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RTÉ News
2 days ago
- Climate
- RTÉ News
Tailteann Cup Preliminary Quarter-Finals: All you need to know
SATURDAY, 7 JUNE Offaly v New York, Glenisk O'Connor Park, 2pm Westmeath v Laois, TEG Cusack Park, 5pm SUNDAY, 8 JUNE Wexford v Antrim, Chadwicks Wexford Park, 1.30pm Sligo v Carlow, Kilcoyne Park, Tubbercurry, 2pm ONLINE Live scoring on RTÉ.ie and the RTÉ News app. Highlights also available across the weekend. TV Offaly v New York and Westmeath v Laois will be streamed live on GAA+. Highlights of all the weekend's action on The Sunday Game, RTÉ2 and the RTÉ Player, from 9.30pm. RADIO Live updates on RTÉ Radio 1's Saturday Sport and Sunday Sport - and RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta's Spórt an tSathairn and Spórt an Lae. WEATHER Saturday: After a wet start to the day, cloud and rain will gradually clear eastwards leaving a mix of showers and sunny spells for Saturday. Highest temperatures of 12 to 15 degrees in moderate to fresh and occasionally strong northwest winds. Sunday: A mix of sunshine and showers, with cloud increasing in the west through the afternoon, before brightening again by the evening. Highest temperatures of just 13 to 16 degrees in moderate westerly winds. For more go to We welcome New York And so 16 became 11+1. The add-on, the footballers of New York, who again enter the competition at this stage. Perhaps, supporters in Leitrim are cursing their arrival, as they were the third-placed side to lose out after the regulation phase. A crumb of comfort for Stephen Poacher's side is that they finished a difficult year on a high with that win over Tipperary. Poacher is already looking towards next January, plotting Leitrim's escape from Division 4, no doubt. New York have been preparing for this weekend since their Connacht exit at the hands of Galway on 6 April. More time to get used to the new playing rules. That said, the Exiles looked more than assured in adjusting to the changes, with Frank O'Reilly, Bobby O'Regan and James Walsh catching the eye with their two-pointers. New York certainly put it up to the Tribes in the opening half, trailing only by three points at the break. They gave as good as they got, before being overpowered 2-18 to 0-06 by the Connacht champions on the resumption. They will obviously hope to stay in the game longer when taking on Offaly at Glenisk O'Connor Park. The counties previously met at the quarter-final stage in 2022. A point that New York forward Shane Brosnan alluded to, when speaking to RTÉ Sport last month. "We were very good for 35 minutes, we know we need to probably add on another bit of fitness and hopefully complete that performance that we had in the first-half for a full 70-minute game, he said. "We probably just didn't have the legs to keep going in the second-half, but it was good to get the game against a team like Galway." Preliminary and onto quarter-finals proper So we have our pairings this weekend: Offaly v New York, Westmeath v Laois, Wexford v Antrim and Sligo v Carlow. Watching on with their quarter-final spots guaranteed after topping their groups are Kildare, Limerick, Fermanagh and Wicklow. This quartet will have home advantage in the last eight, where the draw, live on Morning Ireland, RTÉ Radio 1 from 8.35am on Monday, shall be subject to the avoidance of repeat pairings from the group stage where possible. Pairings that can't happen: Kildare v Sligo, Wicklow v Offaly, Wicklow v Laois, Limerick v Westmeath, Limerick v Antrim, Fermanagh v Wexford, Fermanagh v Carlow. The quarter-finals are scheduled across the weekend of 14/15 June. Surprise participants at this juncture Ahead of the concluding round, both Westmeath and Offaly were favoured to secure their quarter-final berths. The same could be said of Carlow, who faced the already eliminated Longford. But the trio suffered defeats: Westmeath and Offaly by the bare minimum against Limerick and Laois respectively, the classic sucker-punch in both cases, while Carlow were well off it against their Leinster opponents and were somewhat flattered with the five-point difference in the end. Now it's a case of picking up the pieces. For Declan Kelly and Mickey Harte (above), New York are something of an unknown quantity, as they look to get the Faithful ship back on course. Losing to a 75th-minute penalty against their neighbours was a jolt. In truth, they would have expected this week off. That said, you'd fancy them too see off their overseas visitors here, where Ruairi McNamee will surely get another chance to impress after kicking some fine scores when introduced last weekend. Westmeath v Laois, on paper, is the game of the weekend. A clash of the maiden winners and last year's finalists. For the Lake County, 2025 has so far been a year of agonising defeats, most notably during their Division 2 campaign. Relegation was the outcome there. More heartache last weekend when Emmett Rigter's point at the death denied Dermot McCabe's men a last-eight berth. It was a nip and tuck affair in Portlaoise, where both teams had periods of ascendancy, one such period saw Westmeath score seven points on the spin in the second half to re-establish the lead. They couldn't push that out and were caught in the end by an improving Limerick side. Laois' victory over Offaly was characterised by a decent spread of scorers across their starting XV and substitutes. Brian Byrne, in the full-forward line, was excellent throughout, while Mark Barry was coolness personified in slotting home the winning penalty. Justin McNulty really got a tune out of Laois throughout the knockout phase last year. That took them all the way to the final. Accounting for another of the pre-competition favourites should set them up nicely again, though the slight nod here is in the direction of Westmeath. First up on Sunday is the clash of Wexford v Antrim. The Slaneysiders could not live with Fermanagh's second-half onslaught at Croker and dropped to second in their group. They can have no complaints in what was their second defeat at GAA HQ this season after losing the Division 4 final to Limerick. Antrim squeezed through in third spot in their group, when seeing off London by eight points. The margin of victory was significant in just edging out Leitrim for that remaining place. Late scores from Marc Jordan and Dominic McEnhill were crucial to give Andy McEntee's men another day out. Wexford, on their home patch, should have enough to advance. With Markievicz Park having work done on its surface, Kilcoyne Park in Tubbercurry will stage Sligo v Carlow. A fair assessment of the Yeats County so far would suggest they have not quite hit the same levels reached reached in 2024 where they nearly took Galway's scalp in Connacht and then lost narrowly to eventual winners Down in the semi-finals of this competition. They were expected to push for promotion from Division 3. That never materialised and they were far from impressive in defeating Tipperary and Leitrim in the group stage. Fifteen points down against Kildare, they fought gamely to reduce the deficit, prompting manager Tony McEntee to hail a resilience that hasn't been in this team here before. Carlow, after that setback against Longford, will need to regroup. Manager Joe Murphy is accentuating the positives and speaking on local radio, said: "They're in a division higher than us and that, but you know, we travelled well before when we went to Fermanagh. We won't fear anyone and we will give it our all." Sligo, however, are the best bet to progress.
RTÉ News
02-05-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Munster & Connacht SFC finals: All you need to know
SUNDAY 4 MAY Munster SFC final Kerry v Clare, Fitzgerald Stadium, 1.45pm Connacht SFC final Mayo v Galway, Hastings Insurance MacHale Park, 4pm ONLINE Live blog for both games on RTÉ Sport and RTÉ News app TV Live on RTÉ2 and the RTÉ Player from 1.15pm. Highlights of the weekend's action on The Sunday Game from 9.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. RADIO Live commentary and updates on RTÉ Radio 1's Sunday Sport and RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta's Spórt an Lae. WEATHER Sunday: It will be mainly dry and bright with good spells of sunshine. Cloud will build a little at times through the morning and for the afternoon, bringing the chance of a few isolated showers, these most likely across the eastern half of the country, but they'll be very hit and miss. Highest temperatures of 13 to 18 or 19 degrees, coolest in the north and warmest in the midwest, in light to moderate northeast winds. For more go to Heightened jeopardy for some after provincial dust has settled And so to the first of the provincial deciders. Repeat pairings from last year and in the case of Kerry-Clare, it's a third successive meeting. Meath's win over Dublin has seen a bump in Leinster's market value, so could that province be the most competitive going forward? No more talk then of splitting Dublin in two. Thank God for that! Though it was a discussion that did fill some air time on The Sunday Game during Covid. Of course the championship discussion, that part concerning affairs in Connacht, took on a more concentrated gaze following Wednesday's All-Ireland group phase draw. The winners of the Nestor Cup will have either Armagh/Donegal, Dublin and Derry for company. The vanquished in Castlebar can then start preparing for either Armagh/Donegal, Tyrone and Cavan. Naturally enough, the 'group of death' tag was applied but if you take a step back, or a 'shtep' as they might say in the west, with three teams from four guaranteed to be still involved come the conclusion of the series, there is less jeopardy. We can expect some cracking contests, as teams aim to top their section and avoid that extra game before the Croke Park quarter-finals. For Kerry and Clare, their schedule after Sunday, looks not as intimidating. And so we have the cries that Kerry always get a 'soft, aul draw'. Those in the Kingdom giving a shake of the head and moving on. Keane and Clare ready to have cut of a somewhat rattled Kingdom It's as we expected in Munster; Kerry and Clare through to the final again. But not in the way we would have envisaged, as Kerry's progression was nearly derailed by a Cork outfit who took them to the limit and beyond in the semi-final. To the Rebels we give thanks and that's no slight on the Kingdom. In advance of that Easter Saturday encounter, there was much talk of Munster becoming 'something of a doddle' for Kerry. Of course, Jack O'Connor wasn't having any of that, we wouldn't expect too, but the Green and Gold we all knew were more than a cut above. We know something different now. Cork could have and should have sealed the deal during extra-time on Leeside. A stunning goal from midfielder Joe O'Connor in that period ensured that Kerry noses were in front when it mattered. O'Connor's men put to the pin of their collar sooner than they expected. They'll take that. Can Clare also give them a rattle? Well, there were 14 points between the sides in the 2023 final; that margin was down to seven last year. Following that sequence, this Fitzgerald Stadium should finish level. If that were to happen, expect a stampede on social media from those saying 'we well and truly have our provincial championships back'. The Banner just missed out on promotion to Division 2 and then accounted for Tipperary to reach this juncture. They didn't shoot the lights out in Ennis, always managing to keep their noses in front against game opponents. A goal in each half from Mark McInerney proved decisive as on both occasions it would be the catalyst for a Banner scoring blitz. Clare's cause this year has been helped by the return of Eoin Cleary and Keelan Sexton, this after much change in personnel since Colm Collins' departure. After Kerry native Mark Fitzgerald stepped down as boss after one year, the county board looked at the same geographical terrain for his successor. Enter Peter Keane, who managed his county for three years, getting them to an All-Ireland final in 2019. He was the right man at the time after his success with Kerry underage teams. But his tenure with the seniors ended somewhat abruptly after that All-Ireland semi-final loss to Tyrone in 2021. A game that was there for the taking; small margins decided it. You'd have fancied Kerry to subsequently take care of Mayo in the decider. The course of history could have been different for Keane. Instead, Jack O'Connor was cutting his ties with Kildare and heading back south, this after equating Kerry with Manchester United on a podcast. Keane will have Clare primed, notes taken on how Cork caused their neighbours more than a few defensive jitters. After being sent off at Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Paudie Clifford will be an absentee for Kerry. The game comes too soon for Diarmuid O'Connor, with Paul Murphy (calf issue) and Graham O'Sullivan (groin) also likely to be unavailable. Mike Breen and Tom O'Sullivan are in contention to return. It all points to another title for Kerry; home advantage an added bonus to a likely victory by around six points. Defining match of the McStay tenure? And so for the 95th time in championship, Mayo and Galway will lock horns. It's 2014 since they last met in a provincial decider in MacHale Park, a period when the Green and Red held sway, winning what was the fourth of five consecutive titles on the spin. Lee Keegan, in his column on these pages, said it was a time when Mayo could bully Galway. Now, it is the Tribes who are calling the provincial tune, and are seeking a fourth success on the trot. Of course, their neighbours would love to throw a spanner into that works. Kevin McStay places great stock on winning a Nestor Cup, this after being pipped late on in last year's final. That was followed by more heartache of sorts when drawing against Dublin and then losing on penalties to Derry in the All-Ireland series. A trend emerging. Not winning games that matter. A new season brought a league campaign that started slowly, got better midway through, before flatlining badly against Kerry in the Division 1 final. They were always expected to reach this Connacht final. That said they did little to catch the eye against either Sligo or Leitrim, though credit must go to that pair for their resistance. McStay was quite bullish after the semi-final, in that his troops will be ready to go to war with their old foes. This Sunday, you suspect was earmarked just after the Ballina native got the backing last autumn to continue in the job. A Connacht medal now has greater currency, a greater share value than the Division 1 silverware won in 2023. A prize worth winning for a side now seen as drifting in the All-Ireland market. Connacht finals, though, are often a law on to themselves. A ravenous home support at MacHale Park should help Mayo, but history has shown that that doesn't always carry the hosts to glory. *Galway manager, Pádraic Joyce played 11 championship games against Mayo between 1998 and 2011, winning six and losing five. Mayo manager, Kevin McStay played five championship games against Galway between 1983 and 1990, winning one, drawing one and losing three. Aidan O'Shea is playing the best football of his career. You can expect him to roam a bit, no doubt entrusted with trying to disrupt the influence of Galway midfielders Paul Conroy and John Maher. Matthew Tierney reacts fastest to extend Galway's lead against Roscommon with the opening goal 📺 Watch @rte2 & @rteplayer 📻 @rteradio1 📱 Updates 👇 — The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) April 20, 2025 Mayo, it's fair to say, have more fires to put out. The Galway attacking threat, even without Shane Walsh, is more potent now, with the likes of Rob Finnerty, Cillian McDaid and Matthew Tierney now all scoring more freely. As for two-pointer potential, the Tribesmen offer more. Mayo must improve in that regard. Last weekend gave our first real surprise of the championship when Meath took care of Dublin. Mayo prevailing a week later over their bitter rivals would be a mild surprise. Galway's picture is framed around winning Sam Maguire and boss Pádraic Joyce was very, very happy by the way Roscommon were dispatched on Easter Sunday. A manager content that he now has the squad to go all the way. The evidence of that was there to see at times against Rossies. More proof of Galway's credentials will be on display in the challenging schedule that awaits after their visit to Castlebar.
RTÉ News
25-04-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Football championship weekend: All you need to know
SATURDAY 26 APRIL Ulster SFC semi-final Armagh v Tyrone, Clones, 4.45pm SUNDAY 27 APRIL Leinster SFC semi-finals Kildare v Louth, Glenisk O'Connor Park, 2pm Dublin v Meath, Laois Hire O'Moore Park, 4pm Ulster SFC semi-final Donegal v Down, Clones, 3pm ONLINE Live blogs each day with RTÉ Sport and RTÉ News app TV Live coverage of Donegal v Down live on BBC2 NI. GAA+ will stream Saturday's clash of Tyrone and Armagh in Ulster as well as both Leinster semi-finals the following day, Kildare v Louth and Dublin v Meath. Highlights of the weekend's action on The Sunday Game from 9.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. RADIO Live commentary and updates on RTÉ Radio 1's Saturday Sport and Sunday Sport. Also live updates on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta's Spórt an tSathairn and Spórt an Lae. WEATHER Saturday: The mist and fog will generally clear on Saturday morning to leave a mainly dry, bright day with good spells of sunshine with a few isolated showers. Mild overall with highest temperatures of 14 to 17 degrees in light to moderate south to southwest winds. Sunday: Likely to be cloudy for a time with some scattered showers. It'll be a breezy day with highest temperatures of 14 to 17 degrees in moderate to fresh and occasionally gusty south to southwest winds. For more go to Hankering for the noughties The meeting of Armagh and Tyrone this weekend conjures up memories of one of the great rivalries in Gaelic football. With the gripping nature of the contests and the fact they were such big games in the calendar, it is easy to forget that at its peak, it lasted four years (2002-05), spanned six memorable games and resulted in maiden All-Ireland success for both. Tyrone edged the rivalry by ending the decade with three Celtic Crosses, but there was rarely little between the sides as the most gifted and ferocious competitiors of their generation duked it out. Gripping games, though former Tyrone player Enda McGinley concedes rewatching the game is a reminder of the evolvement of the sport. "It was before the era of controlled possession, so looking back on the games now, it seems like kamikaze football," he said earlier this week. Could a decent hitout in Clones reignite the flames of this rivalry? Certainly the ingredients are there. While the powerhouses Kerry (2022) and Dublin (2023) reinforced the idea of the traditional two in football, those successes were bookended by unlikely teams - at the start of the respective seasons at least - walking up the Hogan Stand, the Red Hands prevailing in 2021 and Kieran McGeeney's side upsetting the odds last year. The Orchard County will be wary that Tyrone's dismal defence of Sam Maguire - it was Armagh who put them out of their misery in the qualifiers - did little to dispel the notion that they won that All-Ireland against the head. Few backed the team to make it back-to-back, their implosion fuel to the critics who suggested it was one of the weakest teams to land top honours in recent history. Armagh now are following a similar path, keen to prove last year was no flash in the pan. With Rian O'Neill remaining outside the panel and a sizeable injury list, McGeeney could only call on five starters from last year's All-Ireland triumph over Galway for the Ulster quarter-final win over Antrim. It has allowed others stake claims with the manager name-checking the scoring contribution of three of his four championship debutants last time out, with Tomás McCormack, Calum O'Neill (the first Belleek man to play championship for Armagh) and Darragh McMullan working the scoreboard operator at Corrigan Park. Have Down another upset in them? "Down are crafty. Down have a team full of ball players. So many notes taken on them." The words of Donegal manager Jim McGuinness in relation to the build-up to the 2012 Ulster final. The Tir Chonaill men would make it back-to-back provincial titles for the first time en route to landing Sam Maguire while Down's barren run would continue to an 18th season at least. That wait has moved beyond three decades. McGuinness's thoughts back then may not hold quite so true now, aside from the obsessive note-taking. That particular Down side were two years on from going within a whisker of an All-Ireland title. Earlier that spring just missed out on a Division 1 final with Dan Gordon, Mark Poland, Danny Hughes, Benny Coulter and current manager Conor Laverty leading the way. The current crop will battle it out in the third tier in 2026, three wins from seven in Division 2 not enough to avoid the drop. That disappointment looked set to be compounded by a championship defeat to Fermanagh as the Erne men led by seven points with eight minutes left on the clock. Inspired by midfielder Daniel McGuinness, who raised a flag of all three colours, Pat Havern and Ryan McEvoy, the Mourne men rallied for a superb win. Unless we see a significant improvement – the closing stages aside – it's hard to see anything other than the Ulster holders marching on. An embarrassment of riches up front, an athletic midfield and some pacey and attack-minded defenders such as Finbarr Roarty, Ciarán Moore, Peadar Mogan (0-05 between them against Monaghan) means the eight-point spread seems about right. While Donegal are bidding for a 12th Ulster final in 15 seasons, and their record against Down is impressive – four wins from last five games with an average winning margin of 13 points – their last championship clash should serve against complacency, if that is even possible with McGuinness at the helm. Two years ago goals from Liam Kerr and Pat Havern sent Down on their way to victory at Pairc Esler against a Donegal side reeling from Division 1 relegation, managerial upheaval and apparent player apathy. McGuinness returned for a second stint in charge of his native county four months later. Will Leinster remain a piece of cake for Dublin? A great empire, like a great cake, is most easily diminished at the edges. One of the most accomplished American minds, Benjamin Franklin, is attributed with that quote, and it could be used with the Dublin footballers in mind. The icing has come off if you will, the likes of James McCarthy, Brian Fenton, Paul Mannion, Jack McCaffrey exiting stage left since last year's championship, but will Leinster remain a piece of cake fo the boys in blue? Dessie Farrell drafted in 16 new faces during the league. Solid if not spectacular was the early verdict, though the laboured win over Wicklow in Aughrim has whispers of an end to provincial domination – they are bidding for 15-in-a-row in Leinster- growing louder. Peter Canavan is of the opinion that the presence of Con O'Callaghan alone means the Delaney Cup will remain in the capital, but more will be needed from those around him if they are to go deep into the All-Ireland race. Question marks regarding goalkeeper and midfield persist, though the return of John Small and Davey Byrne is a huge boon. Sean Bugler is in the form of his Dublin career while Greg McEneaney has nailed down his place in the starting XV. Meath will, perhaps for the first time since their famous 2010 upset of the Dubs, enter the game with ambitions of more than simply keeping the score down. Whether they have the tools to deliver another shock remains to be seen, but the manner of the performance against Carlow was encouraging with Ruairi Kinsella, Eoghan Frayne and Matthew Costello to the fore for the Royals. Meath's tallies 1-30 and 1-25 against Carlow and Offaly respectively indicate that there is potential to cause a Dublin defence that wasn't exactly watertight last time out problems. For all the optimism, it still pits a Division 1 side against a middling Division 2 outfit, with 16 points between the sides last year. Since 2013, the average winning margin hs stood at a touch over 13 points. Whatever about a shock, a competitive match would be a plus and the surroundings of Laois Hire O'Moore Park can only create a better atmosphere rather than a souless Croke Park. All-Ireland place up for grabs By the time the Dubs and Meath throw in at Portlaoise, we will know the identity of the 16th and final team to compete in this year's All-Ireland championship, with Louth v Kildare the first of the provincial semi-finals on Sunday. The Wee County won the corresponding fixture 12 months ago and are bidding for a third successive final appearance, something they last achieved in 1914. Louth manager Ger Brennan will be pleased that their Division 2 status was retained despite a lengthy injury list. What will have given more food for thought was the indifferent display against Laois last time out. Goals from Ryan Burns and Ciarán Byrne (above) saw them through, but it was a performance to be filed in the 'room for improvement' folder. The possibility of talisman Sam Mulroy returning to action - he has been named at full-forward but one can never be certain of the starting personnel - would be a huge shot in the arm for their chances. It's just three years since the Lilywhites dished out a 16-point trimming to Saturday's opponents, but even last year's defeat as a reference point for Kildare is tricky. Eight of the 20 who lined out in Croke Park last April have departed the panel and another six unlikely to start. Brian Flanagan saw a mixed bag of results early season, with expectations low heading into their quarter-final against Westmeath. Under the cosh in the opening half, they found a resilience that has not always been apparent in recent seasons to dig out a morale-boosting two-point victory. Kevin Feely and Callum Bolton are looking to build a strong partnership in the middle of the field, while Ben McCormack and Alex Beirne were central to the second-half turnaround against Westmeath. Tommy Gill and Niall Kelly impressed off the bench and Flanagan will have to plan without Harry O'Neill who picked up a nasty injury.
