Sports

After putting Clare senior football titles back to back for the first time in 116 years, St Joseph’s Miltown begin their quest for successive Munster final appearances this Sunday. David O’Brien’s charges welcome newly crowned Waterford champions Rathgormack to Hennessey Park in Miltown for a provincial quarter-final, with the Deise outfit having captured their first county title in 20 years with victory over Ballinacourty three weeks ago. Miltown captured their 15th title with victory over Kilmurry Ibrickane in a dramatic replay and O’Brien admits the effort involved on both days took its toll. “It has been good and there has been a great buzz around the place. We more or less took the week off after it because there were a lot of tired bodies and probably more so tired minds after what was effectively three weeks of a county final as it turned out. Lads were just wrecked and there was just that huge relief at the final whistle …

St Breckan’s will look to turn a good year for their club into a better one when they venture into Limerick to take on intermediate champions Galtee Gaels this Saturday in the Gaelic Grounds. While St Breckan’s were ran mightily close by Kildysart in the Clare decider, they weren’t made to sweat nearly as much as their Limerick counterparts who endured a replay as well as a very tough game second time round before eventually seeing off Gerald Griffins by 1-11 to 0-12. While manager Donie Garrihy is pleased with his squad’s response since their county final victory, he knows his side will need to be at their best to see off a battle-hardened Galtee Gaels. “Unless we bring our A game to the Gaelic Grounds, we will be coming home beaten. They’re a strong side. They love their football; they were senior recently like us. They have stated on their GAA club Facebook page that they’re taking this tournament …

To say Broadford enjoyed their intermediate championship success would be an understatement. The club had been knocking on the door in recent years and the players themselves always felt they were of the standard. They now have a chance to take on the Cork champions for a place in the Munster intermediate final and prove their worth once more. Feakle came desperately close to bringing the championship home to Clare last year and Broadford will believe they can go one better. Manager Tom Howard says his side are really looking forward to a tough challenge. “It’s a great thing to look forward to for sure. We had a great week’s celebration [after the county final] but after that fellas put their head down and trained very hard. We’re excited to compare ourselves to the best from Cork, and if we’re successful then you’re into a Munster final. “We went back training the Saturday after the county final, and while there …

Scariff-Ogonnelloe have had leaders in every line of the field during their run to Saturday’s Munster club final, but there is no doubt that their centre-back Ciara Doyle has been one of the main driving forces. She is still one of the younger members of the squad, but her performances for club and county leave little doubt that age is just a number as she carries herself with the confidence and composure of a seasoned veteran. Being a Doyle from that neck of the woods, she admits a future in camogie was always written in the stars. “I was no sooner born than Dad had a hurley stuck in my hand so it was always going to be camogie for me. I remember when I was younger he trained the boys teams and had me going out playing with them too and I loved it. It developed further then with the schools teams and getting called onto county panels and …

If Scariff-Ogonnelloe are to mark the latest high point in a whirlwind season by winning the Munster senior title this weekend, then their captain will be central to that challenge. After leading her side to their maiden top flight championship title already in 2019, county star Mairead Scanlan is now firmly focused on the challenge of Tipperary’s Drom-Inch when they clash in Cappamore on Saturday. Much has been rightly made of the progress the club has made since gaining promotion to the top tier. Memories of their semi-final defeats in 2017 and 2018 were wiped clear when the McMahon Cup was finally annexed this year, and another composed display against Newcastlewest in the Munster semi-final saw them through to the provincial decider. The captain admits while it has not always been plain sailing for the club, they are eager to take the next historic step. “It has been a great journey so far this year and it all started back …

After all the turbulence and all the uncertainty and controversy surrounding the appointment of a new Clare senior hurling manager, the white smoke eventually made its way into the Clareabbey sky last week as Brian Lohan was officially ratified by club delegates. It brought an end to a needlessly protracted saga that saw player statements, managerial withdrawals and a general air of chaos that simmered close to boiling point on more than one occasion. There is no point going back over old ground but the process that unfolded from the time of Clare’s championship exit until Lohan’s name was rubber stamped was simply not good enough. The matter should have been put to bed long before the last day in October and there has been widespread and justified criticism about how the board went about their business in that time. Donal Moloney referenced the uncertainty in the process as being a key factor in his decision to withdraw, while Louis …

On this week’s podcast: We pay tribute to the late Kieran Harvey after his untimely passing, we look back on Sixmilebridge’s Munster club loss to Ballygunner and reflect on the happenings of the last week as Brian Lohan takes over as Clare hurling manager. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/708254521?secret_token=s-J5AL9″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

Clare Minor A Football Final: Ennistymon 3-6 Corofin 0-5 It was retribution and local bragging rights that Ennistymon went in search of in Doonbeg, and they left with both after a strong second-half performance saw them crowned champions. The last two years have seen the North Clare magpies pipped at the post in the decider, but leaders emerged all over the field to ensure the Paddy Hennessey cup would be making its way to the famed market town on Saturday evening. Leaders were required on an afternoon where weather conditions were far from ideal, with a strong swirling wind blowing away from the scoreboard end being accompanied by heavy misty rain. It meant handling conditions were difficult while kicking was akin to a lottery. Both sides were stacked full of county minor stars in both codes, but the conditions combined with the nerves which accompany any major final were evident early on as the opening quarter of the contest passed …