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Of the 15 players that started for Bredagh against Burren in the championship, 13 have come up through the ranks. For Carryduff against Ballyholland the figure is also 13. Comparable to most clubs in Down.

Interesting to hear Mick Lynch calling for the unions to unite and lead the charge against the far right.
Quite right too.
Yet a lot of this anti-migrant hatred has been fueled by Brexit and the lies of the Brexiteers. Which he and some unions like NIPSA supported. I really struggle with this.

Yesterday was all about winning and getting a bit of silverware after a long long wait. People knock the tailteann cup but I think it's been good for this Down team over last couple of years, got them games in croke park and playing in front of bigger crowds.
Promotion from division 3 and Sam Maguire football were the aims at the start of the year both were achieved, heading in the right direction

That's it in a nutshell.
Well done players, management and county board; the culmination of a lot of hard work.
It's been an enjoyable season overall; apart from a disappointing performance in D3 final and a disappointing result in Clones against the All Ireland finalists.
The spine of the team is there, with strong leaders, and the manager rightly expects full commitment. One player whose work often goes unseen is Johny Flynn;delighted he got a point and a full game yesterday.
Looking forward to the 3 championships now and players will want to put themselves in the shop window for selection to represent their county in serious competition next year.

The GAA Social podcast with Kevin McElvanna. Jesus oh lads absolutely heartbreaking stuff. Breaking that kind of news to your kids is just unimaginable. Have to say really well handled by Thomas and Oisin. Definitely worth an hour of your time to give it a listen.

⅘
I agree.
Niblock and McConville have raised the bar in podcasts, their analysis of games and issues has improved but the more personal interviews have taken the programme to a new level. Their choice of guests has been inspired; Kevin Hughes, Margaret McConville, Collie Bell and Kevin McIlvana have been memorable.  Life at its most cruel but resilience, family and community support give us all hope.

What next for Leo? My bet is game show host on british afternoon TV.

Apparently he wants to train Armagh in penalty taking and he can't combine that with being Taoiseach because it is so time consuming

Cruel but accurate

Someone better tell Paul Givan that the Waves of Tory doesn't mean the number of Prime Ministers brought down by Brexit

Kieran McEvoy is a solid source but I would be surprised if he stated that petty crime exploded after the troubles. It's hard to get stats for the 90s but if we go back to the GFA in 98 there's a similar picture;
https://www.psni.police.uk/system/files/2023-11/456441561/Police%20Recorded%20Crime%20in%20Northern%20Ireland%201998-99%20to%202022-23.pdf
I accept that it's a complex discussion; however the old cliché that paramilitaries kept a lid on crime doesn't stand up to any serious scrutiny (acknowledging that's not what you said)

Petty crime has not exploded since the end of the troubles.  In fact it has gone down.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/385106/crime-rate-in-northern-ireland/

Indeed, a much better performance and Laverty picked the right team and made the right substitutions.  Everyone did well but particular credit to McAvoy, Doherty, Flynn, D Guinness and Havern. Sligo were limited so Mullingar will be a greater challenge, the sort of fixture Conor loves.
Sad news about Big Dan; a warrior.

Very few were good.
Ryan McAvoy did well but picked up a yellow which could have been a black; that's probably why Laverty took him off but we badly missed his leadership. Murdoch had an off-night but Ryan Johnson was excellent when he came on. Only Havern in the forward line was consistent; anyway two points and move on.

Facts are important.
Ulster University was not established in 1984. The University of Ulster was established in 1984. It was rebranded as Ulster University in 2014.

The Ulster GAA press release on 14th December had it in Owenbeg, the website and X/twitter have it in Celtic Park.
One of them is right ✅️

Actually Armaghniac, and ignoring the sexist soundbite, I think Diana 'got it' better than Joseph Small. If Diana told him she 'was in your country yesterday ', having been somewhere in the six counties, she was correct. And to think this Joseph Small was being paid to be the Irish Ambassador in London. Scandalous

The Burren committee who reappointed McCorry and Adams must be severely regretting their decision.  The lack of a plan, the lack of ideas and the lack of fight from Burren was shocking.  However hats off to Kilcoo, their hunger and game intelligence was outstanding. While we should never condone bad behaviour the Magpies are by far the best team in the county and are worthy Down champions.

This is bizarre and unprecedented.  However, very few people know the full story so before people pile on, remember there's enough pressure on players and officials on county final day without ill- informed speculation.
Factually we know Paul was listed to referee and it appears its now David Gough. Two fine referees who represent the best of our association.  Paul would have been under unfair pressure today, and I don't know if he was involved in the decision himself so let's hope things proceed properly today.