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Kieran Shannon: Sad that dual delights like Brian Hayes are now rare gems

If it was possible Brian Hayes would have played Dublin twice in Croke Park this past summer.

Tue, 02 Dec, 2025 - 06:11

Kieran Shannon is an award-winning sportswriter renowned for big interviews, insightful columns and an unrelenting focus on high‑performance sport.

Pat Spillane turned 70 yesterday but remains full of vim, ideas and takes.

In his newspaper column over the weekend he bemoaned the split season (in its current form) for how it has shortened the inter-county season, and with it the association’s shop window. Only the die-hards, he reasonably contended, are still following the club championships. The casual viewer and floating voter has turned off and switched over to other sports, primarily rugby and soccer. He likened the GAA’s approach to McDonalds and Coke offering their products for just six months of the year. Madness. Commercial and promotional suicide.

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