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The Journal
11 hours ago
- Sport
- The Journal
Dublin edge out Cork to reach All-Ireland football quarter-finals as Kerry dispatch Cavan
The 42 is the home of quality journalism for passionate Irish sports fans, bringing you closer to the stories that matter through insightful analysis and sharp sportswriting. Dublin 1-19 Cork 1-16 DUBLIN PRODUCED A strong finish against Cork to book their place in the All-Ireland SFC quarter-finals. Tied with just over 10 minutes to go, Dessie Farrell's side reeled off four of the game's last five points to win with three to spare. The 42 Subscribers can read the full match report here (€) Advertisement Kerry's David Clifford with Evan Crowe of Cavan at full-time. James Lawlor / INPHO James Lawlor / INPHO / INPHO Kerry 3-20 Cavan 1-17 KERRY BOUNCED BACK from last week's nine-point drubbing by Meath with a nine-point win over Cavan to advance to the All-Ireland quarter-finals. David Clifford helped himself to 3-7 as the Munster champions eased to victory and put their name in the hat for Monday morning's draw. The 42 Subscribers can read the full match report here (€) The 42′s award-winning team produces original content that you won't find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women's sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye.
Irish Times
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Conor McManus: The West's awake but it's resurrection time for Dublin
Watching Kerry - Roscommon on Saturday, Kerry were 10 points up when the hooter went. If this was in a provincial championship or the knockouts, the ball would have been kicked over the sideline and the final whistle would have been blown. But Kerry kept playing. They're hardly likely to be under pressure for scoring difference at the end of the group stages but they were still looking for more, which was a bit dispiriting for Roscommon. All told, it was a rough weekend for Connacht football. Mayo lost to Cavan in championship for the first time since the 1948 All-Ireland. I know we've seen them bounce back over the years but it's hard to know where this leaves them. They were poor and obviously haven't coped too well with their defeat in the Connacht final. You could see how heavily Mayo invested in that game when they played with a lot of intent and energy. We didn't see any of that from them at the weekend. READ MORE Obviously, credit has to go to Cavan but you wonder does it say something about the relative strengths in the two provinces? Ulster have nearly half the counties in the Sam Maguire, seven out of 16. Mayo, for instance, are in a group with three Ulster teams. Aidan O'Shea in action for Mayo against Cavan at MacHale Park. Photograph: James Lawlor/Inpho It has its disadvantages. Ulster football teams are always playing each other and it's not easy having to face the same teams when the margins are so tight. The main spotlight at the weekend was on Galway . While it was always on the cards that Dublin would be better than they looked against Meath when losing their Leinster title, I'm not sure anyone was expecting that performance. I had experience of winning a provincial title and the team not being able to find their best form in the next game. In Monaghan's case, though, winning Ulster was a bigger deal than Galway retaining the Connacht title. So you could understand maybe some sort of slower reaction or difficulty getting to the pitch of it the next day. [ Dublin's profitable day trip out west shows they are still awake and hungry Opens in new window ] But from a Galway point of view, you would be surprised that there was a dip in performance or a loss of concentration because they had won their fourth Connacht championship in a row. A brilliant achievement but not really what they are chasing. I was probably expecting a faster start from Galway. They were playing with the help of the strong Salthill breeze in the first half. Instead, it was Dublin with all the ball and the first three or four attacks. They got nothing from the first but Seán Bugler scored a point from the second. Already, Dublin were setting the terms of the game, although you were waiting on Galway to do that on home ground, to sow the seeds of doubt, particularly with the wind at their back. It didn't happen. Dublin's Tom Lahiff celebrates after kicking the winning score against Galway. Photograph: James Lawlor/Inpho Then, midway through the second half, you sensed Galway were getting on top and they caught up with a goal, but it just breathed new life into Dublin again. It was interesting to watch Dublin. When was the last time they went into a championship match as underdogs? They certainly got a response. Ciarán Kilkenny hasn't played as well in quite a while and other big players also stood up. Con O'Callaghan was excellent and his injury is a worry for Dessie Farrell. Stephen Cluxton's kickouts were spot on – the very last one a stunning restart, requiring real nerve. Bugler energised the team on his return but some of the younger players really impressed me. If you're in that Dublin dressingroom listening to how the team is finished after losing to Meath, how are you feeling? If you're in the younger group and everyone is sympathising with the team because you can't be expected to be as good as the fellas who retired, what's your response likely to be? Theo Clancy was very good at full back, a coming-of-age performance. The same for Peadar Ó Cofaigh Byrne, who has been on the panel for a while but has blossomed this year between Cuala winning the club All-Ireland and the responsibility of stepping up for Brian Fenton. Lorcan O'Dell at centre-half forward was also impressive. Theo Clancy in action for Dublin. Photograph: James Lawlor/Inpho It was still a lethargic enough sort of performance from Galway, one which we haven't come to expect of late. Normally they're full of energy, launching tackles and turnovers and driving the play. That was lacking from the word go. Kick out strategy was just Connor Gleeson going as long as he could, right down the throat of Dublin's centre-half back. In other words, get it out, get it down the field and let's get after it but they simply didn't get their hands on enough ball. Between breaking ball and clean possession, Dublin dealt really well with that. Galway needed a Plan B and you saw Gleeson trying to work a couple of short kicks and on occasion actually tap the ball to himself. All of this was a major malfunction because if Galway were expected to have any area of strength, it was there in the middle where they have big guns: John Maher, Paul Conroy, Céin D'Arcy and Matthew Tierney and their ability to facilitate going long. I played a couple of championship games in Salthill. We won the first in 2018 and lost last year when we actually played better against the wind than with it. Connor Gleeson of Galway takes a sideline kick at Pearse Stadium. Photograph: James Lawlor/Inpho There are two different approaches in the sense that when you're playing against the wind, you opt for a running game and need support runners. It is all about controlling the play, which Dublin did quite well at times. With the wind, you need more urgency in your game and to get your finishers on the ball, particularly out around the D with the two-point arc. Dublin were patient and didn't panic, even in the second half when the tendency would be to start getting panicked into pot shots. They worked the ball into scoring areas and got the right men on the ball at the right times and took their scores. There's a danger when you're playing in Salthill, maybe to get caught up with the elements and feel pressure to start making things happen, which leads to teams forcing the game a wee bit. Dublin simply didn't do that. They just stuck to the game plan, they kept the ball moving and kept their key men on the ball as much as they could. There are going to be a few twists and turns in that group – with Armagh and Derry – before it's all over because you have teams that can take points off each other. And will.
The 42
19-05-2025
- Sport
- The 42
Is this The End? Mayo hang by fingertips over the precipice after just one game
THE GROUP STAGES has claimed its' first victim. Ok, ok, that's not strictly true. But the reaction and the despondency around Mayo's loss to Cavan in Castlebar has many feeling that there is simply no way back for a side that brings something unique to the All-Ireland football championship on an annual basis. Here, we consider what lies ahead of them. The Road Is Long First off, they have a weekend off. What they do with that downtime is anybody's guess, but if it's misjudged, then the sour feeling of last weekend never gets blown out of the system. After that, they have to go to Omagh and get a result against Tyrone. A Tyrone team that lost to Armagh in the Ulster semi-final. And a Tyrone team that have to go to Ballybofey this Saturday night. Chances are, Tyrone could be heading to Omagh looking at three consecutive defeats in championship football and fighting for their lives. And after that, the final game in the group is against Donegal at a neutral venue; possibly Sligo's Markievicz Park. And they need to do more than just get a solitary win, as Cavan will have their number on the head-to-head rule if they don't pick up another point themselves. It's a tight corner. Advertisement Crowded Houses It didn't escape anybody's attention that these two met in the All-Ireland round robin last year too. Same teams, same venue, same stage of the competition in the first round of games; that Mayo won 0-20 to 1-8. Ciaran Brady going through the Mayo defence. James Lawlor / INPHO James Lawlor / INPHO / INPHO While that was a comfortable win and expected to be so again, our eye gets drawn to the attendance figures. Last year was held up as an example that the Mayo crowd had, at last, lost the faith. 9,197 turned up. On Sunday, that figure dropped to 7,387. This was the lowest championship attendance in Castlebar for over a decade. Ever since the All-Ireland final of 2021, the manic, demented support that Mayo could rely upon has been wilting around the fringes. Who knows, maybe a great deal of it was demonstrative and had the feel of Ireland soccer fans at a major tournament. But either way, the gig-like atmosphere at Mayo games has largely disappeared. Should I McStay Or Should I Go? 'It was a difficult game, a stop-start and we just couldn't get any rhythm to it…full credit to Cavan, on the day they were definitely the better team,' said Mayo manager Kevin McStay to the RTÉ cameras afterwards. Kevin McStay. James Lawlor / INPHO James Lawlor / INPHO / INPHO His implication was tackled head on by Sunday Game night time show analyst Dessie Dolan, who said, 'Mayo weren't able to get rhythm because Cavan didn't let them get rhythm.' In other words, the Mayo players were not sufficiently prepared or emotionally at the right pitch. That kind of failing tends to fall into the lap of the fellas along the line. Doubts over McStay's tenure have been closing in. The protracted review process over the winter made things messy. He might decide that the whole thing is just not worth it. Three years in, no provincial titles and they appear to be drifting listlessly on. Players Love You When They're Playing Since Noah was sailing model boats around the bath, there has been a complaint about the Mayo forwards. The stark analysis here is brutal; four of the starting six attackers were taken off. They had 0-2 from play on the board before Aidan O'Shea's late, late goal. Cillian O'Connor's statement ahead of 2025 – that he was taking a year out of the Mayo team – hinted at a man who was banking on something like this to happen and put himself in line for a recall under new management in 2026. Paddy Durcan and Dara McVeety clash. James Lawlor / INPHO James Lawlor / INPHO / INPHO The sight of Cavan players such as Ciaran 'Holla' Brady waltzing through the centre of the Mayo defence shows that you can employ all the zonal defences you want, but a lad like Lee Keegan, Donie Vaughan or Colm Boyle would have met him with a thump. Mayo don't have too many players of that stature left. Few teams ever have them. Maybe I'm Amazed Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps we are all making a little too much out of this. Maybe every team is due one stinker of a performance in the group stages. It happened to Donegal last year when they lost to Cork in a pressure-cooker Pairc Uí Rinn. But really after that, you'd have to break out the record books to get many more examples. This defeat and the manner of it, comes not only at a bad time for Mayo. The negative facets are legion; their one home fixture, against the bottom-seeded side, an opening round that tends to set the tone. It's not looking too good, is it?
The 42
05-05-2025
- Sport
- The 42
Injury-time Brennan penalty sees Drogheda stun Cork City
Drogheda United 3 Cork City 2 Barry Landy reports from Sullivan & Lambe Park RYAN BRENNAN, NOT for the first time in his long and storied Drogheda United career, was the hero as his side broke Cork City hearts with a 96th minute penalty. The 33-year-old has well over 200 Drogheda United games under his belt now and is both an FAI Cup and League Cup winner. But few moments could possibly have felt as sweet as his late goal to claim all three points at Sullivan & Lambe Park on Bank Holiday Monday. Drogheda had trailed and then led before being pegged back by a late Djenairo Daniels goal, his second of the game. It looked like, once again, Drogheda's propensity for losing points from winning positions could come back to haunt them. After four winless matches that suggested Drogheda United's early season bubble might be about to burst, Warren Davis' second half goal looked to have set them on the path to a first victory in five against Tim Clancy's team. Advertisement Warren Davis of Drogheda celebrates his goal with Owen Lambe. James Lawlor / INPHO James Lawlor / INPHO / INPHO Daniels' early opener had been cancelled out by Shane Farrell's deflected free-kick in the first half. With St Patrick's Athletic playing in Bank Holiday Monday's late game, their return to the summit of the Premier Division may be brief depending on the outcome of things on Foyleside. That will matter little to Kevin Doherty and his team though. Following defeat in Galway and then their squandering of two-goal lead against Sligo Rovers on Friday last, victory by any means necessary was all that mattered. Their concession of the points at the Showgrounds meant that Drogheda had lost 12 points from winning positions in the league this season. However, just as they did against Derry City earlier this term, they showed here they also have the character and capability to bounce back. Former Drogs manager Tim Clancy made just one change from his starting line-up at Turners Cross with Harry Nevin replacing Rio Shipston. But Doherty made six changes with goalkeeper Luke Dennison, Darragh Markey and Paul Doyle all injured. Daniels eighth minute goal was well worked. He played in Kitt Nelson and the winger supplied a low cross that after Drogheda failed to clear, the Dutchman blasted in via the crossbar. Djenairo Daniels of Cork City. James Lawlor / INPHO James Lawlor / INPHO / INPHO Cork were the better side in the opening 30 minutes but Drogheda drew level when Farrell's free-kick hit off a head in the City wall and flew into the net. United hit the front after a fine move involving Luke Heeney and Farrell ended with Owen Lambe crossing for Davis to finish from close range. It was the in-form 20-year-old's sixth goal of a very productive season. With Daniels's 85th minute leveller, it looked as if United were to drop further points from winning positions in the league. Once again, Cork got down the left and when Alex Nolan delivered, the former PSV youngster produced a smart finish at the near post to beat Jack Brady. But Brennan sent Tein Troost the wrong way to send the majority the ground into delirium. Drogheda United: Jack Brady; Andrew Quinn, Conor Keeley, George Cooper (James Bolger, 76); Owen Lambe, Luke Heeney, Ryan Brennan, Conor Kane; Shane Farrell; Douglas James-Taylor (Thomas Oluwa, 67), Warren Davis (Bridel Bosakani, 76). Cork City: Tein Troost; Harry Nevin (Alex Nolan, 65), Freddie Anderson, Charlie Lyons, Mathew Kiernan (Rio Shipston, 53); Darragh Crowley, Sean Murray, Evan McLaughlin; Cathal O'Sullivan, Djenairo Daniels, Kitt Nelson (David Dunne, 77). Referee: Aaron O'Dowd
Sunday World
30-04-2025
- Sunday World
Dublin man who attended A&E with genuine medical issue broke into hospital charity
James Lawlor (44) was later seen on CCTV sitting in the A&E department at the Dublin hospital after carrying out the burglary at the Mater Hospital Foundation, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard A man who registered at the Mater Hospital with a genuine medical issue left the A&E department, then broke into a hospital charity, stealing of €3,000 worth of items. James Lawlor (44) was later seen on CCTV sitting in the A&E department at the Dublin hospital after carrying out the burglary at the Mater Hospital Foundation, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard. He pleaded guilty to burglary on February 7, 2024, at the Mater Hospital Foundation. Lawlor with an address in Cavendish Row, Dublin 1, has 168 previous convictions including for burglary, theft, criminal damage and drugs offences. The investigating garda told Aideen Collard BL, prosecuting, that Lawlor was released from custody a week before he committed this offence, having served a sentence of three years for burglary. The Mater Hospital Foundation is a charity which supports the hospital's work through fundraising. Gardai received a report of a break-in at its offices in the early hours of February 7, 2024. A basement window and two interior doors were damaged, costing approximately €380 to repair. Three laptops, an iPhone in its box, three headsets and bags had been taken, with a total value of €3736.50 for all items. A screwdriver and Stanley knife were recovered at the scene. CCTV from the hospital showed Lawlor registering as a patient at the A&E on the evening of February 6. This footage showed him leaving the A&E department and later gaining entry to the Mater Hospital Foundation building, which he was seen leaving an hour later carrying two bags. He returned to the A&E, and in other footage - a laptop was visible from a bag. Lawlor was also examining the iPhone box. He registered as a patient at the hospital using his own name and address. None of the property was recovered and no victim impact statement was provided to the court. When interviewed by gardai, Lawlor denied any involvement in the burglary but identified himself on CCTV from the hospital. He said the bag belonged to a relative. He has been in custody since his arrest on February 11, 2024. The investigating garda agreed with David Perry BL, defending, that his client checked into the hospital out of genuine medical need. It was further accepted that the Mater Foundation's building was unoccupied at the time. The garda agreed that Lawlor has a long history of addiction and many of his previous convictions relate to his use of drugs. Lawlor is married with children. Mr Perry outlined his client's background to the court. Lawlor started to use drugs as a teenager. Counsel said Lawlor has previously completed drug treatment and was drug-free for a three-year period. Lawlor relapsed following an injury and the death of a close family member. Mr Perry said his client instructs that contact has been made with Coolmine Treatment Centre with the aim that he will attend residential treatment following his release from custody. Counsel asked the court to take into account that the building was an unoccupied commercial premises and that no violence or confrontation occurred. Judge Orla Crowe said it was aggravating that Lawlor committed this offence a week after being released from custody and that no property was recovered. The judge said Lawlor's record of previous convictions, and the value of the property stolen were also aggravating. Judge Crowe imposed a sentence of three years and nine months, suspending the final nine months for two years on strict conditions, saying the court wished to incentivise Lawlor's rehabilitation. She directed Lawlor to place himself under the supervision of the Probation Services for 12 months following his release from custody, noting that structure would facilitate his re-integration into society. -
