Eamonn Sweeney: It's lonely in RTÉ's ivory tower, they should stop lecturing people forced to live in the real world

We need to talk about RTÉ. It teamed up with the GAA to set up an unpopular pay-per-view platform, helping them to ultimately reduce the number of free-to-air big matches, while turning its own Gaelic games punditry into a pale shadow of its former self.

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Irish Times

2 hours ago

• Irish Times

Kildare and Limerick to battle for Tailteann Cup after wins over Fermanagh and Wicklow

Kildare and Limerick will contest next month's Tailteann Cup final, no great surprise considering they're the two teams yet to taste defeat in the competition. You'd have got good odds on that July 12th final pairing materialising at the three-quarter stages of their respective semi-finals though. Kildare, admittedly, were good value for their 1-13 to 0-9 win over Fermanagh considering they created 32 chances overall, to Fermanagh's 21. But with 55 minutes on the clock, the scores tied at 0-8 apiece, and Kildare having lost their previous five league and championship encounters at Croke Park, nobody wearing white in the 13,960 strong crowd was taking progression for granted. READ MORE Substitute Brian McLoughlin ultimately changed the course of the game with four points in a row to give the Leinster semi-finalists a significant cushion in a low-scoring game. McLoughlin's first two scores were points, followed by a two-pointer, and the Clane man added another point late on. His 0-5 tally matched the 1-2 he scored seven years ago on the same pitch when Kildare won the All-Ireland Under-20 final in 2018. James McGrath glossed the scoreline somewhat with a goal in the 69th minute for Kildare, his third in a row having previously netted against Offaly in the preliminary quarter-final and against Sligo. Tailteann Cup Semi Final, Croke Park, Dublin 22/6/2025 Kildare vs Fermanagh Fermanagh's Darragh McGurn with Kildare's Kevin Feely and Brian Byrne Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Tom O'Hanlon Fermanagh rued their failure to grab a goal, particularly when Kildare's Kevin Feely and Brian Byrne somehow cleared a ball off the line in the 60th minute. But Fermanagh manager Kieran Donnelly acknowledged the best team won with Kildare creating four clear goal chances overall, aside from the one that McGrath converted. They also tallied 14 wides. 'Semi-finals are kind of a day when you just need to win,' said Kildare manager Brian Flanagan. 'As bad as the first half was, we still felt that if we could get one or two things right in the second-half and find our groove moving forward, we'd be okay.' Limerick were in particularly dire straits at the three-quarter mark of their semi-final against Wicklow, trailing by seven points. Oisin McConville's side had dominated the third quarter, turning a one-point half-time deficit into a seven-point lead, 1-16 to 1-9. Three Dean Healy points for Wicklow, along with a goal from Malachy Stone, had propelled the Garden County clear. Oisin McGraynor punched the air in delight after his 50th-minute point left seven in it. But Limerick's response was emphatic and decisive, a blistering 16-minute burst of scoring that yielded 1-9 powering them to a 2-18 to 1-17 win. Rob Childs got the blitzkrieg under way with an unlikely Limerick goal as he dispossessed Wicklow goalkeeper Mark Jackson after a routine catch and kicked to an empty net. Tailteann Cup Semi Final, Croke Park, Dublin 22/6/2025 Wicklow vs Limerick Wicklow's Mark Kenny with Limerick's Iain Corbett Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Tom O'Hanlon At the other end, Limerick goalkeeper Josh Ryan took centre stage with two brilliant long-range frees, amounting to 0-4 for his team while Danny Neville added a point to bring his tally to 1-2. Limerick had earlier taken off prolific forward James Naughton due to an apparent knock. Wicklow's agony was compounded by a wasted penalty kick in the 57th minute, Ryan turning McGraynor's kick on to the post and away to safety. It was Limerick's fifth successive win in the competition, though they will still go into the final as underdogs against this Kildare side which started the summer as favourites. 'They dug really deep when the chips were down,' said Limerick manager Jimmy Lee. 'They showed the resilience and character that I've spoken about all year. Even when the big names went off; James Naughton, Emmett Rigter, Iain Corbett, Paul Maher, the young fellas came in like Tadhg Ó Siochrú and Darragh Murray, Barry Coleman, they were the ones who brought it home in fairness to them.' Tailteann Cup semi-final results: Limerick 2-18 Wicklow 1-16 Kildare 1-13 Fermanagh 0-9

Irish Examiner

4 hours ago

• Irish Examiner

Brian McLoughlin steps off bench to send lacklustre Kildare in Tailteann semi-final

Tailteann Cup semi-final: Kildare 1-13 (1-2-9) Fermanagh 0-9 (0-0-9) A fine display of shooting from Brian McLoughlin illuminated a Tailteann Cup semi-final that otherwise gave the viewing public flashbacks of the old sport of Gaelic football, the one that we all thought had been left behind. For a Kildare side that hadn't won in Croke Park since the 2022 Leinster Championship, recording just three wins in 23 games here since 2014, the underwhelming manner of the victory will be less memorable than the sense of relief at safely negotiating a hurdle that began to look increasingly hazardous as the contest progressed. There was no stage in the game when Fermanagh looked like the better side, but as the misses racked up, a group that have been pigeonholed as talented but unreliable was leaving a plucky underdog in the game. In the first half, it was missed goal chances that were the story. Kevin Feely slipped a pass to Colm Dalton, whose shot was blocked on the line by Ronan McCaffrey, then Feely himself crashed a thunderbolt of a shot off the woodwork, a few minutes before Daniel Flynn clipped a shot over the bar from 20 metres out when it looked like he might be in a position to advance on goal. With the heavens opening and handling increasingly difficult, it's not like Fermanagh were scoring freely either. Conor Love (two), Darragh McGurn and Ryan Lyons all took advantage of the drier ground to leave the game deadlocked at 0-4 each and warming up nicely with 15 minutes played, but as heavy rain drenched the players, the scores dried up. Alex Beirne and Joe McDade got the best of the scores to leave it 0-7 to 0-6 in Kildare's favour at half-time, and a poor game got even more sloppy after half-time, with just another point apiece registered in the next 15 minutes. For Fermanagh, a lack of possession was the issue, while Kildare had plenty of opportunities, but weren't long about adding ten second half wides to the four they shot in the opening 35 minutes. Enter McLoughlin to give an injection of attacking quality to a game where it was sorely lacking otherwise. The eventual man of the match got off the mark with a powerful strike at the end of a slow build up that saw Fermanagh lose their concentration and leave him wide open, then on the next attack he opted to rifle the ball over the bar rather than go for goal after being put through by a slick give and go with David Hyland. McLoughlin's decision to just put something on the board made sense when he followed up with a majestic two-pointer, and now Fermanagh needed a lifeline. Jonathan Cassidy picking up a breaking ball and driving through to set up Josh Largo Ellis was that lifeline, but instead of keeping the ball down along the slick surface, he fired his shot a foot over the crossbar, and that was as good as it got for the Erne men. Kildare continued to control the ball from then on, with McLoughlin adding one more point before James McGrath finished the game with a flourish, firing in his third goal in as many games to send the Lily Whites through to a final clash with Limerick. Scorers for Kildare: B McLoughlin 0-5 (1tp), J McGrath 1-0, K Feely 0-2 (tp), C Dalton 0-2, D Flynn 0-2, A Beirne 0-1, D Kirwan 0-1. Scorers for Fermanagh: C Love 0-2, R Lyons 0-1, D McGurn 0-1, J McDade 0-1, D McCusker 0-1, F O'Brien 0-1f, S Cassidy 0-1, Josh Largo Ellis 0-1. KILDARE: C Burke; D Hyland, M Dempsey, H O'Neill; K Flynn, B Byrne, J McGrath; K Feely, B Gibbons; T Gill, R Sinkey, C Dalton; D Kirwan, A Beirne, D Flynn. Subs: J McKevitt for Flynn (44), B McLoughlin for Sinkey (44), N Kelly for Kirwan (63), A Masterson for Gibbons (66), R Burke for McGrath (69). FERMANAGH: S McNally; L Cullen, J Cassidy, O Smyth; L Flanagan, D McCusker, S McGullion; J McDade, D McGurn; R McCaffrey, R Lyons, F O'Brien; C Love, G Jones, Josh Largo Ellis. Subs: S Cassidy for Jones (half-time), C McGee for McCaffrey (50), A Kelm for McCusker (56), Jack Largo Ellis for O'Brien (66), C Cullen for McGullion (67) Referee: Kieran Eannetta (Tyrone)

Irish Independent

4 hours ago

• Irish Independent

GAA Championship: All today's Gaelic football action as it happened

There was a feast of Gaelic football action today as the championship reaches the business end. Donegal and Galway progressed into tomorrow's All-Ireland SFC quarter-final draw, while the Tailteann Cup semi-finals at Croke Park saw Kildare and Limerick win through to the final on July 12. Here's how the action unfolded. Live scores: All-Ireland SFC preliminary quarter-finals Galway 2-26 Down 3-21 (full-time) Donegal 2-22 Louth 0-12 (full-time) Tailteann Cup semi-finals Limerick 2-18 Wicklow 1-17 Croke Park (full-time)Kildare 1-13 Fermanagh 0-9 (full-time) All-Ireland MFC semi-finals Tyrone 2-12 Roscommon 1-8 (full-time)Kerry 1-19 Mayo 3-10 (full-time) 6 minutes ago 'Brian McLoughlin makes the difference off the bench as Kildare book Tailteann Cup final date with Limerick' Read More: Brian McLoughlin makes the difference off the bench as Kildare book Tailteann Cup final date with Limerick Brian McLoughlin changed the course of a dire Tailteann Cup semi-final with his impressive 0-4 contribution off the bench booking Kildare's place in the final. 7 minutes ago 'Galway weather Down storm to advance to All-Ireland SFC quarter-finals' Galway weather Down storm to advance to All-Ireland SFC quarter-finals Galway survived so many second-half scares from Down in Newry's Páirc Esler as they put their name in the drum for tomorrow's All-Ireland SFC quarter-final draw. 7 minutes ago 'Late first-half Tyrone goals rock Roscommon in All-Ireland MFC semi-final' Late first-half Tyrone goals rock Roscommon in All-Ireland MFC semi-final Goals from Joel Kerr and Peter Colton just before half time swung this All-Ireland MFC semi-final decisively in Tyrone's favour at Kingspan Breffni on Sunday afternoon. 8 minutes ago 'Tailteann Cup final beckons for Limerick as second-half onslaught puts Wicklow to the sword' Tailteann Cup final beckons for Limerick as second-half onslaught puts Wicklow to the sword A devastating 1-9 without reply in the final 20 minutes saw Limerick overturn a seven-point deficit into a scarcely believable five-point win in their Tailteann Cup semi-final clash at Croke Park. 10 minutes ago Watch Ciaran Thompson's second half goal here. 70'+5 Point Donegal Scorer Hugh McFadden Sub McFadden scores on the hooter, increasing Donegal's lead to sixteen on the hooter. 70'+4 Point Donegal Scorer Caolan McColgan McColgan moves McGuinness' men fifteen points clear. 70'+4 Michael Verney in Croke Park: Brian McLoughlin makes the difference off the bench as Kildare book Tailteann Cup final place Kildare 1-13 Fermanagh 0-9 Brian McLoughlin changed the course of a dire Tailteann Cup semi-final with his impressive 0-4 contribution off the bench booking Kildare's place in the final. Conditions were far from ideal in Croke Park with a couple of torrential downpours throughout the game but the action between the white lines was anything but inspiring in a forgettable encounter. McLoughlin was only on the field for 20 minutes but he still walked away with the man-of-the-match award after a crucial two-pointer helped to turn to the tide with four points scored within a five-minute period while James McGrath put the game to bed with a late goal for the Lilies. Victory for Brian Flanagan's side also helped to bury a Kildare hoodoo at the Jones' Road venue with just their fourth win from 24 games there dating all the way back to 2014. For Fermanagh, Kieran Donnelly's side lacked the necessary punch in attack but they could have left just one point in it with eight minutes to play only for Josh Largo Elis' goal chance to be scrambled out on the line. Kildare will head back to GAA HQ in three weeks where they meet surprise packets Limerick with the Tailteann Cup, and a place in the 2026 All-Ireland SFC, up for grabs. 70'+3 Point Louth Scorer Ciarán Downey Ciaran Downey with another consolation for Louth. 70' Point Scorer Sam Mulroy Mulroy with a consolation score for Louth. 69' Point Donegal Scorer Niall O'Donnell Sub O'Donnell gets in on the scoring act. 68' Point Louth Scorer Peter Lynch Peter Lynch kicks a point not long after returning from his black card. But it will be just a consolation. 64' Point Donegal Scorer Shane O'Donnell Shane O'Donnell with another for Donegal as they make hay against Louth's 14 men. 63' Kildare, meanwhile, look bound for a Tailteann Cup final against Limerick, with a James McGrath goal moving them seven clear with just a minute to play. Second half sub Brian McLoughlin is the MOTM after making a huge impact off the bench for the Lilywhites. 59' Point Donegal Scorer Daire O'Baoil 58' Point Donegal Scorer Oisin Gallen Gallen kicks his fifth of the day.