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The Irish Sun
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Major broadcasting All-Ireland final history to be made as Kerry vs Donegal to be shown in NEW language for first time
TELEVISION history will be made this weekend when Kerry and Donegal face-off in the All-Ireland football final. 2 Kerry will face Donegal in the All-Ireland final Credit: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile 2 The game will be shown in French for the first time on Sportall Credit: SPORTALL And for the first time ever, the game will be shown in FRENCH through TV station Sportall. The French station televised the semi-finals but Sunday will be the first time it will broadcast the final itself. This is not the only major TV detail associated with this weekend's clash. RTE, for instance, will be Read More on GAA That is due to its Women 's Euro 2025 commitments, with the final between The national Peter Canavan and Lee Keegan for pre and post-match analysis. Like the semi-final between Meath and Donegal, Damian Lawlor It'll be Darragh Maloney and Most read in GAA Football The programme will begin on RTE One from 2:15pm with it running until 6pm. Meanwhile, over in the For the BBC, Thomas Niblock will be chairing the discussion between Oisin McConville, Philly McMahon, Conor McManus, Mickey Harte, Owen Mulligan and Brendan Devenney. Niblock and Harte will certainly will be doing double-time as they'll also provide the commentary. Additionally, they've recruited refereeing consultant a la That packed broadcast will get under way from 3pm and is due to wrap up at 5.30pm. It adds yet another layer to what will be a mouthwatering battle between two of gaelic football 's giants. For For It made for a scarring occasion for Ryan McHugh, whose dad won Sam in 1992 and older brother Martin did so in 2012. He had been one of the heroes of the 2014 semi-final victory against Dublin, scoring 2-2 from wing forward. But 11 years on from the 2-9 to 0-12 loss to the Kingdom in the finale, and McHugh is so scarred by the defeat that 'NO POINT LYING' He said: 'I watch every game back. With 2014, I never took it upon myself to sit down and watch it back. "I don't think I played well that day. I just could never bring myself to get it. Maybe it was the inexperience of the whole thing.' McHugh had been instrumental in inflicting the only Championship loss experienced by But goals from Paul Geaney and Kieran Donaghy prevented him from adding another Celtic Cross to the family haul. He added: 'It was a tough one — there's no point in lying. 'I was fortunate to get back in with my club Kilcar a week later. But it still haunts you. 'You go into the game on such a high and after such a huge performance against Dublin. 'We did everything so right against Dublin and then not to click against Kerry — obviously Kerry had a good performance — was such a disappointment for us. 'You move on, but you don't get over defeats like that. Even if we won this one, it wouldn't get over 2014. We were in a position to win the All-Ireland final and we didn't do it.'
Sydney Morning Herald
5 days ago
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Stagger then strike: What the Wallabies need to do to keep the series alive
Wallabies hooker Matt Faessler had a difficult day at the lineout, missing two throws in the first half and shortly into the second half, overthrowing to the back of the lineout to Champion de Crespigny. The hooker is often unfairly maligned in the lineout, in the same way a prop is blamed for a failing scrum when they are reliant on their second-rowers' push. Faessler equally needs his lifters to work in tandem, but in this case, Fraser McReight's efforts in getting Champion de Crespigny up were irrelevant as the ball sailed over their heads. The Wallabies were starved of attacking ball and desperately needed to make the most of the scraps they received. This moment led to a try from Lions' hooker Dan Sheehan, essentially killing off the game, despite Australia's fightback later. Faessler paid the price for his poor performance and has been dropped completely from the match day squad for Melbourne, with the Waratahs hooker Dave Porecki starting and Billy Pollard coming off the bench, surely with steadier throws. Beware the ball-playing prop Imitation is the greatest form of flattery: just ask Joe Schmidt and Andy Farrell. The first clip below is from seven years ago in the Six Nations with Schmidt in charge of Ireland against England. Schmidt often used Irish tighthead prop Tadhg Furlong as a decoy playmaker, confusing the defence, who not unreasonably thought he would charge at them. Furlong was a talented gaelic footballer in his youth and possesses elite passing skills. In this clip, he pops up a beautiful pass to Bundee Aki to charge through the England defence to set up a try. In Brisbane, Furlong is back to his old tricks with Schmidt getting a sense of deja vu in the opposite coaching box. The prop calls for the ball and his opposite number Allan Alaalatoa, not unreasonably braces for contact. Instead, Furlong pulls the ball back to Finn Russell, who exploits space in the surprised Wallabies defence. Sione Tuipulotu scored a Lions try shortly after. Lack of grunt The Wallabies were brutally outmuscled by a heavier pack in Brisbane and the lack of powerful ball runners such as the injured Langi Gleeson and Rob Valetini proved costly. Thankfully both men are back for Melbourne. The stats are brutal: the Lions averaged 2.53 metres per post-contact carry against the Wallabies 1.87 metres in the game. The following example of nine phases highlights the helplessness of the Wallabies against the well-organised Lions defence, which has high line speed. The Wallabies were unable to bend back the Lions defensive line. The First Nations and Pasifika XV showed on Tuesday the need for aggressive and strong forwards to take the fight directly to the Lions. Scrum parity Although the Wallabies struggled with their lineout, their scrum was a highlight. Traditionally, the Lions have looked at the Australian scrum as an easy way to build domination in the game. Wallabies tighthead Alaalatoa is playing some of the best rugby of his career and here scrums squarely forcing the giant Irish loosehead Andrew Porter to angle in illegally. Australia have got the world's best scrummaging expert in Mike Cron on their coaching staff and the New Zealander will have been pleased with the work at the set piece which will only improve with second-rower Will Skelton's power in Melbourne. The box kick can work The box kick is never easy on the eye and in Brisbane, Jake Gordon's efforts didn't work for the majority of the game. Gordon missed the Test against Fiji with a hamstring injury and was rusty with most of his kicks deprived of the necessary hang time to give his wingers a chance at a fair contest against the brilliant aerial skills of Lions' fullback Hugo Keenan. On the 28th minute, Gordon nailed it perfectly, with Max Jorgensen showing not only great skill, but strength to rip the ball from Keenan's grasp and sprint through for a try. The day of the jackal Charlie Gamble has become the scourge of the Lions breakdown, causing havoc for the Waratahs and the First Nations and Pasifika XV. Gamble was helped by an aggressive pack in both games who smashed opponents to give him a free shot at the ball. McReight needs similar help, but is still brilliant at scanning for opportunities, even when outmatched and will look for further opportunities to disrupt his opposite number in Melbourne. The sniping spark of McDermott Tate McDermott is a victim of his own success coming off the bench and remains there for Melbourne. He is the perfect spark plug for the Wallabies when the Lions are tiring. The halfback walks up to the ruck laconically, giving the impression he will move into the 7th phase with his forwards. Irish tighthead Andrew Porter is expecting another carry, instead McDermott takes on two defenders and wiggles over for a late consolation try. McDermott's ability to manipulate space is world-class and will continue to cause the Lions headaches in Melbourne, if utilised correctly.
The Age
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Age
Stagger then strike: What the Wallabies need to do to keep the series alive
Wallabies hooker Matt Faessler had a difficult day at the lineout, missing two throws in the first half and shortly into the second half, overthrowing to the back of the lineout to Champion de Crespigny. The hooker is often unfairly maligned in the lineout, in the same way a prop is blamed for a failing scrum when they are reliant on their second-rowers' push. Faessler equally needs his lifters to work in tandem, but in this case, Fraser McReight's efforts in getting Champion de Crespigny up were irrelevant as the ball sailed over their heads. The Wallabies were starved of attacking ball and desperately needed to make the most of the scraps they received. This moment led to a try from Lions' hooker Dan Sheehan, essentially killing off the game, despite Australia's fightback later. Faessler paid the price for his poor performance and has been dropped completely from the match day squad for Melbourne, with the Waratahs hooker Dave Porecki starting and Billy Pollard coming off the bench, surely with steadier throws. Beware the ball-playing prop Imitation is the greatest form of flattery: just ask Joe Schmidt and Andy Farrell. The first clip below is from seven years ago in the Six Nations with Schmidt in charge of Ireland against England. Schmidt often used Irish tighthead prop Tadhg Furlong as a decoy playmaker, confusing the defence, who not unreasonably thought he would charge at them. Furlong was a talented gaelic footballer in his youth and possesses elite passing skills. In this clip, he pops up a beautiful pass to Bundee Aki to charge through the England defence to set up a try. In Brisbane, Furlong is back to his old tricks with Schmidt getting a sense of deja vu in the opposite coaching box. The prop calls for the ball and his opposite number Allan Alaalatoa, not unreasonably braces for contact. Instead, Furlong pulls the ball back to Finn Russell, who exploits space in the surprised Wallabies defence. Sione Tuipulotu scored a Lions try shortly after. Lack of grunt The Wallabies were brutally outmuscled by a heavier pack in Brisbane and the lack of powerful ball runners such as the injured Langi Gleeson and Rob Valetini proved costly. Thankfully both men are back for Melbourne. The stats are brutal: the Lions averaged 2.53 metres per post-contact carry against the Wallabies 1.87 metres in the game. The following example of nine phases highlights the helplessness of the Wallabies against the well-organised Lions defence, which has high line speed. The Wallabies were unable to bend back the Lions defensive line. The First Nations and Pasifika XV showed on Tuesday the need for aggressive and strong forwards to take the fight directly to the Lions. Scrum parity Although the Wallabies struggled with their lineout, their scrum was a highlight. Traditionally, the Lions have looked at the Australian scrum as an easy way to build domination in the game. Wallabies tighthead Alaalatoa is playing some of the best rugby of his career and here scrums squarely forcing the giant Irish loosehead Andrew Porter to angle in illegally. Australia have got the world's best scrummaging expert in Mike Cron on their coaching staff and the New Zealander will have been pleased with the work at the set piece which will only improve with second-rower Will Skelton's power in Melbourne. The box kick can work The box kick is never easy on the eye and in Brisbane, Jake Gordon's efforts didn't work for the majority of the game. Gordon missed the Test against Fiji with a hamstring injury and was rusty with most of his kicks deprived of the necessary hang time to give his wingers a chance at a fair contest against the brilliant aerial skills of Lions' fullback Hugo Keenan. On the 28th minute, Gordon nailed it perfectly, with Max Jorgensen showing not only great skill, but strength to rip the ball from Keenan's grasp and sprint through for a try. The day of the jackal Charlie Gamble has become the scourge of the Lions breakdown, causing havoc for the Waratahs and the First Nations and Pasifika XV. Gamble was helped by an aggressive pack in both games who smashed opponents to give him a free shot at the ball. McReight needs similar help, but is still brilliant at scanning for opportunities, even when outmatched and will look for further opportunities to disrupt his opposite number in Melbourne. The sniping spark of McDermott Tate McDermott is a victim of his own success coming off the bench and remains there for Melbourne. He is the perfect spark plug for the Wallabies when the Lions are tiring. The halfback walks up to the ruck laconically, giving the impression he will move into the 7th phase with his forwards. Irish tighthead Andrew Porter is expecting another carry, instead McDermott takes on two defenders and wiggles over for a late consolation try. McDermott's ability to manipulate space is world-class and will continue to cause the Lions headaches in Melbourne, if utilised correctly.
Irish Examiner
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Tyrone's thirty-somethings bolstered by young guns in pursuit of All-Ireland glory
We keep going because we love the game – Peter Harte's philosophy on the sporting longevity of Tyrone's thirty-somethings. Along with Mattie Donnelly and Niall Morgan, Harte is still going strong 15 years after his inter-county debut and chasing a second All-Ireland title. And one of the reasons for his passion for gaelic football comes calling again this weekend when he throws himself into another high stakes championship battle with old adversaries Kerry. 'Myself and Niall and Mattie are very similar, we love football,' he said. 'When you play this long, you put an awful lot of your life into it, and you do grow an appreciation of trying to make the most out of it, if you can. 'Very soon you'll not be playing, you'll be coming down with your family to watch matches, so you want to make the most of it when you are playing, and please God, we can do that.' Young blood breaking through the Red Hand ranks has added a freshness to an evolving squad that has been moulded by manager Malachy O'Rourke into a force with genuine ambitions to bring Sam back to the county for a fifth time. 'Thankfully we have some great young lads, and we're starting to see just how good they are,' said Harte (34). 'We've seen them in club football a lot, and we're just hoping that that can continue, because as we've seen over the years, you need a big impact in the last few minutes in Croke Park to win these games.' Tyrone suffered an alarming slump following their All-Ireland triumph in 2021, failing to make it past the quarter-final stage, and last year suffered a shock exit at home to Roscommon. 'We have been the ones that were watching over the last few years, sitting at home and not getting to Croke Park on the bigger days. 'You probably appreciate it more in the latter part of your career, but it's great to be back, but it's about making the most of it now. 'Beating Dublin and then going out in the semi-final would still be a disappointment, that's the harsh reality of the sport you play, so we just want to keep building, keep the heads down and train hard for the next day against a serious operator.' Harte believes any one of this weekend's semi-finalists can have realistic aspirations of going all the way, such is the unpredictability of the new-look game. 'There's definitely an openness feeling towards it all now. 'When the Dubs were at their peak, unless they didn't play to their full potential, you knew that they had the team that was very hard to rein in. 'But now everybody left in it has serious ambitions to win it. 'We just want to make sure that we're there with them, that we put our best foot forward in an All-Ireland semi-final again.' Kerry go into Saturday's semi-final as favourites to advance to the decider, thanks to their stunning victory over reigning champions Armagh, while Tyrone needed a late flourish to get the better of an off-colour Dublin side. 'We have plenty of things to learn and work on, but there was great grit and determination in that last ten minutes to wrestle the game back in our favour, and then when we got that bit of momentum, we had the quality with boys coming off the bench to kick us over the line,' Harte said. 'It probably wasn't the cleanest game of football by any stretch. In Croke Park you're basically playing on a new surface, you play with new footballs, and when it's greasy like that, mistakes just seem to happen more readily. 'The new rules mean that every minute you're attacking and defending, and if you don't win enough of those wee breaks, you probably lose the game over not doing an awful lot wrong.'
The Irish Sun
04-07-2025
- Politics
- The Irish Sun
I brought GAA to Palestine after visiting the West Bank – one member has lost more than 60 people in his family in Gaza
THE first thing Stephen Redmond noticed when he arrived into the West Bank was the kindness of a people living through horror. In January 2024, the London-Irishman made the trip to the occupied territory with the goal of doing something – anything – to ease the suffering shown all around the world on 3 Stephen Redmond, top left, brought GAA to Palestine in January 2024 Credit: GAA Palestine 3 He is hoping to bring 33 kids and 17 coaches to Ireland later this month Credit: GAA Palestine He brought with him the idea of threads that bond Redmond explained to SunSport: 'I know my own 'I know what the 'It was still a form of resistance, you know? We weren't going to be told we can't play our own sport. 'We can help them, so they're not walking alone. They know they have a nation that has been through what they've been through in many ways, and we can support them with the lessons we've learned.' While born in family spent time in Ireland which he considers his spiritual home. No stranger to gaelic football , he played for a spell in He learned Irish in night classes in Camden, which proved to be an unlikely advantage when he came to learn Arabic. The 56-year-old said: 'That basic understanding of Irish helped me understand the language of the Palestinians, the Levantine Arabic. 'I've actually spoken to Arabic people who were born in the Middle East and come to Ireland. Palestine GAA players watch camogie match on laptop "It would be easier for them to learn Irish than English or any other language, because our language is based fairly similar with the pronouns, etc." It is commonalities such as the above that motivated Redmond's decision to journey to the West Bank. A student of Irish and Palestinian history, the dad-of-two links the two nations together both from a cultural and historical perspective. There are the shared experiences such as both countries being subject to occupation, as well as the far more profound. In 1922, with the island of Ireland partitioned into War of Independence, the Black & Tans were of no further use south of the border. Redmond added: 'Any nation that has suffered settler occupation, dehumanization, subjugation, apartheid, religious persecution, language genocide, food genocide, penal laws, colonization - any nation that has any of those has been affected by any of those will have a natural empathy for another nation. 'Ireland has experienced all of those things and more. And Palestine has experienced much of that too. 'Our link to Palestine is so unique. It is so unique.' ROAD TO HEBRON By the time Redmond made his trip, Gaza had been on the receiving end of relentless bombardment by That attack instigated the latest chapter in a conflict that has its origins in the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which outlined the UK's commitment to a Jewish state in Palestine. Per some reports, as many as 100,000 Gazans have been killed since October 7. All the while, illegal settlements continue to propagate in the West Bank. Redmond got an up close and personal look at the extent to which Israel maintains control over who gets in and out of the besieged territory when he made his trip. He outlined: 'They start speaking to you in Hebrew. If you can't speak Hebrew, you're asked to join a separate line, so they start breaking you down initially and putting us into a different line. 'They said why are you going and I had no answer. No matter what you think up, it's not going to work . They'll ask you have you got any business connections there? No. Any family there? No. 'They took away my bag, and what I thought was, in case I do get stopped, I need to have a few props here. 'I brought a number of Irish flags because I wanted to put up Irish flags to show that the Irish are now here, that we're with the Palestinians. 'I wrapped it in an Israeli flag, and I put a skull cap in it as well, and that's what got me through. 'There was a rally in thanks to Court about genocide. "I brought a number of Irish flags there. The Palestinians took the flag off me. They put it right at the front with a girl to show the flag off in front of all the other flags. "Poor girl had it around the wrong way but it didn't matter." 'One member has lost in excess of 60 members of his family in Gaza, so this is normal life.' Redmond found a place to stay in Hebron before going on to travel to Ramallah while his driver convinced him to abandon a plan to make his way to Gaza itself. In the months that followed, work was done to build the foundations of gaelic games in the West Bank. The first club was founded in Ramallah and was eventually named in honour of Moataz Sarsour, a volunteer who was killed by the IDF in August 2024. There is also the story of Maher Haroun, the PRO of Moataz Sarsour who has been in prison for over 200 days and who Redmond claims has lost 20kg in weight and is suffering from untreated scabies. Then there is the story of one of the club's coaches, the identity of whom was not provided for his own security . Redmond said: 'They bulldozed his house down. 'He had tried to get close to it a number of times, but they were sniping at them, so he couldn't get to his own apartment after being kicked out of his original house. 'He wanted to get back to collect stuff out of it, so he eventually got in a few days later, and after this sniping incident. 'The TV was all broken up by the soldiers , everything was broken. 'Next thing, he had two flashbang grenades thrown in behind him. They went in, smashed his head against the wall, which nearly knocked him out. 'They beat him up and then they threw him over the first floor [balcony], left him dead below. 'He is alive though, and God willing, he's going to be all right. 'One member has lost in excess of 60 members of his family in Gaza, so this is normal life.' 3 A young player in a Palestine GAA jersey Credit: GAA Palestine Yet, in spite of it all, humanity and community has prevailed, almost as if an act of defiance in and of itself. Redmond gushed: 'What a lovely people. 'I remember going in, they were offering me all the services for free. The doctor, the dentist, the sports therapist. 'I remember speaking to a lady in Gaza. 'My aunt fell over. We thought she was going to die. 'She's in a nursing home, and I sent out a message to a few people, just to say some prayers for my aunt. 'You know what they did in Gaza? They spoke of her, to say prayers for her, in the open air, during the prayers of the Friday. 'She had the whole community praying for an Irish nun in a nursing home in Glasgow , and they've been bombed the f*****g s**t out of over there. 'That young fellow that was thrown out of the first floor? He phoned me yesterday to see how I am.' "We believed we needed to bring them because we felt they might not even be around next year." Since the birth of Moataz Sarsour GAA, four other clubs have been established, in Hebron, Tulkaram, South Bethlehem, and Jenin. Meanwhile, there are plans to introduce gaelic games to 10,000 kids across up to 40 schools in Al Bireh. The provision of resources has been tricky, but two hurley producers have been set up in the West Bank. Indeed, despite the plan being to introduce Meanwhile, a group of young girls picked up the sticks to play camogie in January 2025 in an indoor complex provided by a Chinese entity. Infrastructure is naturally modest, with the training ground in Tulkaram amounting to a lane out the back of a house. They have been donated land in that municipality, although are hesitant to build on it lest it be a target for air strikes , such is the danger with which the people live every day. Redmond added: "When I first arrived in the camps, one lad said to me, 'be careful with the soldiers, it's not like where you come from.' "It was actually very chilling. He said, 'they will kill you before they see your blue eyes.'" VISA ISSUES Plans are in place for GAA Palestine to visit Ireland later this month. Thirty-three A Yet obstacles remain , with Redmond revealing visas have not yet been provided for the trip by the Irish embassy in Tel Aviv. He said: "We were given roughly 10 weeks in which to submit all our documents to the Irish Embassy. "They added in more requirements which were going to be difficult like birth certificates in English. "I speak to the Irish embassy in Tel Aviv pretty much every day. "Then Iran started bombing Israel so they closed the embassy down. They've opened up. Then I got an apology from the embassy that the 14 documents I sent them, they had not saved properly. "We have spent in excess of $38,000 on flights and hotels before we get them into Ireland. "We had to show proof of purchase to apply for the visas, so had no option but to purchase them, and there is insurance protection. "This issue with the visas needs to be resolved. I was told that they are doing the best but they still can't give a final answer as they're waiting for a response from "I'm asking all political representatives to please support this. This is a major national tour. This will be in the history books . "We believed we needed to bring them because we felt they might not even be around next year."
