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A football tournament for players of a certain vintage

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1 year ago

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Players getting stuck in at the Tommy Griffin Tournament in Dingle. Photo: Aidan Fitzgerald.

by Adam Moynihan

Eighteen teams from Galway, Laois, Armagh, Cork, Dublin and Kerry will compete in this year’s Tommy Griffin Over 35 Football Tournament, which takes place on Saturday (November 9) in Dingle.

The event, which has been running since 2012, has become a popular feature of the local sporting calendar for footballers of a certain vintage. Speaking to the Killarney Advertiser this week, Tommy explained how the competition came about.

“A few of us were in the bar one night talking about kicking a bit of ball,” the former Kerry player said. “Fellas had retired by that time, so we said we’d try to gather a few lads from old teams. We made some enquiries and there was a bit of interest. We managed to gather eight teams the first year.

“Séamus Moynihan was a real driving force behind it in fairness to him. He brought a Sem team for years. We got teams from Cork and Dublin as well, and it grew from there.”

In the 2024 edition, a total of 26 matches will be staged at two venues: Páirc an Ághasaigh (the home grounds of Dingle GAA) and Pobalscoil Chorca Dhuibhne. Each team will be guaranteed at least two games with the losers from Round 1 going through to the Shield.

Just as important as the football itself is the social aspect of the tournament. “It’s a social weekend with a bit of football thrown in,” Tommy jokes.

“It’s a great way of meeting up with lads you haven’t seen in years, and a great way of meeting lads you might have played against but never met. Shane Ryan (the former Dublin footballer) has been down a couple of times and the first time I met him was in the bar after the tournament, even though I actually marked him a few times.

“And there are lads who never played county level who get a chance to play against these county players. Stuff like that is good.”

Tommy, who won five All-Ireland medals during a stellar intercounty career, says the support of local businesses makes a big difference.

“We kind of fund it ourselves but suppliers for the bar (Muiris Dan’s) and Deirdre and Micheál from The Fish Box restaurant have always been very good to us. It’s great to get support from Denis Murphy from GMIB.ie as well.”

The SMERC recovery truck will be on site in Páirc an Ághasaigh to help players get the bodies right between games. After all, while they might be looking forward to their couple of pints later in the evening, they’re still competitive sportsmen.

“Ah look, it’s a bit of craic to start off,” Tommy notes, “but when the ball is thrown in, there’s always a bit of needle in it.”

PARTICIPATING TEAMS: Clann Éireann (Armagh), Claregalway (Galway), Cork Vets, Currow, Dohenys (Cork), Dr Crokes, Duhallow (Cork), Gneeveguilla, John Mitchels, Kerry Masters, Portlaoise (Laois), Raheny (Dublin), Rathmore, Russell Rovers (Cork), Spa, St Pat’s, Stradbally (Laois), Tuosist.

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Home cup tie for St Paul’s could be epic

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3 weeks ago

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7 November 2025

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Paudie O’Connor National Cup (Round 1)

Utility Trust St Paul’s v GCU Brunell

Saturday 7.30pm

Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre

The St Paul’s women’s team will be hoping to get their National Cup adventure off the ground on Saturday when they welcome 2024 champions Brunell to Killarney. Tip-off in the Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre is at 7.30pm.

Paul’s have displayed some fine early season form, although their unbeaten start in the Super League came to an abrupt end last weekend when they lost to the Trinity Meteors in Dublin. James Fleming’s side weren’t at their best on the day but they were well in contention heading into the final quarter with the scores at 47-45 in favour of the hosts. The Meteors pushed on in the fourth, however, eventually running out 63-53 winners.

St Paul’s scorers on the night were Maisie Burnham (13), Tara Cousins (12), Lorraine Scanlon (12), Lovisa Hevinder (9), Denise Dunlea (5) and Leah McMahon (2).

The Killarney club are now joint second in the table alongside the Meteors with both teams holding a 4-1 record. Killester are top having won each of their first five games.

Paul’s opponents on Saturday, Brunell, have won three out of five league matches so far.

LAKERS

The Utility Trust St Paul’s Lakers have now won three of their last four games in Division 1 of the Men’s National League following an impressive home victory over Moycullen in Killarney.

Eoin Carroll and Jack O’Sullivan made significant contributions of the Boys in Black; Carroll hit 17 points and collected 13 rebounds while O’Sullivan had 14 points, 12 rebounds and some spectacular blocks.

Steve Kelly posted 30 points and the durable Sam Grant played every second, adding 21 points along the way.

The Lakers started well before the visitors found their footing and the sides went in level at the half-time break after scores by home captain Carroll. There was still nothing to separate the teams entering the fourth quarter (68-65) but buckets by Carroll, Pablo Murcia and Grant opened up a nine-point lead. Moycullen fought back admirably, however, cutting the deficit to just four, but Luke O’Hea’s charges held firm to prevail by eight (88-80).

Next up is a cup tie against the Tipperary Talons, a side they defeated by 30 points just a couple of weeks ago. The cup can be very different to the league, though, and they will need another solid performance to advance to the next round. Tip-off in in Killenaule is at 6.30pm on Saturday.

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Chances of Kerry v Cork Munster final in 2026 decrease as Munster GAA delay seeding plan

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3 weeks ago

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7 November 2025

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After facing a backlash from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipperary players, Munster GAA have postponed their plan to keep Cork and Kerry separate in the 2026 Munster Football Championship.

The new seeding system – which gives the two highest ranked Munster teams in the National League byes to separate semi-finals – will now come into play in 2027, twelve months later than initially planned.

This will give Clare and Limerick a chance to earn promotion to Division 2 of the league, potentially overtaking Cork if the Rebels were to get relegated to Division 3.

Despite traditionally being the two main contenders for Munster football honours, Kerry and Cork haven’t met in a provincial decider since 2021. The Kingdom have won each of the finals since then (one versus Limerick and three versus Clare) by an average margin of 15.75 points.

More high-profile Kerry v Cork finals might be desirable for fans of those teams, businesses in Killarney and Cork, and neutrals alike but Munster GAA’s plans to effectively keep the great rivals on opposite sides of the draw understandably drew criticism from the other participating counties. A statement by the GPA confirmed that players from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipp had met via Zoom to discuss the matter. They were said to be “deeply disappointed and concerned” by the decision.

The 12-month delay will at least give two of those disaffected teams an opportunity to benefit from the new seeding process.

The draw for the 2026 Munster Football Championship will take place on November 27 under the old rules. As 2025 finalists, Kerry and Clare will get byes to the last four (but they will not necessarily be kept apart).

Nine members of Kerry’s squad are up for All-Stars at tonight’s awards ceremony in Dublin with Joe O’Connor and David Clifford also in contention for the prestigious Footballer of the Year award.

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