Latest news with #AoibhínCleary
Irish Independent
30-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Dublin v Meath: What time, what channel and all you need to know about the LGFA All-Ireland SFC final
Where and when is it on? The match takes place at Croke Park in Dublin with a 4.15pm throw-in on Sunday. It will be preceded by the junior final between Antrim and Louth at 11.45am, and the intermediate final between Laois and Tyrone at 1.45pm. Where can I watch the game? The games is being covered by both TG4 and will be streamed on the TG4 Player. You can also follow all the action as it happens in our liveblog on What's the team news? We'll bring you the full team news from both camps on as soon as it's confirmed. What can I read about, watch and listen to on AFLW-bound wing-back and Meath captain Aoibhín Cleary is hoping to head to Australia with a spring in her a step and another medal in her pocket, as she tells Niall McIntyre below. And Niall Scully has his scene-setter from the Dublin camp. The men's final was last weekend and the dust is settling on another All-Ireland title for Kerry. Questions are being asked over Donegal's jitters, Jim McGuinness' lack of adaptability and the regard we should hold Jack O'Connor in. Pat Spillane and Dick Clerkin join Conan Doherty to run the rule over one of the most memorable championship runs in Kerry history. Meanwhile, Joe Molloy was joined by Tomás Ó Sé, Philly McMahon and Colm Keys on the Indo Sport pod for their thoughts on Kerry's win. Listen and follow on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. What are the odds? Dublin are favourites at 8/13 with Meath 17/10 and the draw after 60 minutes is 8/1.
RTÉ News
30-07-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Aoibhín Cleary eyes another All-Ireland medal before AFLW adventure
Meath captain Aoibhín Cleary will shortly be heading to Australia to pursue a career in the AFLW but before that there is a strong determination to win a third All-Ireland senior title for her county. Last February, Cleary signed a two-year deal to join Richmond, so bringing the number of Irish players contracted for an AFLW season to 40. Richmond recruiting manager Trent Mosbey spoke highly of the first Irish player to join upon the Royal defender putting pen to paper, when saying: "The strengths in her game will translate well to AFLW - such as her speed, endurance, agility, running patterns and high-end work rate. "She has the ability to defend, apply pressure, to win one-on-ones and has illustrated competitiveness, aggression and physicality which has been impressive to see." High praise indeed! Cleary, not surprisingly, is relishing the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Meath team-mates Vicky Wall and Orla Lally in making the switch Down Under. But there is that important assignment to come at Croke Park first. Speaking at a media day ahead of Sunday's TG4 All Senior Championship final against Dublin, she said: "I'll be heading out pretty quick after the final but for now I'm just focusing on Sunday" Cleary is thankful for the support shown by Richmond in allowing her to remain part of the Meath set-up for the 2025 season. "Before the offer was made, I was committed to Meath and I wasn't going to change," she explained. "From the start Richmond have been very accommodating, very supportive and very understanding of the situation, wishing me and the Meath team in general the best. "From their perspective they would have liked to have got me out there quicker but they also recognise the value in the season we are having. They realise how beneficial it is for me to be involved in a team that is back in an All-Ireland final." Cleary played on the Meath sides that won back-to-back Brendan Martin cups in 2021 and 2022, with memories of that maiden win, when accounting for Dublin in the final, still fresh in the memory. "It was a great day and it meant a lot to us and to so many other people, our family, our partners and our friends, the All-Star defender recalled. "In particular it was that we were coming out of Covid and it lifted the spirits." And now the team managed by Shane McCormack are back in the decider. Their semi-final victory over the defending champions Kerry sent out a statement and Cleary is delighted they are part of the big day again. "It is great to be back in this position and to be that one step closer in bringing back the cup. There is obviously a huge task ahead of us before we get our hands on that cup. Excited to be in this position. In the last couple of years it was hard being knocked out and then seeing the rest of the championship progress. We had a huge determination to not let that happen again. It's great to still be training over the last couple of weeks, to still be playing games at this time of year." The Donaghmore Ashbourne player also believes that some of the chatter as to whether the county could rise again after losing to Kerry in the 2023 and '24 campaigns drove them on. "The belief in our group never wavered, and we heard the whispers," she stated. "We knew what we had in the group and in the last two years we have not been able to push ourselves to our potential; we knew we had more to give. Our management team had great belief in us." And that belief seems to have grown after a somewhat patchy league run, before finding a renewed lease of life in the All-Ireland series. "We've had ups and downs, some good performances and some very disappointing performances," was Cleary's part summation of the year. "Even after all those losses the belief never wavered. We looked at what need to be fixed; the work ethic and the culture that we do have in the group is brilliant. Everyone put the head down and worked on what we needed to work on. "Over the year we have got to a point where we've been more consistent in our performance, particularly in the last few games. But we'll have to take that up a notch going into the All-Ireland final." Sunday's finale at GAA HQ is a repeat of the Leinster final at the same venue. Meath fans were out in force to also see the men's team take take on Louth in their provincial decider. "It was great to have both teams there on the day of the Leinster finals even though it didn't go either of our ways which was very disappointing," Cleary recalled. There were better days ahead as the Royal fans found their voice again. "There definitely has been a great buzz and energy in the county with the lads going on such a great journey and I think we fed off each other's energy." Cleary's partner is Cork camogie star Hannah Looney, who also has a an All-Ireland final to look forward to against Galway on 10 August. A time then for each of them to support on another, as Aoibhín outlined. "We are both aware of all the motions that you are going through, nice that we can feed each other, and understand what each is feeling at a given moment in time."
Irish Times
30-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Meath captain Aoibhín Cleary's full focus on All-Ireland glory before trip Down Under
Aoibhín Cleary will be off to Australia next week but she's determined to complete another sporting journey first – leading Meath back up the steps of the Hogan Stand on All-Ireland final day. Cleary (Richmond) is one of several players involved in Sunday's TG4 All-Ireland women's SFC final between Meath and Dublin who will be flying out for the start of the AFLW season on August 14th – including Vikki Wall (North Melbourne), Eilish O'Dowd (GWS) and Sinéad Goldrick (Melbourne). They have already missed most of the preseason Down Under but the agreement was always to travel whenever their championship campaigns ended. Meath and Dublin, it turned out, would take their seasons all the way to the final day, setting up a repeat of the 2021 All-Ireland final. Meath came from nowhere that season, or the intermediate championship to be exact, to win the senior title just nine months after gaining promotion to the top tier, causing one of the biggest shocks in the history of the women's game as they beat five-in-a-row chasing Dublin. The Royals backed up that incredible triumph by retaining the Brendan Martin Cup in 2022, beating Kerry in the final. And while they have generally remained a competitive outfit in the years since, there was a growing feeling that Meath's golden period had come and gone. But that view didn't stand up to scrutiny in the Meath dressingroom. 'I think the belief in our group never wavered and we never thought that,' says Cleary, who was appointed captain in January. 'I suppose you would probably hear whispers that maybe [people thought] that was the case, but we knew what we had in the group. I think in the last two years we haven't really been able to push ourselves to our potential. Meath celebrate with the Brendan Martin Cup after the 2022 All-Ireland final. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho 'We knew we always had more to give and even this year as well, I think our management team, our coaches and the girls, we've all just had a really great belief in each other. 'From winning it in 2021 and 2022 and then getting knocked out in the quarter-final in 2023 and 2024, it is tough. It's hard to see the rest of the championship progress and not be involved in it, so you're definitely carrying that bit of hurt. 'There was a huge determination to not let that happen again this year.' Beating 2024 champions Kerry in the semi-final a fortnight ago felt like a statement victory for the Royals. 'It was probably the first time we've put in a full 60-minute performance. The hunger and the desire from all the girls on the pitch was brilliant.' Dublin will no doubt try to use the 2021 All-Ireland final defeat as fuel for their fire this Sunday but that 1-11 to 0-12 win remains a landmark result for Meath football. 'It meant a lot to us and to so many people – our families, our partners, our friends and to the whole county,' remembers Cleary. 'It was coming out of Covid and I think a lot of people said it really lifted their spirits. It meant the world to us to know that we could have that impact. But I suppose at the minute we're not looking back on that too much or paying any heed to what's happened in the past, we're just focusing on this.' Aoibhín Cleary in action for Meath against Kerry's Niamh Carmody during the All-Ireland semi-final. Photograph: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile Meath will have some support coming from Leeside at the weekend, too. Cleary's partner is Cork camogie player Hannah Looney – who herself is preparing for the All-Ireland senior camogie final against Galway at Croke Park on August 10th. 'It's great. Obviously we're both very aware of all the emotions and stuff that you'll be going through. It's really exciting this weekend and it's really exciting for her next weekend as well. 'I suppose it is nice that we can feed off each other that little bit or just understand what each other are feeling at any given time.' Cleary has been juggling her Gaelic football commitments with gaining familiarity with the oval ball ahead of the upcoming AFLW season. 'Dad has been great out in the garden with me, kicking and trying to get to grips with some of the skills and stuff. Richmond have been great as well, we've had a lot of online communication and calls. 'I think over the last few weeks full focus has really been here with Meath, and obviously it's a quick turnaround even between the semi-final and final, it's only two weeks, so full focus has just been on that. 'Obviously from Richmond's perspective it would have been nice for me to be out and training a bit earlier, but they also recognise the value of having the season we're having will bring to me as a player. 'They definitely do see both sides and understand how beneficial it is to be involved in a team that's now back in an All-Ireland final.' TG4 All-Ireland finals, Croke Park, Sunday: Junior: Antrim v Louth, 11.45am Intermediate: Laois v Tyrone, 1.45pm Senior: Dublin v Meath, 4.15pm
Irish Independent
30-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Skipper Aoibhín Cleary says ‘hurt' is driving Meath ahead of All-Ireland final return
AFLW-bound wing-back is hoping to head to Australia with a spring in her a step and another medal in her pocket Meath ladies captain Aoibhín Cleary says the hurt of not reaching the last two All-Ireland senior ladies football finals has been a driving force in their run to Sunday's decider where they'll face their great rivals Dublin. The Dubs have beaten Meath three times this year, once in the league and twice in the Leinster championship but the Royals were like a team reborn as they dethroned Kerry in a semi-final smash-and-grab that threw it back to their stunning All-Ireland-winning form of 2021 and 2022.
Irish Independent
30-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Bringing home the Brendan Martin Cup would cap an amazing year for Australia-bound Meath captain Aoibhin Cleary
It has been a memorable year so far for Meath captain Aoibhín Cleary who is hoping that the crowning glory arrives next Sunday and she gets the opportunity to climb the steps of the Hogan Stand to accept the Brendan Martin Cup following the All-Ireland decider against Dublin. Appointed captain at the start of the campaign was a richly deserved award for the dashing Donaghmore/Ashbourne wing back, but it got even better after that as AFLW club Richmond came knocking on her door.
