Latest news with #ShaneWalsh
Irish Times
8 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Times
Lions try out unlikely midfield combination against Argentina
The Lions' summer's business gets under way this evening with a warm-up against Argentina at the Aviva Stadium. As Gerry Thornley tells us, they'll be without 15 of the squad due to club commitments and injuries for a non-capped international that is 'primarily a moneymaking venture', one that, ultimately, will be 'a footnote in history'. Still, all concerned will be up for it, not least Argentina coach Felipe Contepomi who is not unfamiliar with the city of Dublin. Andy Farrell, says John O'Sullivan, has proved once more that he's not 'risk averse' by opting for 'an unlikely midfield combination' of Sione Tuipulotu and Bundee Aki , Tuipulotu more used to playing as an inside centre. Opportunity knocks, then, for the Scotland international in the absence of Garry Ringrose and Huw Jones. It's a huge weekend in Gaelic games with two hurling quarter-finals and four preliminary football quarter-finals in the schedule. Lose and your summer is done and dusted. After their hiding in the Leinster final, Joe Canning is hoping to see a vastly improved performance from Galway at the Gaelic Grounds when they come up against a Tipperary side 'with their tails up'. Galway's footballers have it all to do too when they meet a Down side whose 'confidence has been soaring' , Ian O'Riordan talking to Galway's Shane Walsh ahead of Sunday's meeting in Newry. READ MORE Meanwhile, those who might assume that this hooter business is the first timekeeping innovation in the history of Gaelic football ... Seán Moran has news for you: the Bogue Clock – the giant stopwatch that made its debut all the way back in 1938. In horse racing, Brian O'Connor reports on Trawlerman setting a track record on his way to winning Royal Ascot's Gold Cup on Thursday, and he previews today's action, Colin Keane choosing 'to stick with his old ally Babouche over Juddmonte's other big hope, Jonquil' in the Commonwealth Cup. In golf, Philip Reid reports on a good day at the office for Rory McIlroy at the Travelers Championship , his opening round of 64 putting him in contention, while Leona Maguire made a solid start to the PGA Championship in Texas with a level-par 72. No one topped Max Kennedy's exploits, though – he shot a course record 60 in France on the Hotelplanner Tour. Sadly, no one in the sports department was available to go sailing with Robert Dickson and Seán Waddilove in Dún Laoghaire and have themselves dangled over the ocean at a 45-degree angle giving you 'the same sensation as when you lean too far back in your chair and your life flashes before your eyes'. Except Muireann Duffy. Before you read about her adventure, have your tummy tablets at the ready. TV Watch : There's further coverage from Royal Ascot on Virgin Media One and UTV (from 1.30), and Sky Sports Golf will be hopping between the women's PGA Championship in Texas and the lads' Travelers Championship in Connecticut (from 1.0). At 8.0 you get to choose between the Lions v Argentina (TG4 and Sky Sports Action), athletics' Paris Diamond League (Virgin Media Three and BBC Three) and Shamrock Rovers v Cork City (Virgin Media Two).
Irish Daily Mirror
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
The coolest head in inter-county management - Shane Walsh hails Padraic Joyce
Shane Walsh has credited Padraic Joyce for staying cool under pressure when Galway stared down the barrel of a Championship exit last Saturday. The Connacht champs were on the brink of an early exit until Joyce lifted the team with a calm, studious team talk at half time. The upshot was they came from behind to defeat Armagh and secure a preliminary quarter final away to Down this Sunday. Read more: Tipperary star says he retired knowing good times were coming again Read more: Joe Brolly weighs in on Mayo's latest All-Ireland heartbreak: 'The culture is all wrong' Star player Walsh said: 'We went in at half-time knowing that they'd probably been a bit hot and that we weren't executing our chances. 'Padraic obviously wanted us to up the level a bit and just bring a bit more intensity in the second half. It never felt like we were gone. 'We then knew after the positive start we made (in the second half) we were in a good position and it was just about trying to see it out then. We worked a really good opportunity at the end and Paul (Conroy) showed all his experience as well to win the free.' And that was a free Walsh converted to seal the deal. The former All Star outlined what went through his head as he stood over the ball to secure Galway's win over last year's All-Ireland champs. He said: 'Probably three different things. Firstly, when you're walking over, you're just saying 'calm, this is my job now.' 'Then there's a few words coming your way from opposition and then the heart rate starts to go up a bit. 'Then you're coming back in saying, you've dreamt of this as a young lad. This is what you grew up dreaming about, saying you want to be in these situations and just commit to the kick, be yourself. That's all I could do, I suppose, and thankfully it went over.' All of which brings another Ulster team - Down - onto their radar, the third Ulster side they have played in a row. Walsh said: 'Down are probably the most in-form team. Even with the Donegal game, they were probably unlucky with a lot of goal chances they had that day. And you see the way they've been building since the league, they're a completely different proposition. 'We all know about going up to Newry, you never get that easy up there either. Conor Laverty always has his team as well drilled. 'So it's a great challenge. Again, no more than the group that we had with Dublin and Derry and Armagh, having Down again, it's another unbelievable challenge if you get through it to build your confidence, build the belief in the team and build a bit of momentum.'
The 42
13 hours ago
- Sport
- The 42
'We back you no matter what' - Shane Walsh on backing of Galway team mates
IN THIS SUMMER of Houdini acts, Galway have provided one of the stronger storylines with conflicts and arcs everywhere. At half time against Armagh in the final group game, everyone thought they were gone. Eight points down and having mined 0-1 from two first-half penalties, it was looking grim for the All-Ireland finalists of 2022 and 2024. There was no time for metaphorical teacup throwing in the Breffni Park changing rooms. Instead, Pádraic Joyce filled his players with confidence. A stirring comeback brought them to a point where Shane Walsh could kick a late winner from just inside the top of the two-point arc, granting them a preliminary quarter-final away to Down this Sunday. So what goers through one of the most skilled kickers in the game at a moment like that? 'Probably three different things. Firstly, when you're walking over, you're just saying 'calm, this is my job now,'' explains Walsh. 'The rest of them have done their work to win the free. Then there's a few words coming your way from opposition and then the heart rate starts to go up a bit. Shane Walsh doing what he does best! 🎯🔥 Glides it over for @Galway_GAA's first!#ARMVGAL — The GAA (@officialgaa) June 14, 2025 'Then you're coming back in saying, 'You've dreamt of this as a young lad. This is what you grew up dreaming about, saying you want to be in these situations and just commit to the kick, be yourself.' That's all I could do, I suppose, and thankfully it went over.' Joyce's half-time demeanour speaks of where he is now as a coach. More measured, thoughtful, in touch with the room and what it needs at that particular time. Advertisement Still, he has a reputation of being a little brusque though. From where Walsh is standing, that's just our interpretation. 'It's easy for us, we have him all the time,' the 32-year-old teacher explains. 'You'd probably be humoured by it as opposed to actually anything else. Because you don't really see the Pádraic that we see all the time. You just see what he says to ye (the media). 'From that perspective, we've had that side of him, but we've also had the side where he mixes things. He's a real family man as well, behind it all. As I said, the media doesn't really see the part that we know. You just see the Padraic that ye think you know. 'We'd nearly be laughing and joking about some things he could be saying things about us to the media. And sure, we know where he's coming from. It's not as if we'd be saying that's a personal attack or anything like that.' He adds, 'He has Galway's best interests at heart. He bleeds maroon and white all day long. He always has a few interesting things to say to us which do crack a smile. 'I think his best one was that you can boil an egg in five minutes but you can score a goal in one. Make of that what you want!' We're speaking at the press launch for the knockout stages of the All-Ireland football championship. Most of the time these events are a slog, with players reluctant to engage and paranoid over what they say. Like the fabled reporters of the '70s and '80s who headed for Killarney for the regular pre All-Ireland final events with Kerry footballers, you still go along for the gawk and the hope that something novel rears up. Ask Walsh about the area of confidence and instinct, and you know you have the jam that makes it worthwhile. He believes the belief that his manager and team mates have in him is a wellspring. Shauna Clinton / SPORTSFILE Shauna Clinton / SPORTSFILE / SPORTSFILE 'Definitely as a forward. Especially when you come back from an injury in the middle of the year, it can be hard because you're chasing. 'The lads are moving at a certain level and there's a certain synchronisation that they have out on the pitch. You're trying to get to the pitch that then as well. It's tough going and you're probably taking shots that you normally would score, you'd feel. But they're not coming off for you maybe because you haven't had that repetition or you haven't had that time that the rest of them have,' he says. 'Even just to have the time on the ball to do it as well. Then it can knock you, you can go into your shell a bit I suppose. I definitely felt that probably in the Dublin game, the Derry game a bit. Where you kind of went back in (to your shell). 'Because I was like, 'I haven't done a whole pile in the last ten to eleven weeks and here I am in championship football, trying to get something out of myself.' In that environment, nothing comes easy. 'I'd say just thinking you were taking shots that you felt comfortable taking but when they weren't coming off like they normally would then you were saying to yourself, 'Jays, I mightn't take that again.' 'It's probably the worst thing for me and for the team because they're probably looking to you to take on the shots. I think that was the best thing after the Derry game that we all sat down and had a few chats. 'It was just great to have that backing of the lads in the dressing room to say to me like 'we back you no matter what' – as in, remember that when you were taking those chances. 'And that it's not a good thing for us if you're on the field and you're not taking the shots. That's essentially my role in the team as well, along with a few of the other lads.' He continues, 'I think that mattered a lot and obviously having Pádraic there as well. Having one-to-one meetings with Pádraic – people probably don't see that side of him too often in the media. 'He's quite black and white I suppose. But then when you get underneath it, you get, I suppose, the sense that he was a player himself. He probably didn't have too many confidence issues! But at the same time he kind of passed on a couple of things to me. It stood to me going into the weekend. I trained well for the two weeks and it kind of followed into last Saturday as well.' Shauna Clinton / SPORTSFILE Shauna Clinton / SPORTSFILE / SPORTSFILE In this Big Dipper of a football championship, we have finally made it to the straight knockout stage. Related Reads 'You couldn't be happy with Saturday' - Paul Geaney gets ready for charge at Sam Maguire New kickout mark penalty to apply in this weekend's inter-county senior games How will eliminated teams reflect on 2025 Sam Maguire exit? Galway could have had worse draws than Down. All the same, Down football is feeling good about itself right now. They have made the jump from Tailteann Cup champions and do not look out of place in the Sam Maguire championship. With a vocal local crowd, some smart management and a squad of players that have grown into their own skin such as Ryan Magill, Pat Havern, Pierce Laverty and Ceilum Doherty, Mourne manager Conor Laverty will have no lack of confidence. 'They're probably the most in-form team,' Walsh cautions. 'Even with the Donegal game, they were probably unlucky with a lot of goal chances they had that day. And you see the way they've been building since the league, they're a completely different proposition. 'We all know about going up to Newry, you never get that easy up there either. Conor Laverty always has his team well-drilled. I know him, he's a lovely fella off the field but when it comes to his football, he's very serious about winning as well and he'll do whatever it takes. 'So it's a great challenge. Again, no more than the group that we had with Dublin and Derry and Armagh, having Down again, it's another unbelievable challenge if you get through it to build your confidence, build the belief in the team and build a bit of momentum.' * Check out the latest episode of The42′s GAA Weekly podcast here
Irish Times
15 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Times
Shane Walsh on coming back from injury: ‘It can knock you, you can go into your shell a bit. I definitely felt that'
At some point in Galway's frantic endgame against Armagh last Saturday, Shane Walsh shouted over at the sideline, asking what the score was up the road in Newry. There, the result of the Dublin-Derry game might help salvage Galway's summer. 'Never mind,' Walsh was promptly told, 'just win the game'. It was good advice. Despite trailing Armagh by eight points at the break, Galway's rousing second-half performance, inspired by Walsh's best championship display this summer, saw them win by a point – enough to set up an away preliminary quarter-final. When they drew Down on Monday morning, that refocused Galway minds again. It's their first championship meeting since 1971, which Galway won. But Down were the form team in the round-robin stages, top scorers of all 16 teams with their 4-78. Galway had the highest goal tally of eight, including two against Armagh. READ MORE 'It's game by game at this stage,' Walsh says in advance of Sunday's showdown in Newry. 'Obviously we just want to bring our best every day we go out. Have we brought our best so far? I don't believe so. 'But it's been hard, I suppose. We've had a bit of a broken spell with players missing, and that obviously affects the rhythm of the group too. I think we are getting there.' Walsh is talking about himself in terms of broken spells. He missed most of the Connacht championship with injury, and appeared well off his best against Dublin and Derry . Regaining full confidence against Armagh, where he finished with 0-9, including the match-winning free just after the hooter, was in part about his team-mates expressing their belief in him. 'I think that mattered a lot, and obviously having Pádraic [Joyce] there as well. Definitely as a forward, especially when you come back from an injury in the middle of the year. The lads are moving at a certain level and there's a certain synchronisation that they have out on the pitch,' Walsh says. [ Can Galway squeeze more from Shane Walsh and Damien Comer? Now is the time to find out Opens in new window ] 'You're trying to get to that pitch then as well. It's tough going and you're probably taking shots that you normally would score. But they're not coming off for you, maybe because you haven't had that repetition or you haven't had that time that the rest of them have. 'Then it can knock you, you can go into your shell a bit. I definitely felt that probably in the Dublin game, the Derry game a bit. But at the same time, Pádraic kind of passed on a couple of things to me. It stood to me going into the weekend, trained well for the two weeks, and it kind of followed into last Saturday.' Shane Walsh missed most of the Connacht championship with injury. Photograph: Sports File Under manager Conor Laverty, Down's confidence has been soaring. Despite losing to Donegal in the Ulster semi-final, they certainly won't fear Galway. 'We all know about going up to Newry, you never get it easy up there,' says Walsh. 'Conor Laverty always has his team well drilled. I know him, he's a lovely fellah off the field, but when it comes to his football, he's very serious about winning as well, and he'll do whatever it takes. 'Like Michael Murphy's a nice fellah, gentle off the field, and then when he goes on the field, he's just a possessed animal, really. It's great to be able to have that mindset, that you're able to switch between two. It can be hard at times to take yourself out of it and put yourself into it, but they seem to do it pretty well. 'It's another great challenge, if you get through it to build your confidence, build the belief in the team and build a bit of momentum.' Walsh required all his old confidence when standing over the free-kick, just outside the 40-metre line, to win the match last Saturday. He looks back on that process in three different steps. [ Conor McManus: Here's my ranking of the top 12 counties going into the knockouts Opens in new window ] 'Firstly, when you're walking over, you're just saying 'calm, this is my job now'. The rest of them have done their work to win the free. Then there's a few words coming your way from opposition and then the heart rate starts to go up a bit. 'Then you're coming back in saying, 'you've dreamt of this as a young lad'. This is what you grew up dreaming about, saying you want to be in these situations and just commit to the kick, be yourself. That's all I could do, thankfully it went over.' While Joyce has sometimes been critical of his team's performance, admitting he'll have a hard time picking his best 15 players for Sunday, Walsh believes it's all part of his plan to get the best out of them. 'We'd nearly be laughing and joking about some things. He could be saying things about us to the media. And sure, we know where he's coming from. It's not as if we'd be saying that's a personal attack or anything like that. 'You build confidence through yourself, but you also build it through your team-mates, your manager and the people around you as well. If people are knocking you, it obviously doesn't encourage you to do the things you're doing.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Galway's Walsh relishing trip to Newry
Galway's Shane Walsh hit the match-winning score against Armagh which set up a Sunday's preliminary quarter-final against Down [Getty Images] Galway's Shane Walsh says he and his team-mates "know all about Down" as they prepare to hit the road for Sunday's All-Ireland Senior Football Championship preliminary quarter-final in Newry. The Tribesmen were forced to dig deep at the weekend to edge past Armagh and seal third-place in Group Four, a result which saw them through the knockout phase. Advertisement Walsh was in inspirational form with nine points, including the winner at the death, to earn himself the nod for Footballer of the Week. Being drawn against Down means it is Ulster opposition for the third game in a row for Galway, having drawn in Derry before getting the better of the All-Ireland champions last weekend. Walsh is expecting a hostile reception in Pairc Esler on Sunday, and is anticipating the Mournemen will be fired up with a place in the last eight on the line, but says he relishes such occasions. "I know Down manager Conor Laverty is a gent off the field, but when it comes to football, he's very serious about winning. You know exactly what way he is going to create his atmosphere in Down this weekend," Walsh said. Advertisement "You embrace that because the more hostile environments - and it tends to be that way when you go across the border with the crowd involved a lot more - makes for a better atmosphere. "When the game is in the melting pot, you can hear every breath from every supporter." Walsh has experienced mixed fortunes at the Newry venue in the past, having been part of the Galway team that won a Division Two contest against Down in 2022, but then suffered All-Ireland Club semi-final heartbreak with Kilmacud Crokes against Glen two years later. The 32-year-old is delighted to still in the championship as at half-time against Armagh, the exit door was staring Galway in the face. Advertisement Padraic Joyce's men rallied from eight down to claim an invaluable win and although their third-place finish means they are away from home this week, it is a scenario last year's beaten finalists are more than comfortable with. "It's great to be here and that was the aim at the start of the game, to still be in the championship," said Walsh, an All-Star recipient in 2022. "It didn't look good at half-time, but Padraic got behind us and demanded a bit more from us. "We came out firing in the second half and thankfully so, because if things had stayed the same, we wouldn't be here today."
