The result in Corrigan Park went largely the way people felt, with Armagh eleven points up and the final quarter ambling to a close as the Antrim challenge faded.
In our piece on Sunday, we touched on how Gaelic football is a numbers game. We didn’t mention how many more training sessions and weeks that a county like Armagh are together, compared to an Antrim when you go deep, summer after summer. It all adds up.
Players making their debut here such as corner-back Tomas McCormack who scored 1-1, or the rangy midfielder Callum O’Neill with his 0-4 from play, are exposed to a high level of football constantly.
Therefore, even though Armagh were incredibly depleted on Saturday, their performance didn’t suffer greatly.
Armagh's Tomas McCormack celebrates with family and friends. Bryan Keane / INPHO
Bryan Keane / INPHO / INPHO
*****
2. Happy Campers
A fresh idea. Hear me out. With the pre-season competitions now obsolete, I will push a motion through my club to hold a Portuguese knockout championship among the dozen or so counties that spent a week in the Algarve preparing for the championship.
Advertisement
Kerry, Tyrone, Cork, Dublin and Fermanagh were among the football counties that have been out in either Browns of Vilamoura or The Campus at Quinta do Lago, getting themselves ready for the summer ahead.
It certainly did Tyrone no harm. Halfway through their dismantling of Cavan on Sunday, RTÉ co-commentator Eamonn Fitzmaurice mentioned how Tyrone had the look of a team coming out of a camp, ‘everything slicker, everything smoother.’
Tyrone were always going to look different come championship anyway, but they are a side that are relishing being way down the betting odds and one that cannot attract even 7,000 supporters for a home game.
Sure they’d get more in the Estádio Algrave.
Cavan’s Sean McEvoy and Kieran McGeary of Tyrone. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
*****
3. Captain Con
God be with the days when the county club champions dictated who would captain the county team. It’s a tradition that persists to this day in Kerry and Kilkenny and while it has caused hassles, with non-playing captains having to climb the steps of the Hogan Stand to lift Sam Maguire and Liam MacCarthy without breaking prior sweat, there is something pure about the notion.
Dessie Farrell took his sweet time in naming Con O’Callaghan as the new Dublin captain. Part of that is clearly his extended season in winning the All-Ireland club title with Cuala, but from a footballing perspective it makes perfect sense.
He has experience and yet he’s still in his prime, as his 1-7 against Wicklow displayed on a day when his team mates appeared to struggle for motivation.
Dublin’s Con O’Callaghan with fans after the game. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
*****
4. Kildare cope with severe test
Saturday in Newbridge was a shift away from the routine in terms of Leinster quarter-finals for the home team. Kildare’s first senior championship day out in their refurbished St Conleth’s Park home, added a layer of significance to the fixture. The scenario where they were coming off a Division 3 league final loss demanded a response. The fact that they must qualify for the Leinster final this year to be part of the Sam Maguire conversation, raised the stakes accordingly.
Added to that was the awkward proposition that Westmeath posed when they landed in town. Kildare trailed by a point at the break, grateful to Alex Beirne’s goal for keeping them in touch. They were three down after 45 minutes and needed David Hyland’s goal five minutes later to afford them some breathing space. Westmeath pushed them hard, yet Kildare survived.
‘There appeared to be a refusal from the lads to accept defeat tonight.’ remarked Kildare boss Brian Flanagan after.
That streak of stubborness can be a useful tool in a championship environment.
Kildare's James McGrath celebrates with Callum Bolton after the game. Leah Scholes / INPHO
Leah Scholes / INPHO / INPHO
*****
5. Meath the comeback kings
When football’s new set of rules were pressed into action at the commencement of the league, there was an accepted consensus that weather conditions needed to be factored into assessments. The sense was that would be less of a dominating factor come championship, and yet in Navan yesterday, Meath produced an extraordinary 17-point turnaround.
They lost the first half 0-15 to 0-5, but won the second period 1-20 to 0-6. There was more to Meath’s comeback than harnessing the strong wind, manager Robbie Brennan hailed the ‘bit of spirit’ they displayed after the break, but it certainly aided them, as evidenced by their hefty two-pointer total of seven that they amassed in that second period.
Related Reads
Portlaoise and Tullamore confirmed as venues for Leinster football semi-finals
New rules but familiar result as Tyrone put Cavan to the sword in Omagh
It generates some momentum for Meath after last week’s win over Carlow and helps restore some positivity after the jarring departure of coaches Martin Corey and Joe McMahon. Dublin await in Portlaoise on Sunday week.
Donal Keogan and Bryan Menton of Meath celebrate at the end of the game. Andrew Paton / INPHO
Andrew Paton / INPHO / INPHO
*****
6. Louth’s impressive consistency
Louth have had their challenges this season. Injuries have hit them hard, a contributory factor to the form that saw them operating at the wrong end of the Division 2 table as they finished up sixth, surviving on the head to head record with Down.
They moved into the Leinster championship with an opening assignment against Laois yesterday that looked testing. Louth trailed narrowly at the break but timed their charge in the second half as Ryan Burns and Ciaran Byrne pounced for crucial goals.
A five-point win propels them towards a semi-final against Kildare. It’s a rematch of a contest that Louth won when the pair collided last year. Success would book a place in the Leinster final for a third year on the bounce. Considering Louth featured in two Leinster senior finals between 1958 and 2022, their recent consistency is hugely impressive.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
6 talking points after the weekend's Leinster and Ulster senior football action
1. Armagh depth chart
The result in Corrigan Park went largely the way people felt, with Armagh eleven points up and the final quarter ambling to a close as the Antrim challenge faded.
In our piece on Sunday, we touched on how Gaelic football is a numbers game. We didn’t mention how many more training sessions and weeks that a county like Armagh are together, compared to an Antrim when you go deep, summer after summer. It all adds up.
Players making their debut here such as corner-back Tomas McCormack who scored 1-1, or the rangy midfielder Callum O’Neill with his 0-4 from play, are exposed to a high level of football constantly.
Therefore, even though Armagh were incredibly depleted on Saturday, their performance didn’t suffer greatly.
*****
2. Happy Campers
A fresh idea. Hear me out. With the pre-season competitions now obsolete, I will push a motion through my club to hold a Portuguese knockout championship among the dozen or so counties that spent a week in the Algarve preparing for the championship.
Kerry, Tyrone, Cork, Dublin and Fermanagh were among the football counties that have been out in either Browns of Vilamoura or The Campus at Quinta do Lago, getting themselves ready for the summer ahead.
It certainly did Tyrone no harm. Halfway through their dismantling of Cavan on Sunday, RTÉ co-commentator Eamonn Fitzmaurice mentioned how Tyrone had the look of a team coming out of a camp, ‘everything slicker, everything smoother.’
Tyrone were always going to look different come championship anyway, but they are a side that are relishing being way down the betting odds and one that cannot attract even 7,000 supporters for a home game.
Sure they’d get more in the Estádio Algrave.
*****
3. Captain Con
God be with the days when the county club champions dictated who would captain the county team. It’s a tradition that persists to this day in Kerry and Kilkenny and while it has caused hassles, with non-playing captains having to climb the steps of the Hogan Stand to lift Sam Maguire and Liam MacCarthy without breaking prior sweat, there is something pure about the notion.
Dessie Farrell took his sweet time in naming Con O’Callaghan as the new Dublin captain. Part of that is clearly his extended season in winning the All-Ireland club title with Cuala, but from a footballing perspective it makes perfect sense.
He has experience and yet he’s still in his prime, as his 1-7 against Wicklow displayed on a day when his team mates appeared to struggle for motivation.
*****
4. Kildare cope with severe test
Saturday in Newbridge was a shift away from the routine in terms of Leinster quarter-finals for the home team. Kildare’s first senior championship day out in their refurbished St Conleth’s Park home, added a layer of significance to the fixture. The scenario where they were coming off a Division 3 league final loss demanded a response. The fact that they must qualify for the Leinster final this year to be part of the Sam Maguire conversation, raised the stakes accordingly.
Added to that was the awkward proposition that Westmeath posed when they landed in town. Kildare trailed by a point at the break, grateful to Alex Beirne’s goal for keeping them in touch. They were three down after 45 minutes and needed David Hyland’s goal five minutes later to afford them some breathing space. Westmeath pushed them hard, yet Kildare survived.
‘There appeared to be a refusal from the lads to accept defeat tonight.’ remarked Kildare boss Brian Flanagan after.
That streak of stubborness can be a useful tool in a championship environment.
*****
5. Meath the comeback kings
When football’s new set of rules were pressed into action at the commencement of the league, there was an accepted consensus that weather conditions needed to be factored into assessments. The sense was that would be less of a dominating factor come championship, and yet in Navan yesterday, Meath produced an extraordinary 17-point turnaround.
They lost the first half 0-15 to 0-5, but won the second period 1-20 to 0-6. There was more to Meath’s comeback than harnessing the strong wind, manager Robbie Brennan hailed the ‘bit of spirit’ they displayed after the break, but it certainly aided them, as evidenced by their hefty two-pointer total of seven that they amassed in that second period.
It generates some momentum for Meath after last week’s win over Carlow and helps restore some positivity after the jarring departure of coaches Martin Corey and Joe McMahon. Dublin await in Portlaoise on Sunday week.
*****
6. Louth’s impressive consistency
Louth have had their challenges this season. Injuries have hit them hard, a contributory factor to the form that saw them operating at the wrong end of the Division 2 table as they finished up sixth, surviving on the head to head record with Down.
They moved into the Leinster championship with an opening assignment against Laois yesterday that looked testing. Louth trailed narrowly at the break but timed their charge in the second half as Ryan Burns and Ciaran Byrne pounced for crucial goals.
A five-point win propels them towards a semi-final against Kildare. It’s a rematch of a contest that Louth won when the pair collided last year. Success would book a place in the Leinster final for a third year on the bounce. Considering Louth featured in two Leinster senior finals between 1958 and 2022, their recent consistency is hugely impressive.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Comment GAA Gaelic Football Leinster Ulster