logo
Joe Brolly's entertaining accumulator story does not add up

Joe Brolly's entertaining accumulator story does not add up

Irish Times26-05-2025

Accumulator timeline doesn't add up!
Joe Brolly's column on how he and a friend lost out on a bet was entertaining as always, although the timeline seems off.
This accumulator included Louth under-20s, Kerry and Down in the football and Tipperary hurlers, who all won, so it came down to two remaining games for, he hinted, a large return.
'Then, it was the big one: Limerick v Cork…,' Brolly wrote.
'By half-time it was 2-18 to 0-9, the Cork lads were asking for their mammy and we were feeling on top of the world.'
READ MORE
'It was then,' he added, 'I decided to tune into Midwest Radio, just to bask in the inevitability of our triumph.'
Joe 'sat there, listening sorrowfully, as it went from Cavan four up, to five, to six, to seven.'
The puzzling part is that Cavan and Mayo had thrown in at 2.30pm and the hurling didn't start till 4pm.
Confusion reigned across the board. With Limerick 1-2 to 0-0 ahead (4.02pm) and seemingly unaware Cavan were cruising with a few minutes left, Brolly's co-bettor texted him, 'home and hosed', with accompanying champagne and confetti emoji. A baffling oversight for a duo who 'agonise over wager like two great chess champions pondering their next move'!
By half-time in the hurling, when Joe switched to the Midwest commentary from Castlebar and listened as Cavan pulled clear, the football had actually been over for almost half an hour, the accumulator long sank.
Clean sheets a major priority for Donegal
GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Round 1, Ballybofey, Donegal 24/5/2025 Donegal vs Tyrone Donegal manager Jim McGuinness Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/John McVitty
It felt almost shocking to see Tyrone rattle the Donegal net twice in the first half on Saturday evening; conceding goals in championship is most unDonegal-like behaviour on Jim McGuinness's watch.
Before Saturday, the Glenties man had managed his county in 36 senior championship matches, with his side keeping 26 clean sheets in that time, for a strike-rate of 72 per cent. On only three previous occasions has a team scored more than one major against McGuinness's Donegal (Mayo in 2013 scored four, Cork grabbed three last year and Kerry bagged two in the 2014 All-Ireland final).
For context, Jim Gavin oversaw 12 more matches in charge of the Dubs from 2013-19 but enjoyed just one more defensive shut-out (27 clean sheets in 48 games, equalling 56 per cent).
Maybe McGuinness's understandable focus on not conceding goals was forged during his own playing career at senior level, when Donegal's habit of leaking majors cost them numerous big matches including Ulster Championship exits against Down in 1996 (1-9 to 0-11), Derry in 1998 (1-7 to 0-8), Armagh in '99 (2-11 to 0-12) and Fermanagh in 2000 and 2001 (1-12 to 0-13 and 1-9 to 0-11).
Managers take bite at Big Apple
Before a ball was pucked in the Lory Meagher, the Schemozzle reported on the disquiet among the hurling fraternity in the bottom tier at New York's inclusion. A stacked team including former Galway star Johnny Glynn, who is looking to complete the Liam MacCarthy-Lory Meagher double, entered the competition at the semi-final stage on Saturday and were priced at 1/100 to beat Monaghan.
They duly obliged, leading by 18 points with 15 minutes remaining before winning by 13. Monaghan had played five matches to reach that point and their manager, Arthur Hughes, was not happy before the game, branding New York's inclusion 'an absolute disgrace'.
In the final, New York will take on Cavan.
'It's not the New York players' fault, it's certainly not their manager's fault that they're in it, it's an absolute disgrace that they're in it, it's an absolute disgrace the way the GAA handled it,' said Cavan manager Ollie Bellew.
Quote
'He's just a great man altogether isn't he?'
Co-commentator Aaron Kernan on GAA+ after Michael Murphy sent over his second two-pointer against Tyrone.
Royals rain supreme
GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Round 1, Pairc Tailteann, Navan, Meath 24/5/2025 Meath vs Cork Cork's Éanna O'Hanlon looks on as the wet weather conditions set in during the game Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Ben Brady
A big story from Páirc Tailteann was the biblical rain which, according to RTÉ radio commentator Martin Kiely, prompted some supporters to stream out (pun intended) even though it was still a one-point game.
'The rain is certainly pouring down now and God help the poor souls on the far side of the field that haven't got a brolly – and I'd say 80 per cent of them don't have,' noted Kiely, whose commentary was superb, at one stage.
'The water is coming in through the sheeting here, the Taoíseach is here, he might see about a grant for them,' Kiely joked.
'It feels like we're maybe in Old Trafford with the leaky roof!' chipped in co-comm Kyle Coney. There is a pun about Coney Island in there somewhere but we won't inflict it on you ...
Number: 20,000
Free tickets the Leinster Council are giving out for underage teams to attend the Leinster and Joe McDonagh Cup finals.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Ferocious Rebels figured out how to neutralise Treaty
Ferocious Rebels figured out how to neutralise Treaty

Extra.ie​

time34 minutes ago

  • Extra.ie​

Ferocious Rebels figured out how to neutralise Treaty

In keeping with the martial tone of the evening's action, and with the treatment of the Munster Championship generally as an immortal battle between two great forces, Pat Ryan deployed the language of combat in the Gaelic Grounds. In this instance it was fitting, because Cork came to Limerick with a clear idea of how to win on Saturday night. The mortification of losing by 16 points to the champions earlier in the provincial campaign may have been a motivation, but no matter what had gone before, the way to defeat Limerick hadn't changed. Facing down their ferocious physical power was the challenge. Cork did that, aided by extraordinary refereeing that turned the first half into a free-for-all, but the determination not to take a backward step was the key plank in their approach. Cork's Shane Barrett and Brian Hayes celebrates. Pic: INPHO/James Crombie 'We didn't fight the last time we came up here and the lads worked really hard, we fought really, really hard,' said Ryan. 'It was vital that we represented the jersey properly and we did. 'From the throw-in, we were engaged. You have to put really, really good teams under pressure and you take your chances, whether you win or not.' Describing Cork as engaged was an eloquent use of words by Ryan. In truth, they were ferocious, turning every contest into the type of grappling tussle that Limerick have made their own. The Cork captain Shane Barrett leads his players behind the St Patrick's Pipe Band, from Tulla, during the parade before the Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship final match between Limerick and Cork at LIT Gaelic Grounds in Limerick. Pic: Ray McManus/Sportsfile In the 2000s, Brian Cody's vision for hurling was so forcefully implemented by his all-conquering team that it changed not only how the game was played, but how it was officiated, too. Limerick have taken that Cody template and supersized it over the past decade. Their halfback and half-forward lines are now manned by players who are fusions of power and skill. For most opponents, on most days, it's been an irresistible combination. It might have galled Ryan that in the round-robin meeting between the teams, Cork didn't even get to the point of making Limerick work. They were blown away from the first Limerick goal two minutes in that day, and any designs they had on turning the game into a physical showdown never got off the whiteboard. But it's certain that their tactics that day had physicality at their core. The difference on Saturday was that they never let Limerick build up a head of steam. Shane Barrett of Cork celebrates after his side's victory in the Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship final match between Limerick and Cork at LIT Gaelic Grounds in Limerick. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile From the start, John Kiely's army were met on the front foot. It rattled them on the field but also on the sideline. Eyewitness accounts spoke of crackling tension, with the Limerick sideline in particular in a state of heightened animation. The stresses burst to the surface at half time as the Cork manager sought out Thomas Walsh, the match referee, only to find Kiely in his way. 'The game is so fast,' Ryan said afterwards. 'Thomas is a fantastic referee. We're fighting for calls. John Kiely's fighting for calls. That's just the nature of it. 'In fairness to the referees that are there at the moment, they're all doing their best. 'They're all trying to do it in a honourable and straight way. 'There were a couple of calls that went against us but I heard John shouting for plenty of scores that didn't go his way. That's just the game.' Cork celebrate winning in the dressing room. Pic: INPHO/James Crombie Equanimity is easily maintained when your team has won, but in the longer term, it's surely unsustainable to have marquee hurling matches become effectively ungoverned collisions between two teams. It's not the fault of any one official, either, but rather the inevitable end-product of a culture that has allowed physical power to become an unchecked factor in contests. That's not a concern for Pat Ryan or his players this morning. They have a month's wait for their All-Ireland semifinal, with Limerick obliged to play a quarter-final that will hardly long detain them. For Ryan and his players, meanwhile, there is one certainty: if they meet Limerick again this summer, which is more than a remote chance, they will know what's coming. And it will be fearsome.

Weekend fixtures confirmed as Kildare get Newbridge double header
Weekend fixtures confirmed as Kildare get Newbridge double header

Irish Daily Mirror

time2 hours ago

  • Irish Daily Mirror

Weekend fixtures confirmed as Kildare get Newbridge double header

The revamped Cedral St Conleth's Park will host a Kildare double header on Saturday. Fresh from their superb Joe McDonagh Cup final win over Laois, the Kildare hurlers are back in action six days later as they face Dublin in the All-Ireland preliminary hurling quarter-final in Newbridge, which, at the very least, will act as a useful barometer for manager Brian Dowling ahead of their return to the Leinster SHC in 2026. The game will have a 4pm throw-in and will be followed by the Kildare footballers' Tailteann Cup quarter-final against Offaly, which gets underway at 6.30pm. It will be the third meeting of the counties this year after they were paired together in this morning's draw, with Offaly beating Kildare in round six of the League and again in the Division Three final at Croke Park. There's another repeat of a League final with Wexford travelling to Limerick, who beat them in the Division Four decider. That quarter-final will take place on Sunday at the TUS Gaelic Grounds. The other two quarter-finals see Wicklow entertain Westmeath in Aughrim, also on Sunday afternoon, with Fermanagh at home to Sligo on Saturday. The Laois-Tipperary hurling preliminary quarter-final will be played on Saturday afternoon at Laois Hire O'Moore Park at 1.45pm as O'Moore boss Tommy Fitzgerald faces the difficult task of getting his players up for a game against top tier opposition just days after losing a season-defining game. Tailteann Cup quarter-finals Saturday, June 14 Fermanagh v Sligo, Brewster Park, 5pm. Kildare v Offaly, Cedral St Conleth's Park, 6.30pm. Sunday, June 15 Wicklow v Westmeath, Echelon Park, 1.15pm. Limerick v Wexford, TUS Gaelic Grounds, 3.45pm. All-Ireland hurling preliminary quarter-finals Laois v Tipperary, Laois Hire O'Moore Park, 1.45pm. Kildare v Dublin, Cedral St Conleth's Park, 4pm.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store