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The 42
3 hours ago
- Sport
- The 42
'A credit to the team': Inside Katie McCabe's Champions League final display
IN THE DYING seconds of Saturday's Champions League final, Katie McCabe showed all of her experience. As the seventh and final minute of injury time drew to a close, Arsenal's Irish left-back tried to take the ball down with her foot. It ricocheted upwards for a headed clearance, and she drew a foul from Caroline Graham Hansen, arguably the best right winger in the world who she had limited all evening. McCabe got the header away, but made the most of the minimal contact; one last act of frustration inflicted on Graham Hansen. Celebrations broke out on the Arsenal bench. It was all but over. McCabe urged the defensive line out one last time as goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar sent the free-kick upfield, and 25 seconds later, the final whistle sounded and all hell broke loose. Arsenal were champions of Europe, having stunned Barcelona at Lisbon's Estádio José Alvalade. They shed the underdog tag to beat the back-to-back champions 1-0, reigning supreme for the first time since 2007 — and just second time ever. They are the only English winners of the competition, and the first to do so having come through every round of qualifying. McCabe played each of those 15 games, her 1,296 minutes the most ever recorded in a Uefa women's club season. ❤️ A record-breaking season 💚 Katie McCabe's 1️⃣,2️⃣9️⃣6️⃣ minutes played during Arsenal's successful #UWCL campaign is the most ever recorded in a UEFA women's club season 💪 — UEFA Women's Champions League (@UWCL) May 28, 2025 Advertisement The Dubliner played her part in a superb defensive display amidst Renée Slegers' tactical triumph. Incredibly, the back four didn't commit a single foul: in all, Arsenal made four, compared with Barcelona's 10. While England captain Leah Williamson and goalscoring hero Stina Blackstenius have been widely heralded, McCabe also deserves huge credit for generally nullifying Graham Hansen, just like she did to Lyon's Kadidiatou Diani in the semi-final turnaround. Again, she was extremely disciplined defensively — not always the case — in a compact set-up. The Irish skipper timed her attacking influence well, but prioritised her defensive duties, with Ona Battle another huge threat down Barca's right flank. Caitlin Foord offered support, and at times cover, as the duo combined to good effect. In the fifth minute, they stood off Graham Hansen before McCabe put in two quick-fire blocks. This was a recurring theme throughout the game: Arsenal letting Barca players have the ball and picking the right moment to engage. McCabe profited three or four times, backing herself in the fascinating one-v-one battle. Working in tandem with left-sided centre-back Steph Catley, she produced several other crucial blocks, clearances, and tackles — a sliding challenge on Graham Hansen on the half-hour mark among the highlights — and racked up the interceptions. Katie McCabe executes a sliding tackle on Caroline Graham Hansen. Jose Breton / INPHO Jose Breton / INPHO / INPHO Picking the pocket of Ballon d'Or holder Aitana Bonmati was one act of note just before the hour, and it underlined the importance of balance. The Arsenal defender drove forward momentarily before turning back to Mariona Caldentey, but the next player up, Frida Maanum, lost the ball and in an instant Bonmati tore down Arsenal's left and tested van Domsellar. There were other shaky moments, including an early deflection which put the Dutch 'keeper under pressure. McCabe was often happy to leave Graham Hansen isolated out wide, and watching on in the stadium, it felt risky. She sometimes drifted too far centrally, seemingly distracted by the ball and players like Bonmati, with Catley urging her back to base. She would have breathed a sigh of relief just after half time when Claudia Pina rattled the crossbar. A cross to Graham Hansen, in oceans of space on the right, was arguably the better option. Recoveries were a staple. Graham Hansen did get the better of her on occasion, especially amidst intricate combination play and overlapping, while poor execution of passing crept in under pressure. Balls in behind to Foord were generally a success, though, highlighted by former team-mate Jen Beattie on commentary after a rare overhit effort. 'But she sees the vision there,' the former Scotland international said. 'That's Katie McCabe's quality that she's showed every game, week in, week out. Started every game in the Champions League for Arsenal. She's a credit to the team — whether she's playing left-back or higher up the pitch, she can bring the quality in all areas of the pitch.' This was a quieter attacking performance with set-piece involvement also minimal. Still, McCabe created the second most big chances in Europe this season, one less than Alexia Putellas' 22, and popped up as a threat at the weekend. The Kilnamanagh native started the sequence for the disallowed goal in the first half, brilliantly switching to right full-back Emily Fox after her throw-in one-two with Frida Maanum. Irene Paredes turned Maanum's cross into her own net, but it was chalked off for offside. She was also involved, albeit indirectly, in the build-up to Blackstenius' 74th-minute winner. After Barca failed to clear Caldentey's corner and Little recycled to the Spanish sensation, McCabe made a clever decoy run. She commanded the Blaugrana's attention, as the ball was worked to Beth Mead, who slipped Blackstenius in for the golden goal with a fine disguised pass. McCabe was right in the thick of it a few minutes beforehand, swatting Graham Hansen aside on a surging run down the left, before being stopped in her tracks by Battle in the box. Penalty appeals were waved away, and she was left hobbling: not for the first time after being clattered by Ewa Pajor early on and taking a ball to the face from Putellas. Related Reads Letter from Lisbon: An Irish Champions League winner on a wonderful occasion Katie McCabe's Arsenal beat Barcelona for Champions League glory Katie McCabe: The gifted kid from Kilnamanagh chasing Champions League glory More often than not on the opposing end of these incidents, McCabe kept her cool and was disciplined throughout. Off the ball, her arms were often spread wide, pointing and organising, as Arsenal kept Barca at bay. The Gunners defended for their lives down the stretch, McCabe among the many blockers and stoppers, as they reached the Promised Land. Having undoubtedly led the celebrations from Lisbon to North London, international football is back in focus for the Irish captain. She was warmly welcomed by the squad in Istanbul last night ahead of Friday's penultimate Nations League League B group game against Türkiye. Carla Ward's side must win to keep their hopes of automatic promotion alive, before a potential Páirc Uí Chaoimh shootout against leaders Slovenia next Tuesday. There, they must equal or surpass the 4-0 victory the Slovenians achieved in February's Koper shocker — with play-offs in October the alternative route to League A. Katie McCabe may now be a Champions League winner after another big shift in a remarkable European season, but the wheel keeps on turning.
The 42
9 hours ago
- Sport
- The 42
Mayo's road back towards top starts with honest appraisal of where they are
IN FOOTBALL'S LAND of the cursed, the only sense of law and order is in the legislation sponsored by Murphy. You know the one, 'anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.' They certainly know it in Mayo, where football folk long acclimatised to the concept of misfortune are now in danger of drowning in the stuff. A quick recap of the last couple of weeks: they lost a Connacht final to Galway which they could, and possibly should, have won, which was compounded by a shock home defeat to Cavan in the opening round of the All-Ireland series. Even when they were not playing, another unexpected result went against them last weekend when Donegal lost to Tyrone, ensuring that when they meet the Ulster Champions in their final round match, Jim McGuinness will not facilitate them with weakened and distracted opposition of the kind that allowed them to avoid relegation and claim an unlikely place in the League final back in March. On top of that, their manager Kevin McStay announced this week he has to step back because of health concerns. Kevin McStay: Stepping back for health reasons. Andrew Paton / INPHO Andrew Paton / INPHO / INPHO That news was confirmed at an emergency board meeting attended by the GAA's top brass which revealed that the board is €7.8 million in debt. In most other counties, such a sequence of events occurring over a generation, would frame a weighty tome entitled the 'the dark years', whereas in Mayo, such is their level of exhausted immunity to an ill wind gusting, that it is just about newsworthy enough to make it into the Tourmakeady weekly local notes in the Mayo News. And they are not done yet; they head to Omagh this Saturday evening, a destination that has more the feel of ruination about it than redemption. Advertisement Perhaps the darkest hour is before the dawn but that lie has been peddled so often, they could be forgiven for thinking if that is truly the case then by some warp in the equator, they are permanently inhabiting a Faroe Islands winter rather than a Foxford summer. The temptation is to suggest that there is no point wondering where it all went wrong when it hasn't gone right in 74 years, but that's simply not true. They can lay claim to producing one of the great teams of the modern age, and those who will argue they were not worthy of that acclamation need to know that trophies don't necessarily validate greatness alone; your eyes and pulse can take that measure too. But from there to here, they have not just gone back, they have pretty much fallen off a cliff edge. This weekend serves as a powerful reminder as to when that happened, too. Of all the mischievous tricks played on them, the cruellest was when in finally beating Dublin in that 2021 semi-final, it opened the door for the most winnable of finals against a Tyrone team who had ambushed Kerry. The potent sense that it was a game that would bend to fate rather than form has rarely if ever been as intoxicating to Mayo's public, and when the penny dropped that in sport there is only a scoreboard to be balanced and not a heavenly ledger, the fall-out was toxic. That was four years ago, but things have never been the same since. What made Mayo the team they were – apart from a hybrid defence as good as ever seen – was a sense of unity all the more remarkable given that players and supporters shared more pain than joy on the biggest days, but tolerance has its limits. The toxicity in the aftermath of that final revealed the fracturing of a bond. The result against Cavan this month was not the only surprise, the fact that little over 7,000 was in Castlebar to witness it was another. There was a time – and we still remember the clutch cramp from a traffic jam outside Ballindine on the way to Tuam on a miserable January afternoon not that many years ago – when they could get that many for an FBD game. If you want to take a measure of the Mayo mood, the excellent Mayo GAA Blog is the place to go for passionate commentary, but in the aftermath of the Cavan defeat the civility that was its hallmark was undermined. 'Yesterday was one of the most difficult days for ages,' wrote John Guinnane, founder of the blog, under his hardly needing to be explained nom de plume of 'Willie Joe'. Of course, the reason that Mayo are no longer the team they were is not because some of their supporters have forgotten their manners, but it is because in so doing they refuse to see their team for what they are now rather than what they were. The team of 2021 was a shadow of the team that lost that epic final of 2017, and the team of 2025 is a paler silhouette of the team of '21. Lee Keegan celebrates a goal into the Hill 16 end during the 2017 All-Ireland final. Tommy Dickson / INPHO Tommy Dickson / INPHO / INPHO That is not to say that they could not be better. Few teams have adapted as poorly to the rhythm of a transformed game. Set that tape at its easiest to measure point, and Mayo have scored just 16 two-pointers in 12 games, and just three in four championship games. True, Kerry have not feasted on the edge of the 40 arc either, choosing instead to play a high tempo attacking game to exploit the spaces beyond it, hitting 27 goals in the process. Mayo have managed just 10. Perhaps they could be better, but the fact is that Mayo are now a team on the fringes of the leading pack, far from menacingly snapping at the front like they used to. They simply don't have that kind of talent. Quick question: is there a single player that would make the best 15 in the land? Ryan O'Donoghue? Really? In a game where you have the Clifford brothers, King Con, Oisin Conaty, Darragh Canavan, Michael Murphy, Michael Bannigan and Sam Mulroy. Truly? The only thing that can go wrong now for Mayo is demanding their team of today be judged by the standards of their team of yesterday. If they can pull the brakes on doing that, their tomorrow might come quicker. * Check out the latest episode of The42′s GAA Weekly podcast here
Extra.ie
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Extra.ie
Pics: Connacht stars and other halves stun at annual awards night
The Connacht squad and their other halves were out in force for a glamorous event at the Galgorm Hotel in Galway over the weekend. The stars poured out onto the red carpet for the club's annual award ceremony with Ben Murphy and Orla Dixon the big winners on the night. The event was presented by Globalization Partners with Murphy and Dixon winning the club's player of the year awards. Ben Murphy and Amy Gorman. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Murphy was Connacht's top try scorer this season with nine tries after making the move from his native Leinster last summer. Meanwhile, Dixon received the Women's Player of the Year award for the second time in three seasons after the club finished third in the Vodafone Women's Interprovincial Championship. Women's Player of the Year Winner Orla Dixon at the Connacht Rugby Awards at the Galmont Hotel, Galway, Ireland 24/5/2025 Pic: ©INPHO/Andrew Downes At the awards themselves, the club's stars were all beaming on the red carpet as many were joined by their other halves for the big night. Speaking about her win, Orla Dixon said she was shocked by the nod. Dylan Tierney Martin and Jessica Murphy. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes 'I don't think I can honestly explain how I'm feeling at the minute,' she said. 'I was so overwhelmed to be nominated, and the girls that I was up against are phenomenal players – I can't emphasise that enough. 'To come out and win Women's Player of the Year, I actually can't put it into words.' Finlay Bealham and Sarah Bealham. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Meanwhile, Men's winner Murphy said it was 'very nice' to be recognised with the award. 'It's come down to the enjoyment factor of being here, and the squad of players here is phenomenal as well, so I'm very lucky,' he said. Attendees at the Connacht Rugby Awards. Pic: INPHO/Bryan Keane 'What have I enjoyed the most? I think it's the camaraderie of the squad and the staff.' Check out more photos from the big night below. Finlay Bealham and Sarah Bealham. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Finlay Bealham and Sarah Bealham. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Ava Bannon and Temi Lasisi. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Genesys at the Connacht Rugby Awards. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Sarah and Mark Staunton. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Orla Dixon, women's player of the year, at the Connacht Rugby Awards. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Creggs RFC, winner of club of the year, at the Connacht Rugby Awards. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Ailbhe Gannon, Martin Óg McDonagh and Dolores McDonagh. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Leo and Maria Troy. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Merisa Kiripati, Ailbhe Gannon, Siobhra Hession, Aoife Heaney and Uillin Eilian. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Attendees at the Connacht Rugby Awards. Pic: INPHO/Bryan Keane Dara Fitzgerald with Saoirse, Alan and Olivia O'Grady. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Louise Kelly, OLBC Corinthians and family at the Connacht Rugby Awards. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Laya at the Connacht Rugby Awards. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Jenny McDonagh and Sean Walsh, winner of the U19 men's player of the year award, at the Connacht Rugby Awards. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Ben Murphy and Amy Gorman. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Deirdre Tucker and Cullie Tucker. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Eoin de Buitléar and Ella Griffin. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Shayne Bolton and Johane Mouton. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Terri Byrne and Darragh Murray. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Lauren Mullen and Sean Naughton. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Niamh Foy, Sinead O'Brien and Orla Dixon. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Paul Casserly and Minister Hildegarde Naughton. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Chloe McCrann, Cheyenne Holman, Zoe langsdaleConnacht Rugby at the Connacht Rugby Awards at the Galmont Hotel, Galway, Ireland 24/5/2025 Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Andrew Downes Collette McCormack and Vincent Rowe Sound to light at the Connacht Rugby Awards at the Galmont Hotel, Galway, Ireland 24/5/2025 Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Andrew Downes Mark and Sarah Staunton at the Connacht Rugby Awards at the Galmont Hotel, Galway, Ireland 24/5/2025 Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Andrew Downes Women's Player of the Year Winner Orla Dixon at the Connacht Rugby Awards at the Galmont Hotel, Galway, Ireland 24/5/2025 Pic: ©INPHO/Andrew Downes Matthew Staunton and Martha Green. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Alan and Olivia O'Grady. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Norah Hughes and Martina Murphy. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Karly Tierney and Molly Boote. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Louise Kelly and Dylan Keane. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Fiona and Sean Daly. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Niamh McGhee and Jack Aungier. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Sarah and Maeve O'Connell. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Dylan Tierney Martin and Jessica Murphy. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Ruth Kevane and Shane Jennings. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Aoife O'Sullivan, Sophie Lennon and Stephanie Coughlan. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes James Nicholson and Charlotte O'Brien. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Caolin Blade and Sarah O'Connell. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Colm Reilly and Laoise Dunne. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Leanne O'Callaghan and Conor Oliver. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Paul Casserly and Minister Hildegarde Naughton. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Uillin Eilian, Ailbhe Gannon and Ella Burns. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Nan Breathnach, Sean Breathnach and Brenda Mulkerrin. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Dervla Campbell and Maria Troy. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes John Davey, president of ARCB, and his daughter Ruth. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Chay Mullins and Charlotte Watts. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes Stephanie Carr and Peter Dooley. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes John Muldoon and Lorna Muldoon. Pic: INPHO/Andrew Downes
Extra.ie
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Extra.ie
Munster face seismic task as Sharks find their bite
The scale of the task facing Munster this weekend is seismic, with a star-studded Sharks side providing the opposition in Durban. The province snuck into the URC playoffs by dint of that nerve-shredding final-round win against Treviso in Cork. And Munster's reward was a trip to South Africa to face a squad loaded with Test quality. The Sharks will have the likes of Eben Etzebeth, Siya Kolisi, Ox Nche, Bongi Mbonambi, Lukhanyo Am and Makazole Mapimpi on board. It's a stellar cast of World Cup winners and household names on the international beat. Siya Kolisi. Pic: INPHO/Steve Haag Sports/Steve Haag This team of superstars play their rugby at Kings Park, the 54,000-capacity stadium which was built for the 2010 Fifa World Cup. They have close ties with Roc Nation, the sports agency owned by rapper Jay Z and are bankrolled by a powerful US consortium. When you add all those pieces together, the Sharks have the makings of a superclub to rival the likes of Toulouse, Bordeaux and the Crusaders. But this Durban-based franchise have very much been less than the sum of their parts for a long time. Eben Etzebeth. Pic: INPHO/Steve Haag Sports/Darren Stewart The club finished 14th last season. A massive underachievement for a team with this level of depth and resources. The Sharks have improved massively this term, improving by 11 places to finish third in the regular season standings, just behind the Bulls and Leinster. Coached by New Zealander John Plumtree, who served as Ireland's forwards coach under Joe Schmidt for a short time, there is a sense that this sleeping giant is finally beginning to wake from its slumber. But the Sharks remain a work in progress. For all the South African heavyweights in their ranks, they haven't quite hit their stride. Sharks head coach John Plumtree. Pic: INPHO/Steve Haag Sports/Steve Haag Many of the players, including Etzebeth and fellow Springbok Andre Esterhuizen have admitted as much recently. They feel they are not far from clicking. That could spell trouble for Munster this weekend. The visitors have endured some tough days in Durban. Earlier this season, they suffered a 41-24 hammering at Kings Park. Then head coach Graham Rowntree would part ways with the province soon after. Two years ago, Munster were on the wrong end of a 12-try thriller at the same venue, the hosts prevailing 50-35 in a Champions Cup last-16 clash. Saying that, Ian Costello's side will take plenty of confidence against a Sharks outfit which can be notoriously flakey. The hosts concede a lot of turnovers and their defence can be suspect. Andre Esterhuizen. Pic: INPHO/Steve Haag Sports/Darren Stewart On paper, the Sharks should cruise into the semi-finals, but this club has a long tradition of failing to live up to the hype. Long before the South African sides arrived in this part of the world to beef up the Pro14, the Sharks were flattering to deceive in Super Rugby. They landed a fair share of Currie Cup titles but the big southern hemisphere trophy proved elusive. The Sharks reached the final four times in 1996, 2001, 2007, and 2012, yet they never got over the line. The 2007 defeat was perhaps the bitterest pill to swallow when Bryan Habana scored a stunning, last-ditch try to seal victory for the Bulls in an all-South African final. Again, the Sharks have never lacked quality in their ranks. This is a club which has produced Tendai Mtawarira, the Du Plessis brothers, Frans Steyn, Butch James, Marcel Coetzee and JP Pieterson. Former Scotland out-half Gregor Townsend and French maverick Frederik Michalak lined out in the black, grey and white kit during their stellar careers. Bryan Habana scores the winning try during the Super 14 final in 2007. Pic: Duif du Toit/Yet this club has lived in the shadow of the other South African sides. It's been the same story in the URC, with the Bulls and Stormers leading the charge, with the latter landing the inaugural URC title in 2022. The Stormers contested the 2023 final (losing to Munster) before the Bulls picked up the mantle last season, losing to Glasgow in the league final. The Sharks, meanwhile, have been floundering in mid-table mediocrity for far too long. Many observers why this club have continually failed to impress. Speaking on the Boks office show, former Springboks captain Jean de Villiers wondered if team culture is the issue.'The Sharks have fantastic individuals,' the former Stormers, Munster and South Africa centre said. 'It is not a team. You don't see that team environment.
The 42
a day ago
- Sport
- The 42
Paying referees could be best way to improve quality of officiating
WE FOUND OURSELVES as referee of an U13 Gaelic football league game in Meath recently. It's a lottery most weeks whether an official ref is appointed, so when needs must a mentor who holds an Award 1 coaching credential can fill in. So it was that we were thrust into activity for Division 3 rough and tumble. The amount of incidents to adjudicate on, from lunging tackles, clean pick ups and dodgy hand-passes, to whether the requisite number of players were in either half of the pitch, to the scoring arc, to score-taking and substitutions, was head spinning. At one stage, while quickly checking on a player's welfare after a collision, an incident occurred out of our view which drew outrage among the visiting support behind the wire. We hadn't seen a bit of it. The linesman offered no input. We threw the ball up and restarted play. One half of the assembled parents lost their mind. Afterwards, we needed a lie down. Natasha Barton / INPHO Natasha Barton / INPHO / INPHO So we approach the issue of refereeing with nothing but admiration for those who do it week in, week out – particularly hurling refs. Approaching the half-way point of the hurling Championship, we've already torn through a squadron of them, highlighting their errors and inconsistencies. Michael Kennedy, for example, shouldn't have awarded Dublin their ghost goal against Wexford and Colm Lyons probably should have dished out at least one red card to a Galway player last weekend. Advertisement Waterford manager Peter Queally was critical too of Johnny Murphy in the Deise's loss to Cork last Sunday, saying they were 'very disappointed with a lot of' his decisions. In camogie, Tipperary were denied a place in the Munster final because Karen Kennedy's late goal, when the ball hit the net and flew back into play, wasn't given. The list goes on, prompting Dónal Óg Cusack to claim on The Sunday Game at the weekend that 'one of the biggest problems we have in the game is the standard of refereeing'. He too began from a starting point of acknowledging that refereeing can be a thankless task and that, without refs, there'd be no games. The former Cork goalkeeper suggested bringing in 'some sort of technology' to help. But refs would still have to make their own calls around hand-passing. Was it a throw or a perfectly executed pass with the most minimal of hand contact? It's nearly impossible to know. "One of the biggest problems that we have in the game is the standard of refereeing" Dónal Óg Cusack discusses what could be done to up the standard of officiating in hurling 📺 Watch #TheSundayGame live - — The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) May 25, 2025 There is a clear move too in the game, particularly among the top teams, to leave as much as possible in the tackle. The hits are bigger and harder than ever before. Which only adds to the referee's decision-making workload. As ex-ref Brian Gavin put it in the Irish Examiner on Monday of this week, 'There could have been four red cards in Parnell Park' last weekend, instead of none. Adding a second referee is a possible solution. But there is a lack of match officials as it is, and would Lyons' decisions last weekend, for example, have been any different with a second ref in the other half of the pitch? Probably not. So what about an alternative solution – how about throwing money at the problem? How would refereeing at the very elite level look if they were being paid, say, €500 a game for their services? Fergal Horgan, who refereed the 2017 All-Ireland senior hurling final, noted in 2020 that 'a lot of people think referees are getting paid. We get absolutely nothing for refereeing above in Croke Park – only 50 cent a mile from Tipperary to Croke Park and home. €120 for the day, and we're gone at 10 in the morning and home at 10 at night'. With a clearly defined, attractive, match fee to aspire to, the amount of energetic, savvy young GAA members looking to get into refereeing would surely increase from a trickle to a steady stream. And, in time, with greater numbers would come greater quality. There is no inherent suggestion that the current panel of Championship referees aren't fully invested in what they do. It is a lifestyle choice for them as much as it is for players. But by increasing the attractiveness of the position, in the form of a substantial payment for those who make it to a high level, surely the quality of the candidate increases too. It may even be enough to bring former inter-county players to the refereeing table. The GAA, in modern times at least, has never been able to crack that one and to get top players to view refereeing as a credible option after inter-county retirement. The referees' lot has improved somewhat in recent seasons. A portion of their gym fees are paid. They receive a €250 boot voucher every second year. County refs also have access to a counsellor and a sports and exercise psychologist. But, truth be told, it still comes across as a most unattractive proposition to many. Adopting the capitalist principle that by sweetening the reward you improve the output, would be an interesting path to go down. And the better the ref, the bigger the games they get. Paid up professionals are producing stunning returns in other areas of the GAA. Like Croke Park Ltd returning record turnover for 2024 of almost €60m. An army of coaches throughout the country are paid for their valuable services too. What they all do is considered a necessity. So is the work of referees which is fundamental to the smooth running of the entire playing calendar. We recently stumbled across a column which was written in 2017 for The Longford Leader newspaper by their then columnist Mattie Fox, aghast at how little referees were both appreciated and invested in. 'The minimum paid to a referee for inter-county games should be €500 plus travel costs, plus proper food for their umpires,' he wrote. 'That's the absolute minimum. For an All-Ireland, or All-Ireland semi-finals, or provincial finals, the very minimum should be €1000, plus expenses.' It would make for an interesting and, surely, improved inter-county landscape.
