SPORTS DESK/Sean Creedon
A few weeks back GAA players and media alike were dismissing the Mayo footballers and talking about a Cork-Kerry All-Ireland semifinal. Knowing Mayo's record at Croke Park in recent years I was probably as guilty as anyone else. So while most people were speculating on the possibility of yet another semifinal meeting between those great Munster rivals, Mayo surprised the media and more importantly surprised Cork in the quarterfinal.
Earlier that afternoon at Croke Park, Kerry looked very impressive against Limerick, but you have to take into account that this Limerick team is not a patch of the team that gave Kerry some great games in Munster a few years back. Now the talk is of a first Dublin-Kerry final since 1985 and no doubt Mayo manager James Moran will be plastering those newspaper cuttings on the walls in the Mayo dressing room on Sunday next before his players run out to play Kerry in the first of this year's semifinals.
I think this Mayo team is capable of putting up a good performance, but Kerry has so many options. They can bring Kieran Donaghy out to midfield if necessary and there was speculation last week that Eoin Brosnan could be dropped and used as an impact sub if Anthony Maher and Bryan Sheehan cannot cope with the O'Shea brothers Aidan and Seamus. Incidentally the O'Shea's father is from Kerry. But I think Brosnan is safe and the man likely to lose out in defence could be Aidan O'Mahony. Darran O'Sullivan, who scored that spectacular goal against Limerick, went off injured in that game, but thanks to cryotherapy treatment in Ennis the Glenbeigh man is now back training with Kerry. In previous meetings with Kerry Mayo often depended too much on play-maker Ciaran McDonald. Now the men from the West seem a more balanced team. If all results went to form life would be very boring and thankfully there have been a few upsets this year. Still I think the current Kerry machine will be too slick for Mayo. To avoid a clash of colours Kerry will wear their alternative blue strip with Mayo opting for a predominantly red jersey.
FITZGERALD KEEPS MUM
Davy Fitzgerald is not making any rash decisions about his future with the Waterford hurlers or saying whether he is interested in the vacancy in his native Clare. Fitzgerald won two All-Ireland hurling medals in goal for the Banner in 1995 and 1997 and naturally he would love to manage his own county, who are without a manager since Ger "Sparrow" O'Loughlin quit last month. His term with Waterford is up and the likelikhood is that he will move on after four years, but at this stage nobody knows if it will be to Clare. Following the All-Ireland semifinal defeat to Kilkenny ten days ago Fitzgerald was in an emotional state, saying, ''I'm exhausted, I can't even think about tomorrow. All I want to do now is to go home, relax and chill out.''
In Galway, under 21 football manager Alan Mulholland is favorite to take charge of the senior team next year after the Football Board dispensed with the services of Tomás O Flatharta last week. The latter, who had previously managed Westmeath, had a poor first season in charge with Galway relegated to division two of the League, losing in the Connacht championship to Mayo and going out of the qualifiers at the first hurdle to Meath. Sligo's Galway-born manager Kevin Walsh may also be in the reckoning, but it looks like Mulholland will get the job if he wants it.
Elsewhere Seamus McEneaney seems certain to continue as Meath football manager for another 12 months. Liam Harnan and Barry Callaghan, who both quit as Meath selectors around the time McEneaney brought back Graham Geraghty, are expected to make a statement at a County Board meeting next month on the real reasons why they quit.
Armagh club delegates will decide at a County Board meeting next month whether to offer Paddy O'Rourke a third year in charge of the Orchard County.
CUNNINGHAM IS TIPPED IN CORK
Former goalkeeper Ger Cunningham is favorite to replace Denis Walsh as Cork hurling manager. Walsh is officially still the manager, but it's expected that the County Board will drop Walsh and bring in Cunningham next month.
TRAP PREPARES FORSEPT. 2 EUROPEAN TIE
Republic of Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni would not have learnt much from the scoreless draw against Croatia at the Aviva Stadium last week. It wasn't a vintage performance by the Irish in their new-look green jerseys and at this stage it looks like there won't be any major surprises in the line-up for the European Championship qualifier against Slovakia in Dublin on Sept. 2. Trap did hint that Stephen Ward might end Kevin Kilbane's great run at left back. The only positive to come out of the game was yet another clean sheet, the fifth consecutive game that we have not conceded a goal. Meanwhile Northern Ireland gave themselves a glimmer of hope of getting a play-off place for the Euro 2012 finals with a 4-0 win over the Brian Kerr's Faroe Islands in Belfast.
CANNACHT GETS CAR SUPPORT
Connacht Rugby has signed a major sponsorship deal with motor company Mazda ahead of their Heineken Cup debut in November. Mazda will invest over €1.5 million in the province over the next three years as part of deal that will facilitate the development of both Mazda and Connacht Rugby.
We are getting plenty of rain in Ireland this summer, yet the annual Liffey Descent Canoe race is being postponed, due to lack of water. The race, which starts in Straffan, Co. Kildare, and ends in Islandbridge, dates back to 1960 and is normally held on the second Saturday of September, but this year it's being put back to Oct. 8. The flood for the event is provided by the ESB through the release of water from its upstream reservoirs. But now the ESB say that reservoir levels are currently at a 35-year low and they will not be in a position to release water to facilitate this year's event in September.
CAREFUL HOW YOU TWEET: GAA
Several GAA players now have Twitter accounts and the GAA is expected to issue general guidelines on Twitter use in the coming weeks. Meanwhile Kerry County Board chairman Jerome Conway has called on intercounty players who have a gripe with refereeing decisions to show restraint when using Twitter. Conway said: ''Players must be more restrained and more responsible when using sites such as Twitter. Players need to realize that what they say on Twitter is going to make its way into the press. There is a certain responsibility on players. Up to now, players and managers have been responsible when they're facing the press after games.''
