London GAA undergoes a facelift
THE REVAMPED HOME of London GAA in Ruislip will play host to its first inter-county game on Sunday.
London’s Connacht SFC quarter-final with Leitrim will mark the opening of their new 1,950-seater stand which is the centrepiece of a €5m redevelopment.
The Exiles had a nomadic existance over the spring as they trained all over the city while works on the grounds took place. Ciaran Deely’s charges played all of their Division 4 games on the road this year, winning just once, but they’ll be rewarded by playing every league game at home in 2018.
The new facilities have been named McGovern Park, after businessmen Tony McGovern who helped fund the arena. It’ll be quite the day for McGovern, who originally hails from Leitrim.
London defeated Leitrim to reach the Connacht final in 2013 with Phillip Butler, Cathal Og Greene and Mark Gottsche the only survivors from that glorious summer.
Seamus O’Carroll returns to Limerick ranks
After posting 1-10 for Castleknock in their recent Dublin SFC win over St Oliver Plunkett’s Eoghan Ruadh, it was no surprise to see O’Carroll rejoin the Limerick squad.
O’Carroll stole the limelight from Dublin star Ciaran Kilkenny as the 2016 finalists dumped the Brogans and Paul Galvin out of the championship in the capital.
The Shannonsiders are underdogs against Clare but the return of O’Carroll will bolster Billy Lee’s panel. Limerick are seeking their first victory in the province since a 2012 win over Waterford.
An extremely accurate free-taker, O’Carroll last featured for the Limerick seniors in the 2013 defeat to Longford in the All-Ireland qualifiers, although he did line out for the county’s junior last in 2016.
85 not-out for Sean Cavanagh
Tyrone icon Sean Cavanagh will make his 85th championship appearance for the Red Hand this weekend. The three-time All-Ireland winner has been a mainstay in the Tyrone teams since Mickey Harte took charge in 2013.
This is the beginning of the end for Cavanagh, who has already declared that he’ll hang up his boots at the end of this campaign. In his six championship games against Derry, Cavanagh has lost one, drawn one and won four.
He’ll be expecting to add another one to the wins column against a team Tyrone defeat five times in 2016.
Emlyn Mulligan suffers the cruciate curse again
Leitrim make the trip to London this weekend without the services of one of the most talented forwards in the country. Last week, Emlyn Mulligan became the second inter-county player to tear his cruciate knee ligaments for a third time.
Mulligan followed in the footsteps of Cork footballer Colm O’Neill to suffer the misfortune on three seperate occasions. The talented Melvin Gaels forward took a year out from county football in 2015, but otherwise has been a mainstay in the Leitrim team since making his debut in 2006.
Mulligan played underage soccer at Sligo Rovers with Seamus Coleman, who is also recovering from a serious leg injury after breaking his leg against Wales in March.
The pair remain close friends and Mulligan has attended Everton games at Goodison Park in the past.
Flashback – Waterford’s last football championship win over Cork
Waterford host Cork in the Munster SFC quarter-final tomorrow, and it’s been a long time since the Deise last achieved a win over the Rebels in this competition.
In 1960, Waterford sent Cork packing in the Munster semi-final with a 1-9 to 0-11 victory in Lismore. The home side benefited from a rather fortuitous goal, when the Cork goalkeeper collected a high delivery into the area but was penalised for throwing the ball to safety.
The curtain-raiser that day was a minor game between the same teams which ended in a 2-4 to 1-7 draw. Waterford donned the jerseys of reigning minor county champions Abbeyside as they only had the one set of county jerseys.
The score of that 1959 minor county final? Abbeyside 0-1 Tramore 0-0. It’s a good thing Twitter wasn’t around back then!
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