Tag Archives: Gaelic football

JIMMY Sexton is the oldest surviving Kilmurry Ibrickane footballer. Almost 86, Jimmy made his adult debut for Mullagh in 1943 and while the his local club were not senior for the duration of his career, he has been part of several senior championship successes in his role as a selector. “When I was 11 years old I went on as a sub with the juniors. They were short a player,” he recounted in Quilty last Saturday. “We had a poor team. We won junior and intermediate with Mullagh in the 50s but we couldn’t produce a senior team. I never played senior here but I played senior with Clohanes believe it or not. We were beaten in the Cusack Cup final. Three of us from Mullagh played with Clohanes and two from Quilty played with Miltown. It was around 1954,” he recalled. Jimmy played minor and senior football for Clare before a knee injury finished him. His subsequent contribution to …

GAA President Liam O’Neill says he favours having just one player in goals for penalties in hurling, while he also defended the GAA’s deal with Sky. The media rights deal featured at the Clare GAA convention last Thursday, when Éire óg successfully proposed that when the current deal expires, games shown on Sky should also be available for viewing on non subscription channels. “I want penalties taken from 20 metres. I have a preference for one player in goal. When a penalty is given the expectation should be a goal, favouring the attacker,” the GAA President said with reference to the ongoing penalty issue in hurling. Midway through this years championships penalty takers were forced to strike from the penalty line,” he told The Clare Champion. “The hurling 20/20 committee, chaired by Liam Sheedy, will have a definite proposal on that. We had to act on what was happening. We couldn’t have a situation where people were endangered. It was a …

(Peter O’Connell) THE Clare senior football team to play Kerry in Sunday’s Munster semi-final in Cusack Park has been named. The only change to the starting 15 from last Saturday’s semi-final replay win over Waterford is the return of Podge Collins at the expense of Barry Hartnett. Collins will start at centre-forward with Enda Coughlan wearing the number 15 jersey. Shane Brennan will start alongside his brother Gary at midfield while Coolmeen’s Cathal O’Connor underwent a fitness test at training in Cusack Park on Friday night and it is expected that he will be part of the match day panel. Sunday’s semi-final throws in at 3.30pm. The Clare v Kerry junior football semi-final starts at 1.30pm at the same venue. The Clare senior team is as follows: Clare: Joe Hayes (Lissycasey); Dean Ryan (Éire Óg), Kevin Hartnett (Meelick), Martin McMahon (Kilmurry Ibrickane); Shane Hickey (Kilmurry Ibrickane), Gordon Kelly (Miltown), Ciaran Russell (Éire Óg); Gary Brennan (Clondegad – captain), Shane Brennan …

WHEN Gordon Kelly barrels out from underneath the stand in Cusack Park on Sunday afternoon, he will be minutes away from taking on Kerry in the championship arena for the third time in his career. A regular with Clare since 2006, Kelly faced Kerry in 2008 in Fitzgerald Stadium and in the All-Ireland qualifiers in 2012. Clare were well beaten in both games although Kelly, who played corner back in 2008, held the currently sidelined Colm Cooper to just 1-0 in Clare’s 1-14 to 0-5 defeat under the management of Frank Doherty. Kerry’s visit to Ennis on Sunday will be their first championship tie in Clare since their 2-10 to 0-9 defeat of Clare on May 23, 2004. Enda Coughlan started at full forward that day and is the only player from that game who will start this weekend. Although beaten by seven points in that fixture ten years ago, Clare at least were competitive and that’s their priority this …

  THE 2014 inter-county Gaelic football season kicks off this weekend and players will have their first official outing where gum shields are compulsory. It also marks the introduction of a black card for cynical behaviour fouls, while the number of substitutes allowed per game has increased from five to six. Players guilty of cynical behaviour fouls (black card) will be ordered off. The first three ordered off on a black card infringement may be replaced but after that, a replacement will not be allowed. In the new disciplinary system, a player sent off on a red card, as before, cannot be replaced. A black card offence means a player sent off may be replaced. If more than three players earn a black card in the course of the game, no further replacement will be allowed. A yellow card earns a player a caution, while two yellow cards will result in a sending off with no replacement allowed. A combination of …