Out of all of Galway’s three All-Ireland senior successes, I imagine this one will tick all the boxes. Not alone because they have beaten two of the best teams in the country — Cork and Kilkenny — but when the Cats brought it down to a dogfight in the second half, their determination and resolve could not be questioned.

The worth of Richie Hogan in his current patched-up incarnation? Former Kilkenny goalkeeper Michael Walsh offers a succinct appraisal.

And so what stands between Dublin and immortality is the county that itself was denied that very place in history on another All-Ireland final day.

When the mood takes me, I’ll often head back to the Atlantic Ocean in west Clare for a dip. Living so close to the sea gives me that luxury and I have any amount of options; the Pollock Holes in Kilkee, Cappa near Kilrush, White Strand in Doonbeg, Spanish Point in Miltown Malbay. Beautiful spots, every one of them.

It was one of the stranger introductions to a post-game press conference.

Tributes have been paid to Rachel Kenneally, a former Tipperary Ladies Football, who has passed away aged 26.

"HEARTBREAKING”. Pearce Hanley has no better way of describing Mayo’s close-run All-Ireland finals these last four years.

I was one of those players who needed to tick all the boxes in order to feel like I had everything covered. Routine was everything, writes Valerie Mulcahy.

John Coleman on the pressure facing All-Ireland final referee Fergal Horgan.

Galway hurling selector Noel Larkin says the All-Ireland final will be better for Austin Gleeson’s involvement, writes Eoghan Cormican.

Galway hurling selector Noel Larkin says the All-Ireland final will be better for Austin Gleeson’s involvement.

Just retired and outside the bubble, Cork’s Daniel Goulding can reflect now on half a decade when the Rebels were consistently at football’s top table. The trials of Mayo remind the Éire Óg man that Cork’s 2010 All-Ireland title is to be cherished. But just as he might have been, were those halcyon days from 2007 to 2012 taken for granted?

As the curtain comes down on yet another inter-county season, the next few weeks and months will be filled with talk of club football and, of course, what’s to be done about the scourge of the black card.

A number of prominent Gaelic footballers have called for the black card to be reviewed in the wake of a series of questionable decisions relating to it in this year’s All-Ireland series.

By now, you’ve probably heard where Diarmuid Connolly was the evening prior to the drawn All-Ireland final: Crossmaglen. You might have also caught where he should be right now: Ibiza.

The decision of the Dublin ladies football board not to request a replay of Sunday’s All-Ireland final has taken the heat off under-fire LGFA bosses.

Croke Park commercial and stadium director Peter McKenna has been overseeing operations at GAA headquarters for 16 years. And his excitement around All-Ireland final day remains as great as ever...

This time it wasn’t different.

Jason Flynn was reared on tales from the 80s; nothing but stories to cling to as he hurled countless All-Ireland finals against the gable end above in Ballinakill.

Any “B” championship must carry the incentive of its decider being staged as the curtain-raiser to the All-Ireland final, says former Leinster chairman Martin Skelly.

Just getting to face Mayo on Sunday will be something of an achievement for Paul Geaney.

Pre-tax profits at the technology firm that determined the fate of the 2014 Hurling All-Ireland final increased by 14.5% to £3.25m (€4.23m) last year.

He’s worn winning footwear from the get-go and now the boots that took Aidan O’Mahony to an All-Ireland title have gone on to raise €25,000 in a charity auction.

"First and foremost, a very proudfather and second, a very proud club chairman," beams Donal Murphy.

Kieran Donaghy returned to his natural habitat in Croke Park yesterday – basking in the glow of the spotlight.

Two-time All-Ireland winning Cork footballer Larry Tompkins has launched a withering attack on the Mayo players, claiming James Horan’s troops "need to grow up" if they are to bridge the county’s 63-year wait for Sam Maguire glory.

He’ll always be Wee James to us and nearly anyone who saw him play, but when it comes to inter-county management there’s a case a certain Mr McCartan could be termed Old James.

Marc Wilson breezes into the media room at Stoke City’s plush Clayton Wood training ground sporting an Easy Rider T-shirt and feeling every bit the man with a lot of road to travel and time to do it.

Late August 1997 and Ger Loughnane is talking about life, the universe and hurling in a hotel in Ennis.

Croke Park on All-Ireland Final day. A cauldron of sporting excellence. A sea of pomp and colour. A spectacle of ceremony and tradition. A load of RIDICULOUS outfits.

The buildup to Sunday’s All Ireland is reaching fever pitch in Clare with a fan invasion of Ennis town centre expected for the match.

GAA clubs need to devise ways to ensure their marquee players, at every age level, are being challenged at training and every effort should be made to encourage them to make further progress.