Latest news with #ThomasWalsh
Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Festivals running the risk of closing as call goes out for more funding from Fáilte Ireland
And, Cllr Thomas Walsh claimed that Fáilte Ireland were 'asleep at the wheel' as it has only given Sligo County Council a 'paltry €26,000' to run local festivals in the past five years. Cllr Walsh, who is involved with the Ballygawley Music Festival and Sligo Live, said festivals were hanging by a thread. He was speaking amid fears for the independent festival scene, after Sea Sessions in Bundoran announced it isn't going ahead this year, while a liquidator was appointed to the company behind the Wild Roots Festival in Sligo last year and is no more. Meanwhile, Barry O'Neill organiser of the hugely popular Rory Gallagher Festival in Ballyshanon has expressed fears for its future. Cllr Walsh said: 'There was a small bit of support for events over Covid but then inflation kicked in post Covid, and nothing was put in place for live festival events. 'So, costs have skyrocketed, and it is something I have been highlighting for years and the whole events thing is hanging on by a thread. 'This is because of huge increased costs, and I know from Ballygawley Music Festival in July and Sligo Summer Festival who were hoping to run a second weekend on the August Bank Holiday Weekend, but it was not possible because it would cost them an extra €70,000 to run a second weekend. 'Sligo Live and Cairde and our own festival are very successful, but our costs in Ballygawley are up on €120,000 which includes insurance, operational costs, site set up costs, energy costs and the cost of the acts have gone up because of the knock- on effects of the increase in the price of fuel for travel and their insurance has gone up too. 'All of that is passed on to the festivals and the organisers are forced to pass that on to the price of the ticket which is regrettable but necessary,' he said. Cllr Walsh added that nine smaller festivals collapsed in 2024, and the UK has the same problem where 60 folded last year. ADVERTISEMENT He added that another factor impacting was the huge crowds attending headline acts in Croke Park, the Aviva or other major venues. 'These massive artists sell out venues, but they are portraying a false economy because people are saving their money for the big festivals and not supporting the smaller ones.' Cllr Walsh was critical of Fáilte Ireland. 'Its budget from the State last year was €140m and all they give Sligo County Council for events in the county is a mere €26,000. That would not pay for a marquee, insurance etc 'Ballygawley gets €4,000 from Fáilte Ireland for an event that costs €120,000, so it would not cover even the toilet facilities.' 'But they do good work in terms of capital spending and Queen Maeve Square would not be there only for Failte Ireland and Strandhill Surf Centre of Excellence, so they are doing well on the capital side. 'But they are not supporting live is a three night festival and 5,000 people were there last year. Cllr Walsh added that Irish Public Bodies IPB who supply insurance and public liability for all Council offices and State facilities, could open it up to live events and it would take the cost away from the operator. 'I believe the State should take over the insurance via IPB which is their own insurance policy.' 'Fáilte Ireland should be made increase the funding to local authorities and I am talking about events of 500 and over and less than 5,000. '€26,000 is a kick in the teeth for Sligo festivals and €100,000 per local authority would not be out of the way and that is the reality of it. 'It would just get their heads above water and festivals are in survival mode all over the country. Cllr Walsh added that culture and arts were the backbone of our economy. 'There is a huge knock- on benefit for Sligo from all these festivals so they should be supported. 'Fáilte Ireland is the vehicle for tourism, and they talk about supporting visitor attractions and festivals but really they are not supporting festivals. 'Unless there is an injection of cash into these festivals more of them are going to collapse.'
Irish Times
7 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Times
Nicky English: The rules that hurling could, and should, steal from football immediately
It's never a good thing when the referee becomes a major talking point after a big match . I'm always reluctant to make a ref the centre of attention because everyone makes mistakes and that's part of the deal when players take to the field. You accept decisions, right or wrong. Otherwise, it's impossible. Thomas Walsh was stepping into a maelstrom last weekend : a capacity crowd, the Munster title on the line and an unbelievably tight contest between Cork and Limerick . It's a very hard job at the best of times and we don't have enough referees, so I'm slow to criticise, especially as he is usually very good. But it's extraordinary to hear so much talk about 'letting the play flow' and how great the refereeing was, when so much was let go. Fouls are fouls and when they're not penalised, that is unfair on the hurler who has been prevented from playing by an opponent breaking the rules. READ MORE You will regularly have situations that are too close or very hard to call but last week went beyond that. There were clear fouls that went unpunished. Frees are frees as well. They're not an eyesore. They're a fair penalty for breaking rules and there is a skill involved in putting them over the bar. The 'contract' for everyone on the pitch is the rule book. That's what is agreed as the basis of the contest. 'Letting it flow' is always at someone's expense and that creates frustration and confusion. What's a player meant to do when his hurley or arm is being held? If he doesn't get his free, he's under pressure from the threat of being done for over-carrying. He then has to drop the ball and often ends up wrestling and jostling with the fellah who has been fouling him. What does that add to the game? We had a flashpoint at half-time during the Munster final when the two management teams wanted to confront the referee. They had already been barracking him – and each other – throughout the first half. His relaxed approach to enforcing rules meant that neither side knew what was going to be penalised and that was bound to create uncertainty at best, and anarchy at worst. What happened on the sideline at half-time is arguably the direct result of not enforcing the rule book during the match. The Football Review Committee (FRC) rules have transformed football. Last year, I took the unusual decision not to go to the All-Ireland football final. The game had become unwatchable and was neither enjoyable nor interesting. Thomas Walsh was stepping into a maelstrom last weekend. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho Yet, a year later football is flourishing and has arguably been more entertaining than hurling for the first time in years. I believe a good few of those rule amendments have relevance to hurling and should be introduced. It is only the evidence of a partial championship and things might change, but equally there have been innovations that have irrefutably improved football. I'll start with sideline behaviour. What happened in the Gaelic Grounds isn't unique. Tensions regularly surface on the sideline, even if this was an extreme example. When Armagh played Tyrone in the Ulster semi-final in April, Kieran McGeeney kicked a flag on the line and was yellow carded with Tyrone being awarded a 20m free . The Armagh manager then had to watch as Darren McCurry opted to bring the ball outside the 40m arc, kicking a two-point free. Dissent by players when a free is awarded against their team is punishable by bringing it 50 metres forward. Footballers have to hand the ball back to opponents when a free is given. Despite a lot of pushback, this has worked well. [ Cian Lynch: 'Hurling is so instinctive, it's an art form, it's an expression' Opens in new window ] These sanctions have had a radical impact and referees have spoken about how much easier is to get on with officiating when there's not a constant chorus of complaint, at times verging on verbal abuse from players and the sideline. I would introduce it immediately. The same applies to gamesmanship when obstructing opponents from taking the free or delaying your own restarts. I mentioned last week that the hooter/clock would be a great introduction because it would take timekeeping away from referees and so remove their discretion. John Kiely queried the time added on at the end of the match but I had no issue with that. There had been plenty of other stoppages after the one minute was flagged by James Owens. I was surprised that Kiely didn't focus more on the single minute played in the first half of extra time when they had the wind behind them and the referee had to be replaced. The hooter would address the situation where we're here a week later debating whether or not the correct time was played. Cork's Shane Barrett scored despite efforts by Limerick goalkeeper Nickie Quaid. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho Cork had paid their dues on this. There's a photo of Dr Con Murphy and Jimmy Barry-Murphy on the line in the 2013 final . Time is clearly up on the big screen, and the two boys are more or less ready to embrace before play continues and Clare's Domhnall O'Donovan equalises. Anyway, Limerick had total control over that passage of play. Peter Casey over-carried the ball in their last attack when even if he had moved it on, the time was up. From the free, Nickie Quaid fumbled the ball out for a 65, which must be taken according to the rules. It's a general point but players' mistakes cost teams far more than referees' mistakes. Many of the FRC changes don't apply to hurling but there are a couple that could be adopted. There's no need to require a puckout to go a minimum distance but I would follow the example of banning passes back to the goalkeeper. This would cut out short, one-two puckouts with the nearest back and put much greater pressure on receiving defenders. This would facilitate a high press and with it, jeopardy potentially leading to goal chances. In my view there is also a place for the 'solo-and-go'. This would allow a player to tap a free to himself and set off on a run, which the opposition couldn't challenge for 4m. I would regulate it by stipulating that anyone availing of this would not be allowed to handpass the ball. This would broaden the range of penalties and encourage attacking movement. There's no obvious argument for incentivising scores from distance because we have enough of those already. But I would revisit the FRC's parallel recommendation – later withdrawn – that a goal be revalued to four and maybe even five points. In my lifetime, rugby has revised the try from three to four to five points to maintain some sort of balance. Hurling needs to reorientate towards committing more players to attack and drawing them away from the middle third, which is almost too congested to referee properly. Limerick's Diarmaid Byrnes and Diarmuid Healy of Cork during the Munster hurling final. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho We see a lot of contesting in that middle third but fewer goals than used to be the case. I'm not saying go back to 14 one-on-ones but try to stretch the play a bit more. Do we need this tactical change? We need to consider it, as I'm not sure I'm happy with the direction of the game. Maybe it's time for an HRC to look at all of this as a package. I don't know if William Maher's role as national head of hurling would include something like this given all of his developmental responsibilities. If not, I would appoint a committee similar to the FRC with a remit broader than just rules. It could also look at whether the current condensed season has been in the game's best interest. The game is still a lot better than it was when I played it but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be regularly monitored – and modified – for potential improvement.
Irish Daily Mirror
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
John Mullane warns Cork hurlers after celebration videos
John Mullane has warned the Cork hurlers to beware of a resurgent Limerick side after the Leesider's celebrations following their Munster final triumph. Footage emerged from the celebrations appearing to show some Cork players chanting "Limerick f*** off home" following their penalty shootout win over their familiar opponents. Speaking on the Indo Sport podcast, the Waterford legend said: "You're even seeing some of the videos circulating. Now it's fantastic to see the Cork players and management celebrating in the manner in which they are, and they're fully entitled to celebrate. "To win a Munster Championship is so hard, you should rightly celebrate it in the manner in which it deserves to be celebrated. "But if you're a Limerick player and you're on that Limerick management team, you're watching those celebrations, and you're seeing some of those videos circulating around, knowing that we should've won that match, I can only imagine how peed off some of those Limerick players were Saturday night. "There's a lot of fuel there now, there's a lot of fuel now there that they can go and use in their favour, it's just set up lovely if these teams meet in six weeks' time." And it may be in the final that these two sides meet again, with the two teams pitted on the opposite side of the draw. Cork go straight to the semi-finals by virtue of winning Munster, while Limerick will meet the winner of Kildare and Dublin's clash in the quarter-final. The furore over the video's contents has threatened to cast a shadow over what was an unbelievably exciting hurling match in the Munster final last weekend, with extra-time failing to separate the sides, and referee Thomas Walsh cramping up to be replaced by standby ref James Owens.
Irish Daily Mirror
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Cork, Limerick Munster Final ref Thomas 'Tyler' Walsh, 'a hard job, well done.'
The statistic painted a picture that has drawn a lot of commentary since. In last Saturday evening's Munster Hurling Final, referee Thomas Walsh awarded six first half frees. Two of them were for throw balls so four were for actual tackles in a game where the challenges were flying in. Many observers praised Walsh's performance, while the perception with others was that he 'let too much go,' but was that the reality? As part of the RTE panel, Donal Og Cusack commented: 'We've spoken about the referee a lot in the last couple of weeks, but to be fair, it's like trying to control a boat on the high seas in the dark. 'Who could actually referee that? The way the rules are so not defined. The whole tackle thing. 'Most of the tackles we are seeing here are not in the rulebook at all. I think it would be unfair to go after him (the referee). He has done his best like everybody else is doing their best.' A review of the video of the game indicates a level of consistency from the Waterford official that neither side can really complain about as he enhanced the spectacle, rather than taking away from it. Walsh's pragmatism was more than likely founded on the realisation that if he blew for every arm across a player or slight drag back it would have been a long evening for himself and everyone else on what is one of the showpiece days in the GAA calendar. Obvious pushes in the back were generally given as frees. Any contact with the helmet was a free. A bit of pulling and dragging was allowed, but if you left the arm in too long it was blown up. Players and everyone else knew exactly where they stood. No-one was getting soft frees for anything. Rather than blow for marginal frees, the style Walsh appeared to use was to allow the play to develop. Generally, the man fouled was able to get out with the ball, which added to the flow of the game. The only quibble with this style of refereeing is that playing an advantage and going back for a free may often have been a bigger reward, so it did pay to foul at times, but Walsh was entirely consistent with both sides. An example of this attempt to allow the play to develop came in the 57th minute when Cian Lynch was clearly shouldered in the back by Robert Downey and then fouled by Sean O'Donohgue before being caught high by Tim O'Mahony. This was the one incident that was certainly allowed to 'flow' for too long with Lynch taking an unnecessary battering. The only obvious free Walsh let go was in the 29th minute where Mike Casey, knowing it was two on two inside, played Patrick Horgan instead of the ball. Horgan grabbed his man then, making it awkward for the official, who clearly decided two of them were at it. On 23.40, Cork fans felt that Brian Hayes was fouled with a goal on, but it wasn't clear on replays that it was a free and in the context of how the game was being refereed it looked like the right call. Those subtle body checks defenders use when they're in trouble under a high ball or in a one versus one or two versus two, were generally allowed. One of those came in the 46th minute from Sean Finn, who stepped across his man. The free wasn't given and Limerick fired a goal at the other end. Cork could feel aggrieved at that. But then Limerick might quibble with the throw ball given against David Reidy in the fourth minute with Cian Lynch running in on goal, and a possible throw not given against Brian Hayes for Shane Barrett's goal. It was that kind of game though. So many decision to make and so many calls were marginal. Early in the second half, RTE co-commentator Brendan Cummins laid it out there: 'Every tackle down there is going to be absolutely vicious now and in fairness to the referee he's going to get some right and some wrong for both teams.' That was the type of environment Thomas 'Tyler' Walsh found himself operating in. David Reidy's yellow card for a tackle on Cork goalie Patrick Collins in the 42nd minute was harsh, but this is nitpicking. Overall, the second half had 12 frees, double the amount of the first half. It was a cauldron like atmosphere from the off, a 44,000 sellout on a Saturday evening, with every tackle greeted by a roar for a free from the crowd. The backdrop of Cork's 16 point hammering by Limerick at the same venue three weeks earlier hung heavy in the air. Then there was the tension with a Munster Championship on the line and the home side going for an historic seven-in-a-row, while Cork were looking for a first provincial title since 2018 to frank their recent progress and go alongside a first league crown since 1998. Not once did a composed and in control Walsh look like he was bowing to the pressure from the crowd though, which often appears to happen with referees in big games. In the RTE studio Liam Sheedy pointed out twice that he felt it was a very sporting contest, and on review it was hard to disagree. While there was plenty of aggression and hitting, there were very few, if any, head high hits, certainly not with shoulders, indicating that the GAA clampdown during the League appears to have struck a chord, and both sides were wary of red cards. There were a couple of high tackles with hurls, with Mike Casey booked for one and Brian Hayes getting away with another. The flare-up at half-time was always going to make Walsh's job more difficult, with both management teams getting involved. A renewed level of aggression in the minutes after half-time is nothing new in the GAA and something Walsh will certainly have spoken about at half-time with his team of officials. He reined it in straight away, brandishing four yellow cards in the opening nine minutes of the second half, and six in total, one to a water carrier. Another was for Sean O'Donoghue tossing Aaron Gillane's hurl away. At the first hint of trouble off the ball, it was a double yellow for Cormac O'Brien and Gearoid Hegarty. That came on 38 minutes. Walsh handled this tricky spell expertly, taking the sting out of it. A perfect example of more common sense refereeing came at both throw-ins, with Tim O'Mahony and William O'Donoghue tangling. Walsh just threw the ball in and got on with it, rather than stopping and dressing them down. No doubt he was acutely aware that the more stoppages - including frees - the more chance of off the ball incidents breaking out. Having the ball in play tends to focus minds. Cusack's point about the tackle in hurling is one for the off season. But Walsh made the best of what he had in the prevailing culture, in what was an extremely tough environment to be put in charge of. Not many would be able for it. It was a hard job well done.
Irish Daily Mirror
09-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
'The Munster Final shouldn't be decided on pens - both deserved another day'
What an epic game the Munster Final was. The commitment. The intensity. Some of the scores. The use of the ball. The tackling. It had it all. One of the best Munster finals I've seen in years. I think a big part of the reason the game was so enthralling and so good was down to ref Thomas Walsh. Sometimes referees can get very caught up in rules. I've been at Championship games with 30 or 40 frees and to me that ruins it. Yes there were things Walsh could have easily blown for in the first half but he let it flow. There were only three frees before the break, but if there was something dangerous he pulled it. I know the altercation at half-time might have made him blow a few more frees in the second half but in general his contribution was immense and neither side could complain. I wish a lot more refs would take that approach as hurling would be better for it. In the first 15 minutes Tom Morrissey was outstanding. I felt he faded big-time after that, but he was causing Cork problems, getting on ball, coming from side to side and getting scoring chances. The big thing with Cork in the first half compared to the last day was running the ball into the right spots. They didn't just get the ball and hit it. They worked it into different areas in the middle of the field to try and pull out the Limerick half-back line. Their use of the ball was fantastic. Cork didn't just hit 80- or 100-yard balls down on top of the Limerick full-back line. They were very smart in how they used it, getting them short passes. Once they got to midfield, they either shot from distance or got the ball deep to the inside line. That, along with their phenomenal work-rate, which was especially evident at the start of the second half with their half-forward line getting back deep on Limerick puck-outs and winning a lot of breaks, was important. Cian Lynch's distribution was magic, especially in the first half. This guy sees passes like no other player in the game. His vision. His awareness. He is not a selfish player and I can see why John Kiely made him captain. They are all the ingredients you need to be a good leader. He was the man behind a lot of Limerick's first-half scores. Aidan O'Conor looked to have the Cork full-back line in trouble in the first half and was unlucky not to have two or three more scores. He just needed to settle a small bit. The big thing with Limerick was they didn't hit their full-forward line enough. Cork marked the Limerick half-forward line, which goes back deep for short ball and there was a mountain of space from the 65 back to the Cork full-back line. When Limerick got that ball in fast, it looked like trouble for Cork. There were two or three goal opportunities that Limerick will feel they should have converted. The difference between Cork and Limerick's half-back line is Kyle Hayes sat back and guarded that middle most of the time, and Limerick in general didn't look like giving away goals. Hayes had an effect in the first 15 or 20 minutes, didn't really after that, but he was still a constant in the middle of that defence, where I felt Cork really pushed up man-on-man on the Limerick half-forward line. That's why there seemed to be more space when Limerick delivered that long ball in. Limerick's second goal was a touch of genius, especially from Aaron Gillane. His footwork and pass to the oncoming Shane O'Brien was something you can only dream of. Only certain players have that ability. Gillane was one of Limerick's focal points. They just didn't get him enough ball. It's very hard for Cork to defend when they have only two on two in 40 or 50 yards of space. Seamus Harnedy did well in patches and won a bit of aerial ball. Gearoid Hegarty was absolutely phenomenal on high ball. The big thing for me in the first half, which was very unusual, was Cork's 21 turnovers to Limerick's 14. That means Cork were working extremely hard. That's one thing you could always say about Limerick over the last six or seven years, is their workrate and their turnovers. They pride themselves on that. Cork had nine or ten wides to Limerick's four, so that means Cork probably should have gone in further ahead at half-time. Patrick Horgan is playing as good as ever — working unreal, passing ball and scoring but I felt his placed balls were a bit off and I thought that might come back to bite Cork. Knowing Hoggie he wouldn't be happy with missing those. You have to admire Cork's mentality, They were aggressive and when things went against them they never strayed from the plan. Even when Limerick went a point or two up at the end, they kept going and kept with it. That's massive. Tactically, even playing against the wind in the second half, I thought they were a lot better in terms of using that ball. I still would be worried for Cork going forward, leaving that space in front of the full-back line. On puck-outs and in general play they were a lot better this time against Limerick. Darragh Fitzgibbon was phenomenal. The ground he covers. They scores he gets. The work he does. During the 70 minutes maybe Cork had a slight edge, capitalising on Limerick's wides. James Owens had a tough job to go in and referee. His style might be different to Thomas Walsh. The players had to adapt. Limerick might have felt a small bit hard-done-by with so much extra-time. Overall, a draw was a fair result. Looking at the list of penalty takers I had a feeling it suited Cork better, but I don't think the Munster Final should be decided on penalties. Both teams deserved another day. I know we are tight in the calendar but that shouldn't be a reason to go to penalties. I think it's unfair, putting that pressure on players. Few fans would have a problem with it going to another day. Cork prevailed and you can't begrudge them the win. It would have been easy to fold up the tent after the beating they got the last day from Limerick. And they had a knock-back last year but these guys keep coming back for more. Fair play to them. They are resilient. It's important they enjoy this victory and well done to them, but there is still a lot of hurling left to be done. Munster is great, but only one thing matters at the end of the day and that's winning Liam MacCarthy.
