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Irish Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Kerry captain White praises fans in heartfelt speech after epic All-Ireland win
Gavin White remembered the fans that were no longer with us as he collected the Sam Maguire Cup from the steps of the Hogan Stand. The Kerry captain was immense in today's All-Ireland final and delivered a true captain's performance as an awesome Kerry side breezed past Donegal to win by 10 points. Moments after the final whistle, White followed GAA President Jarlath Burns to the podium and delivered a rousing speech to the thousands of Kerry supporters in attendance and the millions watching around the World. After thanking teammates, management, sponsors and family, White reserved special praise for the Kerry supporters. "Lastly, to our own Kerry supporters, the ones looking down on us from above and ones scattered across the globe, at home in the Kingdom and especially the ones in Croke Park today, we are most grateful for the miles you've travelled, the prayers you've sent and the candles lit. "Don't ever underestimate the impact you have on the Kerry team's of the past and of the Kerry team. "When we needed ye most this year, ye backed us in your thousands. Your voice was heard and you drove this Kerry team over the line. "I hope you celebrate Sam Maguire number 39 as much as we do. Ciarraí abú!" During his speech, White also paid a special tribute to manager Jack O'Connor, who was given perhaps the biggest honour of all for a Kerryman when GAA President Jarlath Burns suggested that with five All-Irelands in his back pocket, he deserved to be mentioned in the same breath as the legendary Mick O'Dwyer.
Irish Independent
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
GAA president Jarlath Burns raises prospect of removing All-Ireland series access for Joe McDonagh Cup finalists
GAA president Jarlath Burns has suggested it may be time to consider abolishing All-Ireland preliminary quarter-finals from the Senior Hurling Championship.
Irish Daily Mirror
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Jarlath Burns calls for change to hurling Championship structure ahead of final
GAA president Jarlath Burns is pushing for the removal of the All-Ireland hurling preliminary quarter-finals. It's a stage of the Championship where the Joe McDonagh Cup finalists are paired off against the third-placed teams in the Munster and Leinster Championship on a rotating basis, with opinions divided on the value of it. When the round robin provincial structure was adopted at Special Congress in 2017 for the 2018 season, the preliminary quarter-finals were introduced as a result of an amendment to the motion which saw the newly-created McDonagh Cup come into play, with second tier counties feeling that they should retain a link to the All-Ireland series. But with the McDonagh Cup winners and runners-up invariably required to play the weekend after the final of that competition, there have been a large number of lopsided games at that stage of the Championship. This year, McDonagh Cup winners Kildare lost to Dublin by 21 points, while Tipperary beat Laois by 23. The great outlier is Laois's win over Dublin in 2019, which directly impacted the decision to increase the Leinster Championship from five teams to six, while there are some other instances of Carlow and Westmeath being competitive at that stage of the Championship against Leinster opposition. But, writing in the match programme ahead of today's All-Ireland final, Burns suggested that the preliminary quarter-finals place an 'unfair burden' on the McDonagh finalists and advocates the second tier competition being drawn out more. 'As we look forward, we must also be reflective,' the Armagh man wrote. 'There is a necessary and timely conversation to be had about the structure of our senior hurling championship, specifically regarding the Joe McDonagh Cup finalists entering the All-Ireland series through a preliminary quarter-final. 'While the current system offers a pathway, it may also place an unfair burden on teams whose seasons have already been long and challenging. 'If we were to remove the preliminary quarter-final, we would open the door for a longer and more meaningful Joe McDonagh Cup competition – a competition that deserves to stand proudly on its own, with adequate time, coverage, and respect. 'These are discussions that must be held with fairness, vision, and the future in mind.' A motion to scrap the preliminary quarter-finals came before Special Congress in September 2023 but only garnered 49% support, well short of the 60% required to bring about change, with players from the counties concerned largely in favour of retaining them with the Gaelic Players' Association backing their stance. However, with another Special Congress pencilled in for this coming October, largely to deal with the new football rules, it may well be on the agenda again.
Irish Times
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
GAA president raises prospect of abolishing All-Ireland hurling preliminary quarter-finals
GAA president Jarlath Burns has raised the prospect of abolishing the All-Ireland hurling preliminary quarter-finals. These are the route through which the finalists in the Tier 2 championship, the McDonagh Cup, are allowed to contest the Tier 1 MacCarthy Cup by playing against the third-placed counties in the Leinster and Munster championships. Writing in Sunday's All-Ireland final match programme, Burns had this to say. 'As we look forward, we must also be reflective. There is a necessary and timely conversation to be had about the structure of our senior hurling championship, specifically regarding the Joe McDonagh Cup finalists entering the All-Ireland series through a preliminary quarter-final. 'While the current system offers a pathway, it may also place an unfair burden on teams whose seasons have already been long and challenging. If we were to remove the preliminary quarter-final, we would open the door for a longer and more meaningful Joe McDonagh Cup competition – a competition that deserves to stand proudly on its own, with adequate time, coverage, and respect. READ MORE 'These are discussions that must be held with fairness, vision, and the future in mind.' This course of action has been opposed by counties who regularly compete in the Tier 2 championship. In the years since the current format was introduced, only one McDonagh county has actually won a preliminary quarter-final – Laois, who in 2019 defeated Dublin before losing to Tipperary in the quarter-finals. Earlier in this championship, the McDonagh finalists were Kildare, who won the title, and Laois. Dublin beat the former 3-25 to 0-13, whereas the latter lost to Tipperary by 3-32 to 0-18. The abolition of this facility has been advocated by the Central Competitions Control Committee, who opposed its introduction at the special congress in 2017 when the round-robin format was introduced for the following year. Renewed focus on the system has come with the arrival of the split season and the resulting search for extra weeks in the calendar.
The Journal
14-07-2025
- Politics
- The Journal
Organisers of GAA tour for Palestinians accuse Department of 'unfair treatment' amid visa block
GAA PALESTINE HAS is 'outraged' that the Department of Justice has 'dismissed' the group, after 33 Palestinian children and 14 accompanying mentors were refused visas . A trip planned by the group was due to begin on 18 July, and would have involved friendly hurling games between the Palestinians and clubs in different counties. A total of 152 families in Ireland had signed up to host the group during their travels. However, last week Irish immigration officials in Ireland's embassy in Tel Aviv refused the childrens' visas on the grounds of 'insufficient documentation'. Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he hoped the issue would be resolved , but GAA Palestine have now said that the Department of Justice's promises to engage with the group have proven hollow. 'Today, the GAA Palestine Executive travelled to Dublin to seek clarity and resolution. We met with a secretary from the Department of Justice who initially assured us that a senior officer would meet with us this afternoon,' a spokesperson said in a statement. 'However, at 4:38 pm, we received an email dismissing our concerns and directing us to an appeals process. This process, we are told, will take an indefinite amount of time and effectively prevent the team from traveling on 18 July.' The Department said that it has yet to receive an appeal, but that any appeal lodged would be looked at immediately. GAA Palestine maintains that it included all required documentation, including parental consent forms, in the visa applications. Advertisement 'We requested the Department of Justice to engage directly with us to verify and provide assurance that all documentation was in order, but our efforts were met with silence,' they said. They said that the Department's 'reckless requirement' that flights be purchased before acquiring a visa has resulted in a loss of €38,000. The itinerary had also included plans to bring the children to the beach, Dublin Zoo, and Croke Park, for an exclusive tour given by GAA President Jarlath Burns. Stephen Redmond, chair of GAA Palestine, accused the government of treating Palestinian children differently to those from other countries. 'Other agencies have successfully brought children from various countries to Ireland on similar tours, and their travel has been permitted without issue,' he said. 'Yet, it appears that because these children are Palestinian, our government is refusing to allow them to come.' In a statement to The Journal this evening, the Department of Justice said each visa is decided on its own merits, and that applicants can appeal a refusal. 'It is the case that the organisation of an event, no matter how good the intention, does not guarantee that a visa will be subsequently granted,' a spokesperson said. 'Applications made on behalf of minors who are not travelling in the company of their parents must be supported with evidence that appropriate child protection measures are in place during the visit. 'In all cases, evidence of financial means, employment or other ties that indicate a person intends to return home are important criteria.' Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
