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GAA: All the All-Ireland SFC and Tailteann Cup action from around the country as it happens

Irish Independent

24 minutes ago

Sport
Irish Independent

GAA: All the All-Ireland SFC and Tailteann Cup action from around the country as it happens

Live | Niall McIntyre Today at 08:30 The bigger ball is where the GAA action is today as the SFC and Tailteann Cup continue with the clash between current All-Ireland champions Armagh and 2023 winners Dublin the pick of the games. We'll keep you up to date on all games in our GAA blog below. 2 minutes ago Dermot Crowe previews Derry-Galway here: Dermot Crowe: Time for Galway to declare their intentions in Derry after deflating defeat to Dublin Even with a qualification bar as low as we have in the All-Ireland football group stages — where only four teams are eliminated after 24 games — you still need to win at least one match to stay in the race. If that's not asking too much. 6 minutes ago Crunch clash. Both Derry and Galway are feeling the pressure having lost their first round games, with both sides hoping to get back on track today. 12 minutes ago Colm O'Rourke: Armagh can highlight why they're champions against Dublin' Colm O'Rourke: Armagh can highlight why they're champions against Dublin After Dublin were beaten by Meath in the Leinster semi-final, most of the Gaelic games journalists were expecting an early exit from the championship for Dessie Farrell's side. 18 minutes ago It's a sunny summer Sunday, a perfect setting for Gaelic football. Derry-Galway (2.0) and Dublin-Armagh (4.0) are the big ones in the Sam Maguire today, with the final round of group games in the Tailteann Cup on the cards. Antrim-London (1.45) is knockout while Fermanagh-Wexford (1.45) is the curtain raiser in Croke Park. We'll guide you through it all. Sportsfile. Live Blog Software

GAA: Dublin welcome Armagh and all the All-Ireland SFC and Tailteann Cup action from around the country as it happens

Irish Independent

39 minutes ago

Sport
Irish Independent

GAA: Dublin welcome Armagh and all the All-Ireland SFC and Tailteann Cup action from around the country as it happens

Feargal Logan: Tyrone and Mayo must banish inconsistency tag

RTÉ News

2 days ago

Sport
RTÉ News

Feargal Logan: Tyrone and Mayo must banish inconsistency tag

In a week where the Tyrone seniors accounted for Donegal and their U-20s added another All-Ireland title, there is certainly a feelgood factor within the county. So much so that many are taking about the Red Hand as genuine contenders to land Sam Maguire later in the summer. It's four years since Fergal Logan, along with Brian Dooher, guided Tyrone to the ultimate prize. Now observing affairs from a distance, Logan was pleased with the performance that saw off Donegal, but now hopes that that victory can act a springboard for Malachy O'Rourke's side to be just as efficient against similar opposition going forward. Next up is a home date with Mayo on Saturday evening. Reflecting on events at MacCumhail Park on RTÉ Radio 1's The Championship, he said: "It was an interesting night, a tight pitch in Ballybofey on a wet, damp night. "Tyrone had everything to play for and Donegal had come off an Ulster final. We need to balance that out and bring it on to our next performance, bring the consistency that we need. Possibly Tyrone and Mayo over the last number of years, and I'm not abdicating any responsibility here, have been too inconsistent for people's liking. We now need to get that consistency going." In casting an eye over what might transpire for the visit of the Connacht side, Logan, not surprisingly, feels there is greater pressure on Mayo to deliver following their Round 1 loss to Cavan. "There is less jeopardy for Tyrone because they won last weekend but the jeopardy is big for everyone who lost their first outing and on that basis it is a difficult one for Mayo," he added. "We're at home at O'Neill's Healy Park and that is a help. Mayo have been backs to the wall before, we've seen that, where they have produced performances when needed. Now, the ultimate question always remains about the real cutting edge up top. "There are a spread of scorers there. Aidan O'Shea is still hanging about and I don't care what anyone says, he is still a danger in and around the opposition forward line. It is fairly well balanced and it should be an intriguing evening. You would slightly edge it for Tyrone." What also gives the Stewartstown Harps clubman added hope is what Tyrone can produce up top, with Darren McCurry and Mark Bradley showing well of late. "We are blessed with some quality inside forwards and scorers and they are critical for every team. We have the U-20s coming up, young Noah Grimes and Eoin McElholm. Darren is still producing it and he's now a proud father and was super the last night."

Nigel Dunne: Galway resilience set for major test in Derry

RTÉ News

3 days ago

Sport
RTÉ News

Nigel Dunne: Galway resilience set for major test in Derry

Offaly great Nigel Dunne believes Galway's response against Derry on Sunday will speak volumes about the level of resilience within the Tribe camp as they aim to finally end their long wait for the Sam Maguire. They haven't won an All-Ireland football title since 2001 but have lost finals to Kerry and Armagh under Pádraic Joyce's watch. Galway entered the 2025 championship arena as one of the favourites and despite completing a Connacht four in a row, a home loss to Dublin in their All-Ireland group opener has left them under pressure ahead of their visit to the Maiden city. Dunne, who brought a 15-year inter-county career to an end earlier this month, feels a real test of character awaits them this weekend. "It's far from a gimme and the only point Derry got in the league was in Celtic Park against Galway," he said on the RTÉ GAA podcast. "The last 12 minutes against Armagh (for Derry), it's all about how Derry are going to frame it - 'look we finished really strongly, we created five or six goal chances, we've turned a corner, we've stopped the rot'. "Even though they didn't get the win, they finished strongly against a mean Armagh side. "Galway's confidence will probably be a little bit on the floor but in all truth they were slightly unlucky, that game could have gone either way. "It's how they react to it now because this is a Galway team that hasn't gotten over the line for Sam Maguire so they don't have that resilience to lie back on. "You're talking about two teams with everything to fight for. This is going to be the game of the weekend as far as I can see because there's such jeopardy, whoever loses that's probably their year over." For Dunne, there's forever an uncertainty over the Galway line-up from week to week and he believes it may be having a detrimental effect. "If all things are equal and both teams bring their best, Galway will win. "From an outsider point of view looking at Galway, I find it incredibly infuriating that – and it's nobody's fault and we're talking about extremely gifted players - (but) there's always injury concerns over Shane Walsh, Damien Comer, Seán Kelly. You're talking three of their best players, three of the best players in the game. There's always, are they fit or are they not? "That seems to be the case for a few years now. If I was a Galway supporter you'd always be on edge with them and I'm often wondering does that noise filter through to the players. "I think you need a fully fit Shane Walsh to win an All-Ireland but it's always is Shane Walsh fit. They need to get him fit, they need to do whatever it is to get him to the source of these problems."

'East Coast Football' rising ahead of first ever Louth, Down Championship tie

Irish Daily Mirror

4 days ago

Sport
Irish Daily Mirror

'East Coast Football' rising ahead of first ever Louth, Down Championship tie

'East Coast Football' was one of the more bizarre quotes of recent times. It really meant Dublin when Jim Gavin coined it first, but with the rise of Louth - and Meath on a roll - it seems more apt than ever now. Could Down be the next 'East Coast' county to make their mark as they face Louth at Pairc Esler on Saturday evening in a crucial Round 2 All-Ireland encounter? Astonishingly, it will be the first ever meeting of the sides who share a border along the M1 motorway. Carlingford Lough splits the counties. The popular tourist village is the Dundalk/Newry Riviera, a weekend and summer playground for locals on both sides of the border. Down are the historical power here, and carried the Sam Maguire through Louth five times on their way home from Croke Park, but the playing field has leveled off. In this year's Division 2 campaign, they both finished on six points with Louth surviving thanks to a final round win over Meath. In the group stages, Louth edged Down out by 2-17 to 0-22 at Ardee. But, in the meantime, Ger Brennan's reds landed a first Leinster senior title since 1957, while the Wee County are riding the crest of a wave at underage level. Their senior breakthrough may have played a factor in Louth's paltry tally of eight points - they also shot four goals - against Monaghan's 1-23 in last weekend's All-Ireland opener, while a week earlier Down thumped Clare by 3-27 to 1-16. It appears to be Louth's time, but they have just seven days to get the show back on the road again, presenting a major opportunity to Down - one they've had to be patient for. Down, the aristocrats of Ulster football, the first side from the six counties to take the Sam Maguire across the border (1960), the mighty Mourne men, the red and black devils have been in the wilderness for over three decades now. They've had to look on as Tyrone (4), Armagh (2) and Donegal (1) have claimed All-Ireland titles since their last triumph, back in 1994. Very much the unloved child of Ulster football in recent years, all the talk has been of Tyrone, Donegal, Derry and Armagh. And, the side they could meet in the final round of this year's All-Ireland round robin, with a coveted last eight place on the line, Monaghan, are starting to make waves too. Conor Laverty's first Championship game in charge of Down was in April 2023, a 2-13 to 1-11 victory over Donegal. Almost 10,000 fans turned up in Newry, but it was a Donegal side in chaos after the resignation of manager Paddy Carr during the National League. It seemed though that the Laverty factor might lead to instant success, or at least fasttrack it. As a player Laverty had won 10 Down Championships, two Ulster clubs and one All-Ireland (as joint-captain). Of far more relevance though were/are, his Ulster Under-20 title wins as Down manager in 2021 and 2023. In fact, he's the only manager to prevent Tyrone winning the Ulster under-20 title since Mickey Donnelly (Derry) in 2018, with Tyrone native Donnelly now part of Laverty's Down set-up. Armagh delivered a dose of reality on Down's next big day out after the Donegal win, hitting them for four goals in a 10 point Ulster semi-final win. Down had come off a Division 3 campaign. Next year, three seasons on from that, they'll play Division 3 football again, after being relegated a few weeks ago. Progress hasn't been linear. It's been steady rather than monumental, but that's not all that surprising given the low base Down are coming from. No Ulster title since 1994 is only the half of it. But, they've stayed patient and stayed working. Along the way, Laverty added Ciaran Meenagh to his coaching ticket, after he left Derry following the departure of Rory Gallagher - and the county's last gasp 2023 All-Ireland semi-final defeat by Kerry. Landing Meenagh, with his attention to detail and experience from his time with Derry, was a real sign of intent. That promise has yet to be fulfilled with a huge turnover of players Laverty has gone with youth and rebuilt his side. Just six players who started the Donegal 2023 game started against Clare 12 days ago: Pierce Laverty, Danny Magill, Daniel Guinness, Ceilum Doherty, Ryan McEvoy and Pat Havern. There are signs that they're getting there. It went largely unnoticed last year that Down pushed Armagh to one point in the Ulster semi-final. But for big displays from Aidan Forker and Rian O'Neill, McGeeney's All-Ireland champions in waiting would have been beaten. That defeat represented an eight point improvement on the year before against Armagh, although in 2024 they scored just 2-6 and played 15 men behind the ball for most of the game. This year Down were fortunate to defeat Fermanagh in the Ulster quarter-final, showing great resilience to hit two late goals in a 2-19 to 0-23 victory. Ulster Championship games are for winning. In the semi-final they fell to a six point defeat by Donegal, 1-19 to 0-16. They had a safety net though. Down are a great advertisement for the Tailteann Cup. They wouldn't be in the All-Ireland this year, or in with a serious chance of topping their group and going straight through to claim one of the four automatic All-Ireland quarter-final places on offer, if they hadn't won it last season. While some counties have struggled with buy-in, it reflects well on Laverty and co that they got enough player commitment to win the second tier championship. It was the first final they'd won after 12 decider defeats on the bounce, going all the way back to the 1994 All-Ireland Final, including the 2010 All-Ireland decider. Laverty and Down needed that victory badly as they'd lost the Division 3 Final at Croke Park a few months earlier and the Tailteann Cup decider the year before against Meath. It was a serious monkey off the back for Down football, as this group eyes up a first All-Ireland quarter-final since 2010 against a Louth side who made thier first ever quarter-final last year. 'East Coast Football' abu.