might think once you see a fullforward 

going up there. 

“Anyone who looks at the team 

at the moment will see that 

there’s a lot of competition for 

places. There’s been a few 

changes and everyone knows 

what’s required from them,” he 

added. 

Playing big games in August is 

very definitely a new experience 

for Seamus McEneaney, the 

Monaghan players 

and, of 

course, their 

rapidly growing support. The 

county is quite literally buzzing, 

with flags galore flying from vantage 

points from Emyvale to Carrickmacross. 

All-Ireland champions Kerry 

provide the opposition in the last 

eight when the form of the two 

men on the edge of the square 

could well have a telling impact. 

In 2006 the move of Kieran 

Donaghy from midfield to the 

number 14 changed the championship. 

Now twelve months on 

and the rejuvenation of the position 

as a pivotal placing continues 

with Corey making his mark 

for the defeated Ulster finalists. 

Of course, it’s a role which he 

has been accustomed to on numerous 

occasions with his native 

Clontibret O’Neills. They won 

the county title in 2002 and last 

year and remain one of the main 

contenders for the top honours 

on the domestic scene. 

So, there is a precedent for the 

move from Seamus McEneaney 

which is being hailed throughout 

Ulster. And, he is in no doubt 

about the value of repeating the 

method previously tried and 

tested by the Clontibret manager, 

Mick O’Dowd. 

“There will be a lot of questions 

about Vincent Corey playing 

at full-forward, but we decided 

during the week to persist 

with that,” said the manager after 

the win over Donegal. 

“But he is a very good player, 

you can play him anywhere. In 

today’s game you have to be able 

to play anywhere.” 

Now the prospect of having to 

mark Kieran Donaghy or being 

followed by Tom O’Sullivan at 

Croke Park is the one facing the 

24 year old teacher. He is one of 

four Clontibret players in the 

squad which has progressed the 

furthest in the race for the Sam 

Maguire since 1988. 

“Each of the games that 

we’ve played so far have been 

a real benefit. Losing the Ulster 

Final was disappointing, 

but we learned a few 

things which thankfully 

were put into practice 

against Donegal,” 

added Corey. 

“We tried to learn 

from whatever mistakes 

were made 

against Tyrone 

and bring them into 

the game. 

I suppose 

there’s 

good 

confidence 

in the 

squad at 

the moment 

and you 

would have 

to be happy 

with how 

things are 

progressing 

That’s the way things have to be 

done and we’re obviously happy 

that they worked out. 

“I suppose there’s a good confidence 

in the squad at the moment 

and you would have to be 

happy with how things are progressing. 

There’s a great buzz in 

the county at the moment and 

it’s a case of trying to keep that 

going. 

“But at the end of the day 

we’re only in the quarter final 

and there hasn’t been anything 

won yet. There’s a lot of good 

teams left in the championship 

and we’re under no illusions 

about the challenge facing us. 

“Obviously we’re going to 

have to step things up another 

two or three notches in order to 

compete. It’s new ground for us 

and we’re looking forward to the 

challenge because Croke Park is 

where you want to be in August. 

“It doesn’t matter who you get 

in the quarter final as a result. 

We’ll just try and keep working 

and enjoy the experience of playing 

in the championship again at 

Croke Park.” 

Next Sunday’s clash against 

the Kingdom is certain to be 

one of the biggest occasions 

for years in the history of 

Monaghan football. It will 

be their fourth championship 

meeting following 

in the footsteps of the previous 

ones in 1930, 1979 and the 

famous 1985 draw and replay. 

To date Monaghan have yet to 

defeat their more illustrious 

neighbours, although this is 

unlikely to caution 

DECISIVE 

CLASH... will 

Corey line up 

against Kerry’s 

Tom Sullivan 

the optimism of the huge travelling 

support on Sunday week. 

Recent history suggests that 

they should not and will hardly 

be overawed by the challenge 

facing them. Their performance 

against Tyrone and the experience 

of playing in Division One 

in 2006 should stand to both the 

management and players as they 

prepare this make or break 

clash. 

And, one of the biggest decisions 

facing the management 

team will be on where to lineout 

the man who has highlighted his 

versatility in the past few weeks. 

But the certainties are clear no 

matter what area of the field he 

eventually attempts to make an 

impact. 

Whether it’s marking Kerry’s 

2006 sensation, Kieran Donaghy, 

or trying to emulate him at the 

other end, there will be no shortage 

of endeavour from Vinny 

Corey or the rest of the Monaghan 

players on their big day. 

Few will bet against him proving 

his worth in the full-forward 

berth against Kerry, just as he 

has done in the matches with Tyrone 

and Donegal. 

The type of bustling play produced 

by him will be exactly 

what’s needed to upset the form 

of the Sam Maguire Cup holders. 

His goal last Saturday night set 

Monaghan on the road to a victory 

enjoyed by their large travelling 

support. 

All of them, as well as the 

team, will make the trip to Croke 

Park hoping to see more of the 

same as the All-Ireland Championship 

reaches its real business 

end in the next couple of 

weekends. 

FEATURE 17 

FanSpake 

Gavin Dixon 

St Joseph’s Craigbane 

Get 

physical 

to stop 

Donaghy 

What would be 

your GAA dream 

Two things, first to see my own 

club Craigbane claim a Derry Senior 

Football Championship title, 

and secondly being the 

youngest referee in Derry I 

wouldn’t mind a crack at a Senior 

Championship final at Celtic 

Park somewhere down the line. 

That is my goal. 

What would be 

your GAA nightmare 

To witness Plunket Donaghy 

catching flys against us in the 

National League final in 1992 was 

definitely sweet, but to ever 

think a Derry man would do it 

against Tyrone in an All-Ireland 

final, would be a hard, bitter pill 

to swallow. 

Worst venue 

With the up-most respect to 

Owen Roes Coleraine, it has to 

be their old pitch out at the main 

road. On a rain swept, windy day 

you would be blown off your feet. 

And with a big dip in the pitch, it 

doesn’t help matters. 

Best GAA pub 

If you were in Dublin, it would be 

hard to pass Quinn’s, but our 

own wee local called Farah’s in 

Craigbane is hard to beat too especially 

when a few Clann na 

nGael men come in after a Tyrone 

win. But all you have to do 

is mention to them about the day 

the Rangers men began playing 

cricket on their pitch one All-Ireland 

Final day, they don’t be long 

scattering then! 

Kerry or Dublin 

Kerry’s not out of second gear 

yet and I fancy them highly to retain 

their title once again. But if 

you’re looking for colour and atmosphere 

around Croke Park, 

the Dubs have what it takes to 

provide great advertisement for 

Gaelic games. The Dubs will 

make it to the semi's but unfortuately 

and its hurting me to say 

this... don’t rule out Tyrone. 

How can you handle 

Kieran Donaghy 

The only way to handle Kieran 

Donaghy is to give him a few ribticklers 

to let him know you’re 

there and I can guarantee he 

won’t want to know (that’s if you 

can get away with it). I wouldn’t 

mind seeing Darren Fay of 

Meath have a go at him plus I 

couldn’t forget our own man 

Kevin Mc 

Cloy who I 

rate very 

highly. 

»HEAD TO HEAD - MONAGHAN V KERRY 

1930 - A good start saw Monaghan 

trail by 0-4 to 0-2 early on. However, 

Kerry were highly rated and in the 

middle of a four in a row they emerged 

comfortably winners by 3-11 to 0-2. 

One Monaghan official described the 

game as a ‘bullfight’ after four of their 

players retired injured. 

1979 - Under the management of Sean 

McCague, Monaghan were celebrating 

a first Ulster title since 1938. They 

were no match for Kerry’s team of all 

talents, despite the best efforts of 

Paddy Linden, Jap Finlay and Eugene 

Hughes. 

1985 - When Ulster football needed a 

lift, Monaghan provided it with a 

sterling performance. Eoin Liston was 

sent off and a brilliant equalising 

point from Eamon McEneaney gave 

Monaghan a second chance. He fired 

over from nearly sixty yards just under 

the Hogan Stand. 

REPLAY - Hopes were high that 

Monaghan could sustain their level of 

performance from the drawn game 

and for long periods they once again 

matched the champions. However, two 

goals made a decisive difference in 

seeing Kerry safely through. 

HIGHLY RATED: 

Kevin McCloy

18 COLUMNIST 


RONAN McSHERRY 

The weather might leave something to be desired but on the 

football and hurling field things are hotting up 

Summer shaping up nicely 

The championship 

provides the freedom to 

let go of the day to day 

toils of life and celebrate 

county identity. 

What a great championship 

this has been after the 

mediocre fare of 2006. In 

fact two championships; 

the size five and the small ball. 

As the evenings get longer and 

May approaches I start to feel 

the tingle of another summer of 

colour and Gaelic games coming 

our way. Last year however was 

an awful let down akin to World 

Cup 2006. Much ado about nothing. 

Apart from the sensational 

Dublin v Mayo semi-final and the 

refreshing Kieran Donaghy 

there was little to celebrate. No 

Ulster sides made the last four 

while the Mattie Forde, Paddy 

Campbell and Anthony Lynch 

controversies tarnished the summer. 

County boards cynically 

portrayed the culprits as the victims. 

From the hurling world Diarmuid 

O’Sullivan skulked up 

the field at Thurles with a new 

sliotar tucked down his nics in 

order to gain advantage from a 

penalty. When he was confronted 

by a Limerick opponent The 

Rock went to ground, which I 

suppose is what rocks do. It was 

an image just about summed up 

the championships of last year. 

This spring I was afraid to get 

excited as the flag sellers prepared 

their regalia and the burger 

vans pointed towards Clones. I 

needn’t have worried. As the ball 

is about to be thrown in on the 

quarter-finals, the action has 

been terrific. 

The so-called qualifier system, 

now in its seventh year, has been 

a huge success. Even the anticipation 

of the draw has created 

excitement. Without the qualifier 

system Sligo would not have had 

such wonderful memories from 

2002 when they beat Tyrone and 

almost unhinged Armagh. There 

was Fermanagh in 2004 when at 

last their supporters got to rush 

onto the field at Croke Park. 

Antrim footballers get to play in 

headquarters at the weekend. 

Mulligan’s sensational goal 

against the Dubs also came courtesy 

of the backdoor system. Further 

south, Longford folk rejoiced 

when they blew away the 

Oak Leaf last year while Laois 

and Louth have enjoyed their 

days in the sun. 

That is a lot of happy GAA 

supporters, many who would 

have been resigned to another 70 

minutes in May followed by enviously 

watching the super powers 

hog the limelight until Autumn. 

Previously unheralded players 

including Fermanagh full-back 

FRESH 

CHALLENGE... 

John Paul 

Mone and Gary 

McQuaid are 

part of Monaghan 

side that 

have brought a 

freshness to 

the Football 

Championship 

INSET: Sean 

Davey and Sligo 

have provided a 

highlight by 

claiming the 

Connacht final 

Barry Owens, Longford star Paul 

Barden and Dessie Sloyan of Sligo 

got to showcase their talents 

in front of tens of thousands in 

Croke Park and more watching 

from the comfort of their sofas. 

The championship is a celebration 

much greater than the 

action on the field. It is a freedom 

to let go of the day to day 

toils of life and celebrate county 

identity. Young and old men and 

women get to wear their colours, 

wave their flags and bang their 

drums in a GAA festival. Monaghan 

is buzzing at the moment 

with the blue and white flying 

from every lamp post and window. 

The reaction in Sligo to 

their first Connacht title since 

1975 proves, if proof is needed, 

that the team takes the Sam 

Maguire Cup are not the only 

winners between May and September. 

Monaghan and Sligo will 

cherish the memories of this 

FACE IN THE CROWD 

DID YOU WIN A £15 SPORTS VOUCHER - SEE PAGE 26 

summer in the years ahead. If 

Kerry can be unhinged the championship 

appears to be wide open 

and this year maybe.. just maybe, 

the counties that gave us Yeats 

and Kavanagh can do the seemingly 

impossible. That would be 

marvellous. 

The hurling too has been a 

revelation. Croke Park on Sunday 

afternoon was an emotional 

roller coaster as Waterford 

drew level in a pulsating finale. 

The atmosphere was 

electric. The Kilkenny-Galway 

game on Saturday was also 

sensational until the Cats 

slinked away in the last 10 

minutes. The three Tipperary-Limerick 

games in Munster 

took on epic status while 

the Munster final was also 

top drawer. If there is a sight 

in sport more exhilarating 

than Dan Shanahan bearing 

down on goal, Sean Og clearing 

his line or Limerick number 

six Brian Geary going over the 

top of three men to grab hold of 

the sliotar, I have yet to see it. 

Hill 16 on Sunday was a splattering 

of colour with the Deise, 

Treaty, Premier and Rebels in 

full voice stirred by their warriors 

on the field. The green, 

white, red, blue and amber mix 

was beautiful as the sun smiled 

down on Croke Park. Along with 

my colleague Mr Rodgers we 

bumped into Olcan McFetridge 

under the Hogan Stand. Olcan 

scored an unforgettable 

goal into the Hill end in 

1989 as Antrim beat Offaly 

to reach the All Ireland 

final. I can still see it 

in my mind’s eye as he caught 

the ball, turned and stroked it to 

the net in one movement. The 

Armoy man known as ‘Klute’ 

was awarded an All Star that 

year. He was in fine form and regaled 

us with a few anecdotes 

from that era. We were buzzing 

coming up the road. 

Championship 2007… so many 

memories already, and you know, 

I have a feeling we ain’t seen 

nothing yet.


ANALYSIS 19 

HeadToHead» LEVEL PEGGING 

v v 

Owen Mulligan Graham Geraghty Sean Cavanagh 

Nigel Crawford 

✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 

BIG MATCH TEMPERAMENT - Since 

breaking onto the Tyrone team in 

2001, Mulligan has consistently 

proved his worth on the biggest 

occasions. The 2003 and 2005 All-Ireland Finals 

are examples, along with the Dublin game of 

2005. He seems to revel in the big match 

atmosphere and will no doubt be aware of this 

when the action begins against Meath. 

✖ 

CONSISTENCY - Mulligan has been a 

key player for Tyrone now throughout 

this decade. However, he has failed 

to really hit the heights this year. His 

ability is clear, but the Cookstown man hasn’t 

found his form this season so far. Glimpses have 

been on display, although there’s the feeling 

that he misses the influence of Peter Canavan. 

✔ 

MOVEMENT - There is little to stop 

the Tyrone attack when it’s moving 

well and Mulligan is a key cog in the 

wheel. His off the ball runs and 

ability to create space are important qualities 

and inevitably lead to him getting into good 

positions or placing team-mates. More of the 

same can be anticipated on Saturday. 

✖ 

MATCH INFLUENCE - There were times 

in the Ulster final when Mulligan 

looked capable of running the show. 

Unfortunately for him and Tyrone, 

though, he faded out of proceedings 

subsequently against a tough-tackling 

Monaghan defence and never realised his 

potential from earlier in the game. It’s something 

that he’ll be keen to improve upon. 

CLASS - An ability to display the 

touch of brilliance is essential to 

sport, including Gaelic games. Over 

the years the former Meath captain 

has shown his class often in matches, not least 

during this season as evidenced in the ties 

against Dublin and Galway especially. Always on 

hand for a flash of inspiration. 

✔ 

FORWARD PLAY - Geraghty is among 

what’s now a select group of players 

with the ability to spilt open 

defences with a crucial pass. His 

vision, composure and scoretaking have been 

key qualities throughout his career and he will 

hope to reproduce each of them in Saturday’s 

quarter-final. His success or failure could be a 

key factor. 

✖ 

TEMPERAMENT - Recent weeks have 

once again shown that Geraghty can 

blow hot and cold. The trainingground 

controversy was the latest in 

a fairly lengthy line of similar such events 

during his illustrious career. Frustrating him 

again is something which the Tyrone defence 

will aim to do against them on Saturday. 

✖ 

PACE - One concern about Geraghty 

could be his ability to match the 

intensity of top class football in the 

modern era. At 34 he has probably 

lost the yard of pace which can be so important 

at this level and the speed of the game has 

moved on since he and Meath were last a force 

to be reckoned with six years ago. 

ATTACKING PLAY - In the Ulster 

Final, Sean Cavanagh hit a number 

of great points from the central 

area of the field. It’s an ability 

which has long been apparent in the play of 

the Moy clubman. His strong running and 

accuracy from both frees and play is a key 

aspect and was evident a few weeks ago. 

✖ 

PLAYING POSITION - Moving forward 

with plenty of purpose is an 

important benefit which Cavanagh 

brings to the Tyrone team. But there 

are times when his attacking role 

leaves the midfield exposed, other players 

have to cover and there’s resultant pressures. 

A quicker return to the midfield sector would 

be a help. 

✔ 

DUMMY - Creating space and the 

ability to get past players remains a 

vital ingredient despite changes to 

the modern gaelic football. One of 

the clearest examples of this is 

Sean Cavanagh’s dummy which, combined 

with a burst of speed, gets him quickly past 

opponents and into an attacking position. 

✖ 

CONCENTRATION - For a player of 

Sean Cavanagh’s experienced, the 

perceived talking back to the referee 

is something which isn’t really 

necessary. Even the most ardent Tyrone fans 

would acknowledge that there are occasions 

when he needs to concentrate with getting on 

with the game rather than complaining about 

a decision which has been made. 

MIDFIELD EXPERIENCE - This is 

effectively a new Meath team, with 

many players enjoying their first real 

taste of inter-county experience at the 

top level. As a result, the experience of someone 

like Crawford who has played in All-Irelandfinals 

and at the highest level is going to be crucial 

against what is now a seasoned Tyrone team. 

✔ 

MIDFIELD QUALITIES - Two things 

which are needed for a midfielder is 

the ability to win the aerial battle and 

deliver possession effectively. Both 

are qualities which Crawford has displayed 

throughout his career and could give Meath a 

boost when it’s needed against Tyrone. He has 

also been known to produce a few scores and may 

be called upon to do likewise on Saturday. 

✖ 

MOBILITY - The Dunboyne player is very 

much a midfielder in the traditional 

sense. He is strong and athletic, but 

maybe lacks the mobility which is so 

much a part of playing there at the moment. As a 

result, he might struggle against a Tyrone 

midfield which is big on those aspects. 

✖ 

STAYING POWER - One of the concerns 

that there may be about a player like 

Crawford is his likely impact when 

things reach a crucial stage near the 

end. His experience should be a help, but you get 

the feeling that he and Meath will struggle when 

Tyrone push for victory in the final quarter. 

» VERDICT - GRAHAM GETS IT 

This potential battle between the blonde bombshells promises to be one of the highlights 

of the Croke Park clash. Both have done it all at the highest level, with Geraghty’s experience 

being unrivalled. The two have the undoubted ability to make their mark with a 

flash of genius and will be aiming to do just that on Saturday. However, in this case if the 

Meath man can make the impact that’s he is most definitely capable off, then he will have the 

greater influence on proceedings. 

» VERDICT - SEAN SHADES IT 

This is very much a battle between the old and the new in gaelic football. Meath’s demise 

in recent years has ensured that Crawford and Cavanagh haven’t come into direct opposition. 

Both have key qualities needed for the position, with Crawford’s fielding and 

deliveries an important advantage for him. However, the overall ability, movement and 

scoring of Sean Cavanagh looks set to have a distinct edge that will see him have the bigger 

role in helping Tyrone past the Royals and into the All-Ireland semi-final. 

NEXT WEEK: Four who could decide it for Derry and Dublin 

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK Do you agree with our analysis of player’s abilities email: comment@gaeliclife.com

20 TOMMY MURPHY CUP 


Whatever you do, 

says Kelly 



No doubt that even people in 

Antrim will react disparagingly 

at the suggestion of 

travelling to Dublin to see 

the Tommy Murphy Cup final in 

Dublin on Sunday, yet one player 

has made the trip all the way 

from Southampton to take part. 

Sean Kelly missed this year’s 

Ulster Championship as he was 

studying to be a teacher in England 

but he’s back, and talking 

up this match as an important 

step for the county team. 

Put aside the relative merits of 

the Tommy Murphy Cup in comparison 

to the championship and 

it is still a final at headquarters, 

an experience that Kelly is familiar 

with. 

“I'm excited about a day out in 

Croke Park but it will only be a 

good day if we win. We got to the 

final of the All-Ireland club 

championship and we got beat, 

it's not a nice place to lose. It's 

been a long, long time since we 

have been winning and playing 

in somewhere like Croke Park. It 

gives everyone a taste of success 

and something to build on in the 

future,” Kelly said. 

Antrim in 

no position 

to belittle 

Croke park 

final insists 

Saffron star 

The St Gall’s contingent will 

be familiar with the Jones Road 

venue as will CJ McGourty and 

Justin Crozier who played in the 

minor championship last year. So 

not everyone on this team will be 

feeling the pressure of the Croke 

Park experience. Kelly and his 

team-mates took a walk on the 

pitch last week and he admitted 

that it is hard not to be impressed 

by the set up but his attitude 

is that ‘it’s just a pitch’ . 

“I think that all the 

boys are experienced 

enough to know that. 

It is nice to be going 

to Croke Park but 

it's not a day to go 

and sight see. We 

are there to do a job 

and there is no 

point winning the 

matches that we have 

won and getting to the final 

and losing,” he said. 

Clearly the 2006 All-Ireland 

Club final, when the Belfast side 

reached the final but were undone 

by Salthill 0-7 to 0-6, is still 

fresh in his memory. 

The highs of reaching that final 

were offset the very next season 

as St Gall’s went out of the 

Antrim championship at the first 

stage, getting beat by Cargin. Yet 

this year they appear to be 

bouncing back back Lamh 

Dhearg in the first round now 

they’re determined to regain the 

Antrim title one year after they 

lost it. Kelly accepts that with 

the extra matches the Tommy 

Murphy Cup have brought 

makes that goal much tougher to 

achieve. 

“I'd like to be focused on one 

or the other, it's hard for the club 

players who are splitting their focus 

between the Tommy Murphy 

Cup and the club championship. 

It's hard on the club and the 

county as well. The county team 

want to prepare for what is an 

All-Ireland final and the club 

teams also want the right preparation 

for their club matches. So 

it's not just hard on the club, it's 

hard on the county team as well. 

The players are sort of caught, 

being asked for commitment to 

both areas,” he said. 

That said, he does believe that 

all these games can only be a 

good thing for him, and for 

Antrim. 

“It's just nice to be playing 

football at this time of the year. 

Especially with the county because 

the past few years, well for 

a long time, it's been one round 

of the championship and one or 

.SEEKING SUCCESS..Sean Kelly is targeting a Tommy Murphy Cup medal 

BEGGARS CAN’T BE CHOOSERS...Sean Kelly says that success starved Antrim can ill-afford to


TOMMY MURPHY CUP 21 

don’t look down 

two rounds of qualifiers and then 

we are done for. If we want to go 

anywhere with the county then 

we need to be thinking about 

playing at this time of year. It 

gives us a taste for the future.,” 

he said. 

It would appear that the 25- 

year-old craves success no matter 

if it is at club or county level. 

When he returned to Belfast a 

month ago he received a call 

from Jody Gormley enquiring as 

to whether he would be interested 

in returning to the county 

team after his nine month absence. 

Since he is due to start a new 

post at his old school St Mary’s 

in Belfast, and was 

The Tommy Murphy 

is the level that we 

have been playing 

at. We can only 

claim to be better 

than the Tommy 

Murphy Cup once 

we have won it 

keen to take part 

in next year’s 

championship he 

jumped at the 

chance to join up 

with his team 

mates. 

“I suppose I 

wanted to get fit 

again and get back 

in with the county 

team. The more 

games that I get in 

now the better I 

will be ready for 

next year. Jody 

wanted a system of playing. If I 

start playing now it means that I 

will be used to that system when 

we start playing next year. So 

hopefully we can hit the ground 

running next year when we start 

up,” he said. 

Kelly wasn’t the only player to 

accept the late call up, Tony Convery, 

Michael Magill and Mark 

Dougan also joined the squad for 

the competition. So while many 

make light of the competition at 

least the players want to play in 

it. 

“ I don't think we can listen to 

outside people. You know the 

way it is when people talk down 

the Tommy Murphy Cup but 

we're in the Tommy Murphy Cup 

because of the level that we have 

been playing at. We can only 

claim to be better than the Tommy 

Murphy Cup once we have 

won it,” he said. 

“Within ourselves we 

want to win things and 

you only get into a winning 

habit if you start 

winning games. 

We've won three 

games in a row which 

we haven't done for a 

while and we are in a final 

which we haven't 

done in a while. A winning 

streak breeds confidence 

and a winning mentality.” 

Part of the reason that Kelly 

has such belief in the future of 

Antrim football is the stream of 

talented players that are coming 

up through the ranks. Gormley 

has already proved that he is 

willing to give any young player 

his chance. That’s an attitude 

that Kelly respects. 

“I think it's the way that we 

have to go. The younger ones 

coming in are good, you look at 

people like Justin Crozier from 

Cargin and CJ McGourty from 

our club they are good young 

players. Hopefully next year we 

will win more games and they'll 

get that bit more experience 

and come 

the Ulster championship 

next year we 

will be in better 

shape all round. 

They don't fear losing 

and because they 

haven't been there 

they haven't heard 

all the abuse towards 

the team. 

They are coming in 

fresh faced and they 

just want to play and 

they bring everyone 

else on around them 

so that's just good all round.” 

So while the Belfast man 

spoke at length about his hopes 

for the future of Antrim football 

when faced with the question of 

Sunday’s final he decided to play 

it cautious. 

“Wicklow are a decent team, 

they have beaten some decent 

teams along the way. They beat 

us in the National League we've 

always had trouble beating them. 

I think they are a very strong 

side they don't have that many 

big names probably the same as 

us but there is a good team ethic 

within their team. They are going 

to be very very hard to beat,” 

he said 

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK 

Can the Tommy Murphy Cup be 

stepping stone to greater things for 

the Antrim football team 

email: comment@gaeliclife.com 

PLANNING FOR 

THE FUTURE... 

Jody Gormley 

take any kind of superior attitude towards the Tommy Murphy Cup final

22 OPINION 


TrueGael 

Inane musings from 

the GAA backwoods 

PubTalk» GAA BITS AND BOBS 

Farney fans sitting on the fence 

‘‘ 

Some ould handlin 

this week 

over the head of 

getting thon 

tickets for the Derry 

match! 

As soon as we 

were out of the car 

back from Breffni Park last Saturday 

I was straight on tae the phone to 

chase up a couple of tickets for the 

match. 

I talked to a boy who lives over the 

mountain. He knows the county secretary 

quare and well and he said to 

come up and he'd see if he could sort 

me out. 

But when I got up there he was 

out roundin' up sheep. So I traipsed 

up the hill to where his wife said he 

was. 

Big Dan Joe's his name and he's as 

tall as house with hands like shovels, 

but you can never get anything out 

of him without having to do him a 

favour. 

When I got there him and the 

young boys were having trouble getting 

the sheep into the top field. 

He says to me, “Seamus, one of 

these ewe's is not well and the doctor 

(I think he meant vet) said that 

she has to be separated from the rest 

of them.” 

I said that was grand but 

how is that gonna get 

me tickets to see Derry 

play Dublin. 

He tould me, “We 

need to put thon 

ewe into a long 

stand and then 

bring her back down 

the hill.” 

“Right,” I says, “of 

course. Shure I could 

have tould you that meself. 

Where do we get a long stand” 

Big Dan tould me to head back 

down the mountain and into town to 

Joe's pub and ask in there. 

I said right and headed off. 

I'm not well liked in Joe's since 

they said I was taking trade off them 

ever since I got the Sky TV in, but 

shure no bother, I'll do anything to 

get these tickets. 

Anyway, I head into the bar and 

ask Joe what the crack was with the 

long stand. 

He tells me, “no bother, wait 

there”. 

So I do. 

For about an hour. 

A couple of the ould boys asked 

me what I was waiting for and I tould 

them. 

One turns to the other and says, 

“Joe's probably away to get the glass 

hammer to fix it first,” 

Right I says, not knowing what 

they're talking about. 

Anyway, I see Joe coming 

back into the bar and 

shout. “Hey what about 

this long stand” 

Joe says, “Have you not 

been standing there long 

enough!” 

Sweet Jeezus! 

‘‘ 

Just like the good old days 

Fans of the Farney (or should 

that be Oriel) county could 

be forgiven for believing that 

they’re in footballing heaven 

this week. Only an All-Ireland 

Final appearance would surpass 

the excitement of these 

boom times for the Monaghan 

men. But we’re worried 

about the two supporters 

who were precariously 

perched high on the fence at 

Healy Park on Sunday night. 

Each time Monaghan scored 

they jumped up in delight 

and managed to remember 

not to sit down too quickly 

again. Fortunately, the game 

was over as a contest well 

before the finish, and we didn’t 

have the spectacle of 

them enduring a rather 

painful fall if Tommy Freeman 

had grabbed a last gasp 

winning goal. 

Derry have got 

balls to match 

the best 

We’re astute followers 

of the very latest fads 

in gaelic games here. Our 

latest is the example being 

set by Derry who have 

ditched the age-old practice 

of daubing the 

favourite O’Neills football 

with ‘Doire’ in indelible ink 

for all to see. It used to be 

ironic watching the high 

quality presentation of the 

major multi-million pound 

matches only to see some 

official’s scrawl on the 

match ball. But now the 

Derry men have changed all 

this for the better with 

their name professionally 

printed in Oak Leaf red on 

every football. So, yet another 

proud GAA tradition 

has been forgotten in the 

march of modernism. 

A little strange 

to say the least 

Calling matches off to accommodate 

the needs of 

county teams is nothing new 

in the world of gaelic games. 

But a story from Tyrone at the 

weekend really takes some 

beating for being a bit crazy. 

The background is that the 

county’s ladies team was 

playing Donegal in the All-Ireland 

Championship at 

Omagh on Saturday evening. 

Obviously one of the priorities 

was to maximise the 

numbers available to be at 

Healy Park to support the 

team. However, it was more 

than a bit strange and definitely 

silly to postpone 

matches in the U-12 League 

on the morning of the game. 

We just can’t figure it out. 

Youngest 

against the 

oldest 

This weekend sees a novel 

Tommy Murphy Cup Final 

between Antrim and a 

Wicklow team still going for 

their first ever win at Croke 

Park. But it’s the sideline 

tussle that we’re more interested 

in. It’s between 

Mick O’Dwyer, the famed 

Kerry maestro and probably 

the most successful intercounty 

manager ever and 

the rookie, Jody Gormley, 

whose taste of the big time 

came as a player long, long 

after his more illustrious 

managerial opponent had 

first revelled in Croke Park 

glory. Maybe our Jody can 

show the wily old king of 

managers a thing or two 

about tactical preparation 

as he bids to maintain a 100 

per cent record as a manager 

in national finals. 

Tyrone against 

those bad boys 

from Meath 

Older readers will remember 

the controversy back in 1996 

when those bad Meath boys 

rode rough shod over Tyrone 

in the All-Ireland semi-final. 

The fall-out left some of the 

Tyrone players looking like 

victims of war-zone, it lasted 

for months and robbed Peter 

Canavan of some of his best 

years. Anyway, the proud 

people of the O’Neill county 

have been waiting their 

chance for revenge ever 

since and it finally comes on 

Saturday when the counties 

renew acquaintances in the 

championship. This time, of 

course, the roles are reversed 

somewhat. The criticism of 

Tyrone’s style hasn’t been accepted 

within the county and 

Meath who are the popular 

heroes. Considering the reaction 

of the O’Neill county in 

1996, pots, kettles and black 

are three words which spring 

to mind. 

And finally just 

a thought 

So, Donegal finally exited 

the championship in rather 

tame fashion on Saturday 

night. It was a very disappointing 

end to a season 

which had promised so 

much following their National 

League triumph and 

subsequent win over Armagh. 

But we’ve just a 

thought for them to ponder 

on until their next outing 

under a new manager early 

in 2008. Each time a Donegal 

player was taken off on 

Saturday evening, he appeared 

to vent his anger at 

the decision by Brian McIver 

to replace him. Hardly 

appropriate behaviour, a 

symptom of the apparent 

indiscipline within the 

squad and something which 

they’ll be aiming to address 

sooner rather than later. 

NEW FANGLED... Derry have 

gone to a high-tech way of 

marking their balls 

...IT’S HOTTING UP! 

KEEP UP WITH OUR COLUMNISTS 

...telling it as it is 

JOE BROLLY JARLATH BURNS RONAN McSHERRY SLEDGER


BackChat» HAVE YOUR SAY 

Well done to Derry and Muldoon 

Well done to Derry last week. 

What I performance. I think 

that Enda Muldoon really deserves 

an All-Star this year. He 

has been incredible in every 

game that he has played in, 

and I include the club matches 

for Ballinderry as well. If Derry 

are going to win then they 

have to use him more. 

Lisa, Ballinderry 

Caman C’mon 

Glad to see that Gaelic Life has 

finally recognised that football 

is not the only sport in the 

GAA. 

I thought that Alan Rodgers 

piece on the All-Ireland Junior 

semi-final was good but I 

would still like to see more 

coverage. Why is it that Ladies 

football gets plenty of coverage 

yet Camogie slips in and 

out of the paper all the time. 

Irene, Co. Down 

Done with the 

Dubs 

I don’t know why everyone is 

so interested in Dublin. I 

thought that your centre 

pages on Dublin last week 

was such a waste of time. The 

Missed last 

week's 

edition of 

Gaelic Life 

Don't worry, 

the all-new digital 

version of Gaelic Life is now online: 

www.gaeliclife.com 

WHY DIGITAL: 

• Easy to use; 

• New reading experience; 

• Direct to your home/ 

work computer; 

• You can turn the pages just 

like the normal edition; 

• Zoom in and out options; 

• Pages easily printed... 

www.gaeliclife.com 

BACK ON BOARD...Irene from County Down is gald to see camogie 

back in the pages of the Gaelic Life 

more coverage that the 

Gaelic Life gives to 

Dublin only makes 

their egos get even 

bigger. 

I for one wish everyone 

would stop hyping up the 

Dubs as the team that 

everyone loves to hate. 

There are plenty more interesting 

topics to talk about. Although 

I did think that Chris 

McCann’s comments were 

right. 

I hate all those silly names 

that Dublin fans give Jason 

Sherlock and Ciaran Whelan. 

They are becoming more and 

more like soccer fans every 

year. I’m fed up hearing that 

the Dubs are carrying the GAA 

because they always sell out 

Croke Park. 

Monaghan fan 

Great edition 

Well done on last week’s paper 

I though that some of the 

features were brilliant. I 

thought it looked great. In my 

opinion it was one of the best 

issues yet. 

Joseph Armagh 

At the match, 

in the pub, 

or watching the 

game at home 

Why not send 

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OPINION 23 

DAMIAN 

CROWNE 

FitnessBloke 

Core 

strength 

a real 

asset 

Ladies, last week I listed six 

exercises for you to do. I 

stated that you should do 

four sets of 12 repititions for 

each exercise. 

This does not apply to the decline 

crunch or basic crunch. 

You should perform four sets of 

30 repititions. The crunch sit up 

works the abdominals. The tummy 

muscles play a vital role in 

our everyday life and strong 

tummy muscles play an important 

role for sports individuals. 

Having good abdominals allows 

you to take more knocks 

than the less toned athlete. The 

reason being the minute you 

gather yourself for the tackle, 

the first muscle group that tightens 

is your abdoninals. 

The abdominals are a key postural 

muscle. In simple terms, it 

assists in keeping you up 

straight so if you have weak abdominals 

and you are taken the 

hit, it is a dead cert you are either 

going to go down, or going 

to get injured. 

For ladies in sport, Gaelic football 

or camogie, having good abdonimals 

is about protecting 

your vital organs. Having good 

abdominals also helps prevent 

lower back pain. 

The crunch set up has been 

proven to be the safest and one 

of the most effective sit ups there 

are. This is due to the way that 

the sit up is performed. The decline 

sit up is slightly more complex 

and if not performed right 

could cause some lower back 

pain. 

Also ladies doing 1,000 

sit ups a night wont 

get rid of the fat in 

the tummy. It will 

tighten the tummy 

muscles but to 

lose the fat that is 

down to your 

calorie intake 

and the type of 

calories you 

are takiing 

in. 

Damien 

Crowne 

- Personal 

Health and 

fitness. 

19 Gortrush 

Industrial 

Estate, 

Omagh 

Tel: 

07799777841 

IMPACT... 

Abdominal 

exercises allow 

you to cope 

with heavy 

knocks

24 ANALYSIS 


QUARTER MASTERS: Men who can make the d 

» STEPHEN O’NEILL (TYRONE) » MIKE FRANK RUSSELL (KERRY) » SEAN DAVEY (SLIGO) » SHANE RYAN (DUBLIN) 

When people look back at Tyrone’s 2005 

All-Ireland success the moments 

they remember are Mugsy’s goal 

against Dublin and Canavan’s game 

winning free against Armagh. Yet their most 

consistent forward that summer was 

Stephen O’Neill, something that was reflected 

in the fact that he was named that season’s 

footballer of the year. 

Injuries have blighted the Clann na Gael 

man’s form since but if Tyrone hope to lift a 

third Sam Maguire they need O’Neill to repeat 

the type of performances he put in two 

seasons ago. The Red Hand forward line has 

been less than prolific this summer and they 

need O’Neill’s accurate left foot to start popping 

the ball over the bar with greater regularity. 

With Brian McGuigan out it’s hard to 

see Tyrone regaining the All-Ireland crown 

without O’Neill firing on all cylinders. 

Colm Cooper and Kieran Donaghy are 

the marquee names in the Kerry attack 

now as Russell’s star has waned somewhat 

in recent seasons. But with opposition 

defences sure to be focusing on that 

duo it’s up to other members of the Kerry attack 

to ease the pressure on Star and the 

Gooch. 

In any other county Russell would probably 

be the star attraction on the county team 

and it’s easy to forget just how talented a 

footballer the Laune Rangers man is. Able to 

score off either foot with languid ease, Russell 

could yet have a vital role to play for the 

Kingdom. With 10 seasons of Championship 

football and four All-Ireland medals in his 

pocket the Kerry corner-forward has as 

much big match experience as anyone playing 

the game today and is unlikely to be 

found wanting when called upon. 

Sligo’s victory over Galway in the Connacht 

Senior Football Championship final 

was based largely on their parsimonious 

defence which restricted a talented 

Galway attack to only 12 points. 

The backline needed to be on top form because 

the Sligo attack missed chance after 

chance to put Galway away long before the final 

whistle with Davey one of the main culprits. 

His wayward attempt from a 15-metre 

free would probably have haunted him for 

years had Ja Fallon’s last gasp effort provided 

an equaliser for the Tribesmen. 

However, there’s no doubt that Davey has 

the ability to make the difference for Sligo if 

he finds his range. He’ll have to step it up a 

notch as the 1-10 tally that claimed the Nestor 

Cup will not be enough to deny the free scoring 

Leesiders. 

With Ciaran Whelan at last living up to 

his superstar billing at midfield, he’s 

likely to be a targeted by the Derry 

management as the man to stop at 

Croke Park next Saturday. Chances are that 

Whelan will be matched up against the Oak 

Leafer’s own midfield powerhouse, Fergal 

Doherty, and they could cancel each other 

out. That being the case, Ryan will have to 

improve on his Leinster final display and 

drive his side forward from centrefield. 

There’s no doubt that the Naomh Mearnog 

man’s work rate is second to none but he will 

have to show more as an attacking force. 

With Derry’s Enda Muldoon likely to drop 

into the midfield area Ryan will have to 

make sure and hoover up any loose ball. 

Ryan has the physical power to impose himself 

on the game and the ball playing skills to 

supply the Dublin forwards.


ANALYSIS 25 

ifference for their counties in Croke Park 

» MICHAEL CUSSEN (CORK) » EOIN BRADLEY (DERRY) » CIARAN HANRATTY (MONAGHAN) » GRAHAM GERAGHTY (MEATH) 

Since the emergence of Kieran Donaghy 

last summer, every team in Ireland has 

been trying to uncover the towering 

target man that can negate the packed 

defences that currently predominate in football. 

Cussen has offered the Rebels just such 

an outlet but Billy Morgan’s side have yet to 

exploit the 6’ 6’’ full-forward’s abilities to the 

full. 

Not only does Cussen offer a major ball 

winning and scoring outlet but he also takes 

the pressure off James Masters who is currently 

topping the summer scoring charts. 

Cork must learn to deliver more of the Armagh 

style diagonal ball to Cussen. If they 

can do so then he and Masters can form a 

deadly Ronan Clarke and Stephen McDonnell 

style partnership which could spearhead 

a tilt at the All-Ireland crown. 

Every summer there’s a player who only 

starts to make an impact when the big 

days at Croke Park come around, Derry 

will be hoping that Eoin Bradley can be 

that player. The Glenullin man may not have 

the same profile as his elder sibling Paddy 

but he does possess similar levels of talent. 

Pacey and powerful, Bradley has the ability 

to go past men and can bomb the ball over 

the bar from long range or surge past defenders 

to find the net. However, the 

Mitchel’s man needs to show a little more of 

the composure that his brother brings to the 

game and be more selective in his shooting 

and solo running. Having left the panel in 

March after a dispute with the management, 

Bradley might return with the aim of proving 

a point and Paddy Crozier will be all the 

happier if he does. 

Hanratty blazed on to the scene like 

comet when scoring two goals in his 

senior championship debut against 

Down back in early May and looked 

set to light up the Championship with his 

pace, movement and eye for a score. 

Perhaps that game created unrealistic expectations 

around the young corner-forward 

who is still an Under 21 only finding his feat 

in senior football. 

Hanratty struggled to make much of an 

impression against Mickey McGoldrick in 

the provincial semi-final victory over Derry 

and was substituted, a fate that again befell 

him in the Ulster final loss to Tyrone. However, 

he looked very sharp when coming off 

the bench to score a point against Donegal 

on Saturday night and will be learning with 

every game. 

The former All-Ireland winning captain 

owes his manager Colm Coyle big time 

for the faith he has shown by reintroducing 

him for the second time this season. 

Geraghty’s political ambitions saw him 

miss the first part of the season and when he 

did return he promptly became embroiled in 

a training ground row with one of his teammates 

which saw him excluded from the panel 

for the win over Fermanagh. 

However, Geraghty returned to the fray as 

a scoring substitute in the victory over Galway. 

Given the manner in which Tyrone 

struggled to cope with Vinny Corey’s aerial 

prowess in the drawn game, Geraghty’s ability 

to win high ball could be decisive if the 

royal county are to upset the Ulster Champions.

26 COMPETITION 


FACE 

IN THE 

CROWD 

Did you attend 

last Saturday’s 

Donegal v 

Monaghan 

match 

Is this your face circled in the picture 

above If so, then you’re this week’s 

Face in the Crowd winner and you’ve 

won a sports voucher for £15. 

To claim your prize, contact 

Darren/Bronagh on: NI - (028) 8225 5959 

or ROI – (048) 8225 5959 

Gaelic Life 

Fantasy GAA Football 

CHAMPIONSHIP COMPETITION 

Leader Board 

Position Name Team Name Points 

1 Fiona Burke Well Respected Men 251 

2 James Byrne Na Speirini 244 

3 Niall McElroy Im doin it for the M... 238 

4 Fionntan O'Dowd Tulach Lis 233 

5 Séan Mac na fhailí Watch Out Ronan McSh... 229 

6 Sean O' Neill Culchie Ultras 227 

7 john jun mc crory johnnys dream team 226 

8 Conor Fitzpatrick The Super Whites 225 

9 Gerry Rooney Back Door Here We Co... 224 

10 Aisling Byrne Ulster's Best 223 

11 Barry Mc Elduff The Bronx Bombers 222 

12 Gerard J Hicks GMH Sports Select 221 

13 Irene Ormsby Mickey's Treble Chan... 221 

14 Patrick Travers Aussie Allstars2 220 

15 eugene o kane Real Deal 218 

16 martin mcgivern da headcases 215 

17 John Barry O'Donnell O'Donnell Abu 214 

18 Conor Carey Eoghan Rua Portstewa... 214 

19 oggie Magill lavey Abu 214 

20 Fintan Carey Alrite Leeeddddds 212 

21 Brendan Heaney No Down Men 212 

22 shaun boyce boyceys bashers 212 

23 James Byrne a rare bunch of cite... 212 

24 Conor Carey Eoghan Rua Portstewa... 212 

25 Eamonn Maguire Cloghore Shamrocks 211 

26 Ryan Ferry Mulliganz army 211 

27 Siobhan Bradley Gaelic greats 211 

28 colm carty Coksey 210 

29 Colin Mackle THE FAMOUS MOY FOUR 210 

30 James Lalor BlueBoys 210 

31 James Lalor BlueBoys2 210 

32 Paul Toal Redbridge Pearse Ogs 209 

33 ciaran mcdermott frogdogs 209 

34 Patrick J. Cunningham Cunninghams Heroe's 208 

35 Sean O' Neill Culchie Ultras2 207 

36 Sarah Bradley BestBet 207 

37 Ryan Mc Kenna moy rd madmen 206 

38 CORMAC MC DONNELL Granpa Zep's Toolbox 206 

39 Turlough Mc Dermott The Incredibles 206 

40 Colm Farrell gooch12 206 

41 Gary O'Neill SAN DIEGO ALL STARS 205 

42 Daniel McKay Rasharkin All-Stars 204 

43 DEE MARLOW nice one branchy 202 

44 Seán Duffin Go go's 201 

45 Daniel Mckay Champions 201 

46 J Canavan Moon Boots 199 

47 Patrick mc kenna don'tcryformeballyme... 199 

48 Breandán Quigley Hurlingsfarbetter 199 

49 Michael McKeown St Michaels Allstars 199 

50 Shaun-Marty Lawless The Ulster Football ... 199 

51 Sinead McNicholl Winning Formula 198 

52 Siobhan Bradley Gaelic Gaels 198 

53 Seamus Sweeney Ferm Favourites 198 

54 e o kane Final Fifteen 197 

55 Ronan Scott Great Scott 196 

56 damian marlow stayaffer 195 

57 Sinead O'Kane Sinead's select 195 

58 Brian Furey Fuzzy's Fluffy Feet 195 

59 Raymond McQuaid The School of Scienc... 195 

60 Caoimhin O Machail An Mhaigh Abu 195 

61 paul daly ulster stars 195 

62 DAMIEN MCCAUGHEY PUKE FOOTBALL FOREVE... 194 

63 johnny mccaughey joh sam seekersnnys 193 

64 cormac mcintyre new york dreamers 193 

65 Mark Brennan Ballyhaise utd 193 

66 Michael Kieran 2nd only to meath 193 

67 Sean McNally She's the fastest 193 

68 Sean Duffin Hi hIs 193 

69 Michael Gribbon Orchardexile XV 193 

70 Michael Murphy Glenswilly All Stars 193 

71 Michael Murphy Murphys Allstars 193 

72 Brian Furey Johnny's Army 192 

73 Martin Anthony Mads Magicians 192 

74 Sean Perry Hang sangwiches. 191 

75 paul daly ulster stars2 191 

76 Marty Mc Givern cannon ball cavlan 191 

77 tim daly timmys vale 191 

78 Eamonn O'Connell Sharpshooters 191 

79 Finbarr McCaughey Altneavegh 190 

80 Maura Barrett Sega Mega Men 190 

81 Gerard Hicks Erne 15 190 

82 Oliver Tighe Ollies Heroes 190 

83 Eoghan Harkin Strabane Sigersons 189 

84 Eoghan Cunningham Dermeys Army 189 

85 E.P. o kane point blank 189 

86 Thomas McElroy The Scuds V3 188 

87 Mary Kelly Kelly's All Star Sel... 188 

88 Ray McQuaid The Titan's Team 188 

89 Patrick Travers Aussie Allstars 188 

90 Martin Crummy Accreggan 188 

91 martin-leo quirke ARMAGH ABU 187 

92 Padraig MacBhloscaidh Northumbria GFC 187 

93 SEAN O'MAHONEY STUFF OF LEGENDS 187 

94 John Barry O'Donnell Lifford Gaels 187 

95 John Ormsby Sam For Stormont 187 

96 e okane Team Spirit 186 

97 Peter Hughes Armaghic 186 

98 David Mc Gurrin Ballyshannon All Sta... 186 

99 SEAN O'MAHONEY THE REAL DOCTORS 185 

100 Seamus Sweeney Well Erned 185 

» 

WEEK 9 TOP SCORE WINNER OF £100: 

Barry McCauley, Derrygonnelly, Co.Fermanagh. 

Team – ‘Mickey Harte’s beard’ increased by 53 points and sits in 130th position. 

Please contact Darren on 048 8225 5959 to claim your prize. 

TOP PLAYERS/MANAGERS 

WEEK 9 

Goalkeepers: 

Top goalkeeper from wk 9: 

Shane Duffy of Monaghan 

(total: -1 point) 

Top goalkeeper to date: 

Chris Breen of Fermanagh 

(total: 9 points) 

Defenders: 

Top defender from wk 9: 

Vincent Corey of Monaghan 


Top defender to date: 

Aiden Carr of Down 


Midfielders: 

Top midfielders from wk 9: 

Fergal Doherty of Derry 


James Conway of Derry 


Top midfielder to date: 

Sean Cavanagh of Tyrone 


Forwards: 

Top forwards from wk 9: 

Enda Muldoon of Derry 

(10 points) 

Thomas Freeman of Monaghan 

(10 points) 

Top forward to date: 

Thomas Freeman of Monaghan 

(39 points) 

Player of the match from wk 9: 

Donegal v Monaghan: 

Dessie Mone of Monaghan 

(8 points) 

Derry v Laois: 

Enda Muldoon of Derry 

(8 points) 

Managers: 

Top managers from wk 9: 

Paddy Crozier 

(10 points) 

Seamas McEnaney 

(10 points) 

Top manager to date: 

Paddy Crozier (40 points) 

A FULL LIST OF 

PLAYERS 

AND THEIR 

SCORES 

CAN BE VIEWED 

ONLINE: 

www.gaeliclife.com/fantasy.php 

»


WEEKEND IN PICTURES 27 

LEFT: Richie Power and Kilkenny pulled away from Galway in the last 10 minutes. MIDDLE: Andrew O'Shaughnessy starred in Limerick’s victory over Clare RIGHT: Eoin Kelly, Waterford, celebrates after scoring 

a point for Waterford during the second half of their draw with Cork 

Pictures SPORTSFILE 

Monaghan and Derry book last eight berths 

ON a weekend were hurling took the 

national spotlight Ulster eyes were 

more interested in goings on in the 

big ball code. Donegal and Monaghan 

went head to head for a place in the 

quarter-finals. 

It was billed as a meeting of the Tir 

Chonaill side’s pedigree against the 

Farney men’s hunger and momentum 

and it was the latter that prevailed as 

Seamus McEneaney’s men ran out 

comfortable 2-12 to 1-7 winners. 

Vinny Corey showed that his peformance 

against Tyrone at full-forward 

was no one-off by reprising that role 

to good effect and claiming the early 

goal that set Monaghan on their way. 

From there on it was Tommy Freeman 

who was the tormentor in chief 

finishing with 1-5 as the Oriel County 

brought Brian McIver’s time in 

charge of Donegal to a close. The Farney 

men’s reward, a marquee tie 

against All-Ireland Champions Kerry. 

Some 50 miles down the road Derry 

made sure that there will be three 

sides carrying the Ulster flag into the 

last eight by out-gunning Laois in a 

shootout at Breffni Park. 

With Enda Muldoon pulling the 

strings around midfield and Paul 

Murphy and Paddy Bradley offering a 

cutting edge up front, the Oak 

Leafers played some scintillating 

football to withstand the body blow of 

conceding two second half goals to 

emerge 1-18 to 2-11 winners at the Cavan 

venue. 

It will be another Leinster side that 

await Derry in the quarter-finals as 

they meet the two-tone Blue carnival 

that is the Dubs. 

The clash of the ash took centre 

stage at Croke Park with four quarter-final 

ties played over two days. 

Wexford gave the hurling championship 

a badly needed shock when 

Damien Fitzhenry’s last gasp goal 

saw them edge out Tipp. 

Kilkenny were matched by Galway 

for an hour but it only took the final 

10 minutes for the Cats cruise to into 

a 10-point lead. 

Limerick are another surprise 

package and they made their first semi-final 

since 1996 when they dispatched 

Clare on Sunday. 

The match of the weekend was the 

summer’s second meeting of Waterford 

and Cork. The Decies are the 

choice of the romantics but the 

Rebels looked set to become partypoopers 

as they led by four points 

with time running out. 

But Waterford responded to adversisty 

and Eoin Kelly’s controversial 

late free made it 3-16 apiece to earn a 

replay. 

NO QUARTER GIVEN...Paddy Bradley bagged seven points as Derry defeated Laois while Paul Finlay helped inspire Monaghan to victory over Donegal

28 MINOR 


Tyrone backs 

can shut 

down Kerry 

Red Hands should have pedigree to 

overcome Kingdom’s kids 

ALL-IRELAND MINOR FOOTBALL 

CHAMPIONSHIP QUARTER FINAL 

Tyrone v Kerry 

Tullamore (Sunday 3.45pm) 

CONTROVERSY aside, the Ulster 

final against Derry proved 

that Tyrone are no mean shakes 

when it comes to their defence. 

This paper hyped up Derry’s full 

and centre half back but it was 

the Tyrone defenders who really 

stepped up to the mark, limiting 

Derry to only seven scores, 1-6. 

Captain Aidan Girvan was a 

rock at full back while Ryan Pickering 

and Paul Martin’s presence 

were enough to stop the full forward 

line of Lee Moore and Gavin 

McGeehan making any real impact 

on the game. 

Moore and McGeehan were 

limited to 1-2, while Derry’s key 

man James Kielt notched up 

three points. 

However, at the other end of 

the field Tyrone only managed to 

score 0-10 albeit in the aftermath 

one of those was discovered to 

have been a wide. Just how Tyrone 

will react to the fall out from 

‘the point that never was’ will be 

interesting. According to their 

manager all that has been 

brushed under the carpet and 

they are fully focused on this 

game. 

They cruised through the Ulster 

championship with a poise 

and maturity uncommon in minor 

sides and only in the final did 

they get knocked of their stride. 

Credit where credit’s due Tyrone 

put on a good display after a dismal 

first half although Derry 

fought tooth and nail and should 

have got their draw. However, 

this team are a group of fighters 

and Cathal McCrory’s late point 

that won the game against Derry 

was the perfect example of that 

fact. 

Their opponents on Sunday, 

Kerry, are recovering from the 

hangover from losing the Munster 

final to old rivals Cork. Five 

points split the two sides, 1-16 to 

2-8 as Kerry never got off the 

mark in Killarney at the end of 

June. 

Corner forward Barry John 

Walsh hit both their goals in the 

match and only one of their forwards 

failed to score which may 

provide some solace for Kerry. It 

would appear that they found it 

hard to defend against a free 

scoring Cork team. That may be 

a problem for them on Sunday as 

Tyrone will be equally hard to 

shackle up front. 

According to the Kerry boss 

JOHN KENNEDY 

(KERRY MANAGER) 

We have quite a number of injuries 

to contend with about four 

or five. They include Patrick Curran 

(full-forward) who’s out with 

a cruciate injury, Jamie Doolan 

(corner-forward), Cian Tobin 

(Sub) and Adam O’Reilly (Sub). 

But that’s the way it is sometimes 

and we just have to get on with 

it. How well we perform will be a 

sign of the strength of our panel. 

Two of those players started the 

Munster final (Curran and 

Doolan) and they are a big loss 

but we have a training panel of 

30. The beauty of that is if you 

get players injured then hopefully 

you will have players able to 

come in and take over. 

It’s been a stop start season for 

us. We were lucky to come out of 

Munster. We had a tough game 

against Tipperary and we were 

lucky to get a draw against Limerick. 

In the replay we had a really 

good game. 

In the Munster final we really felt 

we didn’t play to the best of our 

ability. The players just didn’t 

perform on the day and we think 

we can be better than that. 

We have watched Tyrone through 

the championship and we know 

them from the colleges football. 

We also saw the Ulster final. Derry 

put up a good battle and I 

don’t think that Tyrone played to 

their full potential. What I do 

think is that they are a very fit 

time and have talent all across 

their team. It will make for a real 

battle. There are eight teams left 

though and we feel that we are 

good enough to be among them. 

John Kennedy his side have had 

a mediocre run during the Munster 

minor championship. A draw 

against Limerick and a hard 

fought win over Tipp in the run to 

the final does not inspire confidence. 

Bearing in mind that two 

of their first choice forwards are 

injured, Jamie Doolan and 

Patrick Curran, Sunday may be 

another hard slog for the Kingdom’s 

boys. 

Managers» HAVE YOUR SAY 

CATHAL McANENLY 

(TYRONE ASST MANAGER) 

Last weekend, all the boys came 

through their senior championships 

without incurring any injuries. 

When players have this 

many games then the main thing 

is avoiding injuries. In terms of 

the last game, they hype of that 

was totally media driven. The way 

we dealt with it was that we decided 

we would take the attitude 

that we were going to be playing 

Kerry. If we let all the hype affect 

us then we wouldn’t have been 

able to prepare right. 

At the end of the day we wanted 

prepare properly and we didn’t allow 

anything to affect us. We left 

everything outside the game in 

the hands of the officials and we 

took it that we were going to be 

playing Kerry. 

We were disappointed with the 

performance in the first half of 

the Ulster final. But the positives 

was that the boys in the second 

half upped their game. We knew 

the boys hadn’t performed to the 

best of their ability but they 

worked hard and hung on. 

We know that Kerry have a reputation. 

That is a big thing for a 

team of young boys but that is 

the way it is with every Kerry 

team. They have got real dedication. 

They were beaten in last 

year’s All-Ireland final and they 

will have some of those lads 

available for this game. It will be 

a very tough battle. In the Munster 

final they didn’t perform to 

the best of their ability. 

There is no safety net now and it 

will be a game that will go down 

to the wire.


MINOR 29 

ON THE REBOUND....Kerry minors will need to show reslience if they are to bounce back from 

their provincial final defeat by Cork. 

Brendan Moran / SPORTSFILE 



Laois v Roscommon 

Thurles (Saturday 2pm) 

THE story from Laois’ Leinster final 

victory over Carlow was 

Conor Meredith’s hat-trick of 

goals during their tight 3-8 to 1-12 

win. Carlow had never reached 

the provincial final stage before 

and the margin of defeat is indicative 

of how close the game 

was. 

Laois came out all guns blazing 

in the first half and had built up a 

nine point lead at the interval. 

Then in the second half Carlow 

fought back to leave only a point 

in it at the final whistle. Laois’ opponents 

Roscommon suffered the 

disappointment of losing to the 

Connacht final favourites Galway, 

2-7 to 0-9. The Rossies had never 

won back to back provincial titles 

and perhaps that pressure played 

a part in their loss. 

The loss of Paul Garvey, who 

was sent off 20 minutes from 

time, also had a huge effect on 

the game. 

So far they have earned a draw 

against Leitrim and won the replay 

then they improved greatly 

to defeat Mayo in the semi-final. 

They will have to regain that 

form if they are to have a chance 

of beating a fast paced Laois 

team. 

What 

Galway 

must worry 

about is the 

tenacity of 

this Carlow 

team. They 

were nine 

points 

behind 

against 

Laois but 

still kept 

plugging 

away 



Galway v Carlow 

Tullamore (Sunday 2pm) 

BUOYED up by their performance 

in the Connacht final against 

Roscommon, Galway are the form 

team at the moment. 

Even though Roscommon played 

with 14 men during the final quarter 

of the match, the tribe still deserve 

credit for the manner with 

which they took their opponents 

apart. 

Michael Martyn was their pivotal 

player in the final as he hit 2-2 to 

destroy Roscommon’s hope of 

winning back to back provincial 

titles. In their semi-final Galway 

despatched Sligo with consummate 

ease and so far look like 

very tough customers. 

Carlow are the relative minnows 

in this competition. They 

had never won a provincial title 

before they met Laois and very 

nearly broke their duck only 

missing out by a single point. 

What Galway must worry about is 

the tenacity of this Carlow team. 

They were nine points behind 

against Laois but still kept plugging 

away at their opponents. 

That fighting quality will be a 

very useful attribute to have 

when going in as underdogs 

against Galway. 

Two To Watch 

AIDAN GIRVAN (TYRONE) 

Any questions about Tyrone’s defence 

were answered in the Ulster championship. 

They didn’t have 

a great first half but 

they dug deep in the 

second and Derry only 

managed to score 

1-6. 

BARRY JOHN WALSH (KERRY) 

Scored 2-1 against Cork in the Munster final. 

Considering that Tyrone’s defence stepped 

their game up against Derry 

goals may be hard to 

come by. Tyrone will 

watch him like a hawk 

but he could provide 

the edge the Kingdom 

need.

30 HURLING 


Cork - the team to hate 

Cork. The new Dublin. The 

team that everyone loves to 

hate. Well in hurling terms 

at least, the Rebels seem to 

be losing fans with every game. 

It isn’t helped by the fact that 

on Sunday they are facing everyone’s 

favourite underdog for the 

fourth time this season, but Gerald 

McCarthy’s now customary 

post-match moans are also beginning 

to grate with many neutral 

supporters. 

Just a few years after the 

Rebels’ short passing movement 

revolutionised the game, Cork 

have become the 

JOHN 

MARTIN 

Rebels losing support of the 

neutral with constant moaning 

neutral’s enemy number one. 

They have already been beaten 

twice this year but are still 70 

minutes away from an All Ireland 

semi-final, but more likely 

any ill-felling towards them has 

more to do with the whinging of 

Mr McCarthy at every given opportunity. 

I’m all for managers 

sticking up for their players 

but for McCarthy 

to run 60-odd yards 

to have a go at referee 

Brian Gavin 

at the end of Sunday’s 

drawn game 

was simply out of order. 

His remarks in 

the post-match interview 

won him no 

friends either. At this 

point - before anyone else does – 

I’ll state that if his side lift the 

Liam McCarthy Cup in September, 

he won’t give a toss who is 

his friend or who isn’t. But is 

that the point 

Remonstrating with a referee 

in the heat of the moment is one 

thing, but McCarthy’s rant continued 

into his post-match television 

interview. 

The cause of his ire 

was 

Gavin’s decision to award a 

last-minute free to Waterford 

that effectively sealed a draw. 

From where McCarthy was 

standing, could he even have 

seen it properly It was a free 

to Waterford, Donal Óg Cusack 

killed the ball by throwing himself 

on top of it. End of story. Mc- 

Carthy is a passionate man and 

anyone can get caught up in the 

heat of battle. But he is also the 

manager of the one of the top 

three sides in the country and 

Sunday’s incident was hardly an 

isolated one. 

He has sounded 

off a number of times after the 

Semplegate affair, and also felt 

he was entitled to make a personal 

phone-call to Nickey Brennan 

which ended after the President 

put the phone down. 

The players got in on the act 

with their post-Semplegate 

statement which used 

the fact that there 

was no one there 

to stop players 

fighting as justification 

for the 

pre-match 

scuffle. Then 

there was the 

half-hearted 

objections to 

Sean Og 

hAilpin, Cork, 

handpasses the 

sliothar away 

as John Mullane, 

Waterford, 

challenges


the qualifier games not being 

played in neutral venues – but 

only after they lost the Munster 

semi-final of course. 

At the start of the season, virtually 

every neutral would be 

backing Waterford against Cork 

anyway, but 31 counties will now 

be behind Justin McCarthy’s side 

this Sunday. 

As for the game itself, it is another 

that will go down to the 

wire. Every time Waterford play 

Cork they earn an extra stripe or 

two, something to mentally latch 

on to when the chips are down, 

the eradication of some lingering 

doubt that lurked in the back of 

their minds prior to throw-in. 

Every time Waterford play 

Cork they earn an extra 

stripe or two, something 

to mentally latch onto 

when the chips are down, 

the eradication of some 

lingering doubt... 

For Cork, the reverse is true. If 

any psychological advantage was 

held virtue of the Croke Park 

venue, it’s now gone. Waterford’s 

mental fragility of the last number 

of seasons seems to be a 

thing of the past. They also 

showed on Sunday that they are 

not a one-man team and if anything 

they didn’t use Dan Shanahan 

anywhere near enough. 

Waterford did start to panic 

for about 10 minutes when Cork 

scored their third goal, but the 

fact that they came back to get a 

draw must be another demon put 

to rest. 

Cork on the other hand lost a 

four-point lead in the final minutes 

of a championship game, 

and when was the last time that 

happened They will also be disappointed 

at the amount of 50-50 

ball they lost and Gerald Mc- 

Carthy will be demanding an improvement 

on that score. He will 

also know that his side could still 

have won the game, despite not 

dominating any sector of the 

pitch. It adds up to another classic 

game this weekend between 

two Munster giants, and it is one 

which Waterford can win if they 

avoid pressing the panic button 

in a close contest. The evidence 

of last Sunday says they can. 

There is of course two senior 

games at Croke this week, with 

the Kilkenny v Wexford semi-final 

acting as curtain-raiser to 

the Cork-Waterford game. 

The GAA hierarchy must be 

delighted to be able to put on a 

triple-header, especially as Wexford 

and Kilkenny are unlikely to 

bring big support. Despite Wexford 

giving us a genuine hurling 

championship shock last weekend, 

there’s very little chance of 

them overturning the Leinster final 

result against Kilkenny, who 

were their clinical selves against 

Galway. 

The timing of the replay is unfortunate 

for the hurlers of Kildare 

and Westmeath however 

who will now not play in a live 

televised game in the Christy 

Ring Cup final. 

In that game, Westmeath 

should have too much strengthin-depth 

for the Lilywhites, although 

it should be a closer 

event than last year’s landslide 

win for Antrim over Carlow. 

HANDS UP... Antrim’s Joey Scullion in action against Kildare during last 

year’s Christy Ring Cup semi-final 

THE Ulster club hurling 

league continues to stagger 

towards its conclusion 

with the finals set 

for the original date of 

September 8. 

All final pairings were 

due to be decided by last 

weekend, but inevitably 

with a tertiary competition, 

re-fixes have had to 

be accommodated 

throughout, as well as a 

replayed Division 1 

quarter-final between St 

Galls and Ballygalget. 

Division 1 is now 

down to the last four 

teams with Dunloy facing 

Ballycastle and 

Loughgiel taking on 

Portaferry in the top 

flight semi-finals. 

In Division 2, Slaughtneil 

face Lámh Dhearg 

and Middletown await 

the winners of the Burt 

v St Pauls clash. 

In Division 3, one of 

the finalists is known, 

with Tír na nÓg seeing 

off Eoghan Roes, Coleraine 

in the first semifinal 

in a cracking game. 

Setanta must face 

Newry Shamrocks in 

the second semi-final to 

decide who face the Randalstown 

men. 

The final pair in Division 

4 has already been 

decided, with St Enda’s 

taking on St Brigid’s, 

Cloughmills. 

Both these sides have 

aspirations in this year’s 

Antrim intermediate 

championship and 

should provide a close 

game. 

The Division 5 final is 

set for August 25 when 

All Saints, Ballymena 

will take on Donegal’s 

Four Masters. 

The Division 1 semi-finals 

should be interesting 

encounters and will 

depend a lot on how the 

respective sides are faring 

in the county championships. 

Dunloy on present 

form will be overwhelm- 

HURLING 31 

Kildare ready for Christy Ring 

final clash against Westmeath 

Dorney sees 

bright future 

BEN Dorney cut a forlorn figure after the 

2006 Christy Ring Cup semi-final. Antrim 

had just beaten Kildare by 21 points and 

the new Lilywhites manager wondered 

what he had gotten himself into. 

The Cork native praised Antrim’s movement, 

their ability to take scores, and held 

the Saffrons up as a side that Kildare need 

to aspire to. 

“The way Antrim played today, that’s the 

way I played hurling. They moved the ball 

on quickly, they thought fast and played 

fast. That’s what we need to be doing,” said 

Dorney after the game. 

Twelve months on and his 

side have gone at least one 

better than last year. On Sunday 

they face Westmeath in 

Christy Ring Cup final in the 

first game of a triple-header 

at Croke Park. 

Now a clubman of St Vincents, 

Dublin, Dorney insists 

this Kildare side have made 

progress as they face into a 

first ever Ring Cup decider. 

“There’s no doubt we’ve 

come on this year. In the first 

year as manager, you are 

getting to know players and 

they are getting to know 

you,” Dorney said. 

“How far we’ve come, Sunday 

will tell us a lot about that really. We 

have played well, not all the time, but our 

more impressive performances were our 

more battling ones, especially against 

Wicklow in the second-half which was a door-die 

game. 

“And again in the semi-final against 

Meath was a very tough encounter in difficult 

conditions and that day we battled superbly 

in the second-half.” 

Kildare have taken advantage of the rule 

that allows three players from top tier 

counties to transfer with Tipp players 

David Kennedy, Paddy O’Brien and Ronan 

Tynan all lining out for the Lilywhites. 

Dorney stresses that the influx of the 

Premier men is not the sole reason for this 

season’s success, although admits that having 

two members of the 2001 All-Ireland 

winning side in his ranks (Kennedy and 

O’Brien) has bolstered the squad. 

“They have strengthened the panel and 

have a wealth of experience which is always 

good when you are going into a big 

occasion in Croke Park,” said Dorney. 

“Having played club hurling in Tipperary, 

these fellas are coming with a cuteness 

about them that is very important but 

that’s not to say that there isn’t plenty of 

guile and craft in the Kildare lads as well.” 

Kildare hurling manager 

Ben Dorney 

Their performances in the Christy Ring 

Cup back that up. Paudie Reidy and David 

Harney in the back line, who both play 

their club hurling with Buffer’s Alley in 

Wexford, and Billy White in midfield have 

been three players who deserve a big day 

out in Croke Park at the very least. 

Dorney believes Kildare can have a 

bright future ahead if the proper underage 

structures are put in place. He has been involved 

with Cumann na mBunscol in 

Dublin, as well with coaching underage 

with St Vincents, and so has an insight into 

the underage structures in both counties. 

“I watched the Kildare under-21 

team play Dublin in the 

quarter-final of the Leinster 

championship. I know at least 

six of the Dublin team as I 

would have coached myself in 

the past at my own club or at 

school,” he said. 

“I said at the start of the 

year that Dublin could win 

the All-Ireland under-21 title 

this year. Kildare played superb 

hurling that night and 

missed five or six frees that 

should have been scored. 

“I see a wealth of young 

lads in Kildare that are very 

talented and very capable. 

“Recently I was watching young lads 

hurling in Celbridge and the skill and ability 

of those lads was second to none. I was 

also recently down at one of the famous 

clubs in Cork and their under-11s were out 

training on the Saturday morning and I can 

assure you that the lads in Celbridge were 

every bit as skilful and were doing maybe 

even higher quality work than those in 

Cork. 

“I see no reason why there cannot be underage 

development in Kildare, but it needs 

the right people on board, quality coaches 

and people with drive and initiative.” 

At the minute he is not looking past a national 

final in Croke Park on Sunday. Westmeath, 

winners in 2005 will be favourites, 

and their Liam McCarthy Cup experience 

of last year will stand to them. 

“We haven’t sampled that type of hurling. 

Players like John Shaw, Andrew 

Mitchell, Darren McCormack and Brendan 

Murtagh are all vastly experienced,” Dorney 

said. 

He added: “The lads are looking forward 

to it but at the same time we are under no 

illusions. Although we played well against 

Meath, we would have to step up on that 

performance if we are to consider giving 

Westmeath a serious game.” 

Still much to be decided in Ulster club leagues 

ing favourites to reach 

the final, but are also flying 

high in the group 

stages of the Antrim 

senior championship. 

Ballycastle struggled 

against Cushendall and 

should they not 

progress from their 

championship group 

will have more to play 

for on this stage than 

Dunloy – although the 

gap between the two 

sides still seems a 

bridge too far for this developing 

McQuillans 

side. 

Loughgiel beat Ballygalget 

well when they 

met in the Antrim 

league, although that 

has been the Down’s 

side’s only loss, however 

the Shamrocks will still 

carry the favourite’s tag. 

Meanwhile the All-Ireland 

under-21 semi-final 

between Dublin and the 

Ulster champions has 

been set for Newry on 

Saturday week.

32 CAMOGIE/HANDBALL 


Handball 

Finnegan 

fails to 

reach 

softball 

last eight 

CAVAN’S Michael Finnegan failed 

in his bid to reach the M Donnelly 

All-Ireland Senior Softball quarter 

Finals when he bowed out of 

the competition at the weekend. 

He lost out to Mayo’s Vinne 

Moran in what was the closest 

battle of the championship to 

date. 

Moran took the first game 21-18, 

with Finnegan regaining composure 

in the second to record a 21- 

19 win. After a nail-biting third 

game, a 21-19 finish eventually 

saw the Mayo man book a quarter-final 

meeting with fellow clubman, 

Dessie Keegan. 

After his win over Finnegan, 

Moran will now take on his fellow 

clubman, Dessie Keegan in the 

last eight. 

Wicklow’s Michael Gregan has 

knocked last year’s beaten finalist, 

Tom Sheridan out of the 2007 

Senior Softball title race. Sheridan 

and Gregan played the first of 

the quarter-finals in Garryhill on 

Friday night. 

Gregan dominated the opening 

exchanges and took the first game 

21-14, but the Meath stalwart 

bounced back to claim a 21-10 victory 

in the second. 

The tie-breaker produced some 

top-class handball, but the fitness 

of the 24-year-old Coolboy player 

told as he powered home with a 

21-10 win in the third game. 

The second quarter-final at the 

Carlow venue saw 16-time champion, 

Kilkenny’s Michael ‘Ducksy’ 

Walsh record an emphatic win 

over last year’s U-21 champion, 

Tipperary’s Ger Coonan. 

The match between defending 

champion, Eoin Kennedy of 

Dublin and Mayo’s Joe McCann 

was postponed due to a 

family death. 

In what was the 

closest battle of the 

senior championship 

so far, Moran 

took the first game 21- 

18, with Finnegan regaining 

composure in 

the second to record a 

21-19 win. After a nailbiting 

third game, a 21-19 

finish eventually saw the 

Mayo man book a quarter-final 

meeting with 

fellow clubman, Dessie 

Keegan. 

Those games in the senior singles 

took place earlier this week 

when Eoin Kennedy comfortably 

defeated Joe McCann of Mayo. He 

won the first game 21-3 and was 

equally impressive in winning the 

second 21-5. 

Things were a little bit tighter 

in the club clash between Keegan 

and Moran. Keegan won the first 

by 21-7, before losing the second 

14-21 and then coming good in the 

third by 21-6. 

The 60x30 All-Ireland semi-finals 

are down for decision on the 

weekends of August 18-19 and August 

25-26, with the deciders taking 

place at the beginning of September. 

Derry determined to 

defend U-16 crown 

Manager McCloskey expects tough challenge from Waterford 



CONFIDENCE is high among the 

Derry U-16 camogie team this weekend 

as they get set to complete the 

defence of their All-Ireland title 

against Waterford in the decider. 

It’s a repeat of last year’s semi-final 

which also saw the young side come 

through. And, hopes are high that a 

further win this time around will 

once again emphasis the strength of 

the game in Ulster. 

Nine clubs are represented on the 

panel which will head for Parnell 

Park in Dublin. They are Greenlough, 

Na Maigha, Kilrea, Ballinascreen, 

Dungiven, Drumsurn, Slaughtneill, 

Glen and Bellaghy and the side is 

managed by Na Maigha member, 

Donna McCloskey. 

She is a former Portglenone and 

Antrim player and is hopeful that a 

fairly tough campaign will stand to 

them against their Munster opponents. 

“We beat them last year, but their 

preparations were all wrong because 

they only arrived at the ground half 

an hour before the throw-in and following 

a long trip,” she said. 

“As a result, we’re expecting them 

to be a lot better organised this time 

around and far tougher opponents. 

But it would be great to win the title 

again. 

“It’s all about building confidence 

at this level and I think the girls are 

improving steadily. We’re aiming for 

the top grade and there’s no doubt 

that they’re capable of achieving that 

in the future. 

“Armagh and Down were in our 

group in the Ulster Championship 

and I think the standard of youth 

camogie overall in the province is improving. 

Those two teams are hard to 

beat and then you’ve Antrim as well,” 

she added. 

Many of the panel which were involved 

in 2006 are still on board with 

the usual sprinkling of new players. 

They scored a very comprehensive 

win over Kildare last 

weekend 

when 

good displays 

from Eimear 

Mullan, Keelin 

Bradley 

Under 16B captains, Aine Kelly, Derry, left, and Patricia Jackman, Waterford, at a photocall ahead of the All-Ireland Under 

16A Camogie Championship Final and the All-Ireland Under 16B Camogie Championship Final. Croke Park, Dublin. Caroline 

Quinn / SPORTSFILE 

and Emma Mullaly were a big help. 

Recent seasons have seen both 

Derry and Waterford show definite 

signs of improvement at all levels. 

Derry, in particular, have enjoyed 

some notable schools success which 

are contributing to the competitiveness 

of this team. 

“The work of those in the schools is 

always important and St Mary’s 

Magherafelt would be a great boost 

for us. They won the All-Ireland Colleges 

this year and some of the players 

from that team are involved in the 

county side,” added Donna Mc- 

Closkey. 

“We’ve got about ten players 

from last year’s team on board and 

the experience of that win is going 

to be important as well. 

“The players who were there last 

year know all about what it takes to 

win the All-Ireland and the new ones 

are keen and hungry to repeat the 

feat. 

“But the most important 

thing is that we keep them 

Emma McKenna, Monaghan. 2007 Coillte U14 

Camogie Development Squads tournament, Croke 

Park, Dublin 

grounded and focused on the game itself. 

At the end of the day, you have to 

go out on the field and show that 

you’re capable of winning and that’s 

our big task against Waterford. 

“It’s great to be involved with a side 

like this, even though I’m from 

Antrim originally. Briege McGilligan 

encouraged me to come on board and 

I suppose I haven’t look back since.” 

Combined with the success of the 

NewsBriefs 

Antrim and 

Down ready 

The Antrim and Down 

teams are currently putting 

the finishing touches 

to their preparations 

ahead of the All-Ireland 

Minor Final. 

They will meet in the decider 

next weekend. 

Derry progress 

A total of 3-3 from 

Sinead Cassidy and 1-3 

from Paula McAtamney 

saw Derry confidently 

dispose of the Antrim 

challenge in last weekend’s 

All-Ireland Junior 

semi-final. The decider 

will now take place at 

Croke Park on September 

9. 

Derry seniors last weekend in their 

All-Ireland Junior semi-final against 

Antrim, these are fairly encouraging 

times for camogie in the county. 

Now they will be aiming to take 

that final step towards All-Ireland 

glory on two fronts. And, more of the 

same produced against Kildare 

should stand to the Juvenile team as 

they attempt to make their mark 

once again. 

Adams to star 

Antrim All-Star Jane 

Adams will represent Ulster 

in this years 'Poc Fada' 

All-Ireland Championships. 

The Rossa and Antrim 

precision pucker will 

compete with the country's 

provincial big hitters 

in the Cooley Mountains 

on August 4.


COUNTY FOCUS 33 

AntrimView » THE COUNTY LINE 

» BLUFFER’S GUIDE TO... ARDOYNE KICKHAMS 

So where is it 

The Kickhams clubrooms are on 

Flax Street, north Belfast. Exit 

the Westlink at Clifton Street, 

drive up the Crumlin Road, take 

a right up the Oldpark Road and 

then left down Ardoyne Avenue. 

Take a left onto Flax Street and 

the clubrooms are on the left 

hand side. 

So have they won anything of 

note 

It is a long time since Ardoyne 

were among the top football 

sides in the county. They have to 

go back to 1937 for their last senior 

title, having won it for the 

first time in 1932. An intermediate 

title came in 1985 and they 

have also won junior titles in 

1993 and in 2006. On the hurling 

field, junior success has been the 

order of the day with a title in 

1987. The camogs were Antrim 

senior champions in 1982. Handball 

has seen a revival in the club 

at underage level in recent 

years, with the under-14 team 

winning the Antrim Féile in 2005, 

while Sean Clarke, Aaron Burns 

and Marin McGeough have won 

provincial gongs. 

Players of note, 

past or present 

Gerry Cullen is generally recognised 

as the greatest footballer 

to pull on the Ardoyne shirt, 

coming to the Kickhams via 

Philadelphia and Cavan. He 

played for Antrim and Ulster although 

always cited his greatest 

achievement as leading Ardoyne’s 

hurlers out in the one 

year that the club played senior 

hurling back in the 30s. Brothers 

Harry and Tommy Maguire 

played football for the county, 

while Paddy Dobbin lined out for 

the hurlers. Camog Liz Gibson 

played for Antrim and Ulster at 

senior level. The club has supplied 

a string of underage county 

players such as Alex Trainor, 

Frank Clarke and Kevin 

McLaughlin and more recently 

minors Jim Óg McAuley, Conor 

Copeland and Martin Jones. 

Characters round the club 

Perhaps the club’s most famous 

character has now passed on to 

the great camogie/hurling/football 

pitch in the sky. Mrs Kathleen 

McAleer, known affectionately 

throughout the county as 

‘Mrs Mac’ was an ever present at 

the Kickhams games in all codes 

for many years. She always ensured 

through some constructive 

sideline criticism that referees 

would be left in no doubt as to 

the correct interpretation of the 

rules. The current club president 

Jimmy Fennell played on the 

winning championship sides of 

the 30s although the younger 

generation also has its characters 

with the likes of Gerard 

Frame and Brendan Mailey ensuring 

that training sessions are 

never boring affairs. 

What’s the set-up like 

The clubrooms at Flax Street 

contain changing rooms, a handball 

court, minor rooms as well 

as a bar and upstairs function 

room. The club have never had a 

pitch to call their own, playing at 

various venues over the years 

including Ballysillan and 

Cliftonville. They currently 

play their games at the City 

of Belfast Playing Fields at 

Mallusk but earlier this 

year got the go-ahead for a 

new pitch and changing 

facilities on the 

Cliftonville Road in partnership 

with local primary 

school Bunscoil 

Beann Madagháin and 

Belfast City Council. 

STAR PERFORMER 

SEAN MCGREEVY, ST PAULS V CARGIN 

Senior football championship favourites Cargin went 

into this opening round game full of confidence after 

their thrashing of St Paul’s earlier in the league. 

However the Shaws Road men had found form in their 

recent outings and have a few experienced 

campaigners capable of rising to the occasion, and 

certainly both Anto Finnegan and Joe Quinn did just 

that. But in what was a drab and low-scoring 

encounter (St Pauls won 1-4 to 0-6), Sean McGreevy 

pulled off two first class saves without 

which the Belfast side would be out of the 

senior championship. 

Saffrons 

all set for 

Croker 

THE Antrim CCC has been sticking 

to the will of the clubs this season by 

keeping as rigidly as possible to the 

original fixture list. 

This means that county activity has 

had very little bearing on the club 

leagues and championships, and also 

meant a heavy schedule for some minors, 

dual club players, and county 

players. 

The Tommy Murphy Cup final is 

the focus of the Gaels of the county 

this week and manager Jody Gormley 

has made two personnel and a 

number of positional changes for the 

clash against Wicklow at Croke Park. 

Conor McGoldrick loses out in the 

back line to be replaced by Justin 

Crozier who starts in left half-back 

with Paul Close moving to corner 

back. 

Sean Kelly moves from corner-back 

to half back. Aodhan Gallagher 

comes in at half-forward for Sean 

McVeigh and Cargin’s Michael Mc- 

Cann replaces Mark Dougan in the 

full forward line. 

There are a number of hurling 

championship games with the biggest 

clash the meeting of St Johns and 

Rossa on Sunday at Corrigan Park in 

Group Two. If games go to form, one 

of these two sides will join Dunloy, 

Cushendall and Loughgiel in the semi-finals 

so this should be a keenlycontested 

game. 

The sides served up a great game 

in the league which ended all square. 

Gort na Móna host Cushendall in the 

other Group Two game this week 

when champions Ruairí Ógs should 

continue their progress. 

Four of the favourites in the intermediate 

hurling championship are also 

in action on Sunday. Glenarm face 

Clooney Gaels and Randalstown face 

Cushendun in what is the tightest 

competition for many years. 

» GAME OF THE WEEK... 

ANTRIM V WICKLOW, 

Tommy Murphy Cup 

final, Croke Park, 

Saturday, 12.15pm 

It’s been 18 years since 

Antrim’s senior 

footballers last played in 

Croke Park. That was 

against Kerry in the 

1989 league quarterfinal 

and there will be 

Kingdom ‘opposition’ on 

the field tomorrow too. 

The wily Mick O’Dwyer 

will have his side welldrilled 

and well-fired up 

for a national final like 

only he can. Jody 

Gormley also knows a 

thing or two about the 

big stage and will be 

happy that Wicklow 

carry the favourite’s tag 

in tomorrow’s game. 

Antrim have found a new 

confidence after a 

disastrous Ulster 

championship quarterfinal 

against Derry and 

against Clare in 

particular, played a 

brand of football that 

was a world away from 

Casement Park in June 

against the Oak Leafers. 

Derry of course are now 

in an All-Ireland quarterfinal 

while Clare had 

been beaten by 

Waterford in the 

Munster championship. 

Wicklow however will 

hold no fears, and the 

Saffrons can just edge it 

and bring back their 

first silverware since the 

B Championship in 1999. 

CROKER BOUND...Justin Crozier will start at left half-back in the Tommy Murphy Cup final

34 COUNTY FOCUS 


ArmaghView » THE COUNTY LINE 

Final date for 

Whitecross 

TWO clubs beaten in recent 

county finals have 

been given a chance to 

make amends. 

Whitecross who lost 

the 2005 Intermediate final 

to Granemore are 

back in the big day after 

seeing off favourites St 

Patrick’s with an injury 

time goal at Silverbridge 

on Sunday night. They 

play Cullaville in the final 

on August 26. 

And Collegeland defeated 

in last year’s Junior 

final by An Port Mor 

are also back in the decider 

following their semi-final 

victory over Derrynoose 

and now face 

Clady on August 12 

Whitecross, one of the 

first clubs in the county to 

be affiliated were trailing 

by a point in time added 

on when substitute Colm 

O’ Hanlon, who had already 

bagged a goal 

found himself on a one-toone 

with the keeper. 

A point would have 

earned his team another 

day out but he went for 

glory. The net rattled and 

the favourites were gone. 

Former Armagh and 

Carrickcruppin star Jim 

Loughran is in charge of 

St Killian’s, assisted by 

his fellow Carrickcruppin 

clubman, Paul Carroll and 

has been around football 

long enough to know 

nothing has been won yet. 

Both finalists have a lot 

in common, and have already 

met twice in the 

A.H.S. 

The Hire Specialists 

OPENING HOURS 

premier league this season 

with honours shared. 

Whitecross were promoted 

to the top Division 

last year for the first time 

ever and maintained their 

new found status whilst 

this year saw the return 

of Cullaville following a 

lapse of six years. 

Collegeland had a goal 

to spare over Derrynoose 

in Ballymacnab, the incisive 

strike coming from 

Mickey Cullen in the first 

half. 

In keeping with a 

strong family tradition, 

the O’ Rahilly’s have nine 

McGeary’s on the panel. 

When the club won the 

junior and minor championship 

in 1956 and the 

senior in 1961 there were 

seven McGeary’s and 

when they collected the 

junior again in 1988 and 

the intermediate two 

years later that remarkable 

strong family tie was 

again evident. 

Former county player 

Leo McGeary, who played 

on the ’88 and ’90 championship 

winning teams 

lined out at full-forward 

last Sunday night, aged 

42. 

This year Collegeland 

are managed by former 

Tyrone star Joe Mallon, 

who two years ago led 

nearby club Clonmore to 

their first ever championship 

success, winning 

the JFC but lost the Ulster 

final to Monaghan 

Harps. 

Monday — Friday — 7.30 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Saturday: 7.30 a.m. to 2.30 p.m. 

FULL RANGE OF NEW 

EQUIPMENT 

NOW AVAILABLE TO HIRE 

ARMAGH HIRE SERVICES 

52, Killylea Road, Armagh BT60 4LD 

Tel: 028 37527333 

MAKING PROGRESS... Maebh Moriarty is happy to be back playing 

COUNTY hurling manager 

Mattie Lennon’s dream 

of an All-Ireland double 

vanished at Tullamore 

last Saturday as his side 

went down by the narrowest 

of margins to Kerry in 

the All-Ireland ‘B’ semi-final, 

1-13 to 1-12. 

Senior players Declan 

Coulter and Ryan Gaffney 

did most of the scoring, 

Coulter hitting six points 

from play and Gaffney 

driving over five frees. 

But it was John Corvan’s 

goal just before the 

break that steadied the 

Orchard ship after the 

Kingdom had worked up 

a 1-8 to 0-5 advantage. 

Kerry consolidated 

their lead on the turnover 

and were 1-13 to 1-8 ahead 

LAST year a young talented Armagh 

ladies footballer saw her 

sporting world collapse all around 

her when she broke her leg playing 

in a league game against Cork. 

Sidelined for six months, Maebh 

Moriarty missed out on the Orchard’s 

glory year as they reached 

an All-Ireland final at their very 

first attempt. So far, 2007 has compensated 

her well for a period she 

simply wants to forget. 

The daughter of former All-star 

Paddy Moriarty, Maebh was a 

member of this year team’s that 

successfully defended their Ulster 

title against Tyrone and also played 

a leading role in last Saturday’s victory 

over Meath which assures Armagh 

a place in the All-Ireland 

quarter-finals. 

Indeed it was Maebh’s switch to 

midfield, where the team had been 

struggling that pulled the game out 

of the fire. 

“It’s great to be back but it’s a big 

step up from what I’ve been used 

to,” confessed Maebh, one of six 

Clann Eireann players on the team. 

“I’d been playing in the junior 

championship and having missed 

out last year this is my first year in 

senior grade, but I’m taking it in 

my stride, it’s grand.” 

Armagh came with a late 

rally to defeat the Royals by 

two points but Meabh feels 

the competition is so tight 

that there’ll be few, if any 

big winning margins. 

“It was a tough 

game, went right 

down to the wire and 

that’s what it’s going 

to be. Results will be 

close; it will be all down 

to those wee breaks of the 

ball and with a bit of luck, 

that’s what will make the 

difference at the end of the day. 

“Some of the girls may have felt 

they underperformed but at the 

end of the day we grinded out a result, 

which is the most important 

thing. I felt comfortable enough being 

switched, I’ve played midfield 

entering the final quarter. 

But they failed to score 

again, hit by a splendid 

Northern rally, Coulter 

raising three white flags 

before time ran out. 

The second part of 

Lennon’s dream is still 

very much 

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Meabh makes 

big strides 

with my club. Anywhere you’re put 

you are going to play your hardest. 

Our main aim starting the game 

was to qualify for the quarter-finals 

and we have achieved that. We take 

every game a step at a time,” she 

said. 

Despite being three points adrift 

in the second half Maebh always 

believed Armagh would win the 

game. 

“We just have that belief that we 

are going to win. When things go 

against us we never do think that 

we are going to lose, you probably 

have to have that mentality anyway. 

You have to have the belief 

that you can beat the best. The Armagh 

set-up believes they can beat 

anybody, but that’s the way any 

team has to believe to prepare for 

the championship,” she said. 

Armagh take on neighbours 

Down this Sunday in Killeavy, in 

the last of their three Round Robin 

All-Ireland Championship matches, 

with a quarter-final spot already 

secured. 

Killeavy is the home sod of 

Aileen Matthews, scorer of eight 

points in Clones last Saturday as 

the Orchard struggled to a 0-12 to 0- 

10 victory against Meath. The Royals 

were denied victory in the final 

minute when Katie O’Brien’s goalbound 

shot thundering off the 

crossbar. 

However, the Ulster champions 

will feel happy enough seeing off 

Kildare and Meath without playing 

anywhere near to their full potential. 

Indeed it took goals from Mags 

McAlinden and Mairead Tennyson 

to overcome a stiff challenge from 

the Lilly Whites in Newbridge. 

It’s unlikely that Armagh will 

take anything for granted against 

their old rivals and will be anxious 

to keep their 100 percent record in 

the competition intact. 

Mags McAlinden who injured an 

ankle at the start of the Meath 

game may sit this one out as a precautionary 

measure. 

Lennon’s double dreams ended by Kerry 

alive with his senior 

squad heading to Croke 

Park on August 11 

determined to return 

home with 

the Nicky Rackard 

Cup. 

ON SONG... 

Armagh’s 

Declan 

Coulter 

Crossmaglen


CavanView » THE COUNTY LINE 



Replays 

GERALD PIERSON 

GOWNA v Cavan Gaels 

Form may be temporary but class is 

permanent and as if to prove the theory, 

county star Gerald Pierson shone 

as his club Gowna denied SFC 

favourites Cavan Gaels an opening 

round win last Sunday evening at 

Kingspan/Breffni Park. 

A last-minute point by Pierson salvaged 

a deserved 1-8 to 1-8 draw for 

long-time leaders Gowna after they 

managed to surrender a seven point interval 

lead before countering with 

their last-gasp leveller. 

Pierson was at his mercurial best in 

notching 1-4 over the 60 minutes plus 

and was his team's key figure as they 

almost hatched a major surprise. 

The corner forward's goal propelled 

Gowna into a handsome 1-4 to 0-2 lead 

and things got even better for them 

with a point apiece from Dermot Mc- 

Cabe (free) and Pierson leaving Cavan 

Gaels seven adrift at half-time. 

The Gaels, spurred on by substitute 

Micheal Lyng, came roaring back to 

nick a 1-8 to 1-7 lead with three minutes 

left to play. 

But man of the match Pierson came 

good again with a coolly-taken point to 

make it all-square for the final time in 

the game. 

boost 

county 

coffers 

Fans return to games after 

championship revamp 

MERCURIAL TALENT...Gerald Pierson was on song for Gowna 

AMAZINGLY, of the twelve championship 

ties down for decision 

last weekend, five of them ended 

in draws. 

Long-time county board treasurer 

Tom Boylan must have been 

pretty happy with the income received 

after so many of the championship 

first round contests ended 

in stalemate. 

Some bumper attendances can 

be expected once again this weekend 

with another group of quality 

matches on offer in four different 

venues; Ballyhaise, Bailieboro, 

Drumalee and Kingspan/Breffni 

Park. 

Cavan GAA has been investing 

a lot of money in recent years 

with regard to the appointment of 

new coaches so the money taken 

in from the replays of the first 

round championship matches will 

go a bit towards filling up the coffers. 

The fact is, unfortunately, that 

attendances at club level in Cavan 

have declined in recent years and 

so a greater levy is put on the 

clubs by the county board to 

make sure investment levels in 

Gaelic football and hurling coaching 

continues. 

The biggest earner this weekend 

for the county board is likely 

to be replay between Gowna and 

match favourites Cavan Geals 

who will cross swords at 

Kingspan/Breffni Park on Sunday 

next. 

However the county town side 

is traditionally not very well supported 

and Gowna's 'pick' is one 

of the smallest in the county. 

Given the fact that most GAA 

enthusiasts believe that Cavan 

Gaels are the team to beat in this 

year's SFC, a reasonably-sized 

crowd should turn out at headquarters 

to see what unfolds in 

the replay. Elsewhere, the SFC replays 

between Kingscourt and 

Cuchullains and Castlerahan and 

Crosserlough will also prove interesting 

even if the ties haven't 

captured the fans' imagination. 

The change in the format of the 

championship has increased interest 

in the SFC, IFC and JFC despite 

the fact that the creation of 

a losers' group has provided a 

safety net akin to the backdoor 

system which colours the All-Ireland 

SFC race. 

» BLUFFER’S GUIDE TO...MULLAHORAN DREADNOUGHTS GAA » GAME OF THE WEEK 

So where is it 

Our Lady of Lourdes Park is 

located in the south-west of 

the county, just a handful of 

miles inside the Longford 

border. Getting there is 

straight forward with a 

straight run on the N55 from 

Cavan town to the town of 

Ballinagh and then on directly 

for Longford. Mullahoran's 

HQ is just about 

three miles the Longford 

side of Killydoon village 

which is right alongside the 

main Longford road. 

So have they won 

anything of note 

After losing the 2003, 2004 

and 2005 SFC finals to Cavan 

Gaels, Mullahoran Dreadnoughts 

lived up to their 

name and fearlessly bagged 

the 2006 blue riband title 

against, you've guessed it, 

Cavan Gaels. For good 

measure, the club also won 

the Cavan SHC title last 

year. A lot of their success 

in recent years can be 

traced back to their back-toback 

under 21 county title 

wins in 1998 and '99. The 

club's halcyon days at senior 

level were in the 'forties 

when they scooped four SFC 

titles. Prior to last year, the 

club hadn't won a SFC title 

since 1988 and, before that, 

1963. 

What about county players 

Mullahoran Dreadnoughts 

is one of the oldest GAA 

clubs in Cavan having been 

founded in 1888 and affiliated 

to the county board the 

same year by Patrick Harten 

who was was the club's first 

secretary and team captain. 

Over the years a great number 

of players have worn the 

Cavan senior jersey with 

distinction. The great 'Gunner' 

Brady was one of the 

club's early stars while John 

P.Wilson, Brian Reilly, Val 

Gannon and Fr. Dan 

Danagher were all on the famous 

1947 All-Ireland SFC 

winning squad in the Polo 

Grounds. In more recent 

times, stars such as Gerry 

Sheridan, Vivian Dowd and 

Paul Brady (World Handball 

Champion) have led the line 

for the club on 

the intercounty 

stage. 

What 

are the 

grounds 

like 

The Mullahoran 

club's 

headquarters 

has metamophosised 

into one of the best grounds 

in the county over the last 

five years. 

Last year the new state-ofthe-art 

facilities were officially 

opened, the culmination 

of some €500,000 euros 

of investment at the Our Lady 

of Lourdes. New changing 

rooms, meeting room 

and indoor training facilities 

have been complemented by 

top-quality floodlights. 

Last year Mullahoran's 

ground hosted Sigerson Cup 

matches. The ground is 

completely enclosed, has 

an electronic scoreboard 

and a fine 

covered stand at 

the entrance side of 

the pitch. 

CLUB 

FINEST..Paul 

Brady 

IN FROM THE START...Michael Lyng 

CAVAN GAELS V GOWNA 

(Sunday, August 6th, 7pm) 

The biggest crowd at championship 

matches this 

weekend will be 

at headquarters 

when Cavan 

Gaels and Gowna 

cross swords 

in their SFC 

opening round 

replay. 

These sides 

have a fair bit of 

history with the 

Gaels stopping 

Gowna's threein-a-row 

bid by 

winning the blue 

riband title in 

2001 but then 

Gowna turned 

the tables on the 

county town 

side the following year. 

Without US-based countyman Sean 

Johnston, the Gaels looked a tad 

short of inventiveness and cuteness 

up front in the drawn game 

and the blues may well give a starting 

place to former Railway Cup 

player Micheal 

Lyng who surprisingly 

warmed the 

bench for the 

first half before 

coming on and 

scoring two crucial 

points. 

Much will also 

depend on who 

comes out on 

top in the headto-head 

between 

county colleagues 

Gerald 

Pierson (Gowna) 

and his marker 

Anthony Forde. 

Pierson stole the 

show last Sunday 

and needed to with Cavan captain 

Mark McKeever, failing to 

score from his centre-half forward 

berth in an unusually quiet display.

36 FEATURE 


Part 2: The unavailability of 

county players can cause real 

headaches for top club sides 

Absence of 

idols can 

leave club 

players idle 



Vital matches crushed into a 

short space of time have become 

part of the annual cycle 

for the ordinary GAA 

player in many of the most successful 

counties. 

It’s a familiar story of spending 

summer weekends playing 

largely meaningless league 

games before the main action of 

the season finally 

gets underway when 

St Patrick’s Day 

is an impractical 

date for holding 

an All-Ireland 

Club final 

the race for intercounty 

glory ends. 

No wonder many 

fear that the current 

scenario is squeezing 

the lifeblood 

from clubs. 

Now some intense 

debate is certain to 

rage as the issue 

once again gets top priority. 

While the marquee matches in 

the All-Ireland series take centre 

stage, the real battle for the future 

of gaelic games is taking 

place far from the madding 

crowds at Croke Park at a very 

local level. 

Whoever devises the ideal solution 

which allows club action to 

continue more or less in tandem 

with inter-county matches will 

be owed a deep debt of gratitude 

by the GAA. 

For the moment most are left 

kicking their heels until the autumn. 

Club action is very much 

taking a back seat in Monaghan, 

Derry and Tyrone, as Armagh, 

Fermanagh and Donegal 

get back on track after exiting 

the race for the 

Sam Maguire earlier 

than many anticipated. 

Having a 

strong 

county contingent 

available 

so early 

in the 

season is 

a new 

experience 

for 

Crossmaglen 

manager, Donal 

Murtagh. He guided the 

Rangers to All-Ireland 

Club glory last March and 

is now preparing for their 

onslaught aimed at securing 

a twelfth county title in a 

row. 

He is well placed to assess 

some of the problems involved 

and offer views on how 

things could be solved. And, 

Murtagh is clear about what 

needs to be done. 

“For the past few years there 

has been a backbone of five or 

seven county players on our 

team. The simple fact is that for 

a lot of the season we’ve had to 

play our games without them,” 

he says. 

“There have been occasion 

where we have gone 

to matches with only 

eighteen or nineteen 

players. We’ve also 

had games called off 

and things like that 

can lead to problems. 

“But I definitely believe 

that there needs 

to be a change in the 

timing of the All-Ireland 

Championships. 

Armagh had six weeks between 

the Ulster Championship and 

All-Ireland Qualifier this year, 

which is crazy and a real hindrance 

to club football. 

“I think the main matches 

could be condensed into a far 

tighter schedule. This would free 

up more time towards September 

and October for the conclusion 

of the domestic leagues and 

championships,” he added. 

Until this year, the Orchard 

County had been 

very formidable 

challengers 

for 

Ulster and 

All-Ireland 

honours. Their 

record since 

1999 is among 

the very best, 

although it 

has come at 

a cost. 

In Crossmaglen 

and other 

clubs, of 

course, 

the 

show 

must 

go on. 

CLUB SUCCESS... 

Donal Murtagh 

SUPER 

SHAMROCKS... 

Ballinderry's 

Ronan 

McGuckin, 6, 

celebrates an 

Ulster Club 

Championship 

victory. Like 

many top clubs 

Ballinderry’s 

season can be 

disrupted 

by the 

unavailability 

of county 

players 

Russell Pritchard/ 

SPORTSFILE 

Nevertheless, the task of dropping 

players when their county 

contingent returns hasn’t always 

been pleasant. 

Last year the commitment required 

by the men in black and 

amber stretched from the beginning 

of January 2006 to the replayed 

All-Ireland on April 1, 

2007. Fortunately for them, their 

experience of competing at a 

high level has provided a guard 

against some of the potential 

problems caused by long lay-offs. 

“Over the past few years, 

we’ve become accustomed to 

playing without our county men 

and then welcoming them back. 

Our policy has always been to 

field our best possible team 

based on form and it has paid 

off,” he added. 

“I suppose the fact that we’re 

accustomed to playing in the Ulster 

Club has helped. We are 

maybe better able to cope with 

the conditions at that time of 

year, although it would be nice if 

things could be played off a bit 

earlier when the weather is more 

favourable. 

“St Patrick’s Day is a wonderful 

occasion, but it’s also a very 

impractical date for holding an 

All-Ireland Club final. The whole 

competitions could definitely be 

more condensed in my opinion. 

“It’s our players who are the 

key. They’re freaks in the best 

possible sense in the way that 

they prepare, but the waiting 

about can be frustrating.” 

Waiting about was an unusual 

although very welcome change 

for Fermanagh back in 2004. A 

first ever All-Ireland semi-final 

appearance caused serious delays 

in their club action until late 

August. 

Back then the person responsible 

for ensuring that things 

went according to plan was the 

current County Secretary, Greg 

Kelly. In a small county the task 

of meeting the needs of both club 

and county commitments became 

even more difficult. 

The new championship structures 

mean that most counties 

are still involved at least into July. 

This has ensured that the 

comfort-zone of occasional runs 

in the race for the Sam Maguire 

has been almost totally removed. 

“We were in an especially 

tough situation because of the 

small number of clubs which 

meant that the impact of county 

players at club level was a lot 

clearer,” he said. 

“I remember in 2004 that we 

had problems continuing with 

our competitions because clubs 

understandably didn’t want to be 

without their best players. It was 

a struggle to get acceptance for 

any kind of ‘starred’ system 

which allowed league matches to


FEATURE 37 

go ahead. 

“The GAA guidelines which allow 

a free run of thirteen days 

before county matches are also a 

factor. It can be very frustrating 

because the majority of players 

aren’t involved at county level. 

“In 2004 we had around 400 

players who weren’t getting football 

because of a county panel of 

about 30. They were left kicking 

their heels.” 

Now there is an increasing realisation 

that double fixtures at 

weekends as well as mid-week 

games are becoming more essential. 

Matters in Fermanagh are 

currently organised under the 

auspices of the Competitions 

Control Committee and Greg 

Kelly maintains that things can 

improve. 

“The reduction in the number 

of Qualifier matches has been a 

help because this year we had a 

window of about seven weeks 

In 2004 we 

had around 

400 players 

who 

weren’t 

getting 

football 

because of 

a county 

panel of 

about 30. 

They were 

left kicking 

their heels 

when club matches could take 

place,” he continued. 

“Clubs will have to agree to 

play starred games without their 

county players because there’s 

no other way. It’s up for discussion 

at the moment and I think 

an accommodation can be 

reached.” 

One team with a healthy representation 

of county players 

similar to some of the clubs in 

Fermanagh, is the reigning Derry 

champions, Ballinderry. At the 

moment, Conleith Gilligan, Colin 

Devlin, Enda Muldoon and Kevin 

McGuckin are being started by 

Paddy Crozier, while Raymond 

Wilkinson, Michael McIver are in 

the panel and Paul Wilson, Darren 

Crozier, Niall McCusker are 

among those others with senior 

inter-county experience. 

Such are the resources available 

to the Shamrocks that they 

are better able to absorb the absentees 

better than most. Nevertheless, 

their example on the 

Derry scene is one which provides 

a possible template. 

Ronan McGuckin has been a 

key man for them in the defence 

for several years and maintains 

having county players in your 

club is something of a doubleedged 

sword. 

“Obviously, it can be difficult if 

they’re not available, but then 

their dedication and commitment 

really raises the standard 

as well, especially if they are 

available for training,” he said. 

“The major task is for the rest 

of the squad to maintain the high 

standards which are needed at 

sessions. But this is an issue 

which isn’t unique to Ballinderry 

or Derry. 

“We’re fortunate that the 

structure in the county means 

that we rarely have to line out 

without our county players. 

That’s important in helping us to 

stay at or near the top. 

“But there’s other clubs who 

would struggle without their 

county representatives, especially 

if they’re fighting against relegation. 

It depends very much on 

the club. 

“We had a bit of an issue this 

week because our county players 

were only available for a couple 

of days before our championship 

game. You really need longer 

than that to plan out tactics. 

“Clubs will see having a county 

player as an honour. It helps 

morale, raises standards and 

they’re on hand to play when the 

real business of the season takes 

place in September and October. 

“I think things are generally 

grand as long as you have communication 

with the county management. 

“The vast majority of players 

want regular football and I think 

that is generally being provided.” 

Of course, there are areas 

where the situation is more or 

less acute. The unavailability of 

county players for the majority 

of league matches can often have 

a detrimental effect on the fortunes 

of a senior team. 

Ulster club football is littered 

with examples where teams have 

failed to reach their potential 

due to the absence of their main 

men. And, it’s usually those with 

two or three key stars that suffer 

most. 

Those types of examples 

which are certain to provide the 

key focus when the issue is debated 

throughout the county 

during the coming weeks and 

months. 

Interesting times undoubtedly 

lie ahead as the task of solving 

the club versus county battle 

gathers pace.



DerryView » THE COUNTY LINE 

Steelstown cause upset 

WITH only two games in 

men’s football going ahead at 

the weekend it was the turn of 

the minor football championship 

to take centre stage last 

week. 

Last year’s beaten finalists, 

Steelstown pulled off the 

shock of the quarter-finals 

with a 2-8 to 2-6 win over a well 

fancied Foreglen side. Two 

goals from county minor star 

Stephen Cleary proved the key 

scores for the city lads while 

although the result was rough 

justice on Foreglen’s James 

Bradley who rattled up a tally 

of 2-1 for the losers. 

Another member of the 

county panel was outstanding 

midfield for the Ballyarnott 

side as they inflicted a surprise 

loss on the O’Brien’s who 

have been undefeated on their 

run to the minor league final. 

Steelstown will meet 

Slaughtneil in the last four after 

they overcame reigning 

champions Dungiven by 1-13 to 

0-8 with Kevin O’Neill playing 

a starting role by kicking 10 

points. 

Slaughtneil led 0-8 to 0-4 at 

half time but took control in 

the second half, with Peter 

Convery grabbing a goal to 

seal victory. Kilrea easily accounted 

for Swatragh in their 

quarter-final on a 3-17 to 0-3 

scoreline. 

Again this weekend there 

will be a strictly limited programme 

of action, there are no 

games down for decision in the 

county football leagues with 

two Junior Championship first 

round ties between Magilligan 

and Lissan and Doire Colmcille 

and Sean Dolan’s the only 

big ball games down for decision. 

Those games take place 

on Sunday evening at 5.00 p.m. 

DEFENSIVE GRIT...Mickey McKinney had a solid game at full-back as Steelstown minors defeated Foreglen at Celtic Park 

at Desertmartin and Celtic 

Park respectively. 

In hurling the senior league 

is nearing it’s conclusion with 

the final two rounds of games 

taking place tonight and on 

Sunday. Lavey, who are already 

guaranteed a top two 

spot and the automatic Championship 

semi-final berth, 

need three points from their 

last two games to be sure of 

winning the league title and 

they play Slaughtneil at Emmett 

Park tonight. If Kevin 

Lynch’s can claim four points 

from their two games against 

Swatragh the first of which 

takes place tonight at Davitt 

Park then they will join Lavey 

in the Championship semi-finals, 

indeed were Lavey to 

beat Banagher in the final 

game then two points would be 

enough for the Dungiven side. 

However, if Kevin Lynch’s slip 

up in their remaining games 

the Banagher can still force a 

play-off for the remaining automatic 

semi-final spot. 

» MAIN GAME 

KEVIN LYNCH’S V SWATRAGH 

Kevin Lynch’s can forego the early round of the Senior 

Hurling Championship if they can manage to 

beat Swatragh home and away in the league this 

weekend. The first game takes place this evening 

at Davitt Park where the Dungiven men will 

look to the likes of county captain Kevin 

Hinphey and still potent scoring machine 

Geoffrey McGonigle. Swatragh’s prospects 

for the summer have been severely dented 

by the fact that their most prolific forward 

Ruairi Convery is currently on the other side 

of the Atlantic however the Lynch’s will also 

have a notable absentee in the form of Liam 

Hinphey who part of Paddy Crozier’s county 

football panel which is preparing the 

forthcoming All-Ireland quarter-final clash 

with Dublin. 

MOSS TILE 

& BATHROOM CENTRE 

36 MOSS ROAD, MAGHERAFELT 

TEL. 028 7941 8978 

OPEN LATE TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY TILL 8PM 

ON THE ROAD FROM TOOMEBRIDGE TO BALLYRONAN 

Club Derry summer 

camps a great success 

DERRY Football Development manager 

Chris Collins has hailed the recent Club 

Derry Gaelic games summer camps as a 

great success. 

Last week saw the Under 13 boys summer 

camp take place with boys from almost 

every club in the county taking part and being 

given expert coaching and advice on a 

range of issues. 

“The camp went brilliantly and I think 

the boys all took a lot out of it. Myself and 

Ronan Gallagher, the former Fermanagh 

player co-ordinated it over the week and 

the boys were given advice on all aspects of 

the game. On Monday Andrew McAlynn 

put them through a fitness test which they 

were given the results of later in the week. 

On Tuesday Armagh Under 21 coach and 

Cavan midfielder Nicholas Walsh gave 

them a session on core strength and defensive 

play. On Wednesday Tyrone’s Paul 

Rouse took seminar on atttacking play. On 

Thursday Ryan Mellon gave them a talk on 

his experiences of winning an All-Ireland 

while Derry minor manager Killian Conlan 

and minor full-forward Gavin McGeechan 

had a question and answer session with 

them.” 

And Collins believes that the event will 

prove very beneficial to the players who 

SUMMER CAMP SUCCESS..Chris Collins 

took part. 

“Throughout the week you see skill levels 

and confidence levels improving. I think 

the boys took a lot out of it they after the 

core strength session a lot of the boys went 

out and bought the Swiss ball that they had 

been using which shows that they were 

taking it all on board.” 

The football camp was only one of a series 

of such events with a camogie camp 

and hurling camp having taken place in 

previous weeks.



DonegalView » THE COUNTY LINE 

McAuley hits out over 

changing room farce 

DONEGAL ladies manager Eamon 

McAuley has angrily blasted those in 

charge of the arrangements for last 

Saturday evening’s TG4 Ladies Senior 

Championship clash between his girls 

and Tyrone at Healy Park. 

McAuley has hit out after there 

were no changing facilities provided 

for the Ladies teams at the Omagh 

venue and the fact that his girls were 

forced to change on the bus in the middle 

of the Healy Park carpark. 

The game was the curtain raiser for 

the All Ireland Qualifier between 

Donegal and Monaghan and there 

were thousands of followers making 

their way into the ground as the ladies 

game was concluding. 

The ladies game had been delayed 

due to a serious injury picked up by 

one of the Tyrone players while the 

throw-in for the men’s game was put 

back by fifteen minutes. 

AT Monday night’s meeting in 

Ballybofey, referee’s administrator 

Frankie Doherty said 

that the type of incident that 

saw a local referee ‘hounded’ 

some weeks back is simply 

‘not good enough’ while County 

Board Chairman Sean Kelly 

assured that the matter is 

being dealt with. 

“There was a serious incident 

a few weeks back where 

two referees came under severe 

pressure and I don’t like 

to see anyone come under 

that type of pressure,” Mr Doherty 

explained. 

“The referee gave a report 

on a game and right up to 12 

o’clock on the Thursday night 

he was being hounded. 

“That is not good enough 

because no man should be 

This week, McAuley was not a happy 

camper at the events that unfolded: 

“We had to change out in Killyclougher 

before the match and we had 

to do our warm up there as well,” he 

commented. 

“There are four changing rooms in 

Healy Park, but I heard afterwards 

that there were people in drinking tea 

in one of them and there were other 

people in another - but they weren’t 

being used. 

“After the match the girls had to 

make their way out through the 

carpark where there were thousands 

of people coming in. They were being 

taunted as they came out and it was a 

complete disaster. 

“We were told that we would be given 

some sort of an arrangement, but 

whoever was in charge had let busses 

and that into the carpark and the girls 

were left in a position where they had 

ON THE ATTACK...Nora Stapelton bursts through to set up a Donegal score 

hounded like that.” 

Sean Kelly blasted those responsible 

for the incident saying, 

“Referees should not be 

intimidated in anyway and 

whoever does that to a referee 

will have to answer for their 

actions because that type of 

carry on won’t be tolerated. 

“I am aware of the incident 

and we are dealing with it.We 

need to be able to ensure that 

referees progress and those 

people will be taken to task. 

We cannot tolerate that kind 

of behaviour.” 

Meanwhile, Mr Doherty 

mentioned that there is, at 

present, a ‘serious problem’ 

with hurling referees in the 

county. 

“The fact is that we have 

had problems with hurling 

clubs that I don’t think a football 

club would get away 

with,” he said. 

“There are some hurling 

clubs that won’t play under 

certain referees. 

“There was a situation yesterday 

(Sunday) where I tried 

to change in the middle of the street 

with thousands walking through.” 

He added: “The treatment that the 

two teams received was a shambles. It 

was just discrimination and it is an absolute 

disgrace. 

“Both teams were not happy about it 

at all and it just put a dampener on the 

whole thing. 

“No-one had time to chat to us and 

we were just herded away like cows. 

There was no reason given for it at 

all.” 

This weekend, the Donegal girls 

play Laois in Roscommon (Sunday, 

3.30pm) with their fate now resting in 

the play-offs to determine who stays in 

the senior championship and who will 

drop to the Intermediate grade for 

2008. 

The bottom side in each of the four 

groups will play off against each other 

and, heading into Sunday’s game 

Doherty highlights crisis facing refereeing 


KEVIN CASSIDY 

Almost single handedly hauled Donegal 

back to life in last week’s defeat to 

Monaghan. The Farney County were 

on top in the first half, but Cassidy 

stood tall in the closing stages to 

ensure that his men were within 

three at the break - chipping in 

with a point himself. 

four different referees to cover 

a game and I couldn’t get 

anyone. There were only two 

hurling games to be played - 

one in Burt and one in 

O’Donnell Park but I 

had to cancel at the 

last minute. 

against the O’Moore County, Donegal 

are propping up Group 3 and will be 

fighting for their senior lives in the 

coming weeks. 

Laois have already secured a place 

in the quarterfinals having won each 

of their opening two games, their 

weekend win over Sligo adding to 

their opening day victory over Tyrone 

and they are one of the sides tipped to 

be contesting for honours in the latter 

stages. 

“It is a massive order for us. They 

beat Sligo well last weekend and it is a 

very tight level up there at the moment,” 

said the Donegal boss. 

For Sunday’s game, McAuley will 

once again be without the services of 

St Michael’s clubwoman Bridget Gallagher 

while Nora Stapleton is also a 

doubt with the Donegal boss set to run 

the girls through their paces on 

Wednesday evening. 

“Hurling clubs, I feel, are 

not putting enough effort in 

because there are clubs out 

there with no referees. They 

have names, but they are not 

available to me and that is 

something that needs to be 

looked at.” 

On a dreadful night for Donegal 

football, Cassidy was one of 

thefew shining lights and, 

along with Rory Kavanagh 

and Karl Lacey, the only 

ones who can be satisfied 

with their performance. 

News 

Briefs 

MacCumhaill Park 

incident being 

investigated 

THE County Board is currently in 

the process of investigating an incident 

that occurred at MacCumhaill 

Park at a recent league game between 

Sean MacCumhaills and 

Fanad Gaels. The incident led to 

Fanad manager Bernard McGettigan 

being taken from the ground in 

an ambulance and the game was 

subsequently abandoned. The 

Fanad club submitted a written 

complaint to the County Board in 

relation to the incident and Sean 

Kelly said that it was being looked 

into. “We received correspondence 

on Thursday and we are investigating. 

The report is in from the referee 

and the incident is being investigated 

by the Board.” 

Clubs to discuss 

structures 

DONEGAL clubs will get the 

chance to air their views on the 

structure of the Leagues and 

Championships in the county with 

a discussion document circulated 

to the clubs earlier this week. 

The document, which was prepared 

by GAA Player Welfare 

Manager Pauric Duffy, contains 

19 discussion points that clubs 

will mull over in the coming two 

weeks before submitting their 

views back to County Secretary 

Crona Regan within the next fortnight. 

Delegates were asked to form a 

sub committee and John Travers 

(Aodh Ruadh), Paddy Mullen (St 

Eunans), Sean Dunnion (Four 

Masters) and John Martin Byrne 

(Ardara) will now join representatives 

from the County Board on 

that committee. 

“The present structures are not 

working. We can move things forward 

now, but we will still be in 

the same position next June and 

still having the same problems,” 

said Co.Board Chairman Sean Kelly. 

Banquet refixed 

The county banquet, which was 

postponed earlier in the year has 

been refixed for Friday 26 October 

and on that night there will be a 

draw for a new car taking place. 

For winning the National League, a 

car was presented for the players 

fund and this will be raffled off on 

the night of the banquet with tickets 

to go on sale at €20. The car is 

a 2007 Toyota Corolla. 

Club Championship 

The First Round playoffs in the 

RTE Raidio na Gaeltachta Senior 

Football Championship will take 

place on Sunday week, 12 August. 

The ties see Kilcar taking on Buncrana 

and Naomh Conaill squaring 

up to St Eunans. 

August 3 also sees the fourth 

game in the Intermediate Championship 

between Muff and 

Downings take place. 

Two of the senior championship 

quarter finals will take place on 

Saturday 18 August on the same 

day as the Junior B quarter-finals. 

The remaining two senior championship 

quarter finals will be 

down for decision on Sunday 19 

August with the Junior A semi finals 

also being played on that 

day. 

The quarterfinals of the Intermediate 

Championship will be 

played on the weekend of August 

24/25.



DownView » THE COUNTY LINE 

» I HEARD THAT... 

St Malachy's GAC in 

Castlewellan is currently making 

final preparations for its annual 

9 a-sides juvenile football 

tournaments. This year's boys 

and girl's nine a-sides will take 

place on Saturday August 4 and 

this year marks the 12th annual 

juvenile tournament, which 

consists of two nine a-side 

competitions at U12 level run 

concurrently at St Malachy's 

Park. 

Following the Ulster Elite Camogie 

trial was held in Castledawson 

Camogie Club on Saturday July 

21, 45 players have been selected 

to go forward to the Ulster Elite 

Camp in Jordanstown from the 

August 20 to 22, including the 

following players from Down: 

Suzelle Johnson, Amy McCarthy, 

Sileen McDonald, Caislin Hynes, 

Sara Finnegan, Nicole O'Connor 

and Laura Keith. 

Down ladies nearly caused an 

upset in the All-Ireland Senior 

Championship Group match 

against Kildare last Sunday in 

Saval. After losing to Meath the 

previous week, the Down ladies 

upped their game and it took a 

late, late point from the 

Lilywhites to deny the Mourne 

side a deserved win. Roll on 

Armagh this Sunday in Killeavy!! 

Bright’s 

Fireplaces 

Unit 4, Down Business Centre 

Down Business Park 

46 Belfast Road 

Downpatrick, Co. Down BT30 9UP 

It’s tight at the top as 

league battles hot up 

WITH two rounds of the league played last weekend 

things are a bit congested at the top of Division 1. 

Kilcoo are still out in front with Mayobridge now 

in second but there are three teams tied for third 

and all on 20 points; Clonduff, Rostrevor and Bryansford. 

Burren are slowly making their way up the table 

and sit on 19 points thanks to a draw and a win 

against Clonduff and Longstone, who are also on 19 

points. 

Castlewellan have moved out of the bottom two, 

past Liatroim who weren't in action last Monday, after 

their win against Loughinisland and join An Riocht 

on 16 points. 

Such were the results over last weekend that there 

are now only four points separating the bottom four 

from the top four. 

Things are as tight at the top of Division 2 where 

Saval remain out in front on 30 points, despite losing, 

somewhat surprisingly, at home to Darragh Cross. 

Second placed Ballymartin also lost out, going 

down 3-9 to 1-10 at Downpatrick. 

They are now in joint second place on 26 points 

with Annaclone, who drew with Clann NaBanna, 

and Ballyholland, whose season has been revived after 

convincing victories over Carryduff and Glassdrumman. 

Downpatrick's win 

keeps them in contention for a 

play-off place too. 

At the bottom, Shamrocks’ 

HANDS DOWN...Action from the game between An Riocht II and Bryansford II 

victory over Warrenpoint 

sees them move out of the bottom 

four at the expense of 

Clann na Banna. 

Possibly the most competitive 

league all season has 

been Division 3 where anyone 

of the top eight sides is capable 

of making the play-off. 

Tullylish look a safe bet 

though for one of the top four 

places as they head the division 

on 30 points. Next come 

Saul on 27 points. They have 

only lost one of their last 14 

games and had an important 

victory away to Bredagh last 

Monday. 

That result was the third 

loss in four games in July for 

the Belfast side and Paddy 

Heaney's men can ill afford 

another slip up if they are to 

remain in contention for a 

play-off place. Bredagh now 

sit fourth in the league, behind 

Dundrum who saw off the challenge of St Paul's 

last Monday, winning 0-12 to 0-5. 

Only four points separate Bredagh from eighth 

placed Ardglass, who after an easy win against 

Glenn at the start of the week, will fancy their, outside, 

chances of making the top four. 

In Division 4, there were wins for leaders Drumaness 

and second placed St Michael's against 

Aghaderg and Ballykinlar respectively. And both 

look favourites to go up at the end of the season. 

There's another full round of fixtures tomorrow 

(Friday). In Division 1, the top six sides are all in action 

against each other; leaders Kilcoo face joint 

third placed Clonduff, second placed Mayobridge entertain 

joint third placed Bryansford while the other 

joint third placed side, Rostrevor, are at home to 

sixth placed Longstone. 

In the remaining games, there are crucial ties for 

the teams at the other end of the table; Liatroim face 

Burren, Atticall are at home to Castlewellan (see 

game of the week) and An Riocht play Loughinisland. 

In Division 2, it's a similar situation with the 

top four teams facing each other. Saval face Annaclone 

while it's second versus third when Ballymartin 

play host to Ballyholland. 

In Division 3, Tullylish travel to Drumgath, Saul 

entertain Mitchels, Dundrum travel to Bright while 

Bredagh are at home to Bosco. 

In the first round of the Intermediate hurling 

championship last Sunday, there were convincing 

wins for Ballycran, Ballygalget and Liatroim who 

now join Portaferry in the semi-finals. They will be 

played on August 18 with Liatroim facing Ballygalget 

and Portaferry up against Ballycran. 

This weekend, the Down Junior Hurling Championship 

gets under way. 

On Saturday at Ballycran (6pm), Portaferry play 

Ballygalget while on Sunday at 2pm in Kilclief, 

Castlewellan play Bredagh while Ballycran and Warrenpoint 

go head-to-head at the same time in Downpatrick. 

» CLUB FOCUS DUNDRUM GAC 

www.first-floor.co.uk 

63A Castlewellan Road, 

Newcastle BT33 0JX 

Tel. 028 4372 7676 

Sells Carpets, Woods 

& Vinyls 

So where is it then 

This is possibly the easiest 

pitch to get to in Ulster 

since you drive right 

past it on one of the 

North’s busiest roads. 

Just a few miles outside 

of Newcastle, on the road 

to Belfast is the village of 

Dundrum. Just at the 

edge of the village, on 

the Belfast side you find 

the pitch, opposite the 

chapel. You really can't 

miss it...honest! 

Has anything happened 

of note 

Dundrum have had three 

spells in existence; 1932 

to 1941, 1950 to 1966 and 

from 1972 to the present 

day. 

There's not much known 

about the very early 

days but during the second 

period the club captured 

the Down Junior 

Championship in 1957 

and were promoted to 

the senior league in 1958. 

That was short-lived and 

they were relegated in 

1959. The club struggled 

to fulfil senior fixtures 

during the 1960's and duly 

folded in '66. 

It was reformed in 1972 

and a second Down Junior 

Championship was 

won in 1976. 

In 1987 Dundrum won 

promotion to Division 3. 

Twelve months later 

they'd made it to Division 

2. 

The club was starved of 

any real success until 

2005 when a third Junior 

Championship title was 

won along with promotion 

back to Division 3. 

What about players we 

may have heard of 

Eddie McKay who was 

goalkeeper on the all 

conquering Down teams 

of 1960 and '61. He also 

picked up two National 

League medals in 1960 

and 1962. 

In 1987, three players 

from Dundrum were on 

the successful Down All 

Ireland minor winning 

panel of 1987. Patrick 

Kielty (he of TV fame), 

John Kielty and Martin 

Carey. 

Latterly, Paul Mc- 

Comiskey won an All Ireland 

Minor medal in 2005 

with Down while John 

Morgan coached the 

side. 

In 2006, the club's U21's 

won the East Down 'B' 

Championship, losing 

narrowly to An Riocht in 

the Down final. 

What are the facilities 

like 

Having once played at 

four difference 'home' 

venues during the late 

1950's, Dundrum present 

home was first played 

on in 1985. The club 

has just one 

pitch, which is 

fully floodlit. 

There are two 

changing 

rooms, a 

referee's 

room and a 

kitchen.


FermanaghView » THE COUNTY LINE 

» GAME OF THE WEEK 

Enniskillen v Derrygonnelly 

We had this down for the game of the week last week 

and it failed miserably to live up to it’s billing. Bereft of 

any real quality we are at least safe in the knowledge 

that tonight’s game simply has to be better than what 

we were served up last Sunday. 

Enniskillen certainly used their get out of jail card and 

of the two teams it is they who will have to lift their 

game the most. A chronic inability to secure possession 

in the first half allowed Derrygonnelly 

to dictate matters and although they improved 

in the second half they still only 

managed to score a goal and three points. 

Derrygonnelly on the other hand will simply 

have to make better use of the ball they 

get. Wide after wide was kicked in the first half 

and will need to improve their shooting if they 

are to emerge victorious tonight. 



CIARAN DONNELLY 

The ex county player was in great form for Brookeboro during 

their win over Lisnaskea in the senior championship. 

Playing at centre half forward he dictated matters and 

got through a huge amount of work. Winning possession 

he provided an invaluable link between defence 

and attack and was involved in everything good that 

Brookeboro did. 

He got ample support from his team-mates but without 

the cool head and calm presence of Donnelly the 

storming second half by Brookeboro would not have 

been possible. 

He and his team-mates now have a date with division 

one high flyers and championship favourites Newtownbutler 

First Fermanagh’s in the semi final. 

Brookeboro stun pundits 

with win over Lisnaskea 

THERE was joy for Brookeboro in the 

Senior Championship last weekend 

when they pulled off a surprise victory 

against Lisnaskea Emmetts. Coming 

up against first division opposition 

did not faze the Heber McMahons 

as they have been bobbing up 

and down between the top flight for a 

number of years now. 

And they were good value for their 

win emerging as five point winners. 

Lisnaskea simply never got going and 

only a penalty goal had them a point 

up at half time. But with the help of a 

stiff breeze in the second half Brookeboro 

were to pull away and run out 

comfortable winners in the end. 

This is the first time Brookeboro 

have reached the semi finals of the 

championship in over thirty years. 

In the other quarter final played at 

Kinawley, county champions Enniskillen 

were given a real scare by 

Derrygonnelly and only a last minute 

goal secured a draw for the town 

team. 

Amazingly they had a chance to 

steal the game with a late free but it 

sailed harmlessly wide. The reply 

takes place tonight at Kinawley at 

7:30pm. 

Last Friday night Newtownbutler 

squeezed out a win against St Pats 

Donagh. 

Two points the margin at the finish 

although it was only in injury time 

that the First Fermanagh’s edged 

ahead. 

The victory came at a loss however 

with top man Ryan Carson sustaining 

a broken collar bone which may rule 

him out for the remainder of the 

championship. 

In the final quarter final played on 

Sunday night Teemore had too much 

guile for an up and coming Tempo 

team. 

Two first half goals gave the 2005 

champions a cushion they were never 

to relinquish and in the end they 

coasted to a five point victory over a 

spirited Tempo side. 

In the Intermediate Championship 

there was wins for Kinawley and St 

Joseph’s Ederney. 

St Joseph’s, last year’s Senior 

Championship finalists were made to 

work hard for their victory against 

Coa, who were last year’s Junior 

Championship winners. Only a goal 

in the last five minutes put the result 

beyond doubt. 

Kinawley meanwhile recovered 

from a sluggish start to ease to a nine 

point victory against Erne Gaels who 

failed miserably to deliver on a bright 

opening. 

In other news, Fermanagh ladies 

crashed to defeat at the hands of 

Clare and will need to win their last 

game to have any hope of progressing 

in the All Ireland. 

Also county hurler Jason Mc- 

Manus is doing the county proud by 

reaching the last 12 of the prestigious 

Poc Fada All Ireland. 

He will face a 5km mountain course 

in Ravensdale in county Louth and 

will be hoping for a good performance 

and as few poc’s as possible. 

Kinawley’s Tomas Corrigan in action for Fermanagh against Tyrone’s Ronan McNabb in the recent ESB Ulster Minor Football Championship quarter-final 

between the teams at St Tighearnach's Park, Clones, Co Monaghan. 


Big step into 

the unknown 

for Kinawley 

KINAWLEY have never won a senior or a minor 

championship final but tomorrow that could all 

change. 

Their minor footballers have enjoyed an incredible 

season so far beating three division two teams on 

their way to the decider against Tempo (Devenish, 

7pm), not bad for a Division two team who have never 

reached an ‘A’ final before. 

Their senior team reached the last stage of the 

senior championship 14 years ago, so this minor 

team are on the brink of bringing some long awaited 

success to the club. 

Their manager, Cathal Murphy, who is also the 

coach of the county minors, emphasised that very 

fact. 

“It’s a massive day for the club, we have never 

competed in a minor ‘A’ final before,” he said. 

“As far as the league goes we competed in division 

two this year and we finished third. So far in the 

championship we have beaten Devenish, who are a 

division one team, Roslea, a division one club and 

Enniskillen who are also a division one club.” 

However, their next game is their final and toughest 

test. It’s against the reigning champions Tempo 

who have a few players that Murphy knows will be 

dangerous. 

“We will be up against it in the final. I had five 

Tempo players on the county minor panel and four 

of them started,” he said. 

“However, a final is a final. Anything can happen 

so of course we have a chance. It will be a big day for 

the whole club.” 

While Tempo may have four players from the 

county team, Kinawley have one; Tomas Corrigan 

who is the son of former Sligo and Fermanagh manager 

Dominic Corrigan. But if their past results are 

anything to go by it will be a team performance that 

will be Kinawley’s greatest attribute tomorrow.



MonaghanView » THE COUNTY LIFE 

Captain Freeman ready 

to take on the Kingdom 

Farney team 

excited by 

impending 

Croke Park 

experience 

THE MONAGHAN captain 

Damien Freeman is relishing the 

challenge of facing All-Ireland 

champions Kerry after the counties 

were paired together in the 

All-Ireland SFC quarter-final 

draw. 

Seamus McEnaney’s charges 

indicated how far they have come 

this season by demolishing National 

League champions Donegal 

on Saturday night, and Freeman 

admitted that confidence has never 

been higher. 

“Kerry are All-Ireland champions. 

T hey’ve stacks of All-Ireland 

medals in their back pockets, so 

it’s going to be a big challenge,” 

he said. 

“But we’re playing well at the 

moment. To be in the last eight is 

fantastic. We’ve worked hard and 

the next big challenge lies ahead. 

“Kerry, themselves and Tyrone, 

are the top two that’s tipped heavily 

to win the All-Ireland again 

this year. 

“But playing at this level, you 

want to play against the best to 

see exactly how far you’ve come 

on.” 

Meanwhile, with Monaghan 

preparing for their big day out at 

headquarters on August 12 the 

Supporters Club has announced 

that they will have their whole 

range of merchandise available 

and that they will be setting up 

shop at a number of locations 

throughout the county in the runup 

to the big day. 

The club was practically sold 

out of all their merchandise before 

the Ulster final and the 

amount of blue and white that 

was seen in Clones on that day 

and last Saturday evening in 

Omagh is proof positive that the 

Monaghan supporters are out to 

make a very big impression. 

Club PRO Seamus McMeel 

along with Luke Cunningham and 

Mary Kerr Conlon will be in 

charge of sales again and they expect 

that their new range of polo 

shirts and T-shirts will prove and 

very popular. 

BIG CHALLENGE...Monaghan captain Damien Freeman is excited at the prospect of facing Kerry 

» BLUFFER’S GUIDE TO 

CREMARTIN GFC 

GAA clubs often live and prosper in limited 

circumstances and sometimes the more limited 

the circumstances the greater the effort is 

to compensate. 

The Cremartin club could well be described in 

those terms as they are based in part of the bigger 

Parish of Clontibret, nestling in an area that also 

supports a couple of other clubs. 

The club has been in existence since 1934 and 

they achieved their first success on the field when 

they won the junior football league in 1938. Success 

was hard won and it wasn't until 1956 that they 

took some more silverware. 

The club made a major breakthrough in 1976 but 

not in terms of winning trophies but rather in the 

development of their own facilities when the decision 

was made to purchase four acres of land and 

the old grain store off Cremartin old creamery. 

Shamrock Park was officially opened in 1979 and 

since then has become one of their most popular 

venues in the county. The hard work and dedication 

of many people has seen the club prosper particularly 

at underage level. 

A lot of that work came to fruition in 

Drumhowan on last Tuesday when the club annexed 

the minor football league division 2 title for 

the Jimmy McCarey Cup. It was a victory, fashioned 

in true Cremartin tradition out of hard work 

and a couple of inspired personal performances. 

NATIONAL RECOGNITION 

Individuals are often the inspiration for great 

achievements in many clubs and Cremartin’s passage 

onto the provincial and national stage came 

from such a base. 

A cup commemorating one of their own emerging 

young stars, Paul Kerr, who was tragically 

killed in an accident was a fitting trophy for such 

an exercise and driven on by Declan Flanagan the 

experiment proved a potent success. 

The interest in the tournament was unbelievable 

with huge crowds travelling from clubs in the different 

counties to the mid-Monaghan venue and 

the first final between Doohamlet from Monaghan 

and Drumgoon from Cavan saw Shamrock Park 

packed to the rafters. Such was the success of the 

tournament that it was taken up at national level 

and another trophy, the Shamrock Cup was presented 

by the club for competition in the All Ireland 

part of the series. 

The All Ireland dimension was heartily supported 

by the then Uachtaran of the GAA Sean Kelly 

who himself travelled to Shamrock Park by helicopter 

to present the cup to the winners. 

WHERE IS IT 

The most direct route to access Shamrock Park is 

off the main Monaghan to Castleblayney road (although 

you can come the other way as well), at the 

village of Annyalla. Another landmark that indicates 

where the club is situated is the new Monaghan 

GAA training facility at Cloghan that can 

now be viewed from the Castleblayney bypass although 

there is no access from the new road directly 

onto the by-road that services both Cloghan and 

Cremartin. 


DECLAN FARRELL (CREMARTIN) 

He was a member of the Monaghan minor football 

panel this year and he played a central role in 

Cremartin's minor league victory in Drumhowan on 

last Tuesday night. Playing at midfield he was part of 

the engine room of the team and his hard working 

display, both defensively and going forward, was one 

of the central planks in Cremartin's victory. His battle 

in midfield with his county minor colleague Colm 

Greenan was a feature of the game and when it was 

needed the most in the second-half as Cremartin 

kicked on to victory, Declan Farrell swung over two 

inspirational points to create a tide that lifted all 

boats around him and his side pulled away to clinch 

victory. 

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TyroneView » THE COUNTY LINE 


» MAIN GAME 

Success in the U-14 Feile has already 

made this a memorable 

year for the Killyman and Edendork 

combination, Naomh 

Mhuire. And they will be hoping 

to make their mark again when 

they play Eglish in the Minor 

Grade Two Championship Final 

next Wednesday. It is some years 

since both clubs captured a title 

in the U-18 grade, so there will be 

plenty of incentives for them on 

this occasion. 

STAR 

PERFORMER 

CONOR GILLIS (BRACKACVILLE) 

A draw was the result when 

Brackaville met Glenelly in the 

quarter final of the Junior 

championship. When they met 

again in the replay, the 

performance of Conor Gillis in 

defence for the Owen Roes was 

one of the keys to victory. He 

produced an assured and 

confident display as his team 

progress to the semi-final by 

the narrowest of margins, 1-7 

to 1-6. A total of 1-1 from Cahir 

McGuinness also helped as 

Gillis led the way with a solid 

defensive display. 

CAMAN CUBS...Hurling coaches from Waterford have been visiting coaching camps throughout Tyrone as part of a new initiative 

Coaching plan aiming 

to raise standards 

AN INNOVATIVE link-up scheme between 

Tyrone and Waterford is being 

developed this summer as part of efforts 

to improve hurling and football 

respectively in the two counties. 

Under the new scheme football 

coaches from Tyrone will be helping 

out in Waterford, while their hurling 

coaches make regular trips to help 

boost the game in the O’Neill county. 

It’s hoped that other initiatives will also 

be established over the next year or 

so. 

The project is being spearheaded by 

Tyrone’s Hurling Development Officer, 

Michael McCullagh and his Waterford 

football counterpart, Eoin 

Breathacht. 

It followed a chance meeting between 

the two at a Croke Park coaching 

event earlier this year. 

“Already a number of Waterford 

coaches have come up to Tyrone to 

help with the hurling summer camps. 

Two of our football coaches travelled 

to Waterford for a week to help with 

their football camps,” said McCullagh. 

“Karol McQuade and Niall Conlon 

from Moy attended a Waterford senior 

hurling session and also helped out 

with a number of football coaching 

events. We’re confident that the 

scheme will prove very useful in the 

future. 

“Long-term, the aim would be to 

nurture links between clubs, have 

travelling coaches helping out with development 

squads and hopefully have 

top-class opposition for our hurling 

teams in Waterford,” he added. 

The link-up is coming at a perfect 

time considering the All-Ireland ambitions 

of both counties. 

While this Saturday will see Tyrone 

play Meath in the football quarter final, 

Waterford take on Cork on Sunday 

in the hurling quarter-final replay. 

Later this summer, the Tyrone U-14 

Development Squad will travel to Waterford 

to take part in the prestigious 

Tony Forrestal Tournament. 

And, hopes are high that it will be 

the first of many similar events in the 

future. 

“This is about development both for 

the coaches and players in hurling and 

football in the two counties. 

What they’re doing for us in terms 

of hurling, we’re doing likewise in the 

football,” added McCullagh. 

“It’s a scheme which is opening 

doors between the two counties and 

we’re confident that it will aid the development 

of hurling and football in 

both areas. 

“The cost is being shared by the two 

county boards and I think the benefits 

will become increasingly clear as time 

goes on.” 

Last month the coaches from Waterford 

loaned their expertise to hurling 

summer camps in Beragh, Strabane 

and Coalisland in the first example of 

what it’s intended will be many similar 

such initiatives. 

» I HEARD THAT... 

The following Club Tyrone 

summer camps will be held over 

the coming weeks. Places are 

allocated on a first come first 

served basis. All camps 

currently have places available. 

The Anglo-Celt and Fr Murray 

Cups will visit all camps. 

Between August 6 and 9 they 

will take place in Brockagh, 

Drumquin, Moortown, Dromore, 

Moy and Castlederg. 

A further session for disabled kids 

will be arranged mid-August. Any 

club identifying new participants 

should contact Ciaran McLaughlin 

07717732360 or Anne Dooher 82 

249060. 

The U-13 League, which has 

become a popular autumn 

competition during recent years, 

will begin this year on 

September 6. It is expected that 

there will once again be two 

grades. 

In the Reserve Knockout 

competition at the weekend, there 

were victories for Brocagh, 

Fintona, Urney and Eskra in 

Division Two. Tattyreagh, Beragh, 

Newtownstewart and Rock were 

victorious in the Division Three 

championship.

44 LADIES 


Monaghan still in hunt for 

quarter-final berth 

Tyrone 

set to join 

Armagh in 

draw for 

last eight 

BY CIARAN WOODS 

c.woods@gaeliclife.com 

With teams entering the final 

round of the TG4 

Ladies All-Ireland Senior 

Championship group 

phase this weekend, there's still 

much to play for in each of the 

pools with a number of Ulster 

sides pushing hard for 

quarter-final places. 

In Group One, Mayo 

lead the way ahead of 

Dublin on points difference. 

With two 

wins each already under 

their belt, both 

teams have already 

qualified for the 

knockout stages, with 

Kerry and Waterford 

exiting the championship 

race. This 

weekend sees the top 

two go head-to-head in 

From an Ulster 

perspective we 

have Armagh 

safely 

through, 

Tyrone looking 

good for 

qualification 

Breffni Park in the first televised 

game on Saturday evening with 

group superiority at stake, as 

well as what would be a moraleboosting 

win ahead of the quarter-finals. 

Mayo have been rampant 

thus far, with Cora 

Staunton once again proving to 

be scorer-in-chief. They have 

amassed 38 points and conceded 

just 15, compared to the Dubs totals 

of 39 for and 35 against. Waterford 

were tipped by many to 

mount a challenge, as were Kerry, 

but in the end the Munster 

sides just failed to live 

with their compatriots 

and play this weekend 

in a tie which is effectively 

meaningless, although 

both will be 

keen to avoid the 

dreaded wooden spoon 

and finishing bottom of 

the table. 

Group Two sees 

Monaghan enter the final 

round of fixtures 

still with a shout of a 

quarter-final berth. 

Owen McNally's troops 

currently sit joint second in the 

table alongside Galway, with the 

Connacht girls having a superior 

score difference. Cork lead the 

way with two wins, while both 

Galway and Monaghan have secured 

wins over whipping boys 

Roscommon. It's a Clones showdown 

for McNally's side this Saturday 

as they take on Galway 

with that last eight spot up for 

grabs. A 3-18 to 0-5 win over 

Roscommon set the Monaghan 

girls on their way, before suffering 

a 4-11 to 0-11 defeat at the 

hands of Cork last time out. That 

in itself is no shame, as Galway 

suffered the same fate to the Rebelettes, 

going down 2-13 to 1-11. 

The balance of power rests with 

Galway ahead of the clash, but 

with home advantage and nothing 

to lose, the Oriel girls will 

throw everything they have at 

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PAGE 48 

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their western opponents and will 

have no intention of exiting the 

championship race without a 

fight. If Monaghan surprise Galway 

early on, bagging themselves 

some crucial early scores, 

then they could well find their 

name in the drum for the quarter-final 

draw. It'll be tough but 

they may just be able to sneak it. 

Donegal are out of the shakeup 

in Group Three, Tyrone's victory 

over their neighbours last 

weekend ending the Tir Connail 

girls’ interest in proceedings and 

confirming another disappointing 

season. 

However, they could yet have a 

bearing on the final standings in 

the group as they play table-toppers 

Laois this weekend. Should 

they gain a result there, it could 

well pave the way for Tyrone to 

overtake Laois and top the table, 

provided the Red Hands can beat 

Sligo. Donegal will be keen to 

take something from the campaign, 

and the management will 

hope for one last big push before 

they break up for the season. 

Tyrone have put themselves in 

a good position courtesy of their 

11-point win last Saturday over 

Donegal. They currently occupy 

second place in the table, ahead 

of Sligo on points difference, and 

will be hoping to still be in that 

position after Saturday evenings


LADIES 45 

PROSPECTS... 

Sinead 

McCleary and 

Armagh have 

already claimed 

a quarter-final 

place. Tyrone’s 

victory over 

Donegal has 

kept them in 

contention but 

Down have 

little hope of 

progressing 

game. 

Having lost out to Laois by just 

two points first day out, Tyrone 

went on to secure what was in 

the end a convincing victory over 

Donegal, and Sligo now await in 

Saturday evenings live tie at Breffni 

Park. 

Tyrone will know that a muchimproved 

performance is required 

to see off the Yeats County 

girls, but a win is well within 

their capabilities. Laois beat Sligo 

by 10 points, so going by results 

against other teams the 

Red Hands would be favourites 

to get a result. 

However, Sligo are an experienced 

outfit and it will be no 

easy mission for Tyrone if they 

are to make the last eight, but 

they should have enough to see 

them through. 

In Group Four, Armagh have 

continued their winning streak 

and have qualified for the latter 

stages of the competition. They 

secured a two-point win over second 

placed Meath last weekend, 

and this week take on neighbours 

Down at Killeavy. The 

Mourne girls got themselves a 

credible draw with Kildare last 

time out, and will be hoping that 

they can spring a surprise on 

their illustrious neighbours. Armagh 

will be keen to keep their 

rich vein of winning form going 

though, and are sure to give 

nothing easy against their near 

neighbours. 

Down still have a chance of 

qualification themselves, but it 

would require them to beat Armagh 

and Kildare to beat Meath, 

as well as overhauling a 10 point 

score difference, so it's a massive 

ask and an unlikely scenario for 

the Down girls. 

So overall from an Ulster perspective 

we have Armagh safely 

through, Tyrone looking good for 

qualification, Monaghan with a 

chance, Down realistically with 

little hope and Donegal already 

out. 

The format for the remainder 

of the championship has finally 

been decided, and the draw for 

the quarter-finals will involve the 

group winners being seeded in 

one pot, and the group runnersup 

in a second pot, with one being 

drawn from each to make the 

quarter-final pairings. The decision 

was taken at a meeting of 

Central Council on Tuesday 

night, and the draw will take 

place live on TG4 this Sunday 

evening. 

Fermanagh and Cavan meet again 

TG4 All-Ireland 

Intermediate Ladies 

Championship Group One 

FERMANAGH V CAVAN 

(Lisnaskea, Saturday, 5.30pm) 

The senior ladies sides of 

Fermanagh and Cavan are 

no strangers to each other, 

and this weekend they 

cross swords once again, this 

time in the All-Ireland Intermediate 

championship group 

stage. 

It’s been touch and go each 

game they’ve played, but in 

their last meeting the Breffni 

girls took the spoils with an 

Ulster Final triumph. For that 

reason, the Erne girls will be 

out on a revenge mission this 

weekend. 

Fermanagh were on the 

wrong end of a 3-12 to 2-7 defeat 

by Clare last weekend, 

while Cavan have also had 

some mixed results. 

Tipperary and Clare have 

pulled clear at the top of the 

table, and both Ulster sides 

are badly in need of a win to 

keep them in the reckoning 

for the knockout stages. 

Cavan will go into the game 

as favourites, but Fermanagh 

will be keen to get their own 

back on the Breffni girls in 

what could well be their last 

meeting of the season. 

Antrim out for revenge in Derry 

All-Ireland Junior Ladies 

Football Championship 

DERRY V ANTRIM 

Celtic Park is the venue for 

the clash of Derry and 

Antrim ladies for their All- 

Ireland Intermediate Group 

One meeting this Saturday 

(1.00pm) 

The sides met earlier this 

season in the Ulster Junior Final, 

Derry taking the spoils after 

a late showing, and Antrim 

will be keen to make amends 

for that reversal when the 

sides clash at the Derry city 

venue. 

Both sides have met London so 

far in the group stage, with 

Derry earning a share of the 

spoils in Ruislip while on their 

visit to Belfast, the Exiles left 

with the points following a 

strong second-half showing. 

Both sides need the points to 

keep their aspirations alive, 

but the reality is that one of 

the Ulster sides are most likely 

going to exit the race this Saturday. 

Antrim will be fired up for 

their meeting, and have the 

capabilities to win, but with 

home advantage and the momentum 

behind them, Derry 

should have enough to emerge 

victorious and to book their 

play-off spot. 

Ireland’s Best Bread 

Eight times All-Ireland Winners 

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46 COLUMNIST 


THE SLEDGER 

Not for the first timethe Tir Chonaill county’s talented 

but psychologically fragile footbllers have flattered to deceive 

The right 

man 

for a row 

Donegal and dusted again 

Only the most callous of cynics 

could fail to have a bit 

of sympathy for Donegal as 

they once again failed to 

live up to expectations. 

Watching them slowly implode 

against Monaghan in Healy Park 

last week was like witnessing 

someone else’s pet undergo a 

slow, agonising death - a distressing 

sight, and something 

you can’t intervene to stop, but 

ultimately it’s not your grief or 

your problem. 

It really must be a frustrating 

experience being a Tir Chonaill 

supporter: The constant hope 

that this year could bring back 

Sam to the county, only for 

everything to fizzle out with an 

insipid performance and a whispering 

campaign. 

Donegal surrendered tamely 

to their Farney opponents, and it 

was fascinating as a neutral to 

see the contrast in attitude between 

the two counties. 

The men in yellow and green 

had, on paper, arguably more talent 

at their disposal, but crucially 

they only had a fraction of the 

heart of Seamus McEnaney’s 

warriors. 

Trailing by only a goal at halftime, 

when they should have 

been much further behind, 

should have been motivation 

enough for Donegal. And when 

they levelled with a Rory Kavanagh 

goal three minutes into 

the second half, that should have 

been the catalyst for a dogfight. 

Instead they wilted in the face 

of Monaghan’s controlled aggression 

and only one team showed 

the cojones to reach the quarterfinals. 

It’s no wonder Brian McIver 

decided there and then to pull 

the pin on his tenure as boss. He 

must still be wondering what 

went wrong.Donegal cut a 

swathe through the National 

League, taking the title for the 

first time, and after beating Armagh 

in the first round of the Ulster 

championship a long summer 

beckoned. 

But they were poor against the 

Orchard county and the victory 

masked deficiencies that Tyrone 

cruelly exploited in an embarrassing 

defeat. 

McIver’s men got back on the 

rails with wins over Leitrim and 

Westmeath and they seemed to 

be gathering momentum, but 

then the Farney juggernaut hit 

them and they had no response. 

It was all the more mystifying 

given that McIver finally seemed 

to be on the cusp of harnessing 

Donegal’s myriad of talent. 

It could be said it is easy to 

blame the players, and the Tyrone 

man himself has also accepted 

that ultimately he picked 

the team which lost, but once 

more a season has ended for Tir 

Chonaill footballers with questions 

being asked about their 

character. 

EARLY EXIT...Donegal have an abundance of talent at their disposal but failed to make the expected impact in the football 

championship. 


They can grumble about unfair 

criticism, but when it was 

time to stand up and be counted 

against Monaghan most of them 

went missing in action. Their 

passion and hunger went AWOL, 

and with it any ambition of All- 

Ireland honours. Donegal’s problems 

with indiscipline have been 

well-documented in the past, and 

it was thought with a disciplinarian 

like McIver holding the reins 

that could be solved. But now the 

doubts about their dedication 

have surfaced again,unfairly or 

not. 

Again a season has ended 

for Tir Chonaill footballers 

with questions being asked 

about their character 

McIver has been quoted stating 

he won’t be taking on another 

county job - it's to be hoped 

that isn’t the case. He comes 

across as a man of integrity, 

commitment and ability, and the 

GAA will be all the poorer without 

his involvement on the 

biggest stage. 

But what now for Donegal 

Once again Martin McHugh’s 

name will be linked with the vacant 

manager’s job, as it has 

been so often, but how likely is it 

the messiah-like Kilcar man will 

accept the challenge 

There’s a story told that he 

was all set to be boss a few years 

ago, with only the formality of a 

rubber-stamping necessary before 

being named, but suddenly 

on the eve of coronation he declined. 

He knows there’s plenty to 

work with, and perhaps no better 

man to give focus to all the potential, 

but there’s all that cushy 

media work to be considered, 

and it’s a lot less hassle. 

Whoever gets the position, 

mental as well as physical fitness 

will be high on the agenda. 

Maybe McHugh is the answer to 

a question which has proven too 

difficult for many. 

Good luck to Antrim as they 

set foot in Croke Park on a rare 

competitive visit. 

Reaching the Tommy Murphy 

Cup final is a significant achievement 

in itself, and if they can win 

it would be fantastic. 

The Sledger has listened with 

a mixture of bemusement and 

amusement to Saffrons deriding 

the competition, saying it’s a 

Mickey Mouse trophy and a 

pointless waste of players’ time. 

Wise up. When was the last time 

you saw Antrim senior footballers 

playing at Croker in August 

The county has to realise it 

must walk before it can run, and 

fans are in no position to be 

snobby about playing at a level 

below Sam Maguire standard.


TEAM OF THE WEEK 47 

Team of the week 

Derry and Monaghan dominate this week’s selection with five players each after booking their 

quarter-final berths with fine qualifying wins over Laois and Donegal 

1FERGAL BRYON (Laois) 

Pulled off a great save from 

Mark Lynch in the first half 

and varied his kick-outs well 

from long range efforts to 

shorter versions when necessary. 

. 

2DESSIE MONE (Monaghan) 

A real lively presence in 

the defence for Monaghan, 

his tackling, runs forward 

and workrate frustrated 

Donegal and inspired Monaghan 

in equal measure. 

3SEAN MARTIN LOCKHART 

(Derry) Typically classy 

performance form the experience 

Banagher player, 

who effectively marshalled 

Ross Munnelly throughout 

the Qualifier clash. 

4KARL LACEY (Donegal) 

One of the bright spots in 

the Donegal display was 

Lacey’s influence, especially 

during the opening period 

when he consistently won 

possession. 

DESSIE MONE 

(Monaghan) 

GARY McQUAID 

(Monaghan) 

ENDA MULDOON 

(Derry) 

JAMES CONWAY 

(Derry) 

ANDREW O’SHAUGHNESSY 

(Limerick) 

FERGAL BRYON 

(Laois) 

SEAN MARTY LOCKHART 

(Derry) 

GERARD O’KANE 

(Derry) 

PAUL MURPHY 

(Derry) 

VINNY COREY 

(Monaghan) 

PAUL FINLAY 

(Monaghan) 

KARL LACEY 

(Donegal) 

SEAN OG Ó hAILPIN 

(Cork) 

RORY KAVANAGH 

(Donegal) 

TOMMY FREEMAN 

(Monaghan) 

5GARY McQUAID (Monaghan) 

Used his strength well at 

centre back. He wasn’t 

afraid to run forward and his 

link-play with the midfield 

and half-forwards was a key. 

6GERARD O’KANE (Derry) 

Possibly his best ever performance 

for the county, 

he is now looking like a player 

reborn in his natural role in 

the half-back line. 

7SEAN OG Ó hAILIPIN (Cork) 

Back to his best with a 

brilliant display against 

Waterford. He constantly was 

on hand to win possession 

and weighed in on the scoring 

front as well. 

8JAMES CONWAY (Derry) 

Recovered from a shaky 

start to dominate from 

midfield for long periods. His 

runs forward created openings 

and culminated in a fine 

left-footed point. 

9PAUL FINLAY (Monaghan) 

This was a big game for 

Finlay and he produced a 

performance to match. A 

massive presence at midfield 

and, like Conway, he also got 

on the scoresheet. 

10 

ENDA MULDOON (Derry) 

A masterclass in high 

catching from the 

Ballinderry player which was 

matched by some great distribution 

made him man of the 

match in the victory. 

11 

PAUL MURPHY (Derry) 

Scored the grand total 

of 1-2 from play and 

played the role of creator in 

numerous other scores. Now 

appears to be settling in well 

to the Oak Leaf attack. 

RORY KAVANAGH 

(Donegal) Right from 

12 the start of this game, 

it was clear that Kavanagh 

was Donegal’s best forward. 

His goal and final overall tally 

proved his worth despite the 

defeat. 

ANDREW O’SHAUGH- 

NESSY (Limerick) 

13 A real livewire in Limerick’s 

victory over Clare, the 

corner forward weight in with 

twelve points, including five 

from free. 

VINNY COREY (Monaghan) 

Proved to be 

14 the ideal target at fullforward 

once again for Monaghan. 

His goal and point 

were clear examples of his 

fine form in the unusual role. 

TOMMY FREEMAN 

(Monaghan) Excelled 

15in corner forward with 

a performance of great confidence 

which was highlighted 

by his scoring ability. The 

goal was a classic corner forward’s 

effort. 

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK 

Is our selection the right one or 

have we made any major omissions 

email: comment@gaeliclife.com 

» FIXTURES 

Saturday August 4 

TOMMY MURPHY CUP FINAL 


Croke Park 12.15pm 

ALL-IRELAND SFC 

QUARTER-FINALS 

Sligo v Cork 

Croke Park 2pm 

Tyrone v Meath 


ALL-IRELAND MFC 

QUARTER-FINAL 

Laois v Roscommon 

Thurles 2pm 

ALL-IRELAND HURLING U21 ‘B’ 

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL 

Roscommon v Kerry 

Thurles 3.45pm 

ALL-IRELAND MHC 

SEMI-FINALS 

Dublin v Cork 

Portlaoise 7pm 

Sunday August 5 

ALL-IRELAND MFC 

QUARTER-FINALS 

Galway v Carlow 

Tullamore 2pm 


Tullamore 3.45pm 

ALL-IRELAND CHRISTY RING 

CUP HURLING FINAL 

Kildare v Westmeath 

Croke Park 12.15pm 

GUINNESS ALL-IRELAND LIAM 

MCCARTHY CUP HURLING 

CHAMPIONSHIP 

SEMI-FINALS 

Kilkenny v Wexford 


GUINNESS ALL IRELAND LIAM 

MCCARTHY CUP HURLING 

CHAMPIONSHIP 

QUARTER-FINAL REPLAY 

Waterford v Cork 


On The Box In The Box 

» BBC Radio Ulster 

from the Fermanagh sfl. 


Sportsound Special on BBC Radio Ulster 

MW and on the BBC Sport NI web- 

Dé Satharn 4ú Lunasa 

» Raidió na Gaeltachta 

site from 3.50pm. 

RTE Raidio na Gaeltachta 92.6 – 94.2 

Austin O’Callaghan presents a Sportsound 

Special on BBC Radio Ulster MW. Trachtaireacht bheo ar na cluichi seo 

fm 

Tyrone take on Meath at Croke Park for a leanas 

place in the semi-finals of the All Ireland Pairc an Chrocaigh 

Championship. Commentary is from Cluich Ceathru Ceannais peile 

Owen McConnon and Brian Canavan. 2pm i.n.Sligeach v Corcaigh 

4pm i.n.Tír Eoin v An Mhí 

» Highland Radio 

Dé Domhnaigh 5ú Lunasa 


Cluichi Leath Cheannais Iomana 

Tyrone v Meath, 4pm 

Páirc an Chrocaigh 

Live commentery from Croke Park with 2pm i.n Loch Garman v Cill Chainnigh 

Charlie Collins and Martin McHugh 4pm i.n. Corcaigh v Port Lairge 


Tullamore 3.45pm » RTE TWO 


Friday August 3, 11.40pm 

Live Updates from Francis Mooney The Road to Croker 

With Des Cahill. (Repeat) 

» Q101 

Saturday August 4, Noon 

In association with Gaelic Life 

The Saturday Game Live 

Friday August 3 

Anthony Tohill and Martin Carney join 

We hear from the Tyrone and Meath Michael Lyster for live coverage of the 

camps ahead of Saturday’s All-Ireland Tommy Murphy Cup Football Final as 

quarter final. Tyrone minors and Ladies Antrim face Wicklow at 12.15pm. Then 

are also on duty, plus updates on the Colm O’Rourke and Dara O’Cinneide join 

Fermanagh sfc replay between Enniskillen 

and Derryconnelly. 

ternoon’s All Ireland Senior Football 

Michael Lyster for live coverage of the af- 


Quarter Finals with both Sligo and Tyrone 

in action against Round 3 qualify- 

Live from Croke Park Tyrone vs Meath 

plus updates on the other games at ing teams. Marty Morrissey and Kevin 

Headquarters on Saturday. Live updates McStay provide the commentary for the 

from 7-15pm on the TG4 ladies All-Ireland 

group game between Tyrone and tators Ger Canning and Martin Carney 

first game at 2pm followed by commen- 

Sligo. It’s winner takes all. 

for the second match at 4pm. 

Sunday August 

Sunday August 5, Noon 

Live coverage of Tyrone minors vs Kerry The Sunday Game Live 

in the All-Ireland MFC quarter final from Michael Lyster will be joined by RTÉ’s expert 

GAA panellists for all the after- 

Tullamore plus all the latest updates 

noon’s action begining with the Christy 

Ring Cup Final between Westmeath and 

Kildare at 12.00pm. This will then be followed 

by the All Ireland Senior Hurling 

Championship Semi-Final as Kilkenny 

take on Wexford at 2pm and the All Ireland 

Senior Hurling Championship quarter 

final replay between Cork and Waterford 

at 4pm. 

9.30pm 

The Sunday Game 

Pat Spillane will be joined by expert analysts 

for reviews and analysis of the 

weekend’s GAA action. 

Thursday August 9, 8pm 

The Road to Croker 

A brand new series, presented by Des 

Cahill, that celebrates the grassroots of 

GAA while bringing viewers news on all 

the emerging national storylines of the 

2007 Hurling and Football Championships. 

» RTE Radio 1 

Friday August 3, 8.02pm 

THE CHAMPIONSHIP 

Previews and reviews of the All Ireland 

Hurling and Football Championships. 

Saturday 4 August 

FM & LW 252, 3.02pm 

SATURDAY SPORT with John Kenny 

GAA: Bank of Ireland Football Championship 

Quarter Finals 

Tommy Murphy Cup Final 

Sunday 5 August 

FM & LW 252, 2pm 

SUNDAY SPORT with Jimmy Magee 

GAA: All-Ireland Senior and Minor Hurling 

Championship Semi-Finals and 

Christy Ring Cup Final 

» TG4 

Saturday August 4, 5.15pm 

Peil na mBan Beo(live ladies football) 

Live coverage of Mayo v Dublin and Tyrone 

v Sligo in the 3rd round of the TG4 

All-Ireland Ladies Football Championship 

qualifiers from Breffni Park, Cavan. 

Presented by Micheál Ó Domhnaill with 

commentary by Brian Tyers and Mac 

Dara Mac Donncha. 

» Setanta 

Friday August 3 

4pm: SFC Qualifier – Laois v Derry 

6.30pm: The GAA Show 

7pm: Munster U21 Hurling Final – Waterford 

v Cork 

8.30pm: All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship 

Semi-Final – Cork v Galway 

9pm: All in the Game: Poc Fada 


11.30pm: All-Ireland SFC Quarter Final – 

Sligo v Cork 

Monday August 6 

6pm: All-Ireland SFC Quarter Final – Tyrone 

v Meath 

10.30pm: All-Ireland SHC Semi-Final – 

Wexford v Kilkenny 

Tuesday August 7 

6.35pm: All-Ireland Ladies SFC – Dublin 

v Mayo 

7.55pm: All-Ireland SHC Quarter Final 

Replay – Cork v Waterford 

Wednesday August 8 

2.45pm: All-Ireland Ladies SFC – Dublin 

v Mayo 

7pm: All-Ireland Ladies SFC – Tyrone v 

Sligo 

8.30pm: Tommy Murphy Cup Final – 


Thursday August 9 

3.30pm: All-Ireland Ladies SFC – Tyrone 

v Sligo 

6.45pm: Christy Ring Cup Final – Kildare 

v Westmeath 

8.30pm: All-Ireland SFC Quarter Final – 

Sligo v Cork 

Fantasy 

Football ...check out this 

week’s results on page 26

48 

COLUMNIST 


JOE BROLLY 

Injuries may hamper Tyrone but Meath are 

not as good as they’d have us believe 

The man with 

an opinion on 

everything… 

Are the current Meath crop 

the real deal 

comment@gaeliclife.com 

Waning of invincible legacy 

COLM O’Rourke told me during 

the week the Meath 

squad are utterly convinced 

they will beat Tyrone. Commenting 

on the draw for RTE, Anthony 

Tohill said they were the 

team everyone wanted to avoid. 

This mystique of invincibility 

that surrounds Meath teams is 

very helpful psychologically. 

Meath players believe it, and other 

teams fear it. But are the current 

team wearing the emperor’s 

new clothes Put another way, do 

they have an arse in their 

trousers The never say die aura 

is the inheritance of big Colm’s 

team. But they were a great side, 

with great forwards, a mean defence-minded 

back six, and a midfield 

pairing that combined no little 

skill with commendable ignorance. 

Their legacy lingered 

through the nineties, when two 

Meath teams of significantly lesser 

quality won All-Irelands. The 

1996 success in particular was 

down to their refusal to accept defeat, 

when Mayo ( in performances 

that have created an exactly opposite 

legacy for Mayo teams) 

outplayed them in both games 

and in both contrived to blow winning 

leads. 

Where does this Meath team 

stand Well, I think they are not 

as good as they want us to believe. 

The right side of their defence is 

extremely vulnerable, having lost 

their first choice corner and wing 

backs to injury. Their midfielders 

are very large but not particularly 

mobile. Crawford is an eternal 

disappointment, but Ward 

showed against Galway he has real 

potential. Neither are particularly 

good on the breaking ball, 

preferring to catch cleanly. Up 

front, Shane O’Rourke has the potential 

to be a very fine, perhaps 

even great county footballer, but 

it must be remembered he is only 

nineteen and this match will be 

his fourth game for the seniors. 

Brian Farrell has a big reputation 

but lacks pace and tends to be 

selfish. He was more or less 

anonymous against Galway and 

won’t worry Tyrone. 

Darren Fay remains the best 

full back in the land, and can play 

it any which you choose. An aerial 

bombardment will be meat and 

drink for him, and his pace and 

LEGACY OF 

INVINCIBILITY... 

The exploits of 

Colm O’Rourke 

and his 

team-mates 

nearly two 

decades ago 

mean that 

Meath possess 

an aura of 

invulnerability 

that lingers to 

this day 

footballing ability means that he 

can man mark the quickest forward. 

In his last outing he held 

Michael Meehan to one point. It is 

vital that he be moved off the 

square, and this is one of Tyrone’s 

specialities. Man for man, the defenders 

aren’t great, but Colm 

Coyle has dealt effectively with 

this problem by picking the outstanding 

Anthony Moyles at centre 

half forward, but instructing 

him to drop back and sweep along 

the half-back line. 

This is a tactic that proved remarkably 

successful for Armagh, 

with John McEntee adopting the 

role to great effect. Moyles’ presence 

has helped to close down the 

centre of the defence, so drastically 

cutting down on goal opportunities. 

Dublin are the goal kings, 

and in the course of 140 minutes 

were able to manufacture a single 

goal against them. In their six 

games to date, they have conceded 

only two goals, and one of 

these came from a Galway penalty 

that should never have been 

awarded. Thirdly, their midfielders 

are giants, both 6’5’’, so Tyrone 

will have to work extra hard 

to disrupt them and get the ball 

on the deck for their ruck rovers 

to pounce. 

If I were in charge of Meath, I 

would station Geraghty and the 

6’5’’ Shane O’Rourke on the fourteen, 

with Bray and Farrell playing 

off them in a square formation. 

Meath’s natural game is the 

long ball, but in the championship 

to date they have not pumped 

long ball to the danger zone. Instead 

Shane O’Rourke has been 

roving out around the forty, Geraghty 

has been doing the same, 

and although long ball is being 

kicked in it is not going up the 

middle, being directed instead towards 

Bray and Farrell as they 

break out. The two goals against 

Galway came from a miskicked 

pass by Shane O’Rourke deflected 

by a Galway man into the path of 

Bray, and a quick free to Bray 

when the Galway defence was 

asleep. 

The Achilles heel of this Tyrone 

team has always been the early 

high ball to the square. Just ask 

Stephen McDonnell, Ronan 

Clarke, Colm McFadden, Vincent 

Corey etc. In the space of ten minutes 

in the Ulster final, Vinnie almost 

turned the game on its head, 

scoring a point, setting up a goal 

and point, and narrowly missing 

the goal that would have drawn 

the game. Tyrone might think 

about playing a sweeper along the 

21-yard line in front of the full-forward. 

I would be inclined to play 

Joe McMahon at full back if Geraghty 

moves in, and keep Conor 

Gormley at centre half. A sweeper 

in front of the full-forward, coupled 

with Tyrone’s terrific defensive 

screen will make life very difficult 

for Meath. 

It is a great pity that 

Stephen O’Neill has 

struggled so badly with 

injury. He is one of the 

great jewels in the 

GAA’s crown. 

Tyrone have always been about 

the sum of the parts rather than 

the parts themselves and are constantly 

striving to perfect total 

football. However, they have have 

been shorn of their two superstar 

forwards Brian McGuigan and 

Stephen O’Neill. It hasn’t affected 

them to date but it is fast approaching 

the time when you 

would expect this to begin to bite 

since even Mickey Harte’s genius 

must have some boundaries. It 

was hoped that Owen Mulligan 

might take up the slack, but he 

has not been able to make the 

transition from star forward to to 

superstar forward. 

It is a great pity that O’Neill has 

struggled so badly with injury. He 

is one of the great jewels in the 

GAA’s crown, and we have been 

deprived of seeing him in his 

prime. Fergal Logan told me recently 

that in a club game against 

Stewartstown the Clan Na Gael 

man gave a “sublime” performance, 

kicking points at his ease 

from all over the field. 

Hopefully, he can feature at 

some stage. At least Stephen’s absence 

has been anticipated and 

the team has learned to cope 

without him. However, if Brian 

Dooher doesn’t play this will be a 

huge blow. Hopefully, he will surprise 

us all and come out fighting 

fit from the start. If he does, Colm 

O’Rourke might be eating another 

hat come Saturday evening . . . 

● Joe Brolly also writes for the 

Ireland Mail on Sunday 

Ireland’s Best Bread 

Eight times All-Ireland Winners 

SPONSORS OF THE JOE BROLLY PAGE

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