1. Another Ulster title for Sean Cavanagh
It was a special day for Sean Cavanagh as Moy picked up the Ulster club IFC title against Down’s Rostrevor at the Athletic Grounds. Cavanagh kicked four points while his brother Colm also played a key midfield role in the victory.
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Not long after his inter-county retirement, the 2008 Footballer of the Year is enjoying an extended run with his club that has brought them to all the way to the All-Ireland semi-final.
What a day for @AnMhaigh 🔵⚪️ Ulster Champions never sounded so good #UTM pic.twitter.com/uGCAtGvtwj
— Philip Jordan (@PhilipJordan7) November 26, 2017
They’ll face An Ghaeltacht, who enjoyed a 22-point Munster football final success this afternoon.
The Kerry club boast veteran Marc Ó Sé as player/joint-manager, meaning a decade on from the great Kerry-Tyrone clashes, Ó Sé and Cavanagh will meet on the field once again.
2. All-Ireland champions dumped out
Dr Crokes were dethroned as Munster and All-Ireland champions by Nemo Rangers this afternoon.
It wasn’t a huge surprise given Nemo have players like Luke Connolly and Paul Kerrigan in their ranks, but the Kerry champions were still warm favourites heading into it.
Nemo are a club with serious pedigree and this victory will give them confidence as they bid to bring a record-setting eighth title back to Cork. Their last title came in 2003, while the lost the 2007 final to St Vincent’s.
Nemo face beaten 2017 finalists Slaughtneil in the All-Ireland semi-final on 17 February.
3. Discipline issues strike again for Moorefield
As expected, Moorefield and St Loman’s advanced to the provincial club final but it wasn’t quite that straightforward.
Once again Moorefield were hit by discipline issues as Cian O’Connor was red carded after 37 minutes. They had two men sent-off 21 minutes into the Kildare final, but remarkably battled to victory.
Moorefield take on former manager Luke Dempsey and St Loman’s in the decider, and they’ll need to cut out the red cards sooner rather than later.
4. Michael Lundy’s quick recovery
10 days after he had his appendix removed, Michael Lundy played a key role as Corofin landed their third Connacht crown in five years after extra-time.
Lundy dispatched a first-half goal during the victory and played 62 minutes until he was replaced by Barry O’Donovan.
The Galway kingpins have a two-week turnaround before their All-Ireland quarter-final against Fulham Irish, who they’ll be expected to account for with ease.
5. Slaughtneil complete Ulster double-treble
Slaughtneil proved over the past few months that last year’s dominance of Ulster across three codes was no flash in the pan.
They had enough in the tank to see off Cavan Gaels in the provincial football decider today, while the club’s hurlers retained their Ulster title with victory over Down champions Ballygalget in October.
They hail from a small townland in rural Derry, but have dominated Ulster football by winning three of the last four crowns on offer. Slaughtneil take on Nemo Rangers in what’ll be a seismic All-Ireland semi-final next February.
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