Tyrone footballers draw high praise all round
If you've even a drop of Tyrone blood running through your veins, and if Gaelic football is your passion, then there's some decidedly pleasant reading for you in the sports pages today. First, Paul Keane reports on the county securing
back-to-back under-20 All Ireland titles
by beating Louth at the Athletic Grounds last night. It was an evening that 'red-hot forward duo Noah Grimes and Eoin McElholm will not forget any time soon,' the pair scoring 4-10 between them.
Second, Ciarán Murphy salutes
Tyrone's performance against Donegal in Ballybofey
last weekend, in particular their brilliance in those breathless closing minutes when we saw 'some of the new ways the rule enhancements have brought the game forward'.
Laois goalkeeper Killian Roche, who'll be in action against Offaly on Saturday in the final round of Tailteann Cup group games, is
happy enough with most of the new rules
, conceding that the 'game needed changing'. But 'taking away the back-pass from the keeper is one thing, still insisting on the kickout going long is another layer'.
In rugby, John O'Sullivan has word on
Tadhg Beirne and Aoife Dalton winning the Players' Players of the Year awards
, Beirne, of course, unable to accept his in the flesh – he has URC business to attend to in South Africa.
Johnny Watterson talks to Beirne's Munster comrade Calvin Nash
ahead of their quarter-final match against the Sharks on Saturday.
READ MORE
And John hears from James Lowe in the build-up to Leinster's URC quarter-final against Scarlets, Lowe determined that
the departing Cian Healy and Ross Byrne
– Healy in to retirement, Byrne off to Gloucester – leave with another medal around their necks.
In football, the latest stage of
Robbie Keane's managerial career
saw him lead Ferencváros to their seventh consecutive Hungarian league title last weekend. For once, they actually had some competition, in the form of prime minister Viktor Orban's club, Puskas Akademia, recipients of 'state funding on a staggering scale'. Tom Mortimer details the wild and wacky landscape of Hungarian football.
As Dave Hannigan tells us,
Jim Irsay's life was a bit on the wild and wacky side too
, the Indianapolis Colts owner, who died last week at the age of 65, 'adored by fans, players, and coaches alike'. He leaves behind 'an eclectic collection of artefacts', including Muhammad Ali's Rumble in the Jungle championship belt and the guitar Kurt Cobain wielded in the Smells like Teen Spirit video. How much did he love his collection? He once turned down an offer of $1 billion for it.
TV Watch:
Shane Lowry is the sole Irish player in the field at the Memorial, which gets under way today at Muirfield Village (Sky Sports Golf, 4.30pm), while Leona Maguire flies the flag at the US Open, the second Major of the year on the LPGA Tour (Sky Sports Mix, 5pm).
Philip Reid previews both tournaments
.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
24 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
Despite distractions and defeats, Mayo do what Mayo do
All-Ireland SFC: Mayo: 2-0-17 (23) Tyrone: 1-2-9 (16) How did this happen? To explain this shock result, you first need to consider the current landscape of Gaelic football contenders. Then remember: this is Mayo. Over the past few weeks, we've been served periodic reminders that the margin between the Sam Maguire chasing pack is minimal. There are a whole host of quality sides and they all have obvious flaws. Mayo have bared them all in recent weeks. On the pitch, they suffered devastating losses against rivals Galway in the Connacht final and Cavan in their opening group stages game. Off it, their manager stepped back to deal with personal health issues, their county board hosted an explosive meeting and their support was dwindling. They were against an outfit that downed Ulster champions Donegal at home and buoyed by another U20 title midweek. So Mayo came to Omagh and mauled them. 1-9 to 0-4 up at half-time, the home side closed the gap to one midway through the second half yet Mayo surged again. 'You saw Tyrone last week, they went to Ballybofey,' said Stephen Rochford post-match. 'Who wins in Ballybofey in championship games? Not too many I can remember anyway. They responded. We knew it was going to be tight going down the final quarter. The energy that came off the bench, the support play they gave each other was really commendable. But there is always a but. There is always a but. We must do it again in two weeks.' Mayo's first green flag was fortunate. They worked the clock just before half-time and eventually freed up Bob Tuohy for a shot. He dropped it short, Niall Morgan failed to deal with it and Darren McHale took advantage. Even still, they were full value for the lead. Paddy Durcan was immense, finishing with three points and the Man of the Match award. Jack Carney moved to the inside line and found some form. Conall Dawson came into the half-forward line and brought unsurpassed energy. David McBrien was a rock in the middle. What happened to Tyrone? They scored just 1-6 from play. Their kick-out was destroyed, winning three of 11 long. The final shot tally was 29 to 17. 'It is hard to know,' said a frustrated Malachy O'Rourke. 'Sometimes when you get a bad performance, the next one there is a lot of soul searching in between and boys come back with a point to prove. Having said that, we were just looking for consistency. We got a good performance last week. 'We knew you had to go out and earn the next day. We just didn't do that. Overall we were disappointed with our play. Many aspects, we were flat and hadn't the energy we had last week. We thought we fought our way back into it. We thought we may be able to forge ahead. It wasn't to be.' Consistency. That preciously-sought commodity. As Stephen Coen said afterwards, if every team wants to be consistent, everyone has to be inconsistent. To their credit, Tyrone did respond after the turnaround. They hit 1-2 without reply, including a sweet Darragh Canavan goal. A Morgan two-point free cut Mayo's lead to a point. Davitt Neary came off the bench and hit back. He stole short kickouts, he won frees, he took off and was felled by Liam Gray for a Ryan O'Donoghue penalty. He missed a huge kick against the same opposition in the 2021 All-Ireland final. This time, he slotted it. They still need a result in the final round, but the benefit is profound. A host of young prospects showed what they are about. After a momentous low, they lifted it. 'Why was it different? We just did not perform against Cavan,' said Rochford. 'Our opening 12 minutes was just lacklustre. We tried to do a lot of things well, when you are just a bit off and a team come against you, you look really mediocre. 'I think we are better than a mediocre team. But you just can't be at that. There is no way of getting into the psychology of it. We just backed each other up today. We supported each other. 'We got scores and also left scores behind. That was not anywhere near a complete performance. We will go after that because we know we need to be better when we got to play Donegal.' Scorers for Tyrone: D. Canavan 1-3 (2 frees); N. Morgan 0-4 (2 tpf); D. McCurry 0-2 (1 free); M. Donnelly, B. McDonnell, M. McKernan, K. McGeary 0-1 each. Scorers for Mayo: R. O'Donoghue 1-6 (1-0 pen, 0-5 frees); D. McHale 1-0; P. Durcan 0-3; R. Brickenden, C. Dawson 0-2 each; A. O'Shea, C. Reape (45) J. Carney, J. Coyne 0-1 each. Tyrone: N. Morgan; C. Quinn, P. Teague, N. Devlin; M. McKernan, R. Brennan, K. McGeary; B. McDonnell, C. Kilpatrick; S. O'Donnell, M. Donnelly, C. Daly; D. McCurry, M. Bradley, D. Canavan. Subs: S. O'Hare for O'Donnell, L. Gray for Brennan (both half-time); P. Harte for Bradley, R. Canavan for Daly (both 47); A. Donaghy for McDonnell (61). Mayo: C. Reape; J. Coyne, S. Morahan, E. Hession; R. Brickenden, S. Coen, P. Durcan; D. McBrien, M. Ruane; C. Dawson, D. McHale, B. Tuohy; J. Carney, A. O'Shea, R. O'Donoghue. Subs: D. Neary for McHale, J. Flynn for Tuohy (both 52); F. Kelly for Dawson (55); F. Boland for Ruane (64), S. Callinan for Durcan (67). Referee: D. Coldrick (Meath).
RTÉ News
an hour ago
- RTÉ News
Kieran McGeeney rues missed goal chances but happy that Armagh topped group
Kieran McGeeney felt both his Armagh side and Dublin failed to hit the heights in their clash at Croke Park, while also lamenting the number of goal chances spurned by the All-Ireland SFC champions. A five-point win at GAA HQ ensured the Ulster county's progression through to the quarter-finals of this year's race for Sam Maguire, with the Dubs now needing to avoid defeat in their final-round encounter against Derry to ensure that they remain involved. It was a deserved win for Armagh, this despite the 17 wides that Dessie Farrell's side chalked up and their 4/3 breaches. For McGeeney, he felt his side could have made a greater indent on the scoreboard by way of raising green flags. Speaking to RTÉ Sport, he summed up the clash by saying: "Both teams weren't at their best." On the failure to put the ball past Stephen Cluxton, he said: "We missed a lot of goal chances in the first half and they missed a lot of chances overall. "There wouldn't have been much in it if they had their shooting boots on. We had four one-on-ones with Stephen and got nothing out of it and I think they got three points from our 12-point chances. Look, it was great to win the game and we top the group, so that's a big thing for us." That said, the Orchard County boss was less than impressed by what he witnessed. Armagh boss Kieran McGeeney sees plenty of room for improvement with his side's performance, despite their five point victory over Dublin at Croke Park, a win that sends them into the to All-Ireland quarter-finals. #RTEGAA #TheSundayGame — The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) June 1, 2025 He added: "You can see the pace of Dublin when they go on the attack and they are frightening when they go through that middle part. We were happy with some parts but if we are to progress any further we will need a big improvement. "We did a lot of good stuff but at this level you have to take those chances. Cluxton is a top keeper but we made it easy for them and I'm sure Dessie is in there giving them loads for missing those point chances." His opposite number also lamented his side's accuracy in front of the posts, Farrell commenting: "It was disappointing in that I thought we prepared well but we were sloppy out there. Shooting efficiency cost us dearly and we had a couple of those technical breaches as well, which was very unlike us. "That cost us five points and you won't get way with that against a team like Armagh. At this stage we have to stay on script and keep driving on; it's about development, growth, taking the lessons, and continuing to build for ourselves. There are ups and downs along the way. Today wasn't a good day and we're into knockout football now." Dublin boss Dessie Farrell was left to rue wayward shooting and technical infringements as his side suffered a five point defeat to Armagh at Croke Park. #RTEGAA #TheSundayGame — The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) June 1, 2025 What will frustrate Farrell even more was that his troops started brightly but could not regain the initiative when Armagh got on top after the 20-minute mark in the opening half. "The first quarter was really good and we looked very sharp and very clinical. We then lost our way and we'll try and unpack that from a mental perspective as well as everything else. "That second quarter before half-time was costly, we were constantly chasing and though at times were getting a foothold, getting at their kickout which was very difficult to do. "That was giving us a bit of momentum but we could not convert off that and had a lot of bad wides, coupled with poor decision-making. "Shot selection in the last quarter could have had us closer but ultimately it didn't happen for us because we didn't perform the way we would have wanted to."
Irish Examiner
an hour ago
- Irish Examiner
Undercooked? Understrength? What shape will Kerry be in come knockout fare?
All-Ireland SFC Group 2: Kerry 1-28 (1-7-14) Cork 0-20 (0-3-14) The concern for Kerry is no longer the extent to which they'll be undercooked and insufficiently scrutinised when pitching up at Croke Park for an All-Ireland quarter-final. The concern now for Kerry is who'll be available when they pitch up at Croke Park. Diarmuid O'Connor's return lasted one game. A groin issue that flared up during the win over Roscommon sidelined him on Saturday and will keep him sidelined for the Meath fixture. Beyond that, who knows. What is known is how shy of championship minutes the midfielder will be whenever his second return materialises. Paudie Clifford's return lasted 31 minutes. After kicking possession into Paul Geaney on the half-hour, Clifford turned to the sideline and raised his hand. He was whipped a minute later. A hamstring problem, we were informed after. Having sat out the Roscommon win because of injury, you'd have to question why he was risked here if not fully right coming back in. Paul Geaney (shoulder) wasn't long out to the line after him, Barry Dan O'Sullivan (knee) already there since the 21st minute after departing very gingerly. Mark O'Shea replaced O'Sullivan and deputised impressively. He won an early second-half Kerry kickout that ended in a Killian Spillane point. He won a Cork kickout that ended with David Clifford converting from outside the arc. He forced Ian Maguire to overcarry for a free Seán O'Shea converted from outside the arc. The problem for Kerry is that they are now threadbare on midfield options and heading in that direction where the half-forward line is concerned. Say that injuries mean Joe O'Connor and Mark O'Shea are the midfield pairing for the Meath game. Read More As it happened: Kerry blow Cork away with impressive second half display Seán O'Brien is then the last remaining bench option behind them and he hasn't seen action since being introduced late in the second half of the Munster semi-final six weeks ago. One wonders if at any point between now and the end of this championship Jack O'Connor will have the opportunity to put out a half-forward line of Joe O'Connor, Paudie Clifford, and Seán O'Shea. Of course, the manager is choosing to view the injury situation as glass half full. 'Mark O'Shea came on and gave us a great platform in the middle, caught some great ball. You lose one man, another man comes in and grows. That's great for the morale of the panel,' said Jack. 'Killian [Spillane] came on at half-time, kicked two great scores. Tony [Brosnan] came on and kicked a great two-pointer. Dylan [Geaney] showed his class when he came on. We needed all them lads.' David Clifford of Kerry celebrates after scoring his side's first goal. Pic: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile The first half was a gut check in places for the visitors. Of course, it would have been far more of a gut check if they hadn't been gifted the buffer of an early goal. The irony that after a week in which Micheál Aodh Martin's long kickouts to an overloaded left flank were heavily criticised, it was a short restart to Brian O'Driscoll, intercepted and finished by David Clifford, that undid Martin and Cork. A Clifford point, from another lost Cork restart, assisted in pushing them 1-4 to 0-2 clear on 12 minutes. Playing into a near gale, that was a significant cushion to have constructed. As the half wore on, the Cork restart stabilised. Its Kerry counterpart, meanwhile, wobbled. Five consecutive Shane Ryan restarts were lost. They were not punished, though. Mark Cronin and Mattie Taylor drilled goal chances straight at Ryan. Taylor was later foiled by a Jason Foley hand as he went to pull the trigger. Colm O'Callaghan swung Cork back in front approaching the hooter. Brian Hurley, after the hooter, landed a crowd lifting two-pointer. 0-13 to 1-7 at the break. A three-point lead, such were the elements, was never going to be sufficient. And so that point of view was quickly proven right. The third quarter began with yellow cards to Jack O'Connor, David Clifford, and Brian Hurley, and black to Joe O'Connor and Paul Walsh. The latter four cards were for an unseemly episode that broke out on the way back to the dressing-rooms at half-time. Kerry were back out long before Cork, learned of Joe's black and so had more time to redraw their shape. The third quarter was then taken over by referee Derek O'Mahoney and orange flags. Kerry had kicked seven two-pointers in their six games before Saturday. They kicked seven here in the second half alone. Five of them came in a third quarter that saw an 11-point swing. O'Shea and Clifford swung over frees from outside the arc for Cork breaches of the three-up rule, the kickout mark, and dissent following the awarding of a Kerry free. The latter two, the same as the Cork free brought forward 50 metres following a Seán Walsh kickout mark, were questionable and completely lacking in common sense. Their resources further thinned and a third consecutive double-digit victory recorded, Kerry remain in pole position for direct progress to the last eight. Cork, winless since April 5 and winless in five of their last six championship outings, have 70 minutes against Roscommon to rescue their summer. Scorers for Kerry: D Clifford (1-8, tp, tp free, 0-2 frees); S O'Shea (0-9, 3 tp frees, 0-3 frees); T O'Sullivan (tp), P Geaney, T Brosnan (tp), K Spillane (0-2 each); G O'Sullivan, P Clifford, D Geaney (0-1 each). Scorers for Cork: B Hurley (0-7, tp, tp free, 0-2 frees); M Cronin (0-5, 0-4 frees); P Walsh (0-3, tp); C Óg Jones (0-1 free), C O'Callaghan (0-2 each); R Deane (0-1). KERRY: S Ryan; T O'Sullivan, J Foley, D Casey; B Ó Beaglaoich, M Breen, G White; J O'Connor, BD O'Sullivan; G O'Sullivan, P Clifford, S O'Shea; D Clifford, P Geaney, M Burns. Subs: M O'Shea for BD O'Sullivan (21 mins, inj); D Geaney for P Clifford (31, inj); K Spillane for P Geaney (HT, inj); T Brosnan for Burns (59); T Morley for Ó Beaglaoich (66). CORK: MA Martin; S Brady, S Meehan, D O'Mahony; B O'Driscoll, M Shanley, M Taylor; I Maguire, C O'Callaghan; S Walsh, P Walsh, S McDonnell; C Óg Jones, B Hurley, M Cronin. Subs: S Powter for Meehan (43); R Deane for McDonnell (50); C O'Mahony for B Hurley (60); L Fahy for Taylor (65); E McSweeney for P Walsh (66). Referee: D O'Mahoney (Tipperary).
