The Cork footballers need to get “tough upstairs”, according to captain Ian Maguire, who believes the team too easily collapsed in recent years when hitting a sticky patch during games.

It was an historic day in Austin Stack Park as Kerry condemned four times Liam McCarthy Cup winners Offaly to Christy Ring Cup hurling in 2020 when they won this Joe McDonagh dogfight and maintained their second-tier status for another year.

September 1, 1997. The day John Kiely began teaching in The Abbey was Conor O’Brien’s first as a student in the Tipperary town secondary school. Just as there was heartache for a young O’Brien in seeing Tipperary go down to Clare later that month, there had been for Kiely as a member of Tom Ryan’s Limerick panel against Wexford 12 months previous.

Can star-studded Douglas finally fulfill potential?

Can star-studded Douglas finally fulfill potential?

First things first, Oisín McConville has warned Cork not to expect any favours from Armagh this weekend

After a 33-year wait, Andy Scannell will reside in Togher for the winter after the Barr’s deservedly overcame Duhallow in an excellent and enthralling contest in Páirc Uí Chaoimh yesterday, writes Paddy Kelly.

Scrum-half issues further up the chain have impacted on Munster A head coach Peter Malone’s selection for the visit of Dragons A to Cork this afternoon for this Celtic Cup third round game (5:30pm).

Regardless of the final, 2018 will not go down as a vintage year for football, writes Paddy Kelly.

Most Cork football people I spoke to after the Munster final said it was the worst ever, writes Paddy Kelly.

Tony Leen asks three key questions ahead of the clash between Cork and Kerry. 

Cork are 7/2 with the bookies but I wouldn’t back them. I was never involved with Kerry in a Munster final in Páirc Ui Chaoimh where Cork were that friendless in the market. The message is clear: Being competitive and getting within two or three points of Kerry represents progress.

The Galway senior ladies football management have hit out at the appointment of Gerry Carmody to referee their Connacht final meeting with Mayo on Sunday.

Cork hurling management are waiting on the fitness of Mark Ellis and Tim O’Mahony ahead of Sunday week’s Munster final.

Seán Hayes would know more than most that Cork’s performances at senior level haven’t really reflected the talent or promise of the county over the past few years.

Phil Mickelson can count himself lucky he wasn’t playing in an ILGU event when he had his 13th green meltdown at Shinnecock Hills.

Kerry ladies football has a spring in its step again after the frustration of relegation following a league campaign that didn’t bring a single point.

Pádraig Harrington made an encouraging start to the Travelers Championship yesterday, posting a four-under par round of 66 to lie just three behind early leader Zach Johnson.

Head coach Pete Strickland has made two changes to the Ireland senior men’s team ahead of their 2018 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries campaign, which tips off in San Marino next week.

Michael Cheika made two changes to Australia’s starting side for the final game of the series with Ireland as he announced his Wallabies matchday squad on his old stomping ground at Randwick yesterday.

Paul Murphy is not shy of a Munster medal. It’s his Celtic Cross collection that concerns him.

Robin Dawson and John Murphy go head-to-head at Royal Aberdeen this morning in an all-Irish showdown for a place in the semi-finals of the 123rd Amateur Championship.

The All-Ireland-winning Irish Examiner columnists preview Saturday’s Munster Football Final with Tony Leen.

Nigeria boss Gernot Rohr believes the Super Eagles remain underdogs ahead of their clash with Iceland today.

High stakes, high tempo, and an even higher intensity to what has gone before. Joe Schmidt has told his Ireland team of Grand Slam winners they will need to deliver their best performance of the season tomorrow if they are to end the campaign with a series victory over Australia.

In his job as a professional diver, Donegal centre-back Paul Brennan has seen the depths but has an opportunity of a career highlight on Sunday.

Cork will often end up with as many as 11 outfield players behind the ball, writes Paddy Kelly.

Leaving Semple Stadium in Thurles last Saturday I was filled with renewed optimism that this Cork team have a great opportunity of winning our first Munster football title since 2012. Leaving Killarney yesterday, that optimism had been severely dampened by an outstanding 32-point haul from six-in-a-row chasing Kerry. A reality check indeed, writes Paddy Kelly.

The April fools were the GAA clubs which believed ‘club month’ would be a ring-fenced opportunity to inject momentum back into the grassroots. Our new columnist Paddy Kelly believes the first step towards correcting the Association’s biggest headache is to hand April back to the inter-county scene. Now read on...

Group seeks simpler planning laws and shorter apprenticeships.

The five key issues awaiting the new Cork coach.

At eighteen, Phillip Lahm was a highly regarded prospect at Bayern Munich.

Today’s Munster semi-final marks the 25th game of Peadar Healy’s spell as Cork manager. Here is a chequered reign in numbers, as tallied by Eoghan Cormican

Hope. Lots of hope. Páirc Uí Rinn was awash with it on Monday evening last.

A savage amount of rain has fallen in the last week and I just wonder did the underfoot conditions contribute to so many injuries in Semple Stadium and Nowlan Park yesterday?

Cork chairman Ger Lane insists there “hasn’t been a murmur of discontent” among the current senior football management and panel about their temporary training facilities in Fermoy.

Here’s a briefing on some of the stories and issues highlighted on irishexaminer.com today.