Columns - Irish Examiner

Paul Rouse

Memories of Seamus Darby’s winner, my greatest day of all time

The ball’s arc is about to turn under the crossbar down at the Railway End goals. The raindrops will soon be shaking from the net. Charlie Nelligan will be on the ground in a heap and the umpire will reach for the green flag.

Fri, 16 Sep, 2016

We need a level playing field for inner city hurlers

There are some stories that just leave you shaking your head in disbelief. With the story of Kevin’s Hurling and Camogie Club in Dublin’s south inner city, disbelief quickly hardens into anger, writes Paul Rouse.

Fri, 09 Sep, 2016

Tipperary and Kilkenny’s great rivalry a century in the making

It’s the morning of the 1916 All-Ireland hurling final. The Tipperary hurlers are in Dublin — they walk down the quays and turn left onto Sackville Street.

Sun, 04 Sep, 2016

Olympic titan Pat Hickey undressed by farce

The charges he faces are notoriously difficult to prove and it may well be the arrests, the leaked footage and police press conference were all for the benefit of the police being seen to be doing something, writes Paul Rouse.

Thu, 18 Aug, 2016

GAA is a connection to home that spans several centuries

Patrick Kavanagh only wrote a little about Gaelic football, but what he wrote was wonderful. He understood its place in rural Ireland and his observations on the language of the game and its rhythms were perfectly judged.

Fri, 12 Aug, 2016

Remembering Martin Sheridan - The greatest athlete of his generation

It’s Swinford Railway Station on Friday, 31 July 1908. 

Fri, 05 Aug, 2016

The stock of club players tumbles to an all-time low

It is one of the great axiomatic principles of the GAA that the club is the bedrock of the Association. This is repeated time and again and is rooted in the reality of the lives of people all across Ireland.

Sat, 30 Jul, 2016

Rule change should be embraced, not feared

The history of Gaelic football is littered with disputes, controversies, and occasional pronouncements that its extinction was both imminent and welcome, writes Paul Rouse

Fri, 22 Jul, 2016