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SURVEY: Costly Dublin trip turning Kerry fans off Mayo game

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3 years ago

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Kerry fans in Croke Park for the 2022 National League final against Mayo. Photo: Ray McManus/Sportsfile.

A survey carried out by the Killarney Advertiser has revealed that a significant portion of Kerry fans will not be attending next weekend’s All-Ireland quarter-final against Mayo as travelling to Dublin is “too expensive”.

The majority of supporters who responded to the survey and said that they would not be going to the game cited financial reasons.

“The cost of fuel if I drive or the train [is too much],” one reader said. “The late throw-in means a hotel which is the price of my mortgage.”

Hotel prices in Dublin have extremely been high of late; the Kerry hurlers were forced to travel up and down the same day when they were unable to secure affordable accommodation for their recent Joe McDonagh Cup final in the capital.

As for followers of the football team, 86% of people who are going to the Mayo game said they would not be staying in Dublin overnight.

The timing of the match itself – 4pm on a Sunday – is also a deterrent according to those who won't be attending. “The game is on too late on Sunday,” one person claimed. “If it was Saturday evening then I definitely would have gone.”

One third of fans travelling alone say they expect to spend between €100 and €150 on the trip to Dublin, while 22% are expecting to spend less (€50-100). Others anticipate spending much more, however: 22% say the trip will come to somewhere between €151-200 and 13% believe they will part with €200-300 to attend the match. These estimates do not include any money spent on alcohol.

Naturally, those travelling with children expect to spend even more. 30% of adults heading to the match with at least one child say it will cost €100-200 and roughly a quarter plan on spending up to €300. Around one in ten fans in this category anticipate shelling out as much as €500-600.

When the Kingdom drew Mayo in the last eight, some locals were hopeful that the GAA would stage the game in nearby Limerick, possibly as a double-header with a minor match that features the same two counties. Instead, the senior match was fixed for Croke Park on Sunday next (June 26) with Galway v Armagh taking place at the same venue at 1.45pm.

When asked if they agree with the GAA’s practice of playing every All-Ireland SFC quarter-final at HQ, 80% of Kerry supporters said that they did not.

Despite the concerns expressed in our survey, the GAA announced on Tuesday that they had already sold 35,000 tickets (at a cost of €40 for the stand and €30 for the terrace) for next Sunday’s games. It is not known how many of those tickets were snapped up by Kerry fans.

Armagh – considered All-Ireland contenders for the first time in a number of years - are expected to be well represented at the famous Jones’ Road ground. Mayo’s fanatical supporters are also likely to travel in good numbers.

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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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4 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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