The odyssey of an All-Ireland club run

We are all partial to the odd moan about the GAA. When engaging in small-talk, complaining about the current state of Gaelic Games or its structure and administrators is as common a theme as carping about Irish weather.

Credit where it’s due though, one of the greatest things the GAA has done in modern times is give the club junior and intermediate championships a provincial and All-Ireland series beyond the county championships. The senior club All-Ireland championships began in 1971 but it took another 30 years or so for the same opportunities to be afforded to intermediate and junior clubs nationwide. The first All-Ireland junior decider was in 2002 when Cavan’s Drumgoon beat Belmullet while the first intermediate final took place two years later as Cork’s Ilen Rovers became the inaugural winners.

Since its inception some 50 years ago, the senior competition has largely been the preserve of super-clubs such as Corofin, Kilmacud Crokes, St. Vincents, Crossmaglen or Nemo Rangers. There has been the odd fairytale recorded by tiny rural clubs such as Caltra’s stunning victory in 2004 or Kilcoo’s in 2022 but it has been largely dominated by storied behemoths.

From a local perspective, Crossmolina’s victory in 2001 and Ballina’s win in 2005 probably rank as the best Mayo days in Croke Park in the last half century. The battle for the Andy Merrigan Cup is always a brilliant competition but the intermediate and junior competitions are where the real magic happens.

Typically, powerful senior club teams looking to win a provincial or All-Ireland are stacked with county players who are used to competing in big venues on big days. Intermediate and junior teams looking to advance in their province may have one or two county lads but the rest of the team is comprised of normal, salt of the earth club fellas who are on the journey of a life time. The giants at senior level tend to win their county and compete in at least the provincial series every other year.

For the junior and intermediate county winners, you’ll probably only get one shot at this epic adventure. This is the fifteen minutes of fame that Andy Warhol told you about. It is my contention that every club should get at least one run in a provincial and/or All Ireland series in their club’s lifetime. I have never been lucky enough to experience it with a club in my career but the memories and spirit it engenders in the club and community in the winter months must be incredible. It would definitely shorten the winter!

There is something exotic and almost foreign about the provincial and All-Ireland series at club level. Sure, you’re mostly competing against teams based on the island of Ireland but your club is embarking on an odyssey to unfamiliar venues, playing unfamiliar players and teams. It is reminiscent of a minnow soccer club qualifying for Europe for the first time. The All-Ireland junior and intermediate championships are the equivalent of UEFA’s Europa League. Instead of Mönchengladbach or Göteborg though, you’re battling against teams like Multyfarnham or Gneeveguilla.

Speaking of Multyfarnham, that name will resonate with Lahardane MacHales after the Westmeath men narrowly defeated John Maughan’s charges in the junior All-Ireland semi-final in the Hyde in 2018. Lahardane will look to make amends for that defeat when they face the Munster Champions (Listowel Emmets or Kilmurry) at the same stage in the coming weeks. Given their success rate, the Kerry champions will always be the favourites at Junior club level in the All-Ireland Series but I’ve been impressed with Lahardane in recent times.

They’re probably in a stronger place now than they were in 2018. They still have the reliable old-guard of Barry Leonard, James Maughan and Adrian Leonard but they have infused their team with some youthful and powerful speedsters such as Kyran Jordan, Shane Finnerty and Darragh Walsh.

They defeated a good Menlough team in the Connacht semi-final, albeit on penalties, but I would have fancied Menlough to go deep in this year’s All-Ireland series given their form in Galway. Owenmore Gaels were no mugs at the weekend either and they had some very nice footballers in their ranks so Lahardane did well to record such a resounding victory. Even in the pea-soup like conditions in a foggy MacHale Park, Lahardane’s pace and propensity for scoring goals shone through like a beacon. These are two key requisites for any team with All-Ireland ambitions and Lahardane will be a dangerous proposition for any one.

Incidentally, in the 40 All-Ireland finals (19 intermediate and 21 junior) since the GAA extended the All-Ireland series to intermediate and junior levels, Mayo clubs have clinched two victories. Westport at intermediate level in 2017 and Kilmeena in the junior are flying the flag for Mayo club teams in these competitions. By comparison Galway have won four (two intermediate and two junior), Tyrone have won four (three intermediate and one junior) while Kerry clubs have won an astounding 17 titles (six intermediate and 11 junior).

Those stats are slightly skewed, however, by the fact that there are only eight senior clubs competing in the Kerry senior county championship. It is a similar story in the hurling where Kilkenny clubs have also won 17 national titles at these grades (seven intermediate and 10 junior). Like Kerry, there aren’t that many senior teams in Kilkenny with only 12 teams competing in their senior hurling championship. In Mayo, is it time that we reduced the amount of teams in the senior championship to give our clubs a better chance at provincial and national level?

Being the Champions League of club Gaelic football, the senior championship got most of the attention on the airwaves at the weekend but there were lots of brilliant stories and matches down the grades. Kildare’s Johnny Doyle, at the ripe old age of 45, helped Allenwood record an epic victory in the Leinster club intermediate final. For late drama, the ladies’ intermediate All-Ireland semi-final was where it was at as Leitrim’s Ballinamore Sean O’Heslins booked their place in Croke Park with a one point win over Steelstown of Derry. They scored a goal with the last kick of the game to spark wild scenes of celebration. The senior championship will always get the most exposure and interest given the quality of players and teams involved but grand narratives abound in every corner of Ireland in the lower levels too.

In the movie Toy Story, the space ranger Buzz Lightyear’s famous catchphrase was “To infinity and beyond!”. Nowadays, with the provincial and All-Ireland series, every intermediate and junior club team can dream and have similar lofty ambitions. Outer space may be out of the question but opponents and venues in far-flung destinations around Ireland are now a live possibility. “To Kinnity and beyond!” has a nice ring to it too.