Irish Sports News
GAA Club Championships
All Ireland Senior Hurling Final
Ballygunner backed up their 2021 All-Ireland win, reclaiming the Tommy Moore cup with a stylish performance to defeat Loughrea. The Galway champions stayed in touch early and even led briefly through Darren Shaughnessy’s first half goal, but missed chances and key saves from man-of-the-match Stephen O’Keeffe proved costly. Mikey Mahony’s superb solo goal early in the second half gave Ballygunner breathing space, and from there the Munster champions took over, outscoring Loughrea 1-08 to 0-06 after the interval. Pauric Mahony finished strongly with eight points as Ballygunner pulled clear late on to win by six, becoming just the fourth Munster club to claim multiple All-Ireland senior hurling titles.
All Ireland Senior Football Final
Dingle claimed their first All-Ireland Club SFC title in an epic Croke Park final, edging St Brigid’s after extra time thanks to a dramatic late winner from substitute Mikey Geaney. In a classic that swung back and forth, Ruaidhrí Fallon starred for the Roscommon champions with 1-06, including a stunning two-pointer to force extra time, but the Kerry champions refused to give up. Inter county stars Dylan Geaney (0-6) and Tom O’Sullivan (0-5) stepped up with some crucial scores to clinch the Andy Merrigan cup.
Pre Season Inter-County Football Round Up
McGrath Cup Final
Cork 0-16 v Kerry 0-15
McKenna Cup Final
Donegal 2-17 v Monaghan 0-11
FBD League Cup Final
Galway 2-12 v Mayo 1-14
FBD League Shield Final
London 3-12 v Leitrim 1-09
FBD League Plate Final
Sligo 1-18 v Roscommon 2-14
O’Byrne Cup Final
Westmeath 1-18 v Kildare 1-16
O’Byrne Shield Final
Carlow 2-13 v Wicklow 1-07
Pre Season Inter-County Hurling Round Up
Walsh Cup Final
Dublin 2-13 Galway 1-16 (Galway won 2-1 on penalties)
Walsh Cup Shield Final
Kilkenny 1-20 v Kildare 2-13
Munster League Final
Limerick 0-23 v Waterford 0-15
Conor McGurk Cup Final
Derry 1-14 v Donegal 0-16
Kehoe Cup
Wicklow 0-16 v Meath 3-06
Boxing
Kellie Harrington marked a successful return to competitive boxing by winning the 60kg title at the National Elite Championships in Dublin, adding another domestic honour to her decorated career. The finals also belonged to some of Ireland’s most recognisable names, with Aoife O’Rourke claiming the 75kg crown, Michaela Walsh lifting a record 14th elite title at 57kg, and world medallists Grainne Walsh and Patsy Joyce both securing victories in their respective divisions. Jack Marley completed the list of headline winners by taking the heavyweight title on a strong night for Irish boxing.
League of Ireland
James McClean has rejoined Derry City on a multi-year deal following his departure from Wrexham, returning to the club where he began his career. The 36-year-old, who previously spent three seasons with Derry and won the First Division title in 2010 before going on to play in the Premier League and EFL, most recently captaining Wrexham during their back-to-back promotions to the Championship. McClean who represented his country over 100 times, will link up again with his brother Patrick at the Brandywell and says he is motivated to help end Derry’s long wait for a League of Ireland title.