Ohk Brand Ambassador Announcement: Caelan Doris – The Irish Examiner – August 7 2024

Posted on August 7, 2024 by admin

Jet-setter Caelan Doris recharged after ’55-week season’

By the time Doris returns to collective Leinster training on August 19, he will have had a whole five weeks away from the stresses of professional rugby.
DAIRE WALSH

Following an intense season that lasted more than 12 months, Leinster and Ireland back-row Caelan Doris has been making the most of some time off in the past few weeks.

Having gathered in the IRFU High Performance Centre for the first block of pre-season training ahead of the Rugby World Cup on June 18 of last year, Doris went on to play in all five games Ireland participated in at the tournament.

Either side of a successful Six Nations Championship with his country, Doris also featured prominently for Leinster in both the United Rugby Championship and the European Champions Cup.

After falling short in those competitions for the third successive year, the Mayo native started both tests on Ireland’s summer tour of South Africa. He subsequently returned to Irish soil in the wake of their second encounter with the Springboks on July 13, but it wasn’t long until he was airborne again.

“We got back from South Africa three weeks yesterday [Monday] and then three weeks ago today I flew off to LA. My brother lives over there and my parents were there as well.

“Myself and my girlfriend joined them for a week, which was lovely. A nice bit of family time and a bit of sun,” Doris explained at a media event yesterday, where he was announced as a new brand ambassador for Ohk Energy.

“Then headed down to Mexico for the first time for 10 days and then finished off in New York for a couple of nights before flying back. Just arrived back yesterday. Struggling with jet lag a little bit, but it was a great three weeks.

“The two matches at the end were probably up there with the most attritional throughout the whole season. It was a 55-week season, going back to the start of pre-season for the World Cup. Obviously there was weeks off here and there, but as a whole, a very long season and finishing with those two is about as attritional as you can get.”

That second game against South Africa at Kings Park Stadium in Durban was a special one for Doris as it saw him captaining Ireland to a memorable 25-24 victory due to the absence of regular skipper Peter O’Mahony from the starting line-up. He had also led Andy Farrell’s side into action when injury ruled O’Mahony out of their second round home meeting with Italy during this year’s Six Nations.

Additionally, while James Ryan and Garry Ringrose are currently co-captains of Leinster, Doris also served as skipper for the eastern province in some big encounters last season – including their Champions Cup final defeat to Toulouse in May. Despite acknowledging he still has a lot to learn, Doris believes he is starting to feel more at ease with being an on-field general.

“I think with any new job, it takes a while to get comfortable in it. I’m definitely still not there, but at the end of the season with Leinster, when James and Garry were both injured, I had a chance to get more comfortable.

“Getting a few back-to-back weeks under my belt, which definitely helps in becoming more comfortable with some of the added responsibilities. It allows you to focus more on your game and my usual sort of weekly routine and weekly prep, as well as trying to do what is needed in terms of the extra responsibilities.”

By the time Doris returns to collective Leinster training on August 19, he will have had a whole five weeks away from the stresses of professional rugby.

It is unlikely the 26-year-old will be back for the Blues’ URC opener with Edinburgh in the Scottish capital on September 20, but there is one game in the initial part of the season that he will be desperate to play in.

A little over 15 years on from their iconic Heineken Cup semi-final clash at the same venue, Leinster are set to lock horns with Munster in a fourth round URC fixture at Croke Park on October 12.

Considering he was captain of the side when the eastern province defeated Northampton Saints in the penultimate round of the Champions Cup in a packed out Croker earlier this year, Doris will be eager to put his hand up for selection ahead of their latest visit to Jones’ Road.

“The prospect of playing Munster there is very special, given the history we’ve had with them and the last game against them [in Croke Park], and the nature of it. The thought of being involved in that one is very exciting,” Doris added.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if lads filter back in, in the couple of weeks before that. I’d say it is unlikely that will be the first game for all of us anyway.”

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Women’s Interprovincial Championship Build-Up: Enya Breen (Munster) – The Irish Examiner – August 7 2024

Posted on August 7, 2024 by admin

Munster’s Enya Breen excited by prospect of facing Kathryn Dane

Amongst the first batch of players to be fully contracted to the IRFU Women’s 15s High Performance Programme, Dane suffered a brain haemorrhage in November 2022 while rehabbing an anterior cruciate ligament injury at the IRFU’s High Performance Centre.
DAIRE WALSH

Having previously watched closely as she worked her way back to full fitness and health, Munster’s Enya Breen is excited by the prospect of facing Kathryn Dane in Virgin Media Park this weekend.

Amongst the first batch of players to be fully contracted to the IRFU Women’s 15s High Performance Programme, Dane suffered a brain haemorrhage in November 2022 while rehabbing an anterior cruciate ligament injury at the IRFU’s High Performance Centre.

It has been a difficult road back to recovery for the Fermanagh woman, but having come through a warm-up game against Connacht last month, she is now in line to feature for Ulster in their Women’s Interprovincial Championship opener against Munster in Cork on Saturday (kick-off 2.30pm).

Given she spent a lot of time with the scrum-half in the HPC as she battled back from a knee injury sustained in Ireland’s Six Nations clash against Wales in March 2023, Breen recognises how hard Dane has worked to get to this point.

“Me and Kathryn did a lot of rehab in here together as well when we were injured. I’d know her quite well and we came in at the same time [to the Irish set-up] too,” Breen remarked at a Women’s Interpro launch in the HPC last week.

“We’d be very familiar with each other and I’m looking forward to playing against her again. It was a long time not seeing her on the pitch. Delighted that she is back and looking forward to having a good battle with her.”

From the 32-strong squad that new Munster head coach Fiona Hayes has assembled for this season’s Women’s Interpros – which will end in a finals day at Kingspan Stadium in Belfast on August 31 – Breen is one of four players who are currently lining out for Dublin-based clubs.

She and her Blackrock College team-mates – sisters Ellen and Maggie Boylan – are joined in the squad by Old Belvedere’s Deirbhile Nic a Bháird, but despite some gentle ribbing from her provincial colleagues, she is always proud to reconnect with some old faces in the Munster set-up.

“Even though we get slagged for leaving Munster and leaving Bohs and Cork, it is nice to get back and playing with all the girls you would have played with growing up. I played with all the girls down in Limerick as well. It is nice to come back and come together. You really feel a big sense of belonging to being from Munster.”

Before being glued to the television last Friday to her fellow Skibbereen natives Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy claiming gold medals in the lightweight double sculls for the second consecutive occasion, Breen also took a keen interest in Ireland’s historic first appearance at the Women’s Rugby 7s at the Olympics in Paris.

“For them it was a great achievement to get there and we’re all so proud of them. No matter what the results were [they finished eighth overall], it was great to see them there on the world stage where they belong. We’re delighted for them,” Breen added.

Posted in Interprovincial Rugby, Women's Rugby | Comments Off on Women’s Interprovincial Championship Build-Up: Enya Breen (Munster) – The Irish Examiner – August 7 2024

All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football Championship Final Follow-Up Piece: Kerry V Galway – Media West Ireland – August 5 2024

Posted on August 5, 2024 by admin

TG4 ALL-IRELAND SENIOR FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Kerry 3-14

Galway 0-11

By Daire Walsh

Kerry joint manager Declan Quill paid tribute to the character of their squad as they secured their first TG4 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship title since 1993 after being beaten in the final for the past two seasons.

Goals from Aoife Dillane, Hannah O’Donoghue and Emma Dineen were decisive at Croke Park, while Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh struck 0-6 on a day when the Kingdom collected the Brendan Martin Cup for the 12th time in their history, moving them ahead of provincial rivals Cork at the top of the roll of honour.

“It’s unbelievable. I was here last year. There’s a massive difference in sport between winning and losing,” said Quill. “We were involved in a situation last year, not happy with our performance. Just got totally overrun by Dublin.

“The emotion now, to see all the parents, the girls celebrating. Our own kids outside on the field. Look, winning is everything as they say in sport at this level really.”

Quill said that he and joint manager Darragh Long were privileged to manage a squad that put in an enormous effort to come back and lift the TG4 All-Ireland crown after finishing runners-up for the past two years.

“It’s a team game. If you look at Hannah O’Donoghue, Lorraine Scanlon. They had to swallow not starting, but then they knew they had a job to do when they came on. They weren’t happy not starting obviously and you can use that in two different ways. You can see the girls when they came on how they used it and they put in two phenomenal performances, the two of them when they came on.

“It’s a team game, it’s a panel game. We’ve 35 girls there training non-stop. Only 20 can play and the hardest thing about management is picking a team. Leaving girls out is really, really hard. We’re very, very happy and we saved the best performance for the last day,” added Quill.

Kerry got on top in the opening half and five points without reply from Ní Mhuircheartaigh, including two excellent contributions from play, put the Munster champions firmly in the driving seat.

Galway finally responded with Roisin Leonard’s second point of the game, only for marauding defender Dillane to fire a looping shot beyond the reach of goalkeeper Dearbhla Gower to push Kerry 1-8 to 0-3 in front at the break.

Olivia Divilly pointed for Galway after the restart but Mary O’Connell soon joined her midfield partner Anna Galvin on the Kingdom scoresheet.

Teenage star Niamh Divilly supplemented the earlier effort from her sister Olivia with a fine point, but Kerry remained in the driving seat when Dineen and Ní Mhuircheartaigh both raised white flags in quick succession.

Olivia Divilly did knock over a close-range free at the opposite end, but the final outcome was effectively placed beyond when, just moments after her introduction as a substitute, O’Donoghue clinically dispatched the ball to the Galway net via a Ní Mhuircheartaigh pass.

Now rampant, Kerry added a third goal through Dineen inside a final quarter that also saw O’Donoghue (two) and the evergreen Lorraine Scanlon kicking points.

Galway did find the target through Andrea Trill, Charlotte Cooney, Leonard, Olivia Divilly and Shauna Hynes during this juncture, but Daniel Moynihan’s westerners came up short in their quest for a first All-Ireland senior crown in 20 years.

“It’s disappointing. I don’t we probably played to the level we needed to beat a fantastic Kerry team,” said Moynihan. “We knew we needed to hit form. All 15 players needed to play at their best and unfortunately we didn’t.

“Leading up to the game, training wise, everything was good. Players were switched to what was required of them. It’s just one of those things. I can’t put my finger on it right now, but preparation wise we were in a good place. Game wise, we started quite well. Especially that first 15 minutes, I think we controlled a lot of the game, even though Kerry had those few scores. We weren’t converting and that was the issue,” added Moynihan.

Scorers – Kerry: L Ní Mhuircheartaigh 0-6 (4f), E Dineen, H O’Donoghue 1-2 each, A Dillane 1-0, M O’Connell, A Galvin, N Carmody, L Scanlon 0-1 each.

Galway: O Divilly 0-4 (2f), R Leonard 0-3 (2f), C Cooney, N Divilly, A Trill, S Hynes 0-1 each. 

KERRY: C Butler; E Lynch, K Cronin, A Dillane; A O’Connell, C Murphy, D Kearney; M O’Connell, A Galvin; N Carmody, S O’Shea, N Ní Chonchúir; D O’Leary, E Dineen, L Ní Mhuircheartaigh. Subs: H O’Donoghue for Ní Chonchúir (43), L Scanlon for Kearney (48), K Brosnan for Carmody (52), C Lynch for Dillane (54), K O’Sullivan for Ní Mhuircheartaigh (57).

GALWAY: D Gower, M Jordan, S Ní Loingsigh, K Geraghty; C Cooney, N Ward, A Ní Cheallaigh; M Glynn, A Davoren; N Divilly, L Ward, O Divilly; E Reaney, L Coen, R Leonard. Subs: A Trill for Reaney (24), E Gavin for Ní Cheallaigh, M Banek for Jordan (both 38), S Hynes for Glynn (47), A Morrissey for N Divilly (49).

Referee: Jonathan Murphy (Carlow).

Posted in Ladies GAA | Comments Off on All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football Championship Final Follow-Up Piece: Kerry V Galway – Media West Ireland – August 5 2024

All-Ireland Junior Ladies Football Championship Final Follow-Up Piece: Fermanagh V Louth – Media West Ireland – August 5 2024

Posted on August 5, 2024 by admin

World-class Eimear Smyth gives Fermanagh huge edge in final win

Fermanagh 1-11 Louth 0-12

Daire Walsh

Fermanagh manager CJ McGourty hailed the exceptional display of Eimear Smyth as they captured the TG4 All-Ireland Junior title for the third time in eight years at Croke Park.

Smyth struck 1-09 in an awesome display as Fermanagh held off a spirited challenge from Louth in an entertaining Final.

“I said all year, she is an exceptional talent, but when she’s knocking on your door every day looking to get better, that’s a sign of a world-class player,” said McGourty.

“Every night she’s coming to training, she’s looking at a different wee move or a different jink to learn or trying to improve her game.

“There’s loads of them like that, and in the Championship moments when you’ve an extra wee move to get out of trouble, they count for a lot. Not only her, everyone is a credit.”

Fermanagh led 1-05 to 0-05 at the break as Smyth found the net after 10 minutes and did enough after the restart to claim the title.

“Unbelievable feeling. I can’t say enough about that group of players, just fantastic,” added McGourty.

“They’ve played the Championship minutes like we’ve asked them to do all year down the stretch.

“I think we kept the ball for about the last two and a half minutes up until 10 seconds to go, which is really important in a tight game, just to try and see it out.

“It wasn’t outstanding, but it was good enough to get the result, and those girls hadn’t won in Croke Park ever. Now, they have, and that’s a credit to them.”

While Kate Flood ended the action with 0-08 to her name, Louth fell short in their quest to claim a record-breaking fourth Final victory at this grade.

“I think in both halves, we had a chance to go ahead of Fermanagh,” said Louth manager Paul Hanlon.

“We kept going, we thought when we came out in the second half that we’d take them. We thought they were getting a wee bit tired, but they seemed to have pushed on.”

An Aoife Russell score for Louth reduced the interval deficit to two points on the resumption before Louth goalkeeper Rebecca Lambe Fagan pulled off two excellent saves from Fermanagh attacker Niamh McManus in the space of 60 seconds. McManus also rattled the post from a rebounded strike after the first of these shots was turned away.

Fermanagh did eventually reinforce their authority with Blaithin Bogue and Smyth points, but the sin-binning of Ciara Clarke after 40 minutes did come as a blow for the Erne women.

By the time the Knockninny Gaels corner-back returned to the field of play, Louth had cut the gap to the bare minimum thanks to three points from Flood and one from substitute Mischa Rooney.

Smyth had split the uprights at the opposite end to ensure Fermanagh stayed in the ascendancy, and she added another free to her outstanding haul before Flood did likewise on 52 minutes.

Even though the latter kept Louth in contention with an eighth point, the imperious Smyth raised white flags either side of it to seal the win.

Scorers, Fermanagh: E Smyth 1-09 (6f); B Bogue 0-02.

Louth: K Flood 0-08 (7f); N Rice 0-02; A Russell, M Rooney 0-01 each.

FERMANAGH: M Maguire; C Clarke, M McGloin, E Keenan; S McQuade, C Murphy, C Bogue; B Bannon, L Maguire; D Maguire, J Doonan, A McCabe; B Bogue, E Smyth, N McManus.

Subs: B Smyth for McManus (49), S Britton for D Maguire (57).

LOUTH: R Lambe Fagan; L Byrne, E Murray, E Hand; H Lambe Sally, A Breen, C Nolan; A Halligan, E Byrne; L White, A Russell, C McDonald; N Rice, K Flood, S Matthews.

Subs: M Rooney for Lambe Sally (HT), C O’Reilly for McDonald (49), R O’Connor Leonard for Russell (52), C Boyle for Matthews, K Doheny for White (both 60).

Referee: Gerard Canny (Mayo)

Posted in Ladies GAA | Comments Off on All-Ireland Junior Ladies Football Championship Final Follow-Up Piece: Fermanagh V Louth – Media West Ireland – August 5 2024

All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football Championship Final: Kerry V Galway – Ladiesgaelic.ie – August 4 2024

Posted on August 4, 2024 by admin

Kerry end the famine with emphatic win in TG4 All-Ireland senior final

TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship final

Kerry 3-14

Galway 0-11

By Daire Walsh

Aoife Dillane, Hannah O’Donoghue and Emma Dineen struck goals at Croke Park on Sunday as Kerry convincingly overcame Galway to secure their first TG4 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship title since 1993.

Veteran attacker Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh also helped herself to an impressive haul of 0-6 on a day when the Kingdom collected the Brendan Martin Cup for the 12th time in their history. This, in turn, moves them ahead of provincial rivals Cork at the top of the roll of honour for the competition.

Following early traded scores between Kerry skipper Niamh Carmody and Galway’s Roisin Leonard, the Kingdom stretched two points clear courtesy of unanswered efforts from Dineen and midfielder Anna Galvin.

While Galway brought the gap down to the bare minimum with a fine point by Olivia Divilly, Kerry were proving to be the more clinical side in front of the posts.

Thanks to five points without reply from ever-influential Corca Dhuibhne ace Ní Mhuircheartaigh, including two excellent contributions from play, the Munster champions were firmly in the driving seat.

Galway finally responded with Leonard’s second point of the game, only for marauding defender Dillane to fire a looping shot beyond the reach of goalkeeper Dearbhla Gower to offer Kerry a commanding 1-8 to 0-3 buffer on the stroke of half-time.

Olivia Divilly got their Connacht counterparts underway on the restart with a fine solo point but Mary O’Connell soon joined her midfield partner Galvin on the Kingdom scoresheet.

Teenage star Niamh Divilly supplemented the earlier effort from her sister Olivia with a fine point, but Kerry remained in the driving seat when Dineen and Ní Mhuircheartaigh both raised white flags in quick succession.

Olivia Divilly did knock over a close-range free at the opposite end, but the final outcome was effectively placed beyond when, just moments after her introduction as a substitute, O’Donoghue clinically dispatched the ball to the Galway net via a Ní Mhuircheartaigh pass.

Now rampant, Kerry added a third goal through Dineen inside a final quarter that also saw O’Donoghue (two) and the evergreen Lorraine Scanlon kicking points.

Galway did find the target through Andrea Trill, Charlotte Cooney, Leonard, Olivia Divilly and Shauna Hynes during this juncture, but Daniel Moynihan’s westerners came up short in their quest for a first All-Ireland senior crown in 20 years.

Scorers – Kerry: L Ní Mhuircheartaigh 0-6 (4f), E Dineen, H O’Donoghue 1-2 each, A Dillane 1-0, M O’Connell, A Galvin, N Carmody, L Scanlon 0-1 each.

Galway: O Divilly 0-4 (2f), R Leonard 0-3 (2f), C Cooney, N Divilly, A Trill, S Hynes 0-1 each.

KERRY: C Butler; E Lynch, K Cronin, A Dillane; A O’Connell, C Murphy, D Kearney; M O’Connell, A Galvin; N Carmody, S O’Shea, N Ní Chonchúir; D O’Leary, E Dineen, L Ní Mhuircheartaigh. Subs: H O’Donoghue for Ní Chonchúir (43), L Scanlon for Kearney (48), K Brosnan for Carmody (52), C Lynch for Dillane (54), K O’Sullivan for Ní Mhuircheartaigh (57).

GALWAY: D Gower, M Jordan, S Ní Loingsigh, K Geraghty; C Cooney, N Ward, A Ní Cheallaigh; M Glynn, A Davoren; N Divilly, L Ward, O Divilly; E Reaney, L Coen, R Leonard. Subs: A Trill for Reaney (24), E Gavin for Ní Cheallaigh, M Banek for Jordan (both 38), S Hynes for Glynn (47), A Morrissey for N Divilly (49).

Referee: Jonathan Murphy (Carlow).

Posted in Ladies GAA | Comments Off on All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football Championship Final: Kerry V Galway – Ladiesgaelic.ie – August 4 2024

All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football Championship Build-Up Piece: Charlotte Cooney (Galway) – The Sunday Independent – August 4 2024

Posted on August 4, 2024 by admin

Galway need to hit the ground running against Kerry

Daire Walsh

When Charlotte Cooney first emerged on the Galway senior ladies’ football panel in 2012, she had no shortage of experienced figures to look to for guidance.

Eight years on from helping the county to their sole All-Ireland senior title — a 3-8 to 0-11 final triumph over Dublin on October 3, 2004 at Croke Park — the likes of Annette Clarke, Geraldine Conneally, Aoibheann Daly and Edel Concannon were still representing the Tribeswomen with great distinction just as a teenage Cooney was arriving on the adult inter-county scene.

​Now one of the more senior members of a Galway team that take on Kerry in this afternoon’s All-Ireland SFC decider at Croke Park (4.15), Cooney finds herself in a similar position to those players who went before her.

“I was obviously very fortunate to be in the dressing room when they were in the dressing room. Unbelievable footballers and people. They were just great role models to have. You look up to them so much and again they were looking to raise standards all the time. Trying to leave the dressing room in a better place,” Cooney explained.

“For the likes of myself, who have been around a while now, raising standards and leaving the dressing room in a better place is what you try to do. They were unreal. I can’t speak highly enough of them. They were just superstars.”

Although she will be seeking to add an All-Ireland winners’ medal to her list of achievements today, Cooney already has experience of lining out on the biggest day in the LGFA’s calendar. Back in 2019, Charlotte and her older sister Fabienne — who retired from inter-county duty a couple of years ago — came on as second-half substitutes when Galway lost out to Dublin in a low-scoring Brendan Martin Cup showpiece (2-3 to 0-4).

​That was an historic occasion for the female code as a record attendance of 56,114 passed through the Croke Park turnstiles for an All-Ireland ladies’ finals day that also included junior (Louth v Fermanagh) and intermediate (Tipperary v Meath) deciders.

She hadn’t necessarily envisaged that it would take five years to return to an All-Ireland senior final, but Cooney is delighted that Galway are within 60 minutes of picking up a second top-tier championship title.

“It was an unbelievable experience. It was class. Unfortunately we didn’t get the result on the day, but to have an opportunity to hopefully get the result on Sunday, we’re very grateful for it. Please God again we can bring the performance and get the win for the group.

“When you play in an All-Ireland in 2019, you think ‘from here we’ll surely get to an All-Ireland next year’ and it doesn’t happen like that. It takes a huge amount of work and the girls have worked so hard this year. To be back in an All-Ireland final, it’s great excitement. There’s a great mood in the camp and we’re really looking forward to it.”

Whereas it isn’t particularly surprising to see Kerry returning to an All-Ireland final following their showpiece appearances in 2022 and 2023 — losing out to Meath and Dublin respectively — the possibility of Galway getting to this stage of the competition seemed somewhat remote just a few short months ago.

Courtesy of six defeats in seven games, the westerners suffered relegation to Division 2 of the National Football League in April.

Yet Cooney — who is originally from Castlerea in Roscommon, but moved to Claregalway with her family when she was 10 — insisted there was no sign of panic within the Galway ranks during this period.

Indeed, with a stunning quarter-final victory over defending champions Dublin at Parnell Park on July 6 serving as the catalyst, the Daniel Moynihan-managed outfit have turned their season around in impressive fashion.

“The league didn’t go exactly how we planned, but our performances were there. We just didn’t get the results. There were games that we lost by a point in the last minute and if we got the result, it might have been a totally different league campaign for us,” Cooney said.

“The win against Dublin, it was a tough battle. The girls that came off the bench, they made the difference. I think each game we’re improving and each game we go after the performance.”

Left half-back in their recent knock-out victories against Dublin and Cork (a semi-final win at Glenisk O’Connor Park in Tullamore 15 days ago), Cooney was on the opposite wing for the Tribeswomen’s last competitive outing at Croke Park.

​April 15 of last year saw Galway also facing Kerry in a National Football League Division 1 final in GAA HQ, but the Kingdom were much the better side and sealed top honours with a convincing 5-11 to 1-10 triumph.

A seven-point cushion (2-5 to 0-4) had Kerry well on their way to victory by the midway stage in this contest, before they placed the outcome beyond any doubt by firing 2-6 without reply upon the resumption. If their latest showdown with the Kingdom is to be a successful one, then Cooney admitted the westerners can ill-afford to be that slow coming out of the blocks again.

“It was a disappointing day. It just wasn’t good enough, we didn’t perform to our standards at all. I think that is why we’re just focusing a lot on ourselves for the next day because it is all about the performance,” Cooney added.

“You can do all the training in the world, but you have to be able to bring it on the day. Go after it and play with no fear. Because 60 minutes can go pretty quick and we don’t want to be coming into the dressing room with 30 minutes chasing the game, like we were in the league. It will be a challenge, but we have to start strong and we’re definitely up for the challenge.”

Posted in Ladies GAA | Comments Off on All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football Championship Build-Up Piece: Charlotte Cooney (Galway) – The Sunday Independent – August 4 2024

All-Ireland Junior Ladies Football Championship Final Build-Up Piece: Áine Breen (Louth) & Shannan McQuade (Fermanagh) – The Sunday Independent – August 4 2024

Posted on August 4, 2024 by admin

Ladies JFC final: Captains taking a journey into the unknown

Daire Walsh

Experience can count for a lot on the big stage, and in the form of Aine Breen and Shannan McQuade, today’s junior teams – Louth and Fermanagh – have captains that are well-acquainted with All-Ireland ladies football final day in Croke Park.

An unused substitute for their All-Ireland junior championship success over Scotland in 2015, Breen started Louth’s showpiece defeat to Limerick in the same competition at GAA HQ three years later. The St Patrick’s club star was then introduced off the bench when the Wee County overcame the challenge of a Fermanagh side that featured McQuade amongst their ranks in the 2019 junior final in the same venue.

While she was happy to be part of a wider squad effort for those 2015 and 2019 triumphs, Breen admitted captaining her side to victory against Fermanagh later on today (throw-in for the junior final at Croke Park is 11.45am) would be extra special.

“It would be a massive honour. Looking back, seeing Michelle [McMahon] in 2015 and Kate [Flood] in 2019 lifting the cup, you never really think it’s going to be you. For me to do that, it would be an absolute honour. I think to do so on behalf of the team that we have at the minute would be a dream come through essentially,” Breen acknowledged.

“I guess in 2015 and 2019 I wasn’t starting essentially, but I think it’s no different whether you’re number 1 or number 30. You still want the team to win. Of course when you’re out on the pitch and when you’re able to, in one sense, control what’s happening out there, it’s that bit special. As captain I think it’s even more special.”

Five years prior to being on the receiving end of that aforementioned defeat to Louth in 2019, McQuade lined out for Fermanagh in an All-Ireland intermediate championship reversal to Down at Croke Park. She was also a starter when the Erne side played out a thrilling draw with Antrim in the All-Ireland junior final of 2022, before coming out on the wrong side of a replayed encounter with the Saffron women at the Athletic Grounds in Armagh.

She does have a junior championship crown to her name from 2020, but that decider win over Wicklow was played out in an empty Parnell Park on Dublin’s northside at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In stark contrast to the precocious teenager who made her Croker debut all of a decade ago, McQuade now feels like a much more rounded footballer for her latest appearance in the stadium.

“The nerves probably ate me up that day [in 2014], it was my first day out. I think I was 16, 17 going onto Croke Park that day. I’m a lot older now than I was then. Hopefully lessons learnt and I’m looking forward to taking it all in on Sunday,” McQuade said.

“Fermanagh hadn’t been there in a few years and it obviously meant a lot to us [to make the 2014 final]. I think we were distracted maybe by the big occasion, but I’ll be definitely telling the other players on the team to enjoy the experience and to not let it consume you. It’s another pitch, just with a big stadium around it. Just enjoy it.”

While it is the exact same opponents as their most recent outing in Croke Park, Breen believes the fact Louth and Fermanagh haven’t met competitively since that junior final in 2019 means that both teams will arguably be taking a journey into the unknown today.

“It’s funny that we actually haven’t met each other since that final, being in different grades and that. We haven’t met in this year’s championship, we weren’t in each other’s group. I think both teams are really looking forward to it,” Breen added.

“I think just the fact we haven’t met each other, there’s probably a little bit of the unknown. Hopefully we can just bring excitement. Both teams will really go at it.”

Whereas Louth are aiming for an automatic return to the intermediate grade following their relegation at the end of the 2023 championship, this is the third year in succession that Fermanagh have been attempting to reclaim a place in ladies football’s second-tier.

Their semi-final victory at the expense of Limerick last month made amends for their loss to the Treaty outfit at the same stage of the competition in 2023, but even though they took great confidence from this game, McQuade is aware that her side will likely need to produce an even bigger display in order to overcome Louth.

“We know it’s going to be a challenge, Louth are an amazing team. They’ve had a good campaign here, they’re just down from intermediate. We’re looking forward to the challenge, but we’re not going into this thinking that we have it,” McQuade concluded.

Posted in Ladies GAA | Comments Off on All-Ireland Junior Ladies Football Championship Final Build-Up Piece: Áine Breen (Louth) & Shannan McQuade (Fermanagh) – The Sunday Independent – August 4 2024

All-Ireland Junior Ladies Football Championship Final: Fermanagh V Louth – Ladiesgaelic.ie – August 4 2024

Posted on August 4, 2024 by admin

Smyth leads the way as Fermanagh capture TG4 All-Ireland junior title for third time in eight years

TG4 All-Ireland Junior Championship final

Fermanagh 1-11 

Louth 0-12

By Daire Walsh

Player of the Match Eimear Smyth struck a magnificent 1-9 against Louth at Croke Park on Sunday to propel Fermanagh towards their third TG4 All-Ireland Junior Football Championship title.

Already guaranteed the 2024 ZuCar Golden Boot award — awarded to the top-scorer across all three grades of the All-Ireland championship — in advance of this showpiece clash with an incredible haul of 7-39, Smyth once again produced the goods to secure Fermanagh’s first junior crown since 2020. While Kate Flood ended the action with 0-8 to her name, Louth fell short in their quest to claim a record-breaking fourth final victory at this grade.

Smyth and the ever-industrious Blaithin Bogue had created early daylight with unanswered points and while Flood’s routine free got Louth up and running, Smyth subsequently caught a ball ahead of Wee County netminder Rebecca Lambe Fagan before comfortably bagging a 10th minute goal.

Although CJ McGourty’s northerners twice moved five points clear with Smyth frees in the closing stages of the opening period, another place-ball effort from Flood was preceded by Niamh Rice’s impressive 0-2 salvo to leave Louth just three adrift at 1-5 to 0-5 at the interval.

An Aoife Russell score reduced this deficit to two points on the resumption, before Lambe Fagan pulled off two excellent saves from Fermanagh attacker Niamh McManus in the space of 60 seconds. McManus also rattled the post from an rebounded strike after the first of these shots was turned away.

Fermanagh did eventually reinforce their authority with Bogue and Smyth points, but the sin-binning of Ciara Clarke on the stroke of 40 minutes did come as a blow for the Erne women. By the time the Knockninny Gaels corner-back returned to the field of play, Louth had cut the gap to the bare minimum thanks to three points from Flood and a single contribution by substitute Mischa Rooney.

Smyth had split the uprights at the opposite end to ensure Fermanagh stayed in the ascendancy and she added another free to her outstanding haul before Flood did likewise on 52 minutes. Even though the latter kept Louth in contention with an eighth point, the imperious Smyth raised white flags either side of it to guide the Erne County over the line.

Scorers – Fermanagh: E Smyth 1-9 (0-6f), B Bogue 0-2.

Louth: K Flood 0-8 (7f), N Rice 0-2, A Russell, M Rooney 0-1 each.

FERMANAGH: M Maguire; C Clarke, M McGloin, E Keenan; S McQuade, C Murphy, C Bogue; B Bannon, L Maguire; D Maguire, J Doonan, A McCabe; B Bogue, E Smyth, N McManus. Subs: B Smyth for McManus (49), S Britton for D Maguire (57).

LOUTH: R Lambe Fagan; L Byrne, E Murray, E Hand; H Lambe Sally, A Breen, C Nolan; A Halligan, E Byrne; L White, A Russell, C McDonald; N Rice, K Flood, S Matthews. Subs: M Rooney for Lambe Sally (h-t), C O’Reilly for McDonald (49), R O’Connor Leonard for Russell (52), C Boyle for Matthews, K Doheny for White (both 60).

Referee: Gerard Canny (Mayo).

Posted in Ladies GAA | Comments Off on All-Ireland Junior Ladies Football Championship Final: Fermanagh V Louth – Ladiesgaelic.ie – August 4 2024

The Big Interview: Áine McDonagh (Galway/Moycullen/Hawthorns) – Media West Ireland – August 3 2024

Posted on August 3, 2024 by admin

AFLW star Áine McDonagh will be cheering on Galway in the All-Ireland final from afar

Daire Walsh

Having watched from afar as a familiar face from her childhood agonisingly missed out on guiding the county to an All-Ireland title last weekend, former Galway ladies footballer Áine McDonagh is hopeful another long-time acquaintance can go a step further in a similar quest at Croke Park tomorrow.

As a fellow native of Moycullen, McDonagh (currently in Australia preparing for a new AFLW season with Hawthorns) has known Galway men’s football captain Seán Kelly for many years. While a persistent injury prevented him from starting the game, the official skipper was introduced as a second-half substitute in the Tribesmen’s dramatic one-point defeat to Armagh in last Sunday’s All-Ireland SFC final.

Despite now playing her club football in Dublin with Kilmacud Crokes, Ailbhe Davoren also hails from Moycullen and was previously McDonagh’s team-mate on a host of underage and adult teams. A goalscorer in an impressive semi-final win over Cork, Davoren is set to captain the Galway ladies in their TG4 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship showpiece affair against Kerry at GAA HQ tomorrow.

“Seán and I actually went to school together, so I’ve known him from quite a young age. Just everything he has done for Moycullen and Galway over the past few years has been phenomenal,” McDonagh explained.

“He’s such a great role model for all the kids and the effort that he has put into Galway and Moycullen for the past couple of years is really commendable. It was tough going for him with injuries throughout the year. I’m disappointed that he couldn’t get it over the line.

“She [Davoren] has been there and thereabouts since right after minors. It’s great to see her going so well and being able to captain the team. It’s again just great for the parish that we had both captains of the men’s and women’s football being from Moycullen. From a small little parish. I’m delighted for her.”

Even though the time difference meant that it was in the early hours of Monday morning in Australia when the action got under way, McDonagh stayed up to see her native county taking on Armagh in a novel All-Ireland SFC decider. She is planning on doing the same for the showdown between her old side and the Kingdom this weekend – and is hoping to be joined by someone who has graced finals day in Croke Park on no fewer than eight occasions.

“I’m planning on watching it with a few of the girls here. I’m going to try and rope [Melbourne Demons star] Sinéad Goldrick into watching it. I’m not too sure how happy she will be to watch it with me!” McDonagh said.

When Galway last competed in a Brendan Martin Cup final back in 2019, a somewhat fortuitous Goldrick goal was crucial in helping Dublin to overcome the westerners in a low-scoring game at a rain-soaked Croke Park. McDonagh played the full 60 minutes of that game in midfield alongside Louise Ward, who remains a key figure in the current set-up.

The Kilkerrin-Clonberne ace and her twin sister Nicola are amongst a cohort of players in the Galway squad who have been part of the inter-county game for a considerable number of years and McDonagh believes claiming an All-Ireland SFC winner’s medal tomorrow would be just reward for their dedication to the cause of the Tribeswomen.

“I’m so happy for the girls who have been there and thereabouts for the past couple of years. The Wards and Olivia Divillys, and those likes. They’re such a credit to themselves and to Galway and their clubs, for all the work that they’ve done. They’ve just put in such tremendous work from such a young age.

“I know that they went onto the panel when they were maybe 16 years old and they’ve been there since. 10 years in thereabouts and I’m just delighted to see them getting back there again. They put in so much hard work and it would really top off a lot of their careers if they got over the line this weekend.”

Even though the result didn’t go their way, McDonagh described that All-Ireland defeat to Dublin in 2019 as ‘a brilliant occasion’. While her immediate future is in Australia, she does have an ambition of lining out in an All-Ireland final again.

Given the GAA pedigree in her family, it is little surprise that McDonagh would like to get her hands on a Celtic Cross at some point. In addition to her late uncle Mick Holden being an All-Ireland football winner with Dublin in 1983, her second cousins Brian Hogan and Joey Holden tasted Liam MacCarthy Cup success with the Kilkenny hurlers in the past.

“It was definitely a big occasion in 2019. We had kind of been knocking at the door for a couple of years and to finally get there was huge. Obviously on the day it was very disappointing not getting over the line. The weather wasn’t really great, but we came up against a really strong Dublin side.

“They were just better on the day I guess, but it was a brilliant occasion. For me being out here, it’s kind of a different experience as well because I obviously would love to get back and get there again at some stage. I’ll see how it goes in the next couple of years.”

For now, however, McDonagh (who was last part of the Galway panel in 2021) will be cheering on the Tribeswomen from the other side of the world as they aim to bridge a 20-year gap to their sole TG4 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship triumph to date.

It will be a tough task against a Kerry team that are competing in their third successive Brendan Martin Cup decider, but McDonagh expects Galway to be in a buoyant mood following their knockout victories over Dublin and Cork en route to tomorrow’s game.

“Hopefully their confidence is high going into the final now because they can’t say that they haven’t deserved it. They’ve really put back-to-back performances and I feel like they’re peaking at the right time. I hope those girls just take it as an opportunity to just have a crack at it. There’s no better time really,” McDonagh added.

Posted in Ladies GAA | Comments Off on The Big Interview: Áine McDonagh (Galway/Moycullen/Hawthorns) – Media West Ireland – August 3 2024

IRFU Annual Council Piece: The Irish Examiner – August 2 2024

Posted on August 1, 2024 by admin

IRFU set to report ‘significant deficit’ in annual accounts for 2023/24

Garryowen’s Declan Madden was elected as the 135th IRFU President – he takes over the position from Cork Constitution clubman Greg Barrett.
DAIRE WALSH

The IRFU acknowledged at their Annual Council meeting in the Aviva Stadium yesterday that the union are set to report a ‘significant deficit’ in their annual accounts later this year.

While their financial statements for 2023/24 won’t be published until November, the IRFU’s Chief Executive Kevin Potts explained in an annual report that was issued at the meeting on Thursday how (as expected) the presence of the Ireland men’s national team at last year’s Rugby World Cup in France – and the absence of home Autumn Nations Series games – has impacted the union from a financial perspective.

“As this is a Rugby World Cup year, we will – as forecast – report a significant deficit in our annual accounts later this year. This deficit arises from the increased costs associated with preparing for, and participating in the Rugby World Cup, as well as the loss of our home Autumn Nations Series match revenues,” Potts outlined in his report.

Yet Potts also stressed this is something that the IRFU always factors into the equation when it comes to the nation’s participation at a Rugby World Cup.

“The IRFU plans for this scenario as part of each 4-year cycle, and thereby ensures that we continue to deliver our various programmes on an annual basis. Financial sustainability is vital for the long-term wellbeing of the IRFU and our provinces, and it will continue to remain central in our decision making.”

These points were largely echoed by the IRFU’s Honorary Treasurer Patrick Kennedy from the top table at the annual council meeting. He also said that Tier One funding from World Rugby and the revenue generated through the hosting of two World Cup warm-up games against Italy and England in August of last year did partially help them from a financial standpoint.

Additionally, Kennedy explained ticket sales for the autumn international tests with New Zealand, Argentina, Fiji and Australia are quite strong at the moment, and that the clash between the British & Irish Lions and Argentina in the Aviva Stadium next June will also serve as a substantial financial injection.

Elsewhere in the annual report, it was shown that there was a total number of 370,166 players participating in some form of rugby in Ireland from May 1st 2023 to April 30th 2024. Of this tally, 240,000 were approximately said to be male players with 131,000 being female.

To expand further, there were 90,209 registered players in Ireland during this 12-month period and 279, 957 community rugby participants.

Registered players were defined in the report as being those involved in active membership categories – namely Pre-Mini, Mini, Youth, Adult, School, Tag, Give It A Try and Provincial – whereas community players are those who took part in sessions delivered by community rugby officers.

Meanwhile, the annual council meeting also saw Garryowen’s Declan Madden being elected as the 135th IRFU President – he takes over the position from Cork Constitution clubman Greg Barrett. Madden had previously served as the union’s Senior Vice-President and that role will now be taken by former Ireland international, Dr John O’Driscoll.

Posted in International Rugby | Comments Off on IRFU Annual Council Piece: The Irish Examiner – August 2 2024