Cork hurling manager Jimmy Barry-Murphy welcomes back All Star goalkeeper Anthony Nash for Sunday’s Division One B match with Offaly in Páirc Uí Rinn. Nash’s rotation with Darren McCarthy is one of seven changes to the team that defeated Laois.
Also in are Killian Murphy, dual players Eoin Cadogan and Aidan Walsh. Eoin Keane, who was prominent for Cork IT in their march to last weekend’s Fitzgibbon Cup final, Daniel Kearney and fit-again Conor Lehane.
Tipperary host All-Ireland champions Clare in Semple Stadium on Sunday. Manager Eamon O'Shea makes two changes to the side which lost a 10-goal shoot-out with league holders Kilkenny two weeks ago. Conor O'Mahony and Shane Bourke come in to replace Thomas Stapleton and Conor O'Brien, as Tipp aim to reprise their big Waterford Crystal final success against Clare.
Two changes
All-Ireland football champions Dublin make two changes to the side which last week lost for the first time in nearly a year in the league, to Cork. Paul Flynn, who strained a muscle in the warm-up before that match, is back in the team at right wing forward.
Jack McCaffrey also comes in at right wing back in place of Eric Lowndes for the visit of Kildare to Croke Park tomorrow evening.
Tyrone manager Mickey Harte makes five changes to the team that somehow beat Kildare last Sunday. PJ Quinn, Danny McBride – more familiar at centerfield this season – and Ronan McNabb come at corner back and on both wings, respectively in place of Aidan McCrory, Ciarán McGinley and Ryan McKenna.
Shay McGuigan and Patrick McNiece are recalled to the attack with Conan Grugan and Connor McAliskey reverting to the bench. Seán Cavanagh starts at centrefield instead of left wing forward.
Brian McIver makes just one change to the Derry team, which travels to Cork for a top-of-the-table clash with the leaders. Patsy Bradley comes into the team at centrefield in place of Benny Herron. In a positional switch Mark Lynch moves from the middle to centre forward, as the team attempt a second successful raid on Munster, having taken both points in Killarney last month.
Champions
Meanwhile Creggan Kickhams from Antrim were yesterday confirmed as All-Ireland junior club hurling champions. They defeated Ballysaggart from Waterford after a replay last month but the beaten finalists challenged the outcome on the basis that Creggan had fielded two players who were ineligible under Rule 6.16, as they had both been eligible to play at under-16 level in 2013.
The Ulster champions countered that they hadn’t fielded the players until 2014, the year in which they would turn 17. The argument against them was that the championship had to be governed by the rules in place at its start, last year.
Ballysaggart’s objection wasn’t lodged in time and so any hopes the club had of being awarded the title were in vain although they maintained all along that they wanted a re-match of the final – something that wasn’t within the gift of the GAA’s Central Competitions Control Committee.
As the matter was one of general interest the CCCC decided to launch an investigation into the claims that the winners had fielded ineligible players. The difference between an objection and investigation is that had the latter found against Creggan the club would simply have been stripped of its title but Ballysaggart wouldn’t have been awarded it.
The committee is believed to have concluded that the rule governing the situation is so ambiguous that it would have been open to challenge had the CCCC moved to take the All-Ireland from Creggan, who it was also felt had acted in good faith by waiting until the turn of the year to include the young players in their match selection.
Instead the GAA's Central Council will be asked to issue a binding interpretation for next season's club championships and the matter will then be dealt with by the Rules Advisory Committee, who can bring a tightened-up re-drafting of the rule to next year's congress.
TYRONE (NFL v Kerry): N Morgan; P J Quinn, C Clarke, B Tierney; D McBride, P Harte, R McNabb; C Cavanagh, S Cavanagh; E McKenna, R O'Neill, S McGuigan; D McCurry, M Donnelly, P McNeice.
TIPPERARY (NHL team v Clare): D Gleeson; P Stapleton, C O'Mahony, C Barrett; S McGrath, P Maher, M Cahill; B Maher, J Woodlock; K Bergin, N McGrath, P Murphy, J Forde, S Callanan, S Bourke.
DUBLIN (NFL v Kildare): S Cluxton; S George, P McMahon, M Fitzsimons; J McCaffrey, J McCarthy, J Cooper; C O'Sullivan, M D Macauley; P Flynn, C Kilkenny, B Cullen; K McManamon, C Reddin, C Costello.
CORK (NHL v Offaly): A Nash; S O'Neill, S McDonnell, K Murphy; E Cadogan, E Keane, W Egan; M Ellis, L McLoughlin; D Kearney, S Harnedy, A Walsh; P Horgan, C Lehane, S Moylan.
WEXFORD (NHL v Limerick): M Fanning; K Rossiter, M O'Hanlon, B Kenny; W Devereux, L Chin, É Martin; D O'Keeffe, H Kehoe; S Tomkins, P Morris, I Byrne; J Guiney, G Moore, Liam Og McGovern.
DERRY (NFL v Cork): T Mallon; M Craig, C McKaigue, D McBride; K Johnston, A McAlynn, SL McGoldrick; F Doherty, P Bradley; C McFaul, M Lynch, E Lynn; J Kielt, E McGuckin, C O'Boyle.
