Five live GAA games to air on Setanta this weekend
GAA fans in Australia are in for a special treat this weekend with five live games set to air on Setanta Sports.
On Saturday night, Derry’s clash with Monaghan in the second round of the All-Ireland qualifiers will kick off at 11.45pm AET from Clones, with the second game of a triple header – Longford v Kerry also in the football qualifiers – set to get under way at 1.45am AET.
The third game on the Saturday night will see neighbours Clare and Galway lock horns in phase two of the All-Ireland hurling qualifiers and the action there gets under way at 3.45am AET.
On Sunday night, Dublin’s much-anticipated Leinster football final decider against Kildare starts at 10pm AET from Croke Park, and the fifith and final game of a hectic 48-hour period kicks off at 12.30am AET as Tipperary and Waterford clash in the Munster hurling final.
Add comment July 7, 2009
Brendan Murphy column :: shock as real legend retires
We all got a bit of a shock at the Swans on Tuesday last when Micky O’Loughlin announced that he would be retiring at the end of the season.
We had just finished a meeting about the previous weekend’s game and were about to head out for training when Micky announced to the squad that this season would be his last, and to be perfectly honest it came as a big shock to all of us.
We all thought he would have at least one season left so it was a tough one.
He is a legend of a person and a player and everyone will miss him around the place. He really is just such a great character.
On the playing front, it’s been a bad few weeks for the club on the field.
I made my return as a regular player two weeks’ ago, but there has been some soul searching going on.
In the week before the Collingwood game there had been a lot of discussion about leadership within the club. The boys were all really fired up because we knew it was a must-win game.
We were on the bus on the way back from a reserves game in Canberra so we had to listen to the game on the bus. It was a tight game, and when we took the lead at the end of the last quarter I thought we’d win it. But Collingwood got up in the end to win by three goals. We were all pretty gutted.
The only consolation for me on a personal front was that I had done quite well in the reserves game. I was playing at full back but I was only on limited playing time as they wanted to ease me back into it.
We ended up losing by a big score, but we were heavily depleted and without eight of our Swans players.
Back at the club on Monday we sat down to talk about the weekend before and the week ahead.
There was a lot of talk about what is expected of us and the importance of keeping things positive around the club was made clear – we can’t let this losing streak get to us as that will only make things worse.
We had another meeting on the Tuesday morning and some footage was shown of how hard the boys were working.
It was made clear that some of it wasn’t good enough and that this might be why results aren’t going our way, but the coach is good in how he shows us positives at the end of these meetings to keep spirits up.
And it was after this meeting that Micky dropped his bombshell.
The following day I met with one of the reserve coaches to look at my tape form the weekend before and both of us were pretty pleased.
He told me just to keep going the way I am and I should get my chance – it’s all about form from here on in and hopefully I can get that right sooner rather than later.
We had a good solid session on the Thursday but we got the bad news thereafter that Jarred McVeigh – in my opinion our best midfielder – would miss the Adelaide game with a shoulder injury. That was a massive blow for the team.
But the boys played some great stuff in the first half without him, and they went in at half time ahead.
I’m not sure what exactly happened in the second half, but we started to make some stupid mistakes and ended up going down by a couple of goals.
I’m not sure where that leaves us as a team and it puts us under massive pressure to reach the top eight.
With the seniors losing we were all fired up for our game in Canberra, but without some of our top players we were overpowered by Eastlake, the best team in the league.
It was a disappointing result, but I was happy overall with my own display and hopefully I’m just one step closer to senior selection.
That could still be a long way away though and I can’t afford to take my foot off the pedal!
2 comments July 2, 2009
Meredith putting in hard yards at the Kangaroos
A year ago, Laois star Conor Meredith was pretty sure that his AFL dream was going to materialise.
The Brisbane Lions were showing considerable interest in signing the Gaelic footballer and a subsequent trial at the club seemed almost certain to yield a contract.
But then, in just a short space of time, things changed.
Leigh Matthews departed and Michael Voss took the reins. Not only did the club delist Meredith’s compatriot Colm Begley, but they were no longer interested in acquiring the services of the then 19-year-old.
With Pearce Hanley left as the sole Irish representative at the Lions, Meredith was forced to look at other options.
Despite the setback, Meredith’s dream of pursuing an AFL career did eventuate.
Signed by North Melbourne after a successful showing in Ricky Nixon’s draft camp and a trial at the club, he hasn’t looked back.
And despite Melbourne proving itself to be a less sunny climate than the location he initially looked destined to make his home, he still gets asked by friends at home how he’s enjoying the weather.
“People at home are always asking if I’m going to the beach today or if I’ve been sunbathing,” he laughs.
The perception of Melbourne as an Australian city constantly basking in sunlight isn’t the only myth that Meredith finds himself fielding questions about from home.
The North Melbourne rookie says the speedy debuts of Collingwood’s Martin Clarke and more recently Essendon’s Michael Quinn has given a false impression of what’s required to make the top grade.
“Because those guys made it so quickly, people at home think that you can come over here and play straight away but it’s definitely not the case. People at home kind of think that you’re on holiday rather than being at work and it being your job.
“They ask me if it’s good craic at the weekends and am I out much, but to be honest I can’t remember the last time I had a big night out.
“I’ve played nine Sunday games in a row so there isn’t much time for going out.
“I think it’s been two-and-a-half months since I was out. It’s definitely a false impression that people have at home. Often people will ask me, ‘So will we see you on the telly?’. They don’t understand the amount of hard work that’s required before then.”
Meredith’s claims are certainly backed up by statistics. Out of nine Irish players currently on AFL books, only one player is playing senior football every week – Martin Clarke.
Essendon’s Michael Quinn made a startling debut in round two but has played just one game since, further emphasising how tough it is to keep a senior berth.
Setanta Ó hAilpín is also struggling to get his place having been promoted last weekend from the reserves to play just his third senior game for the year.
Even Colm Begley, who played 29 games with his former club the Brisbane Lions, has yet to make his senior debut with his new club St Kilda. The four other Irish recruits – Pearce Hanley, Brendan Murphy, Kevin Dyas and Brian Donnelly have yet to play a senior game in 2009.
“My parents [Kate and Noel] were over a few weeks ago and they really saw just how tough it is with early mornings and extra training sessions,” Meredith said.
“We do long days and often I’ll be staying behind putting in extra time with the development coaches when the other boys are going home so it’s pretty tough.
“All the time you’re just trying to get to the same level as the Australian players.”
So far, the 20-year-old’s hard work and lack of social life is certainly paying off.
Having started his Aussie rules career in reserves ‘reserves’, two weeks ago he was promoted to the first reserves. And by chance he faced his fellow countyman and compatriot Colm Begley when his side Werribbe met Sandringham in the VFL.
“I caught up with him after the game. I was playing half back and he was down back too so we didn’t bump into each other at all. It would have been good if we did but it didn’t happen,” Meredith laughs.
“He said that he thought I’d done really well considering it was my first game. He said he wouldn’t have known at all. He just said to keep working hard and enjoying it, which is the main thing. There’s a huge jump, even from the twos twos, so I can’t even imagine what the jump would be like to AFL level.”
Meredith said one of the most challenging aspects of his new sport is adapting to the full-bodied tackle.
“One of the main things I’ve been focusing on is my tackling. The tackling is pretty full on here. There’s a bit of a difference between being shouldered at home and getting knocked off course with your running to being taken down to the ground.”
But whenever the work load is tough or questions about his progress from home get frustrating, he has one inspiration he draws on.
“I always think of Tadhg Kennelly. It took him nearly two years and he turned into an amazing player.”
Watch this space.
by Catherine Murphy
Add comment June 11, 2009
Brendan Murphy Column :: Great to be back in Sydney
Sydney Swans’ Carlow rookie Brendan Murphy gives us the latest update on life in the AFL and his recovery from a shoulder injury.
This week, he’s back in Sydney and back in rehab…
Well I’m back in Oz and I’m looking forward to getting this shoulder right.
It was hard leaving home and saying my goodbyes again – although maybe I’m just a bit soft – but once I got on the plane there wasn’t be a bother on me.
My sister has come back over with me for a month too so it’ll be good to show her around the club and the set up we have.
The shoulder is feeling a lot better and I have a good amount of movement in it so hopefully I’m further ahead in terms of returning to the reserves than they thought I would be at this stage.
I think the main thing will be getting confidence back because I feel that unless I take a tackle or a big hit I’ll probably have it in the back of my head that maybe it’s not as strong as it was.
Only time will tell I suppose.
People have been asking me whether, if and when I get myself fit again and come home at the end of the season, will that be it and I’ll be home in Ireland for good?
I honestly believe I’ll be in Sydney in November again for another season is the answer to that.
I just can’t go home without playing a senior game.
The support I’ve received while I was at home was great and I’d really like to thank everyone for that.
There was talk that Kyle Coney may be returning to Australia on the same flight as me but that didn’t happen.
When I was back home I tried to hang around with the local footballers to feel part of things. I know I’ve said it before, and I’m probably annoying people now, but I love feeling like I’m part of the action in Sydney again.
I really enjoy being with the Swans, but the atmosphere with the boys here is just 10 times better just because most of them are your best friends and boys you’ve played alongside since you were chaps – they just share the passion for Rathvilly!
I’m just focused on getting myself back fit and getting my body right again.
I enjoyed myself at home without a doubt so I’m expecting a lot of black smoke!
The Swans are really in up and down form at the minute. I went to the game against Richmond at the weekend and it brought back the passion inside me to get a game in the seniors.
It’s good to be back among the boys and get a feel for the club again because when I’m back home in Ireland Australia just feels a million miles away – all I’m looking at is the boys playing Gaelic football so I’m not really thinking about playing AFL at all.
The boys won in the end by 19 points but really should have hammered them early in the game.
That’s the challenge they’re finding hard to get over at the minute. We’ve won three and lost three but we really should have a few more wins under our belt.
The players got a bit of a blasting off the coach, so I’m sure they’ll turn things around.
The players know the level they have to get to to chase the leaders. St Kilda are the team to beat at the minute with six wins from six, but we should have beaten them in round one so it just shows that when we play well we can stay with any team in the AFL.
I’m going to be alone now a lot of the time as when I’m doing weights the boys will be training and vice versa. That’ll be a challenge in itself. There’s tough times ahead for me.
I’d like to say congratulations to Sean O’Brien and Bernard Jackman on their great win against Munster in the Heineken Cup semi-final – an unbelievable performance and win and hope they can go all the way and bring the cup back home!
Add comment May 14, 2009
Murphy joins Barbarians for Sydney Test
Leicester and Ireland full-back Geordan Murphy has been unveiled as the latest addition to the Barbarians side set to lock horns with the Wallabies in Sydney next month.
The ‘united nations of rugby’ unveiled the latest additions to their squad to face Australia at the Sydney Football Stadium on June 6, including All Black Chris Jack, Springbok BJ Botha and English utility back Iain Balshaw.
The Barbarians squad already includes former Wallaby and Leinster forward Rocky Elsom, former England skipper Martin Corry and Bulldogs rugby league convert Sonny Bill Williams.
Murphy is the only Irish player to named in the touring party so far.
Add comment May 7, 2009
Brendan Murphy Column :: En route back to Oz – with Kyle Coney?
Sydney Swans’ Carlow rookie Brendan Murphy gives us the latest update on life in the AFL and his recovery from a shoulder injury.
This week, he makes his way back to Sydney after a few weeks off in Ireland…
“Well I’m heading back to Oz on Friday and although I’m looking forward to getting back and getting this shoulder right I’m dreading the thought of saying goodbye all over again.
It’s hard leaving – although maybe I’m just a bit soft – but once I get on the plane there won’t be a bother on me. My sister is coming over with me for a month too so it’ll be good to show her around the club and the set up we have.
The shoulder is feeling a lot better and I have a good amount of movement in it so hopefully I’m further ahead in terms of returning to the reserves than they thought I would be at this stage.
I think the main thing will be getting confidence back because I feel that unless I take a tackle or a big hit I’ll probably have it in the back of my head that maybe it’s not as strong as what it was. Only time will tell I suppose.
People have been asking me that if and when I get myself fit again and come home at the end of the season, will that be it and I’ll be home in Ireland for good?
I honestly believe I’ll be heading back to Sydney in November again for another season is the answer to that. I just can’t go home without playing a senior game.
The support I’ve received while being at home has been great and I’d really like to thank everyone for that.
There has been talk that Kyle Coney may be returning to Australia on the same flight as me but I’ll just have to wait and see. I think both he and the club were keen for him to come back though.
Since I’ve been back home I’ve tried to hang around with the local footballers here to feel part of things. I know I’ve said it before, and I’m probably annoying people now, but I can’t wait to feel part of the action in Sydney again.
I really enjoy being with the Swans, but the atmosphere with the boys here is just 10 times better just because most of them are your best friends and boys you’ve played alongside since you were chaps – they just share the passion for Rathvilly!
One thing I am raging about is that I’ll be missing is the Heineken Cup semi-final. Now I’d be the first to admit that I’m not a big rugby person, but I don’t think there’s many people not going to tune into this massive game!
Hopefully there will be no delay with the flights and I might be able to grab the second half once I get back.
Lastly, I’d like to wish Sean O’Brien and Bernard Jackman the best of luck – it would be great to see them reach the final!”
1 comment April 28, 2009
Roos offers Coney chance to rehab injury in Sydney
SYDNEY Swans coach Paul Roos has said Kyle Coney is welcome to do his rehabilitation from a recent shoulder injury at the club if he decides he would like to be a Swan.
The Tyrone man decided to stay in Ireland after Christmas despite being just months into his international rookie contract with the club.
However, his time playing Gaelic football back in Ireland hasn’t gone to plan with shoulder surgery ruling him out for the entire 2009 season.
“If he wants to return we’ll fly him back out and he can rehab here,” Roos said.
“But if he stays back there, their doctor will put a programme in place and we won’t have much involvement with his rehab.”
Despite not knowing whether the Tyrone teenager will return Down Under, the club has been monitoring him since hearing news of his injury.
“Gibbsy (Sydney Swans’ team doctor Nathan Gibbs) knows the surgeon that’s operating on Kyle. He’s top class so, as for the operation, he’s being really well looked after.”
What’s more, Roos is still hopeful that the 2008 All-Ireland winning minor captain could decide to return to Sydney.
“We’re still talking to Kyle. We understand he’s young and it’s hard so we’ll still try and hopefully convince him to come back out here.”
As for Irish rookie Brendan Murphy, who is currently in Ireland also recovering from shoulder surgery, Roos said the club had been insistent on him spending time at home during what is a difficult time for the Carlow man.
“We were really pushing for him to go back home for a three-week period because we know how hard it is to be out here. But to then get injured is hard. He’s only out here to play footy, for no other reason, so when he’s not playing footy it becomes frustrating.”
Roos also confirmed that the club had been quick to reassure the former Gaelic footballer that he was still a big part of the club’s plans despite his badly timed injury.
“We spoke to him before he got on the plane to reassure him that we still see him as an important part of the club because he’s a rookie and he’s out of contract.
“So the message we gave Brendan is that unless something dramatic happens he’ll definitely be here at the end of the year and next year. There’s no 100 per cent guarantees but what we’ve said to him is that we see him as part of the future, so I’d be absolutely staggered if he wasn’t here next year.
“I certainly rate him and see him being here for five to 10 years, so I think that peace of mind getting on a plane, knowing he’s not rehabbing for nothing and knowing he’s really got something to come back to, and he’s got a potential career in AFL.
“We’re really leaving him alone a bit because for the first three weeks you can’t do too much with your shoulder. It’s a great time for him to just see his family and his friends and enjoy himself without the pressures of AFL and where he’s going. Then when he gets back he can get stuck into his rehab.”
Roos also revealed that the club’s woes with their Irish players in 2009 won’t put them off possible recruitment of Irish players for season 2010.
“We’ve still got an interest over there. It really depends on the talent and calibre and whether they want to come so we’ll continue our recruiting process over there.”
Add comment April 24, 2009
Hanley elevated to Lions’ senior list
Mayo rookie Pearce Hanley has been elevated to the senior list at the Brisbane Lions and looks set to play a part in this weekend’s AFL round five clash with Geelong.
Hanley, who made is senior debut late last year, had reverted to the rookie list this season and is yet to make a first grade appearance.
However, injuries to Michael Voss’s squad mean the Mayo man will get a chance to play regular first team football in the coming weeks – starting with the daunting task of taking on the Cats at Skilled Stadium.
Ball up at in Geelong is set for 11.10am on Sunday morning.
Add comment April 24, 2009
Marty Clarke targets Premiership glory for Magpies
Tadhg Kennelly’s departure from the Sydney Swans left a void. The Kerryman had been a leader and a go-to figure for the crop of young Irish AFL recruits ploughing their furrow Down Under.
At only 21 years of age, Martin Clarke’s success at Collingwood has made him the obvious successor for the title. Albeit somewhat reluctant about the tag, Clarke says he’s keen to offer a helping hand to anyone who might need it.
“I don’t really look at it like that, in terms of being number one, but anything that I can do for any of the young boys like Michael Quinn (the Essendon Bombers’ newest sensation), I will.
“I suppose I’m one Irish player who’s playing regularly at their club now. Tadhg was obviously a fair way ahead of all of us, with winning the Premiership and being the main player at Sydney. I look up to him greatly and wish him all the best now that he’s gone back,” Clarke said.
With nine players on the books at AFL clubs this year, Clarke is hoping this will be an exciting year for the Irish.
“It would be great if we could make a big mark in the competition together. I don’t think any one of us will care who’s the best. Just as long as we can play well at our clubs and have successful careers.
“It’s great if the likes of Michael look up to me. But hopefully he’s thinking ‘I want to be better than Marty Clarke, I want to be the number one Irish player’.”
As well as hoping for a successful year for the Irish boys, the former Down minor is confident that his Magpies can achieve big things.
Having suffered a narrow four-point defeat to the Adelaide Crows in their season opener, in which Clarke kicked two goals and amassed 20 disposals, the Pies bounced back for their round two clash against Melbourne at the weekend winning by a whopping 53-points.
Clarke racked up 22 disposals in that game, but he’s more keen to focus on how the squad is coming along than on his own personal stats.
“We want to finish in the top four to give ourselves a real chance of going for a Premiership. And I suppose there’s no need to be tentative in saying we want to win it because we’ve come close enough in the last few years.
“We’ve improved on our list this year we think and there’s a lot of hunger in the side. That’s our main goal. To win a Premiership.”
Having excelled in the club’s pre-season NAB Cup campaign and opening rounds of the season proper Clarke admits that his biggest focus in the lead up to the 2009 competition was to avoid the early season slump he suffered last year.
Dropped for rounds two and three in 2008, he regained form in the reserves to win his place back and played every game for the rest of the year.
“Last year when I got dropped I thought it was coming because I didn’t have a great pre-season. I moved into the midfield and I probably wasn’t as comfortable there and maybe my intensity did drop off a bit.
“In my first pre-season I did a lot of extras and stayed back because I thought that I had a lot to do to catch up with these boys and maybe last year I didn’t have that mindset and thought I was able to get my place here.
“But I was wrong and I thank Mick Malthouse for dropping me for two games and making me earn my place and I suppose get my hunger back for it.
“This year I was really keen to keep my hunger up and I still have in my head that I’m catching up with these boys. This year I’ve been trying to get the best of myself to ensure that doesn’t happen.”
While Clarke’s rise to senior ranks at Collingwood was rapid, that of his compatriot Kevin Dyas has been more problematic.
Last year a serious hamstring injury not only required the Irish rookie to go under the knife but it ended his season prematurely. While the Armagh man is still a few weeks away from making a comeback for the reserves, Clarke is confident he’ll make a successful return and draw attention.
“He’s improved a lot in recent weeks. It’s been frustrating for him because it’s a pretty serious injury so it was always going to be long term, but in the last few weeks he’s been training with the main group again.
“He’s not able to fully sprint 100 per cent and tackle or run out a full game but he’s kicking well again so he should be back in the Collingwood reserves in a few weeks.
“Everyone expects him to push for senior selection soon. It would be great to have a small defender in there who can use the ball well. So hopefully he stays clear of injury and it will be Armagh and Down kicking it to each other down back.”
by Catherine Murphy
1 comment April 9, 2009
