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The most frustrating time of the GAA year
The Downs retained their Westmeath SFC title on Sunday last. A fine achievement for any team at any time, but, in the one seeing eye of this neutral observer it becomes even more significant when you factor the travails experienced by the mercurially talented Luke Loughlin both in terms of sporting injuries and the difficulties…
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Selections for Curragh – Oct. 15th 2026
1.02: KINDACAN – EW – (BEN COEN/JOHNNY MURTAGH) 1.37: AMIATA – EW – (COLIN KEANE/GER LYONS) 2.12: CELESTIAL ORDER – EW – (CHRIS HAYES/NATALIA LUPINI) 2.47: SUIR MONAD (SAM COEN (5)/ANDY SLATTERY) 3.22: ALMAZAAN (CHRIS HAYES/DERMOT WELD) 3.57: ALFALFA – EW – (BILLY LEE/TIM DOYLE) 4.32: MARY SHOELACES – EW – (JESSICA O’GORMAN (4*)/E. +…
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Selections for Punchestown – Oct. 14th 2026
1.35: LUNAR STRIDE (KEVIN SEXTON/GAVIN CROMWELL) 2.10: APACHE PEAK – EW – (DANNY GILLIGAN/ROSS O’SULLIVAN) 2.45: THE DOTSKI (DARRAGH O’KEEFFE/HENRY DE BROMHEAD) 3.20: ELUSIVE OGIE – EW – (JACK KENNEDY/EOIN MCCARTHY) 3.55: BUNTING (PAUL TOWNEND/WILLIE MULLINS) 4.30: GORGEOUS TOM (DARRAGH O’KEEFFE/HENRY DE BROMHEAD) 5,07: AUREA FORTUNA (FINNY MAGUIRE/TONY MARTIN) 5.40: FRISCO BELLE (JOHN GLEESON/HENRY DE…
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Selections for Punchestown – Oct. 13th 2026
1.35: DANNY POWER (MARK WALSH/JOHN QUEALLY) 2.10: CHANTILLY WINGS – EW – (CARL MILLAR (5)/CIAN COLLINS) 2.45: SAMUI (JACK KENNEDY/GORDON ELLIOTT) 3.20: PILGRIMS WALK – EW – (CONOR CLARKE (7)/PHILIP ROTHWELL) 3 55: DOCTOR ELVIS (JACK KENNEDY/GORDON ELLIOTT) 4.30: GRANLAHAN (DARRAGH O’KEEFFE/ADO MCGUINNESS) 5.07: LEO MESSI – EW – (JAMES SMITH (3)/T0M GIBNEY) 5.40: SHUIL…
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Mrs Michelle Mitchell – A Tribute
Every writer will tell you, at some point there will be an assignment you don’t want to do. Dread doing. In fact, dread the thought of it even appearing on the horizon is recoiled from. To flesh out the point with a few less serious examples – in an overall sense – think of Sean…
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Selections for Roscommon – Oct. 12th 2026
1.30: A GOOD YARN – EW – (WAYNE LORDAN/AIDAN HOWARD) 2.00: CONTRARY TO LAW – EW – (BEN COEN/JOHNNY MURTAGH) 2.30: BUTTERMERE RIDGE – EW – (DIEGO LIMA/OLIVER MCKERNAN) 3.00: CISTERNA – EW – (JIMMY DALTON (7)/ANDY SLATTERY) 3.30: BIG CYPRESS (DYLAN B. MCMONAGLE/JOSEPH O’BRIEN) 4.00: MINELLA ROCKETT (REESE HOLOHAN (5)/JOHN NALLEN) 4.30: RAKKI –…
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Lorcan Byrnes through Kiltale as ten-star Doyle makes it lucky 13 for blues
KILMESSAN…0-22 KILTALE…0-15 When I was growing up and not properly attuned to all things GAA – even in Meath – it appeared that Kilmessan and Trim met every year in the SHC Final. And, at that particular point in time, Trim always seemed to win. Understandable too, given that at the time it was a…
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Selections for Naas – Oct. 11th 2026
1.20: ITA FLORENCE (SEAMIE HEFFERNAN/JIM BOLGER) 1.56: BENGAL TIGER (RYAN MOORE/AIDAN O’BRIEN) 2.30: DAWNMORE (SEAMIE HEFFERNAN/JIM BOLGER) 3.05: GLYFADA – EW – (GAVIN RYAN/DONNACHA O’BRIEN) 3.40: CAUGHT U SLEEPING – EW – (COLIN KEANE/NOEL MEADE) 4.15: GALILEO DAME – EW – (CHRIS HAYES/JOSEPH O’BRIEN) 4.50: SENNAS GIRL – EW – (MEL SHERIDAN/DIEGO DIAS) 5.25: VANIR…
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Selections for Cork – Oct. 11th 2026
1.02: WORLD OF THE WAY (DARRAGH O’KEEFFE/HENRY DE BROMHEAD) 1.37: ATOMIC CITY (MARK WALSH/JOSEPH O’BRIEN) 2.12: GORTMORE LADY – EW – (EOIN WALSH/CIARAN MURPHY) 2.47: CONORSALWAYSRIGHT (DARRAGH O’KEEFFE/PHILIP ROTHWELL) 3.22: DAD SEZ (KEVIN HEALY (7)/GORDON ELLIOTT) 3.57: NED IN THE PARK (DAVID DOYLE (5)/TIM DOYLE) 4.32: MIC DROP (SEAN FLANAGAN/DAVID M. O’BRIEN) 5.07: PASSENGER (FINNY…
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The Nuke disarmed but Cool Hand still has the force
Major breaking news people: Luke Littler is, in fact, human. Rumours to that effect circulated when the Warrington man lost out on a clean sweep of all the available top titles against Johnny Clayton. They were then endorsed when the phenomenon who is, incredibly, still a teenager, was summarily ejected from the World Grand Prix…
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