FOR SPORTS FANS, the summer can be an interminable couple of months as we count down the days until the new football and rugby seasons begin but there is still plenty of action to keep us entertained over the coming months.
Here’s 12 events which will ensure you won’t suffer withdrawal symptoms this summer.
1. The Irish Open (28-31 May)
After a couple of years in the relative golfing wilderness, The Irish Open returns to the sporting conscience this week as some of the biggest names in the game arrive at Royal County Down for what promises to be a fascinating weekend.
Rory McIlroy is the headline act but with 7 Major winners, three of the world’s top 10 and 24 Ryder Cup players in the field, Ireland’s sole professional tournament has been elevated to a whole new level.
Organisers have already announced the weekend is sold-out with many believing this week marks the start of a new era for Irish golf. If you’re not lucky enough to witness it all first hand, RTÉ and Sky Sports have live television coverage on all four days.
2. Ireland v England (7 June)
We’ve reached a defining juncture in Martin O’Neill’s tenure as Ireland manager and the next few weeks are likely to have a significant bearing on whether he can guide the Boys in Green to Euro 2016 Qualification.
The visit of old enemies England to Dublin on 7 June is a friendly, if you can call it that, and the serious business takes place a week later when Scotland arrive at the Aviva for a do-or-die Group D qualifier.
Ireland currently lie fourth, two points behind Gordon Strachan’s side, and know anything less than three points on 13 June will put a major dent in any qualification hopes.
With two of the near neighbours visiting the capital in the space of a week and with the stakes as high as they are, there should be no shortage of atmosphere and tension surrounding these end of season fixtures.
3. GAA Football Championship
It goes without saying that the Championship is a staple part of the sporting summer and this year should be no different with counties well on the road to Croke Park.
As is always the case, there are so many sub plots to be played out over the course of the campaign as the quest to lift the Sam Maguire and Liam McCarthy Cups intensify with each passing week.
Kerry and Dublin are the favourites in the football and with the draw the way it is, could meet in the final but that’s not to rule out last year’s semi-finalists Donegal or Mayo.
4. The European Games (12-28 June)
It’s difficult to gauge how much interest there will be surrounding the inaugural European Games, which takes place this June in Baku, but with just twelve months until Rio, there is plenty on the line for the athletes competing.
The two-week event starts on 12 June and consists of 16 Olympic sports with Katie Taylor among an Irish team of 63 athletes.
Athletics, boxing, cycling and swimming – the European Games has it all and you can watch every minute of it on Setanta Sports.
5. U20 World Championship (2-20 June)
The U20 World Championship is a breeding ground for the future stars of world rugby and Ireland head to Italy for the eight staging of the event hoping to improve on their fourth-placed finish they achieved last year.
Nigel Carolan’s side finished a disappointing fifth in this year’s Six Nations and have been paired in Pool C with Argentina, Scotland and New Zealand.
Ireland open their campaign against the Pumas in Parma on Tuesday 2 June at 3.30pm and you can catch all of their fixtures live on TG4.
6. Wimbledon (29 June-12 July)
When you see wooden rackets emerging from the attic and kids down the local park hitting a ball against the wall, you know Wimbledon is back.
The show piece event of the tennis calendar starts a week later in 2015 and will run from 29 June to 12 July and all eyes will be on home favourite Andy Murray as he attempts to take the crown off world number one Novak Djokovic.
7. McGregor v Aldo (11 July)
This fight needs little introduction. The much anticipated bout between Conor McGregor and Jose Aldo is the headline act of UFC 189 as the Dubliner aims to become Ireland’s first title-holder in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
If that clash isn’t enough for you, there’s a host of other exciting MMA bouts taking place this summer, all the details of which can be found here.
8. The Open (16-19 July)
It’s a tournament which has brought about considerable success for the Irish in the last decade and all eyes will be on Rory McIlroy again when the golfing world descends on St Andrews.
Can he follow in the footsteps of a select few, including Padraig Harrington and Tiger Woods, and retain the Claret Jug? You wouldn’t bet against it.
9. Ireland v Australia ODI (27 August)
On the back of another impressive World Cup campaign, Ireland welcome world champions Australia to Belfast for a glamour One-Day International on 27 August.
After this month’s clash against England was washed-out, the visit of Australia takes on an added element of anticipation with new coach John Bracewell hoping to record his first big win in the job.
Tickets are still on sale for what is sure to be another great day for Irish cricket but if you can’t make it up North, the match is being shown live on Setanta.
10. World Cup warm-ups (August)
For obvious reasons, this year’s World Cup is hotly anticipated on these shores and now that the Guinness Pro12 is reaching its conclusion, it will shortly be full steam ahead.
Before Joe Schmidt names his squad, Ireland will finalise their preparations with four warm-up fixtures during August and early September with Scotland and Wales both visiting Dublin.
It will be a last chance to see Ireland before they begin their World Cup campaign and an opportunity for those on the periphery to force their way into Schmidt’s plans.
11. GAA Hurling Championship
It could be argued the Hurling Championship is the most open in some time but, just like the football, it’s hard to look beyond Tipperary or Kilkenny. Either way, it’s set to be an absorbing summer of action.
Last weekend marked the start of the campaign and it didn’t disappoint with Clare and Limerick producing an absorbing encounter which included two red cards and plenty of talking points. Let’s hope it was just the start of a memorable summer.
12. SSE Airtricity League
We’re halfway through the League of Ireland season and if you need to get your footballing fix during the summer, why not head down to your local ground on a Friday evening?
What will you be watching this summer?
Nick leeson take a bow.
The Galway United directors and the FAI have killed League of Ireland football in Galway.
It seems that GUST had their application in order and were raring to go, with the backing of countless business people and politicians from the city and county, not to mention the thousands that signed a petition in support of GUST, but a technicality was used against them by the FAI, one that was ignored in the case of Cork City FORAS and Derry City.
The FAI is rotten at its core. They are attempting to clean up the mess that they are as responsible for as the directors of GU Football Club Ltd. The so-called “merger” the association are trying to impose upon GUST will result in one of the parish clubs swallowing up a fund-raising committee and possibly slapping Galway at the end of the name of the team fielded in the First Division. Member clubs of the Galway FA would see themselves turn in to feeder clubs of teams that they compete against at junior and juvenile level. The work that has been done by GUST to include junior clubs for mutual benefit would be lost, turning them against the new entity.
All of this is in addition to the fact that the vast majority of Terryland regulars would rather forget about Terryland on Friday nights than give a cent to Devon or Mervue, who have everything to gain from this situation..
The Galway United directors and the FAI have killed League of Ireland football in Galway.
It seems that GUST had their application in order and were raring to go, with the backing of countless business people and politicians from the city and county, not to mention the thousands that signed a petition in support of GUST, but a technicality was used against them by the FAI, one that was ignored in the case of Cork City FORAS and Derry City.
The FAI is rotten at its core. They are attempting to clean up the mess that they are as responsible for as the directors of GU Football Club Ltd. The so-called “merger” the association are trying to impose upon GUST will result in one of the parish clubs swallowing up a fund-raising committee and possibly slapping Galway at the end of the name of the team fielded in the First Division. Member clubs of the Galway FA would see themselves turn in to feeder clubs of teams that they compete against at junior and juvenile level. The work that has been done by GUST to include junior clubs for mutual benefit would be lost, turning them against the new entity.
All of this is in addition to the fact that the vast majority of Terryland regulars would rather forget about Terryland on Friday nights than give a cent to Devon or Mervue, who have everything to gain from this situation.
Agree with everything you say there apart from maybe the last paragraph – I don’t know if genuine Galway United supporters will turn their back on any new ‘merged’ club, maybe they will, I don’t know. But sure as hell the version of Galway United FC that has competed over the last 3 seasons was in dire need of a ‘shake-up’.
Great point about all other Galway clubs turning into feeder clubs for teams that they directly compete against at juvenile and junior level.
Whatever happens I hope that something can be sorted out over the coming few weeks. Would be an awful shame to see some form of Galway United disappearing off the FAI map and Terryland lying fallow. Look to Cork City for a great example.
@James Corr (Tried to reply directly to your post…)
The supporters of what was Galway United / Galway Rovers understand that despite the fact that GUST had no control over the club, they were the heart and soul of it, running the match nights, organising training facilities and transport when nobody would deal with the club, keeping it running, generally paying debts the club left after it left, right and centre. Running fund-raisers, raffles, events etc. When the board warned employees of the club not to deal with GUST on day and then directed them to GUST for their wages the next, you get some idea of the lunacy involved.
Members of the trust are known all around the county and indeed the country among LOI folk as people with integrity and nothing but the interests of Galway football as a whole in their hearts, you might say the opposite of those who held ownership of the club.
The Galway United of the last number of years is dead and buried and nobody will mourn the passing, but I am just devastated that the people who clearly have the ability and desire to run a club for the city and county, responsibly and with building a legacy for Galway in mind, are being shafted.
Regarding your point about Cork City and also about Terryland lying fallow…
Cork City FORAS submitted their application for the league after the deadline had passed, as did Derry City. Just as FORAS had done, GUST were doing their utmost to free themselves from the shackles of lunatic owners and re-build a club based in reality and one with integrity. The FAI’s well-known policy of one rule for a select few and a different one for the unfortunate others is alive and well.
I’m sure that the presence of a man with strong ties with Salthill Devon on the FAI Club Licensing Committee had no influence on the decision whatsoever… nor did it have anything to do with 3 Galway club competing in the league in the first place.
I would have no problem with Terryland being empty on a Friday night. I would rather that than see the abomination that the FAI think is the solution. Terryland is the hub of Galway junior football, held in trust by the Galway FA, so it will not lie fallow. It would hurt to not see a true representative of Galway line out there every other weekend, but I would rather that than the current alternative being tabled. GUST or BUST, as has been said.
Fair play Sean, you know your stuff. Club was surely run into the ground from the top.
I wish you and GUST the very best of luck getting as you put it ‘a true representative of Galway’ city and county togging out in Terryland in next season’s LOI.
I think all that can be done now James is for GUST to finish up the sham “negotiations” and just leave the FAI and the parish clubs to it. See how clever the FAI feel next year.
That is the only thing I could back myself at the moment.
Galway United lost a lot of casual supporters in the last few years. As mentioned above the greater Galway area is too small to support 3 SUCCESSFUL soccer teams. Some were also lost to Connacht Rugby and GAA. To the casual sports fan the product on offer is far superior at the rugby where the opposition teams are often full of internationals. The move a few years back to summer soccer in LOI also brought Galway Utd games into direct competition with club and county GAA matches in both football and Hurling. I remember in the mid 1990′s Galway Utd got a crowd of over 6,000 to a league match against Cork city (which was played at Galwegians ground in Glenina due to Terryland being too small at the time).
This year over 9,000 were at the Connacht v Toulouse game in the sports grounds. Last weekend I was away in Toulouse and met dedicated supporters of Mervue and Galway United. It seems clear to me if Soccer in the city is to win back supporters in any great numbers a 3 way merger at LOI level is the only option.
No question that Galway can’t support 3 successful teams. It can’t even support one, not without a team that represents the whole county, not a parish that is largely indifferent to its existence, which is currently the case with Mervue and Devon.
The summer soccer argument is neither here nor the there. Factors other than that are responsible for the demise of Galway United, namely the board of directors of GU Football Club Ltd. and the FAI.
The only reason Devon and Mervue would sit in a room with GUST to talk about this is because they are being forced from above by the FAI.
GUST are the victims of the FAI applying rules how they please. The reason the FAI gave for the denial of GUST was not a problem for Derry or Cork. If a long-standing affiliate of Salthill Devon FC wasn’t on the FAI Club Licensing Committee, I wonder would we even be having this conversation?
How can a city and surrounds with 100000 odd people afford to have 3 teams in the league anyway?
Galway United drew support from all over County Galway, some putting the split very roughly at 50/50 between city and county, maybe even weighted more towards the county. The population as of the census last year for the county was a quarter of a million.
I agree that there should not be 3 or even 2 teams from Galway in the league, but Devon and Mervue applied for the A Championship and were subsequently promoted to the First Division. The right they have be there isn’t in question. GUST have watched on as the club they worked so hard for has been destroyed. Now that they have tried to start again, the FAI are trying to fix their own mess and consequently are making it worse.