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Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Keith Ricken: 'With a lack of games, the first ten minutes was going to catch you'
All-Ireland MFC quarter-final: Cork: 1-12 (1-1-10) Tyrone: 1-21 (1-2-17) Cork manager Keith Ricken was left to bemoan a disastrous opening quarter as his charges just could not overcome the mountain they left for themselves to climb in Saturday's defeat to Tyrone in the All-Ireland MFC quarter-final at O'Moore Park in Portlaoise. With wing-forward Cathal Farley finding the net for the Red Hand county in the fourth minute, the Rebels were eight points down (1-6 to 0-1) before they knew what had hit them. Despite brave resistance thereafter, their ultimate fate had been sealed early on. 'For young lads coming into this, with a lack of games, the first ten minutes was going to catch you. Tyrone had had a lot of games, and they really got us at the start. I was kind of dreading that, because I felt it could happen,' said Ricken. 'I knew we would come back into it, because we would always try hard. We spent an awful lot of energy doing that. In the comeback, we needed to get goals, so we could have put something in the bank. We got one good goal, but we had a couple more really good goal chances.' The excellent Ben Corkery Delaney's bullet to the Tyrone net in the 24th minute invigorated Cork, and they managed to reduce the deficit to six points at half-time (1-13 to 1-7). Entering the game's final quarter, they were only four points behind (1-15 to 1-11). 'Coming down the home straight, when we got it down to four points, we looked gassed. We probably ran out of juice in the last eight or nine minutes, and they kicked six points in that period,' added the Cork boss. 'Small mistakes came in then too, we kicked two out over the sideline when they were inches away from being a brilliant pass to split their defence. We had a few stray hand-passes, one or two silly frees we gave away. 'The other thing we found difficult this week, and I would put their education key, is that we had one guy who came on today who is doing his Leaving Cert, and four guys out there doing their Junior Certs as well. It's been a hard week for them. That too was a factor, and I'm not looking for excuses.' With the likes of Peter Colton, Eoin Long, Thomas Meenan and James Mulgrew hugely prominent from beginning to end, Tyrone will be a tough nut to crack heading into the last four. For Cork, their campaign is over, but Ricken was left with encouraging green shoots of a better future. Scorers for Tyrone: E Long (0-6, 0-3fs), C Farley (1-2), P Colton (0-5,1tp), J Mulgrew (tp), T Meenan, J Kerr (0-1 '45, 0-1f) (0-2 each), A Quinn, P McDonald (0-1 each). Scorers for Cork: B Corkery Delaney (1-4, 1tp), E Maguire (0-4, 0-3fs), J Byerley(f), L O'Mahony, D McCarthy, D Flynn (0-1 each). TYRONE: R Donnelly; E Kerr, P Goodman, C McCrystal; A Quinn, J Daly, T Meenan; J Mulgrew, P Donaghy; D McAnespie, P Colton, C Farley; J Kerr, E Long, M Kennedy. Subs: V Gormley for Kennedy (43), M Mullin for E Kerr (47), M Daly for McAnespie (51), P McDonald for J Kerr (55), H Patton for Farley (58). CORK: R Twohig; B Coffey, A Keane, M Kiernan; J Miskella, C McCarthy, B Cronin; S Kelleher Leavy, R Hayes; L O'Mahony, D Flynn, S Long; J Byerley, B Corkery Delaney, E Maguire. Subs: J Hanrahan for Kelleher Leavy (22), E Collins for Long (30), D McCarthy for Byerley (35), T Whooley for O'Mahony (41), J O'Leary for Miskella (52). Referee: C Ryan (Galway).
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Dortmund's Ricken not satisfied despite looming Champions League spot
Borussia Dortmund managing director for sport Lars Ricken speaks during a press conference where Borussia Dortmund's new coach is introduced. Borussia Dortmund managing director for sport Lars Ricken has said he won't be satisfied with the season, even if the team qualify for the Champions league in Saturday's Bundesliga finale. Bernd Thissen/dpa Borussia Dortmund managing director for sport Lars Ricken has said he won't be satisfied with the season, even if the team qualify for the Champions league in Saturday's Bundesliga finale. Dortmund in fifth will clinch a top four finish on their own if they beat relegated Holstein Kiel by three goals, regardless of the outcome of the duel between fourth-ranked Freiburg and number three Eintracht Frankfurt. Advertisement Dortmund have staged a late comeback with six victories from seven unbeaten games to get into that position, after being ranked 11th and 10 points away from the top four a few weeks ago. Ricken told an event Tuesday night hosted by the Ruhr Nachrichten paper and Radio 91.2 he was not satisfied because the team had been too inconsistent overall. "It is of course not to our liking if mainz Freiburg and Gladbach (Borussia Mönchengladbach) are temporarily ahead of us," Ricken said. "it took us three coaches, we had to sign additional players in winter, so not everything can have been good. And there was too much unrest in the club overall." Advertisement Dortmund parted ways with inexperienced coach Nuri Sahin, a former midfielder at the club, in January, and interim coach Mike Tullberg was followed by Niko Kovac who eventually managed the turnaround. Technical director Sven Mislintat, whose portfolio included squad planning, also had to leave. Dortmund were upset as well by harsh criticism from their external adviser Matthias Sammer, via his function as Amazon Prime pundit at Champions League broadcasts. Ricken pledged that "we will reappraise all this" but added that there will be no major post-season shake-up. "That will definitely not happen this summer," he said.
Irish Independent
07-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Cork minor boss Keith Ricken positive despite ten-point reversal to Kerry
Indeed, thanks to an early Donagh Flynn goal, the Rebels were four points to the good, and eventually going in at the interval on level terms. A third-quarter Kingdom scoring blitz put paid to the hosts' chances of victory, but there were green shoots in the performance. 'I wouldn't say disappointed with the display, I would say disappointed with the result. We had good patches today, we tried to move the ball forward, we tried to kick the ball, but it was our end product. We kicked some terrible wides, and we missed four frees, and decisions like that,' he said. 'We should have been up at half-time and, even at the start of the second half, we had two or three goal chances, and we didn't take them. At this level, if you spill balls, you're going to be punished on the break. 'What was disappointing for me was that we conceded 2-18 at the end. We conceded a goal that we shouldn't have conceded, and then they kicked a few points, that were probably a bit too easy. I'm disappointed that we went in on ourselves a bit, but that happens with young lads. 'We did play on the front foot, and we tried to kick the ball more, and we tried to play more attractive football, but that takes time. You need a few games under your belt. We have another game next week which is, ultimately, the game.' Ricken's charges make the road trip to Semple Stadium in Thurles to play Tipperary next Monday evening (7pm) and, in a do-or-die scenario, the Cork supremo knows that his side will have to be more clinical in front of the posts if they are to progress. 'If we can get over next week, and get into a Munster final, that means we're into an All-Ireland quarter-final,' he said. "The more games these fellas play the better they will probably become. There are lads gone in there who are disappointed with their performance, which is good, and other lads that played well. 'We have a bit more work to do. No, you couldn't [see a ten-point defeat coming at half-time] but, at this level, you can see it if you don't do your bits and pieces. We had opportunities, and we spilled a few balls, and made a few silly mistakes. 'One or two decisions go against you, and I'm not saying anything about the referee, but there might be a decision where I thought it was for us, and they thought it was for them, and then all of a sudden you're four points down, or you're six points down. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more 'We gave them a couple of scores in-a-row and, at any level, you can't do that. They'll be disappointed with that part of it, which is good. You want them to be disappointed but, at the same time, you don't want them to be dejected, because I did think we tried to play good football at times. 'They never looked like they were being overrun but, if you make mistakes at this level, you will be punished. Up front, we kicked a lot of ball into the forward line tonight, and it came out a bit easy. We made a few bad choices of shots. 'Rory [Twohig], who is normally very dependable, had an off night tonight, but he's only a young lad of 16 years of age, he's underage again next year, so that can happen. That's learning for him too. I'd be hoping he has his shooting boots on the next night, and the other lads have their shooting boots on.' Of course, Tipperary have played three more games thus far than Cork, which is certainly an issue for Ricken. At the same time, his side (and Kerry) knew the scenario before a ball was kicked, and they just have to deal with the hand they've been dealt. 'It makes a huge difference. We're going into this as underdogs, as far as we see it, in lots of ways. We're not playing round-robins, for some reason. Then, all of a sudden, we're waiting, and every other team has got momentum. 'They know their team, they know their subs, we're still finding our momentum, and our team. With young lads, that changes overnight. That's the hand we're dealt with, and that's the hand we knew we were going in with, so we have to train accordingly. 'Our training sessions are normally good, our panel is big, we've a 15-a-side match every night we go training, and that's all we can do. We can do our damnedest with what we have. 'I'm not complaining because we're in the middle of it now, but it is something that, at the end of it, they should look at this. Every young fella, at the end of the year, should be saying that he got four or five games, and I think we probably need to look at that. That's not for today though.' Tipperary beat Waterford first day out (1-16 to 1-6) before coming a cropper against Limerick (2-14 to 1-12). Rebounding successfully, they have enjoyed back-to-back victories over Clare, both by narrow two-point margins, to take up their place in the provincial semi-final. 'Our concentration now is on next week. We have Tipperary away, which will be a tough game, make no bones of it. We played Tipperary earlier in the year, and we were at the pin of our collar. 'Last year Kerry played Tipperary and I think at half-time it was level pegging, or very close with just a point or so in it. They're now a seasoned team, but we have a very good bunch of lads, a very good bunch of people supporting them, and they're a credit to their clubs.' In the wider picture, Ricken is not all doom and gloom about the future of Cork football, despite their recent underwhelming underage record, especially against Kerry. He can see positive signs, and a tremendous amount of hard work going on in the background. 'There are some very good players in the making here and, in a few years' time, a lot of these guys will feature for Cork, and that's my job as I see it,' he suggested. 'I'm here now, and five or six years ago now, I wasn't supposed to be here, so this is very positive. I love working with young people, I love working with the kids that we have. This is a beautiful thing to be doing. For me, the glass is half full before we even start. 'We had more turnovers than them in the first half, we had more possession than them in the first half, but we didn't show that on the board. Ultimately, Gaelic football is getting the ball between the posts more times than your opposition, and we didn't do that tonight. We have to look at that. 'Cork are playing in Munster against the best county that has ever played football in Kerry. They have that scientifically proven. If you're constantly fighting Muhammad Ali all the time, it's hard to be taken seriously sometimes. Some of the second best boxers in the world fought Muhammad Ali. 'We are a good county and have a good tradition of football here in Cork. I am not as negative as a lot of people would think. We have to do stuff, but we are doing it. Big bodies move slowly. I am optimistic about the future of Cork football.'
Irish Examiner
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Tweaks to system and some patience: how Cork football can bounce back
It's beating for 9pm on Monday evening. Keith Ricken has just seen his Cork minor team beaten by 10 points by Kerry in a no-jeopardy Munster quarter-final, has spoken to his players in a large huddle post-match, and is now fielding questions in the middle of the Páirc Uí Rinn field. The Irish Examiner is last to join the mini media scrum. Ours is the last question of the lot. Our question to Ricken is this: What have you made of Cork football's underage structures since re-immersing yourself at development squad level in 2023? The question is asked because of the worrying slippage across post-primary, minor, and U20 in recent years. For context, this coming Sunday will mark two years since a Cork football team bettered one in green and gold. In the two years since, there have been four U20 championship defeats at the hands of the neighbours and four more at minor. Only one of those defeats was by a single score. Nine points was the average margin of defeat. The average margin of defeat at the business end of Munster's post-primary competitions is significantly chunkier and significantly more worrying. The sole impression now being made by Cork schools in the Corn Uí Mhuirí is ensuring the semi-final line-up isn't an exclusively green and gold affair. One Cork school - Hamilton High School Bandon - reached the last four of the most recent edition. One Cork school - Patrician Academy Mallow - is all that made last year's semi-finals too. They were hammered 20 and 11 points respectively. No Cork winner of the Corn Uí Mhuirí since 2011. No Cork winner of the Munster U17 Frewen Cup since 2016. Both of those wins were by Coláiste Chríost Rí, now competing at Senior B level in the province. Back to Ricken. The minor boss is incapable of addressing the state of Cork football in soundbite fashion. His answer runs for six minutes. His answer leans heavily on nuance. He opens by stating that there is a 'good' structure in place. Niall Twomey, Cork GAA's head of coaching and games development, he adds, is less than two years in the job and so improvements will be achieved the longer his feet are under the table. Ricken's overall point, though, is that the system and structures could be better, could be more synchronised. The desire is there by those at the coalface to strengthen the underage pillars, but time is required. 'It is disjointed in one sense. Post-primary, clubs, and development squads are in their own silos. There is scope for linking more of our schools, development squads, and clubs. Next year the county board is hoping to have a more concrete fixture plan with the schools, which would be a good move. I'd love to see our schools compete more. But that is not to say there aren't people doing great work in those schools. 'I haven't been a critic of Rebel Óg because I know the people in it and they are superb people. But I do think over the last number of years that there are too many games and maybe not enough training and coaching done. It is trying to get the balance right. 'So, a tweak here and there. Our U20s, our minors tonight; the evidence is there that we have to tweak it. But would I be panicking and throwing the baby out with the bath water? I would not.' Ricken was U20 manager when Cork went the distance in 2019. The minors won the All-Ireland the same year. A dream Year One to the famous five-year plan. There was no All-Ireland reached or captured in the ensuing four years. Much commentary of late has focused on there being no review of the now concluded five-year plan and the discontinuation of the football project co-ordinator role. The commentary, according to Ricken, has been too negative. 'A lot of people are very critical of Cork football, at times, and it probably doesn't need that. You are playing your competitions in Munster against the best county that has ever played football. If you are constantly fighting Muhammed Ali, it is hard to be taken seriously sometimes. 'We are a good county, we've good clubs, we've a good tradition of football, we just need to tweak some stuff. I am not as negative as a lot of people. We have to do stuff, but I think we are doing stuff.' One move he wouldn't be in favour of, as floated by Cork CEO Kevin O'Donovan at a recent Cork Chamber breakfast, is asking players at 15 years of age whether they want to be a Cork hurler or Cork footballer. 'The other thing I would say is that big bodies move slow. There are a lot of moving parts to Cork football to bring it together. And then there's the dual player and a kind of movement at underage not to have dual players. Is that a good or bad thing? I don't know. Sometimes I think there is room for exceptional players. 'There is a very good U16 team and a very good U15 team coming through. It will take time. I've been here when Cork were wrote off and Cork were gone. All of a sudden we win an All-Ireland and all of a sudden something is coming.' His Cork team lost to Kerry by 10 points. They didn't lose because of the county's underage structures, he insisted. They lost because they had eight wides and a 33% conversion rate as compared to Kerry's one wide. The necessary boots and brain power are on the ground to close the very obvious gap that has formed and is growing. The necessary energy is there too. The energy now must be on bringing together all the different groupings and bringing everyone out of their different silos. The bigger picture is the only picture that counts. 'It is up to us the football people, we can't look to anybody else to do our bits and pieces,' said Ricken. 'You are asking me if there has to be structural changes, I think there has to be. I wouldn't like to change any structures that would change the people involved. I know the lads that were involved with the U20s, Eamon O'Connor, James Condon. They give their heart and soul to it. 'A lot of very good people in there, probably just need to tweak the system. The appetite is there for it, the brains is there for it. We have good people to do that and I am hopeful they will do that.'
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Dortmund's Ricken rules out departure of sporting director Kehl
Dortmund's sports director Sebastian Kehl sits on the players' bench during the German Bundesliga soccer match between 1899 Hoffenheim and Borussia Dortmund at PreZero Arena. Uwe Anspach/dpa Borussia Dortmund managing director for sport Lars Ricken said that the departure of sporting director Sebastian Kehl after this season is not in discussion "I made a lot of decisions in the winter and deliberately extended Sebastian Kehl's contract and made my position clear," Ricken told broadcasters Sky on Sunday. Advertisement He added that the contract extension was a signal of Dortmund's trust in Kehl and that it didn't open any door for speculation over his departure. Dortmund have had a difficult year and dismissed coach Nuri Sahin mid-season and signed Niko Kovac. With two Bundesliga games left, however, they still have realistic chances of qualifying to the Champions League. They are fifth but one point behind Freiburg, who current sit in the last qualification spot. Ricken, meanwhile, didn't clarify questions over the future of midfielder Julian Brandt, who has a contract until 2026 but has been linked to a move to Werder Bremen. "We will talk about that after the season is over. No player has shared with us their wish to leave. We all agree that it's not Julian's best season, but he gets the absolute support from all of us," Ricken said.
