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Hard to see past a Kerry-Dublin All-Ireland final

GAAGO in the spotlight at Oireachtas committee today while Shamrock Rovers face uphill task after Champions League defeat

Tyrone’s Conor Meyler under pressure against Kerry. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho

Wed Jul 12 2023 - 11:12

You can always rely on a Kerry man to speak in riddles, especially when it comes to football, and Darragh Ó Sé doesn’t let us down in his column looking ahead to this weekend’s All-Ireland semi-finals. “Of course no team is unbeatable at any stage of the championship, least of all in an All-Ireland semi-final ... but if you’re asking me whether I can see Derry or Monaghan winning, then the answer is no.” Kerry-Dublin final it is so.

With an eye to the same matches, former Dublin star Cian O’Sullivan is wondering what is driving the will to win in Dessie Farrell’s current team - it might just be something his teams never had a chance to use: the desire to prove the naysayers wrong. “You are off the back of getting demoted to Division Two, Dublin haven’t won an All-Ireland in two years, there are plenty of questions asked of the team, so is that the motivating force and the driving force among the squad?”

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Ahead of the GAA’s appearance before the Oireachtas today, where they are likely to be met with some stiff questioning on GAAGO, Seán Moran has some advice for the association’s representatives – keep the defence tight. “The idea that the GAA should compromise its ability to earn commercial revenue so that people can sit at home and watch matches for free is hardly reasonable or realistic.”

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In soccer, in the first qualifying round of the Champions League, Shamrock Rovers suffered a disappointing home defeat to the talented Icelandic side Breiðablik – a team boasting 10 internationals – but Rovers still have the second leg to rescue the situation. St Pat’s travel to Luxembourg to face F91 Dudelange in their Europa Conference League first-round qualifier tonight.

The World Cup is inching closer by the day, but if you thought Ireland’s preparations were a bit fraught given the firestorm currently around Vera Pauw, wait until you hear about their group rival Nigeria’s tribulations. Ademola Olajire, the communications director for Nigerian football, got in a war of words with head coach Randy Waldrum, labelling him “Mr Blabbermouth” and “the worst coach to have handled the Super Falcons of Nigeria, by a country mile”. So preparations seem to be going well...

At Wimbledon the women provided a shock, as wild card Elina Svitolina stunned top seed Iga Swiatek to move into the semi-finals, while Novak Djokovic predictably marched on with a win against No 7 seed Andrey Rubleva. It is now just over 10 years since Djokovic last lost a match on Centre Court.

Johnny Watterson provides us with a slightly different Wimbledon story, about how the club is looking to secure its future with some expansion. “The club bought the land from Merton Council in 1993 for £5.1 million and, in 2018, offered the golf club £65 million to end its lease early. The deal was accepted, with every member of the club, including television celebrities such as Ant and Dec, receiving £85,000 in exchange for finding a new place to play golf.”

ON TV

CYCLING – Eurosport 1, noon-5pm; ITV4, 2pm-5.05pm; TG4, 1.25pm-5.05pm Tour de France

TENNIS – BBC 2, 1pm-8pm; BBC 1, 12.15pm-1pm, 1.45pm-6pm; Premier Sports, 11am-9pm Wimbledon

CRICKET – BT Sport 1 from 2.30pm – 1st Test, D1 West Indies v India

SOCCER – LOI TV 6.30pm; F91 Dudelange v St Patrick’s Athletic