In the aftermath of their 2014 All-Ireland final loss to Kilkenny, Eamon O’Shea defiantly declared that “This team (Tipp) will always have hope, they have great character, and the nucleus of this team will go on in the future and win All-Irelands.”

It didn’t garner any headlines but Jim Gavin also hit the centenary mark in this year’s Leinster championship.

Paul Murphy reckons the newer members of the Kerry football panel did themselves no favours by performing as well as they did during their first spring campaign at senior inter-county level.

Experienced Kerry attacker Paul Geaney has admitted that Kerry went from playing ‘flawless’ football against Clare last summer to feeling like ‘Fred Flintstone’ just weeks later.

Kerry attacker Paul Geaney has admitted he feared his season was over when he suffered a freak knee injury during February’s Allianz League win over Dublin.

After succeeding Pat Gilroy in late 2012, it is the third extension the five-time All-Ireland SFC winning boss has enjoyed.

"I can definitely see him successfully managing Kerry teams in the future," said Éamonn Fitzmaurice.

Barney Rock considers the 2014 All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Donegal as one of the toughest lessons this current Dublin side has learned, but suggests last year’s Division 1 final loss to Kerry was just as informative to Jim Gavin.

The ebb and flow nature of Kerry’s league opener against Donegal was the ideal learning environment for the Kingdom’s emerging cast, according to Paul Murphy.

Kerry 2-19 Meath 1-14: Jimmy Keane is confident the younger members of his All-Ireland junior winning team will, in time, graduate to the county’s senior set-up.

Eamonn Fitzmaurice insists there are no “hard feelings” between himself and departed goalkeeper Brendan Kealy.

At the moment Munster finals aren’t even full stops on Kerry’s road. Éamonn Fitzmaurice has yet to postmortem a loss in the province as manager, but for the best part of yesterday’s 11-point defeat of Cork.

The people of Wexford have been voting with their feet but Lee Chin doesn’t feel the appointment of Davy Fitzgerald has added any pressure to the panel as they target promotion from Division 1B of the Allianz League.

Donegal’s bitter Allianz League clash with Kerry last year was a one-off in terms of their rivalry, according to Paddy McBrearty, who admits he was lucky not to be among those sent off in Tralee.

Eamon McGee admits he and his brother Neil were unwilling to sign a public statement suggested by the Donegal panel to back manager Jim McGuinness in the wake of the fallout with former star, Kevin Cassidy, in 2011.

The Wednesday or Thursday after the 2014 All-Ireland final replay an old stalwart from near Urlingford decided to go for a spin on the far side of the border. Eternal vigilance and all of that, dontcha know.

At a time when he could have been forgiven for cutting loose, Eamonn Fitzmaurice chose not to.

Tipperary may err on the side of the traditional but Ronan Maher says they know enough about Waterford to adapt to what they present them in Limerick on Sunday.

He’s won practically everything in the game across 14 years with Tyrone so when Sean Cavanagh talks about Dublin being “scary” good right now, perhaps it’s time to be concerned.

These Dubs get going when big prizes on offer...

 AT 12.20pm today, Valerie Mulcahy will take to the podium.

All Star Lee Keegan has admitted it’s ‘Championship time’ now for Mayo as they seek the wins to preserve their long running Division 1 status.

Eamonn Fitzmaurice will continue as Kerry senior football manager into 2016.

Cork camogie star Katrina Mackey grimaces when she recalls the squad’s overnight bonding session on Spike Island this summer.

Limerick hurling legend Joe Quaid has confirmed his interest in managing Offaly, though former boss Joe Dooley has emerged as a surprise contender to return to the role.

Eamonn Fitzmaurice last night offered words of consolation to his Cork football counterpart, Brian Cuthbert, in the wake of the Rebels’ shock exit from the Championship.

Kerry 2-13 Cork 2-4: Even Kerry captain Cáit Lynch was surprised at the Kingdom’s nine-point victory over All-Ireland champions Cork in Saturday’s Munster SFC Championship final in Mallow, but there’s no question they deserved their 16th provincial title.

A few moments after Mick Monahan blew for full-time in the 2004 Leinster football final at Croke Park, Shane Power spotted a gap between two stewards and darted through.

Liam Dunne gave his Wexford players a tongue lashing for not ‘obliterating’ vulnerable Westmeath.

Cork camogie star Anna Geary last night admitted a career change forced her retirement from the game at inter-county level.

And other questions raised by the Allianz NFL semi-finals.

AIB CONNACHT SFC CLUB FINAL: