Liam Sheedy believes his Tipperary side silenced their many critics by squeezing past Wexford in Sunday afternoon's epic All-Ireland semi-final at Croke Park.

Unlike a fortnight ago when the Cork hurlers and footballers were forced to line out at Croke Park on separate days, common sense, thankfully, has prevailed this weekend. Two Cork teams playing back-to-back at the one venue on the same day. Scheduling can be rather simple when done right.

Eoin Murphy feels compelled to make the distinction between a Leinster title and an All-Ireland crown.

All-Ireland semi-finals are old hat to Brian Cody, Saturday being his 18th as Kilkenny manager. But this weekend is his first in three years, which might explain some levity at last week’s press event.

Limerick hurling manager John Kiely “marvels” at Brian Cody’s appetite for the game saying the Kilkennyman “is an example to all of us”.

On a weekend at Croke Park where people were eager to see if Cork’s players in both codes would sink or swim, two men shone like beacons for their respective causes, writes Peter McNamara.

Laois’ summer odyssey is over but they got to finish on terms that were perfectly acceptable given this was an All-Ireland quarter-final and their opponents were one of the game’s blue bloods.

Cork manager Ronan McCarthy, when asked about his players’ unfamiliarity with Croke Park and whether he had any concerns over such, provided a reply straight out of left field, pulling up a Joe Brolly quote from all of 26 years ago.

When David Clifford reduced the deficit to one point in the 72nd minute of the league final, the game hinged on the next Mayo kickout.

GAA president John Horan insists that a Cork double-bill in Croke Park was not feasible this weekend.

The inability of the main stand at Fitzgerald Stadium to cater for all Kerry and Mayo season ticket holders has resulted in the capacity of the Killarney venue being reduced by over 6,000 for Sunday’s Super 8 fixture.

Cork will spend the next two weekends in Croke Park after comfortably securing their place in the Super 8s with this emphatic 14-point dismissal of Laois.

It says everything about how imbalanced the senior hurling championship is that Limerick could be on the back of three losses after the Munster final and still be in an All-Ireland quarter-final.

Former Clare manager and two-time All-Ireland-winning coach Mike McNamara has called on the players to fight to the bitter end and ignore those in the county who want them put out of their misery.

RTÉ pundits Ken McGrath and Jackie Tyrrell were scathing about the performances of Clare and Waterford in today’s Munster double-header.

Interim Offaly hurling manager Joachim Kelly has claimed the players threw in the towel in recent weeks, leading to their present difficulties.

For a while there on Saturday, it was as if Leitrim had misunderstood the instruction to put the clock forward and had instead wound it all the way back to 1994, when they won the Connacht title.

Dave Carey may be the Glanmire manager but he insists it is a Cork football legend that deserves all the credit for their historic run to Sunday’s All-Ireland ladies junior final.

The last quarter of the 2015 Munster minor semi-final was one of the sweetest 15 minutes that I ever put down as a coach, writes Anthony Daly 

At 28, Ger Farragher was cut adrift from the Galway squad.

Brian Cody was offering John Kiely a few congratulatory words when an elderly gentleman cut in and planted a sizeable kiss on the latter’s cheek.

Dublin might have greater home comfort than any other side in the Super 8, but they will have one less day to prepare for their All-Ireland semi-final than their opponents should they top Group 2.

While soccer, courtesy of Croatia, is no longer winging home, hurling truths are dropping towards a roost.

On the night Cork beat Clare in the 1999 Munster final, Johnny Callanan, the former Clarecastle and Clare hurler, and a great personal friend, told me a funny story. A few pints had helped to siphon some of the pain from the defeat but Cal wanted to try put more perspective on the day’s events.

Sixteen counties have tumbled into the lottery drum that it is the first round of All-Ireland qualifiers and the records show that very few manage to find their feet in any meaningful way again.

Former Cork manager Billy Morgan has admitted he’d like Tomas Ó Sé to manage the county at some stage - but can’t see it happening.

One former Donegal county man said it this week about Mickey Moran and his spell in the county that brought them to an All-Ireland quarter-final in 2002.

The bullish chap that he is, Seán Powter has no hesitation in proclaiming that promotion from Division 2 is the short-term goal for Cork footballers this year.

Paul Geaney anticipates two benefits in 2018’s packed, but condensed, inter-county fixture programme; he expects Kerry to remain mentally, if not physically, fresher and he looks forward to seeing a lot more of his Dingle club teammates.

The Club Players Association (CPA) has called on GAA members to back a motion to ensure voting transparency at the GAA annual congress.

COMING out of Croke Park on Sunday, a former Mayo manager tried to counter what he had just seen by theorising that teams who win All-Ireland semi-finals by large margins go on to lose finals while those who receive sterner tests are better placed to claim silverware.

After Mayo's easy win over Roscommon in the All-Ireland quarter-final replay, Kerry pundit Pat Spillane has expressed some concerns ahead of the Kingdom's clash with Mayo, writes [url=https://twitter.com/ciaraphelan_Ciara Phelan.[/url]

Dónal Óg Cusack will be in the Clare dugout at the redeveloped Páirc Uí Chaoimh when the Banner take on Tipperary in the All-Ireland quarter-final, but he hasn’t yet set foot in the revamped stadium. 

Waterford should win but might not. Their main difficulty is their convex tradition against Kilkenny in championship encounters, writes PM O’Sullivan.

Amid the tumult at a certain Slaneyside venue around 8.30pm this evening three weeks ago, on the night they freed old Wexford, a triptych of sounds could be detected, two of them admittedly on a frequency available only to dogs and bats.

The last man to lead Offaly to an All-Ireland SHC title says Leinster have made significant financial gain off Galway’s backs and should allow their underage teams into their championships.

He’s publicly flirted with retirement before but Sean Cavanagh insists this definitely will be his last season as a Tyrone footballer.