All-Ireland Series Sam Maguire 2026

[DaleCooper]

Dingles club run really didnt help them. Paul Geaneys fairytale ended in disaster.

[J70]

Given the squad depth issues that this year magnified, I cannot for the life of me see how there is enough money riding on Donegal to make us second in the bookies favourites for next year.

One would assume that Jim will put a bit less emphasis on the league this time out and make sure that there are legs left in the squad come June, but that doesn't make up for options when you need 20 men to win at the sharp end of the Championship.

[Cunny Funt]

Dingles club run really didnt help them. Paul Geaneys fairytale ended in disaster.

Only on the bench to pick up the cup it appears. A fit Brosnan would have been a better option. Given Geaney's age and injury issues that's him surely done with Kerry now.

Diarmuid O'Connor out proved to big loss and for the strength in depth Kerry meant to have they really struggled to get any impact from their subs introduced.

Main downfall was not focusing on the main strengths of Mayo and trying to curb them.  They had the look of a team that thought midfield will be won and the Clifford's,Sean O'Shea will do the rest.

[thewobbler]

Doesn't everyone have squad issues though?

Kerry had a 34 and a 35 year old playing all season.

That wouldn't  suggest they've a bench to call upon.

[seafoid]

Down beat Donegal
Donegal beat Kerry
Armagh beat Donegal and win Ulster[18 year wait]
Tyrone beat Mayo
Rossies beat Mayo and win Connaught[7 year wait]
Monaghan beat Rossies
Louth beat Dublin
Louth nip armagh
Westmeath beat Louth to win Leinster[end 22 year wait]

Mayo beat Kerry to end a 75 year wait.


Madcap championship and a fitting end to an historic season.

Wicklow beat Down
Next curse to fix is Kildare (1928)
Then Waterford (1959)

I'm sure there are plenty of counties who have never even won one that need a curse broken just as much as those two counties.
Out of interest what is the longest drought from a county that won it before.? Hurling or football.

Football
Limerick and Waterford are 1890s I think
Wexford 1920 or so
Kildare 1928
Roscommon 1944
Cavan 1950s
Louth 1957
Offaly 1982

Hurling
Dublin 1938
Laois 1915
Cork 2005
Antrim lost 2 finals

[AustinPowers]

Down beat Donegal
Donegal beat Kerry
Armagh beat Donegal and win Ulster[18 year wait]
Tyrone beat Mayo
Rossies beat Mayo and win Connaught[7 year wait]
Monaghan beat Rossies
Louth beat Dublin
Louth nip armagh
Westmeath beat Louth to win Leinster[end 22 year wait]

Mayo beat Kerry to end a 75 year wait.


Madcap championship and a fitting end to an historic season.

Wicklow beat Down
Next curse to fix is Kildare (1928)
Then Waterford (1959)

Provincials for Fermanagh and Wicklow, surely?

And a number  13 to lift Sam

[AustinPowers]

Another vindication for the new rules. Hope coaches take note of the advantages of a high press

I don't agree.
The high press could have worked in the old rules too.
Only new rules that have had a positive impact, imo, are the solo-and-go and the dissent rule.
Up until this game, and maybe Mayo's SF too, most teams still played around the 2point arc - as opposed to the sideways across the 45 type play. The new rules were meant to bring in more kicking into the FF line, not much of that happens. There are more high balls into the midfield 8, but up until this game, it has been a case of the team with the tallest men win that midfield kickout battle. The Mayo intensity in the tackle was what won them possession and bucked the trend in that area, maybe that's the blueprint going forward, but it's also not new. Tyrone did it v Kerry in 03 for example, under the old rules.

2 pointers devalue goals.
I still don't agree with this fawning over of the new rules just because we got an excellent game of football. That match would have been just as good under the old rules.

The question I would ask is this. If there were no new rules, as we call them, would we still have the emergence of teams like Louth, Roscommon, Mayo, Westmeath and the slight dropping off of teams like Dublin, Donegal, Galway? I think we would.

None of that takes away from this fantastic game of football and fantastic result.

Agreed.

[Captain Obvious]

2027 betting

Kerry 15/8
Donegal 5/1
Mayo 6/1
Armagh 15/2
Galway 9/1
Tyrone 9/1
Dublin 9/1

There's your ratings according to Betfair.

The team who gets the right combination of general luck, fewest injuries and kindest draw will win. Motivation is obviously huge, no way Mayo will replicate this AI run, Kerry ran on a fair bit of motivational spite & venom last year too.

And the team that can defend properly when it matters. Armagh odds too short unless  can fix the glaring defensive issues.  Last two years had exits to Kerry having conceded 4-18 (30) and 0-32, The same Kerry held to 1-17 yesterday by a Mayo team who learnt from previous poor defensive efforts including their first All-Ireland series match when they could easily have conceded 7 or 8 goals to Monaghan.

[Wildweasel74]

Kerry won the U20 All-Ireland, who got a game 1 lad? They a good lad coming at midfield, they may start to play him.

[Sportacus]

Dingles club run really didnt help them. Paul Geaneys fairytale ended in disaster.

Only on the bench to pick up the cup it appears. A fit Brosnan would have been a better option. Given Geaney's age and injury issues that's him surely done with Kerry now.

Diarmuid O'Connor out proved to big loss and for the strength in depth Kerry meant to have they really struggled to get any impact from their subs introduced.

Main downfall was not focusing on the main strengths of Mayo and trying to curb them.  They had the look of a team that thought midfield will be won and the Clifford's,Sean O'Shea will do the rest.

Mayo gave their game plan away against Louth, and it amazes me that Kerry ignored the clues.  Louth sauntered into tackles and lost the ball continuously in the middle third.  I was sure Kerry would kick it long, but they made the same mistakes Mayo did.

Mayo's other obvious tactic was to go for two pointers and Kerry weren't able to adjust to that on the day.

And their substitutions were a mess - O'Sullivan in for O'Connor (big loss) and shipped off again at halftime?  Geaney on the bench but not used- what was the point of that? 
Introduced Evans too early, needed his legs with 15 to go.  Brought off a midfielder when they needed power around the middle?

All very strange. Jack O'Connor has done it all, but didn't seem a good day yesterday for the Kerry sideline.

[seafoid]

Jack OConnor managed Kerry in 2004 and 2006 when they hammered Mayo in the All Ireland. He went into the Mayo dressingroom in 2004 and told the Mayo players that Kerry needed the all Ireland more than them.

Maybe he was expecting a repeat. Andy Moran asked a room full of journalists who thought Mayo would win and only 1 did.
Kerry couldn't deal with Mayo's workrate.

[Armagh18]

Dingles club run really didnt help them. Paul Geaneys fairytale ended in disaster.

Only on the bench to pick up the cup it appears. A fit Brosnan would have been a better option. Given Geaney's age and injury issues that's him surely done with Kerry now.

Diarmuid O'Connor out proved to big loss and for the strength in depth Kerry meant to have they really struggled to get any impact from their subs introduced.

Main downfall was not focusing on the main strengths of Mayo and trying to curb them.  They had the look of a team that thought midfield will be won and the Clifford's,Sean O'Shea will do the rest.

Mayo gave their game plan away against Louth, and it amazes me that Kerry ignored the clues.  Louth sauntered into tackles and lost the ball continuously in the middle third.  I was sure Kerry would kick it long, but they made the same mistakes Mayo did.

Mayo's other obvious tactic was to go for two pointers and Kerry weren't able to adjust to that on the day.

And their substitutions were a mess - O'Sullivan in for O'Connor (big loss) and shipped off again at halftime?  Geaney on the bench but not used- what was the point of that? 
Introduced Evans too early, needed his legs with 15 to go.  Brought off a midfielder when they needed power around the middle?

All very strange. Jack O'Connor has done it all, but didn't seem a good day yesterday for the Kerry sideline.

All I can think of with Geaney is he was there to come on a lift the cup

[DaleCooper]

Sad that Michael Lyster didnt live to see it, I am sure he would have loved it.

As an aside reminded how irrelevant the shite stirrer who shant be named is now, scrolled past his usual captain hindsight BS and took in a few other articles/videos from quality men like Joe Molloy whose hotel sitdown with Andy is must see.

[bennydorano]

Galway man

[AustinPowers]

Jack OConnor managed Kerry in 2004 and 2006 when they hammered Mayo in the All Ireland. He went into the Mayo dressingroom in 2004 and told the Mayo players that Kerry needed the all Ireland more than them.

Maybe he was expecting a repeat. Andy Moran asked a room full of journalists who thought Mayo would win and only 1 did.
Kerry couldn't deal with Mayo's workrate.

Did that really happen?