Injury Time - 6sept2024

Derek McNamara joins Injury Time and talks about his recent success in horse racing. He had a great season with his horse Silverhill and another horse called Turberry. They won several races, including a big win at Dingle. Derek discusses the benefits of training near the beach and how the horses enjoy being in the water. He also mentions the recent controversy with trainer Shark Hanlon, who received a 10-month suspension for mishandling a dead horse. Derek believes the punishment is too harsh and thinks the focus should be on addressing the issue of drugs in horse racing. It's injury time, it's the first Friday and it's my pleasure to welcome back and to have again, join me on injury time, Derek McNamara. Derek, you're welcome and trust all is good? All's good, yeah, all good. Yeah, I'm glad to be back, thanks for having me as always. So, yeah, currently down in the South of Steyn here at the wedding, so we're getting the heat and 30 degrees heat, so it's great. And much the same as you guys back home today, I believe you're summing it up back there as well. Absolutely gorgeous here at present, indeed. I mean, could we not have just done with a bit of this throughout the summer, both for the racing world and the golfing world, Derek? Yeah, absolutely, wouldn't it be great, yes. I mean, definitely welcome to the golfing world anyway, so we're nice to get a couple of days and we'll have trials, the golf course there in Uxbridge first, so it'll be nice to hopefully get a bit of a stretch through September into early October, just to make the winter a bit easier then. Indeed. On the domestic scene, Derek, you're very much part of it with the family. A good year for you with Silverhill and all the rest? Yeah, we had a magic year with Silverhill. He just turned into a gem of a horse for us, so, you know, obviously when he went to one early in the season in Mead, in Oldcastle and got the ball rolling there, he just played 62nd just a week before it, and I suppose then all roads led to Dingle where he got that great win for us, that magic year down there, and then to cap it off with the two wins in Omie with the other horse, and we had only two horses in training, so it's Silverhill and then a horse called Turberry, and for Turberry to go and win the maiden in Omie, to go out there with two other horses and both of them to win was something special. I've put a few pictures and videos up, so I don't know if anyone noticed it, but I think Dad kind of mentioned that it meant more to him than Dingle. I really enjoyed the Dingle one, because it's so hard to get a winner down there, but I suppose for Dad in Omie, there's a lot of history there and going back through the years, so for him to have a couple of winners out there means a lot. So, yeah, magic season, just really, really enjoyed it. We weren't sure what we'd do at the start of the year, where we'd go back on the track or go back to the horse and pony racing scene, but we're glad to think that we went back to the horse and pony racing and it's been a really, really enjoyable time for our whole family. Yes, indeed. With regards to the horses, I'll beat up both for your Dad, but exercising has to continue, doesn't it? Yeah, well, they'll be out in the grass now for a little while, but no, they'll be off now for a while, yeah. There is actually one meeting left up in Donegal on Sunday, but we won't get there on the way anyway, but that's it then for the year for the horse and pony racing season. So, it's kind of a shorter season, kind of starts in May and wraps up in early September. So, in terms, as you said, Dad is probably going to enjoy a bit of a break, not having to be working them out every day, but they'll have to be minded at the same time, fed and watered every day, but they'll enjoy their next couple of months now out in the grass. Oh, indeed, and they couldn't be in a better spot than down on the beach of Albrach and that country. I mean, it's an all-weather track, it's an all-weather training circuit down there that's very special really, isn't it? Yeah, it's great to have it, it's just great for legs, it's just great for their well-being, as you said, you know, for all of us really to get into the tide, but yeah, they're looking out over there, where they'll be out in the grass, they'll be looking out over the strand and over the tide, so any given day while they're off, you can pop them in if you need to. It's just great for horses that maybe have ailments and all that. We're lucky with Silverhill, he's a very straightforward horse, he's very easy to do this, he's uncomplicated, but the other filly that we had, Thurnberry, she's a bit tricky on the train, she's had a couple of issues, so stuff like that is really helpful to horses that have a couple of complaints, be it back injuries or joint pain or issues with their hooves, but the sight to see is a blessing. Well, you know, going back in time, I remember Ginger McCain and the issues Red Rum had and he was of the opinion walking them through and being able to take them into the scene was a huge help in his training and made him the horse that he became. Yeah, and you see, some of the guys that were at Olney would have noticed actually that a lot of the guys that came down from up the country, what they did after race next year is they actually jumped back up onto the horses and they actually started to walk them out into the tide, so they took that opportunity to get them into the salt water, you know. It's massive, you know, they always say that to us, how lucky we are to be beside the beach to have that available every day, you know, both our horses are in the, they go into the water actually before they exercise and they go into the water after they exercise, so they kind of warm up in the water and it gets them up to their belly and it's magic, you know, so there's some lovely photos and scene posts as well of Olney but them horses being in the tide afterwards and that and it was a magic day, I must compliment Olney, it was great to have it back after five years, a huge crowd. Yeah, it was great, unfortunately I had to miss it which wasn't in my calendar but it just fell wrong for me but one of those things, I just didn't get there on the day but that's another scene altogether. Yeah, absolutely, I mean to reschedule it, get through it and the day wasn't that comfortable I know from the weather but the race card and how was the tide? I mean, did it push it hard? No, the only problem to add is it was actually very slow to go out so it just delayed things a little bit, you know, the water going off the track, there's always a little bit of water on the track anyway but just a bit going out but on the fifth day of that thing there was no pressures at all really with the tide coming in and everything was off pretty quickly and efficiently and this fantastic prize money, I think after Dingle, Olney is probably the best prize money of the year. So the race goers really, really appreciate what they're trying to do out there and next year it will be even bigger and better, they have a lot of horses down there and people really, really enjoyed their day and as I said for ourselves to have two winners was pretty magic, you know, we obviously really enjoyed it. We unfortunately had a good runner who lost a really good horse, a horse called Chloe Sam which had won 11 races throughout the season, just took a wrong step in the mile and a half race and unfortunately had to be put down that evening but he will be the horse of the year but that was the only downfall of the day, that's just one of those things, just took a bad step and it looks like he broke a bone up around his shoulder and yeah, it's really, really unfortunate but just to happen to probably be the best horse on the theme, he was the former group 2 winner for Jessica Arndt and that was the only downfall of the day really, otherwise it was magic. You know, talking about that, just seeing the news, Shark Hanlon pulling a dead horse through Kilkenny, didn't go down too well with a 10 month suspension, that was a bit careless wasn't it? Yeah, you have to be so careful, it's kind of trialed by social media really is what that is, I got posted I think on Twitter and a few different places and yeah, he should have been a bit more careful in terms of covering the horse or not making sure that the horse was in view and yeah, so that's the dangers anymore, everyone has phones, everyone has cameras on them all the time now so you have to be, all these kind of things have to be done in the correct way, in the correct manner and yeah, it comes down really, really hard, if he's going to appeal, he might get a couple of months off but it's not ideal and that's the big thing for these big trainers now, they have to be so, so careful with what they do with their horses and that and I think there was another issue as well in the last couple of days popping up with him where a horse that he used to train and sold on within the space of 2 months I think was very, very neglected and nearly had to be put down, it was basically undersized and that and I think it came up in Highlight again, he was questioned about where he was given, who he was giving his horses to after their racing was done so like all these kind of things are becoming more and more of an issue now because social media is, you know, reading the Highlight list. Rachel got her starting there didn't she? Sorry? Rachel Blackmore, she got her start with Shark didn't she? Yeah, he's a good trainer, she started off there, she did her pony race next week and then she moved into Shark Islands and kind of got going with him as far as he gave her a chance and that's where basically she got nabbed in from Henry the Bromhead you know so yeah, like it's a pity for him, he's a good character, he's an enjoyable guy to listen to and yeah, I just think it's a bit, myself now it's a bit harsh to this and I think it's really trial by, you know, trial by social media as I say. Of course, yeah. Yes, he could have been a bit more careful and he will be in the future but I definitely think 10 months is, there's bigger issues, in my view there's bigger issues in the game, they have to really nail the drugs issues and looking into all that kind of stuff, you know, basically knocking his eye out for 10 months because he didn't cover the animal and it was spotted in the back of a horse box, you know, it's a bit, in my view it's a bit, you know, 10 months is harsh but yes, he should have been a bit more careful for 10 months, I think maybe just a telling off was really what he needed. Indeed, indeed, yeah. He may not even have been aware that that was being done as well, you know, that could be just taken out of the yard by someone else and one of those things, you know. Anyway, moving on, we have a big couple of days coming up, Leopardstone combining with the Cora on their Champions Festival, that's a couple of years, I would never have missed this one, I don't see myself being there this year but, you know, it's a huge race meeting and when you look at some of the monies that are involved here now, unfortunately we don't have the final list because I think the latest check with me today, I found that the Irish Champions Stakes has even 33 entries still standing there but then you have the Coolmore America, the Matron Stakes as well coming up and then the Cora following which has 4 Group 1 races there and the big one there of course is the Irish St. Ledger on the following day, on the Sunday. Going back to Leopardstone, a great meeting I should say, Derek, I thought maybe that City of Tri would be in there but it's not for him, he's going over to America later on for the Breeders' Cup but what do you see coming out of there? Is this horse mentioned, the Dante Winter Economics? Don't know much about him, do you? William Haggis trains him so he's the favourite at the moment, yes, by Night of the Thunder so he's been very impressive so far this season in fairness to him so he'll go there with every chance I'd imagine and I really like William Haggis as a trainer, he's a fantastic trainer. I suppose for the O'Briens it'll be all about Auguste Rodin, he's been a bit disappointing this year, when he's good he's very, very good but he can really throw in a few wobblers and yeah, he's on a recovery mission there, he won the race last year but I think he'd probably go close again and then there's Los Angeles that won the Irish Derby there throughout the year and finished second or third in the Eston Derby and then went to York the other week and won the Great Foliage Stakes, the Group 2 so probably looks a little bit short and trip for Los Angeles but I'd say they'll try and make it a bit of a stamina test and he might just get up but yeah and then you've the Matron Stakes just before that so it's always good prize money, it's always a great couple of days, you've Opera Singer and the Matron Stakes, it's always a really, really good race and then all roads lead to the car the following day so as you said they're holding back City Tri for later in the year now, he's going to go I think straight to the British Cup, it's all about bringing him to Feltwell for a gallop in the meantime but he looks like hopefully he can go over and be a Brian, Aidan O'Brien would be hoping it would be his first British Cup winner, classic winner and that's nice to see. But he's chasing it for a while now isn't he? He has yeah and he hasn't had a huge amount of success that way, it's a hard thing to do to go over onto the dirt and that's one of the reasons he's going to Feltwell, he wants to get a surface that's similar to us even though they've changed the surface in the last couple of years but that type of a track is a big difference from the turf tracks that we have over here in Ireland and the UK but luckily he's bright to do it, he's quite justified, he won the British Cup Classic so in fairness he is going over there with an American bred horse so that might give him every chance but yeah it's just that time of year that we're all now waiting for Leopards Town and for the Curragh and it's just a little bit quieter for these couple of weeks while these nice horses are kind of being kept back for the Irish Championships and then onto the Irish and onto the Breeders' Cup. Yes, maybe just in what we have left in your working world, your professional world of golf, what's looming in that, I see Shane Lowry's talking about Down Ryal is it? Yeah, they're going to, yeah, the Ryal County Down is the Irish Open there now, is on next week I think isn't it? I think it's next week, correct, yes. Yeah, so they'll be heading there along with Rory so I think Billy Horsham is going as well, they've stopped over a couple of American players so it's a really, really good golf course, it's one of the best golf courses in the country, in the whole UK and Ireland it's an amazing spot so we'll be looking forward to that, he'll be hoping to close out his season pretty well, Rory as well, he'll be hoping to maybe get back going again and give the rest of the boy a bit of a run so he's had maybe a bit of a disappointing couple of weeks whereas Shane will be quite happy with the way things have gone and he's bagged quite a bit of money. Oh yeah, money wise he's done very well but Rory definitely fell away, there was domestic issues there maybe had an effect on him, there was a lot of publicity around that and it seemed to be at that time that he did kind of slump but it picked me up with him but you know the thing about it is money doesn't seem to be the issue, the pride of winning and being up there but the man that's leading the posse there, Derek, is something else up his neck. Yeah, he's one of these athletes that's just mentally so strong, you see the best athletes that week, no matter what sport they are they're just mentally, the pressure comes on the better they get and that's exactly the way he is, you see what he did in the Olympics on the final day, he just looked like a man possessed and he's been that kind of way since, he's very confident. His season has kind of flipped to the side of Rory, Rory had that golden chance in the US Open wasn't it and it just fell away from him, his season just fell apart after that, confidence kind of went downhill and as you said he had a bit of personal stuff going on but Scotty, he's just so strong mentally, he's not very orthodox at all in what he does with his golf swing and technically you wouldn't be teaching kids what he does with his feet and all that but that doesn't matter, just once your brain is working well and you're so confident like that it doesn't matter what way you swing the golf club and yeah, he's exceptional. So as I said, hopefully the Irish guys will finish off the season well and the Irish Open goes well next week and then just to touch locally with a young girl from Mam there, I think I've mentioned her a few times, Kate Dillon played in the Irish Ladies Open there just the other week which was an incredible achievement to get invited to that at just at the age of 17, just gone 17 and she played in it and Nelly, unlucky to miss the cut, looked like she was going to get in only for she took a 9 and a par 5 15th coming home so if she had parred the last few holes she would have made it but just took a 9 at the wrong time and just missed out on the cut so I just wanted to mention her and actually Hughie's son Luke caddied for her for the week so nice to see a young girl from Mam, I think as I said playing with the best golfers in the world at the Parrott House a few weeks ago. Yeah, golf is strong in Connemara though isn't it? It is yeah, like you have, she plays out of her own club here in Uptown but she practices a lot as well in Connemara so that's where she gets all of her Luke and Luke is flying it and I believe he's off to tour school now and in a couple of weeks he's going to try and get his card and hopefully if that works out he'll turn professional and so it's an exciting time ahead for him and then a young guy called Liam Nolan that made the Walker Cup team actually last year, he's from Galway, he's just after turning professional as well so you'll be hearing his name hopefully in the news coming up so it's exciting for Galway and for Connemara, it's good to keep our name up there. Oh absolutely, it's a joy actually you know indeed just to see featuring at the top end of the world where you know if it works as we know from McIlroy and Lowry and Parrick and Harrington and others how they can realise the greats of golf and the money provided and the security is and Shane has never been silent on that, what golf has given to him, he's so thankful. Yeah, like it's massive for his family you know for all of them, obviously he comes from a big GAA background but yeah like these guys make so much money nowadays you know it's unbelievable. I think Sheppard's pay attack last week was was it £25 million or something? Yeah I think with add-ons even though it's slightly over that so like it's incredible you know second player's got £12.5 million, I think £5 million for third is it or something like that or fourth so it's like yeah what they're raking in is awesome. Hopefully a few of these young guns around Cunnamara can get him Parrick's for the next couple of years. Alright Derek that's kind of it unless there's something else that you would like to just take note of? No that's all yeah I'd just like to thank everyone, we got a lot of well wishes out from Naomi a couple of weeks ago and like that was very magic leading up to Horace when he was coming into the winner's enclosure just the shout out we got from the crowd and these local people you know it's amazing the amount of people that get behind it and take an interest in what we're doing so just to thank all of them you know it was a magic couple of minutes with everybody coming over to us and congratulating us so thanks for everyone and thanks to the radio for always taking an interest in the local horse racing scene and listening to the way Darryl sees them so it was a magic year and hopefully we can crack on again next year and give the people something to look forward to. Absolutely yeah indeed well enjoy your weekend in the south of Europe in Malaga or in that district and the east and you're welcome to have a great wedding and congratulations and best wishes to the two Tainvidars and hope they have a great life indeed best wishes from our sons here in Connemara. Thanks man, yeah Dunning All-Wedding this evening so looking forward to it. Thanks for having me. Many thanks Derek take care, safe journey home. Bye bye. Thank you. Bye. Derek from Connemara joining us on matters of racing and golf and just with regard to local interest in both as well great to have him this Friday and we'll be talking to you right after these. Westport based chiropodist Martin McNally will be doing home visits in the Connemara area on Tuesday the 10th of September. If you would like to make an appointment please call him on 087 222 6260. Dragon's Finch Festival takes place from the 13th to the 15th of September. With great new acts and some old favourites. 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Sweeney Oil are at your service, friendly, helpful and they care. There are many easy ways to pay now that's what I call fair. They deliver oil to homes all over Galway and Surround. And Sweeney Oil's prices are the very best around. For the best value home heating oil in Galway call Sweeney Oil today on 1800 555 999. Or visit sweeneyoil.ie. Sweeney Oil, the warmer way to heat your home. Back with you folks with injury time and it's a pleasure to bring back on the programme my good friend and Jojo Gorham. Jojo, Paul Gerrard. Thanks Eamonn, great to be back. Hope all is well with you and your listeners. Thank you very much. Back end of the season Jojo, one I suppose we can reflect on with the rugby scene. Your own world, how was it for you? Satisfied I'm sure with progress made and all that. Yeah, we're just coming into the tail end of the summer activity which was hugely busy Eamonn. We had all our summer tag series and our summer camp series with the best part of 2000 people playing the tag and we had 1500 kids on the camps. And then we had our summer programme which is our inter-pro sides with the under 18 boys and girls and under 19 boys and the conic senior women. So it's been hectic to be brutally honest but great. And it's unbelievable how quickly the new season has crept up on us again. Well yes it is, it's literally on us now. I'm looking at the women, they're still involved in Ulster I think this weekend. But the first game for the boys is against Munster in a couple of weeks time. So it is upon us, very very quick. Well ironically would you believe it that the boys 18's and 19's have finished their inter-pro series and so has the conic senior women, they finished up with a great win in Ulster last weekend. It's just phenomenal the conic senior women, where it's gone to in the last few years. Last season they had 12 first cappers and this season they've had another 15 first cappers all coming from 3 and 4 very successful under 18 girls sides in the last couple of years. And the under 18 girls themselves for this season are playing their final inter-pro final against Leinster tomorrow. And going with a lot of confidence again. God be with the day when you'd be going in hope and we're going with confidence now and that's so fantastic. And a strong conamara connection there through Ulster as well isn't there? Oh completely yeah, in both instances both conic senior women and the under 18's. There's 5 and 6 in the under 18's side and there's 7 in the senior women's side and all great athletes. In the senior side it was so fantastic to see Molly Booth getting her first cap. She's a girl of the future and I believe that it won't be long before she'll be a consistent member of that team. Obviously we have Hannah Clarke who's just after being contracted into the Irish senior women. Her dad would have been Jack Clarke who represented Ireland going way back if you remember the first world cup. Against Australia where we just lost out in the last few minutes. Jack was involved in that. So it's magic times really and likewise with the boys, the under 18 boys and girls. Under 18 and 19 boys there's such a spread of clubs and localities it's just magic. For me I just sit back and glorify watching the kids coming through. All you ever ask for and I believe the main task from our perspective is to give everybody the same opportunity. Whether you're in Clifton or Belmolish or Sligo or Athlone, same thing. I was just talking to Derek McNamara earlier and talking about the golf world and the racing world and the way the facilities, even though they're very limited to a degree, but there are facilities creeping in that now will allow that. And just coming back to that, it's a little bit unfortunate that a young man that we spoke about, going back to a couple of programs leading into the Olympics in Paris, a young man called Tommy Q has had to move to the Cistercian College in Rosgrave. I think they're one of the third leading colleges in the country with regard to the promotion of athletics and to progress his education in academia and in the world of sports, especially that of athletics and rugby. He's still very involved in rugby. Tom has moved there and to wish him well because he's stood great. But it's just that pity that we don't have something out west and a college out west that caters for that talent that can be touched on and nurtured and that he has to go there. But at least his interest in that has taken him to Rosgrave and we wish him well and a great future. Isn't it, again, magic to see one of your own being so on the national stage and so great? You're dead right. That's an issue in general in sports out west, Eamon, is to find ways to retain our talented kids in whatever sport they're in. We're working hard from a rugby perspective to partner up with the likes of ATU, who have nine different entities spread across the province of Connacht and in Letterkenny. And we'd be hopeful as well with the likes of UG. The head of sports gone in there is Dez Ryan, who cut his teeth in his career early in Connacht rugby. So it is, in ways, it's a niggle when you see, it's the same way with some of the senior women we have. They're applying their trade in senior rugby clubs in Leinster and you'd say we have to find a way to retain them. But in the meantime, happy days that they can find places until we're geared up well enough to tick the box of progression by way of education or athletics. And you're dead right, Tom is just as talented in rugby. But we glorify him in whatever achievements our kids back west can achieve in. And I'm sure he won't give up on the rugby either, because he'd be a huge addition to Connemara Rugby Club if he ever returns back again, and I'm sure he will, because we all have a pull for home, Eamonn. Oh yes, of course, of course. It still exists, as you say, it's in the DNA and that's it. Even though I see it in my own as well, the connection is still there. Yeah, I'm delighted with regard to that. Now, Connacht, we'll just maybe just look at Connacht and the huge changes in the camp there. Going forward, the Dexcom Stadium is really coming on. Drogba is there only in the last 48 or 72 hours. Scaffolding up and elevation appearing over the hoarding. It's going to be a great facility too, isn't it? It's going to be unbelievable, it's going to be unbelievable. The best part for me is that, unlike Tomand or indeed Ravenhill, Kingspan they call it now I suppose, this new stadium project is actually going to be income generating. The board has guaranteed that the income generation will actually go back to the grassroots game. So it's huge. But when you see the progress every day like I do and it being knocked to the ground and now being rebuilt up and you're right, the first stage of the stand has gone in and it's just unbelievable to tell you the truth, Eamonn. But it's ahead of plan, which is great. It's about two weeks, but you know yourself, you could go into the comfort zone and be two weeks ahead and the next minute you could find yourself two weeks behind again. But it's still looking somewhere around September 25, between September 25 and December 25 as a fully functioning, open stadium and it'll be magic when it happens. But from our own perspective, there's a tough year ahead by way of, well one, we're all working from home, which is a bit difficult, but we'll get there. Two is that we'll have limited attendance in the stadium and we'll really be working around a building site. But if everybody can envisage what it's going to be like, you'll accept the pain for the long term gain really. You would, but you know on that very issue George, isn't it kind of a sad reflection on Galway in general that like the likes of Pearce Stadium and others are not ones that they could move to? I mean Dublin, you could move anywhere in Dublin and accommodate an attendance and a crowd, but Galway don't have that. Yeah, it is. It's sad. It is sad and it's such a pity because it would be a unique opportunity. You see how valuable it has been in terms of the sellouts in Munster down on Parc y Coif. And you'd have to say as well from an optics perspective in terms of collaboration between the two organisations, it would be good for all concerns. A very learned man, he's gone back to Australia now, but he was head of coaching in the area a few weeks. He used to say to me when we'd be talking about facilities and stuff, he said from a conic perspective we shouldn't be worrying about being the biggest sporting organisation in the province, but we should absolutely concentrate on being the best. And part of being the best would have been a collaborative effect there to be able to facilitate. Now, I get the fact that they don't have lights and stuff and I get the fact that televised games corrals you into Friday nights and Saturday nights and things like that, but I don't think there's anything... The word resilience stands tall in Connemara as well you know, but you'd have thought that if there was a collective will we'd find a way. Now I'm not saying that it mightn't happen, wouldn't it be magic if it did? And I'd love to be on your programme again to say, you know what, all we were talking about, that's going to come true. So I'm hoping that there's discussions going on in the background, but as it stands, it is a pity, it would be a lost opportunity. I totally agree, but the money seems to be flowing more directly now into the world of sport and into catering and facilities and hopefully that will come west. But it needs energy, it needs people out there kicking doors down and not being happy in their camps sitting with the belly hanging over the table and saying everything is granddad's, kicking along lovely. That's not good enough anymore. Not at all, and neither is the poor me mentality either. You have to get up and grab it by the scruff of the neck. And you know they talk about the self-determination theory, well that's what it is, it's about finding the best way. And sometimes I say to my staff here, Eamonn, some mountains are hard to climb, but there's no mountain that you can't get round. Absolutely, totally agree with you. In the minute or two left, Jojo, anything else that you might just like to put to us on the programme? No, just on the pro side, Eamonn, they seem to be going very well. They had their match in Thale and they're off to, just after leaving for their second friendly in Glasgow. You know, challenge matches are not a huge indicator, but it's lovely to see some of the home-grown players like the likes of Kyle Ford now, he's becoming an institution, so is Shane Jennings. And then you have Matt Devine and John Devine, the two Bannasloe lads who have huge Galway GA connections. Their uncle is Barry Brennan, if you remember him, the captain Galway going back. I do indeed, yes. And then young Hugh Gavin, he's a man mountain and he's doing great. You know, Sean Walsh, a young lad, again with casual connections. He did fantastically well with the Irish schools over in Australia. And he has another brother, younger brother, Dara, who's actually playing a year up in terms of the Connacht 19s. He qualifies to play for the Connacht 18s and he was magic over the summer, so it's great to see them coming through. By all accounts, the new number 10, Ione, has inducted himself seriously well and they're all buzzing about him. And again, the man that's in situ, Jack Carty, is supposed to be in full flight and full form. So happy days, hopefully things will continue to go well and if we get a good start, it'll be interesting to see where it might take us. Fantastic and we look forward to coming back to you in a month's time and being able to talk in a positive way about how it started for them in the new season and the progress that's been made. But for now, Giorgio, a pleasure as always and thank you for joining us this Friday on Injury Time. Thanks, Eamonn and I might see you over the Arts Festival, looking forward to it. Well, you owe me a pint now, you know that. I think it's disputable, disputable. Maybe it's in reverse, I'm the one owing you, but as always, great talking to you, Giorgio, I look forward to that chat over the Arts Festival indeed. We certainly make a case of meeting up for a jock, as they say. Take care, enjoy your weekend. Many thanks, Giorgio, take care. Bye bye. Giorgio Vorham, joining us on Injury Time and what an interesting man Giorgio is, can cross the borders of all sports and talk with knowledge. We'll be right back with you after this. This program is kindly sponsored by Clymour Abbey and Gardens 095 52 001 It's back to Injury Time and it's my pleasure to welcome back on the first Friday of September, Jack Cosgrove. Jack, you're very welcome and good to talk to you. Thanks, Eamon, it's kind of frightening when you say the first Friday in September. Where has the year gone? Except now we have lovely sunshine and northeast wind, which is always good for fine weather. Hopefully it lasts for another few days, but I don't know. We should be looking ahead to two All-Irelands, if not three. It should be going, but we won't be yet next year either because they have concerts on in August. So that's going to give the GAA a great excuse not to extend the season. Oh, my word. Oh, my word. Is that guy? I didn't hear that. Now that's news. Oh, my word. That's. Oh, you mustn't be an Oasis fan here. Right. OK, I'll pass on that one. After the shamazle about tickets and Ticketmaster and Oasis and £400 tickets and RG. Yeah, I don't know. Where's it going? It's a total, total, total rip-off. Oh, it's unbelievable. Jack, four All-Irelands left behind us, you know, from both ends. You know, Michael O'Donoghue, I suppose, may be a bit of good news. Shefflin, Henry exits and Michael comes back. Not maybe that well treated last time round. Has a good looking backroom team from what I've been reading with them this time round. Maybe there is a bit of light at the end of the tunnel. Yeah, he's well, he seems to have his much the same guys with him, Larkin and Franny Ford. And I don't know who else he may bring in. You know, he has to have some new, new, new voices in there. And, you know, I saw the paper they written that he'd have to, he'd have to start pulling, you know, because you can't keep fellas going forever. And then you need fresh blood, fresh legs. You know, we have one, four or five minor All-Irelands and a couple of other 20, 21 All-Irelands in the last 10 years. So there have to be fellas out there that are... Well, you know, Jack, he's had a good look at Galway now because, I mean, training Dublin, they met him a couple of occasions and he's had a good look at Galway. So, you know, he's definitely got to have a feel for where they're at and who's there and who's not there, who needs to go and maybe something new to come in. So, you know, he said, he said a close up of Galway. He would, he'd have a great finger on Galway, on Horden, Club Horden. Eamonn O'Shea is staying with him as well, the fella from Tipperary who is living in Salt Hill, his young fellas on that panel as well. So he has, you know, people will probably be expecting miracles straight away. You know, that never happens. He has to, he has to take a year or two, two years to put shape on his team. Well, you know what he wants and then fellas in, so there won't be miracles straight away. So, you know, Shetland was, I don't know, he probably didn't have enough of a handle on Galway Horden. And there's a lot of politics in, in Club Horden and Galway and outsiders don't seem to, to be too welcome. You know, they're, they're, they're, they find it difficult to, to, to make things work. So hopefully, hopefully we need, we need a bit of excitement, you know, in the Horden scene because it was very dour and, you know, poor Horden and, and, you know, Leinster Championships left behind with last minute goals and stuff like that, you know. Well, it transferred into the ladies as well. I mean, my God, you know, they, they left it behind as well. They did, you know, they weren't expected, first of all, to, to perform that well. You know, that short were, were known to be all over them. But they, you know, they raised their standards and, and had chances, you know, but they just seemed to, to freeze at the wrong time, no more than our footballers. You know, they, when it was there for the winning, they didn't know how to go for it. And they hit five, five bad wides, maybe in the last 10 minutes. You know, once the first half that were just going over the bar nearly with their eyes closed, they were just, just missed five or dropped them short. And, and, and that was the winning and the losing of it. Absolutely. I totally agree with you. When Shane Malsh on the, on the Galway side and his, his short kicks and not taking them, you know, the whole thing was a disaster for Galway this year. I mean, there was definitely four on islands, three of which should have been bagged, I think. Well, I mean, I still only get them to watch the, the, the senior final. And the more I see of it, you know, to me, most of it was lost to the sideline. Yes. I, well, I think we spoke on that the last time around. Yeah. Yeah. And, and, you know, changes not made and fellas played who were not fit and stuff like that. You know, and, and it's time for, it's time for backroom change. Anyhow, whether, you know, there's no, there's no word at all about it since the Allard was over. It has just been, there's not, there's no talk about, about changing selectors or management or anything. You know, there's a lot of counties chopping and changing. Even Mayo, there seems to be quite a bit of argy-bargy going on between the clubs and some kind of a, a county board thing that they're, they're, they're just. It hasn't been, it hasn't been finished and the clubs are kicking up and looking for changes. So things are not great there either. I wonder, is it a reflection on where the whole GAC has gone, Jack? You know, away from the norm of, of the summer period running into September for all Ireland. Like this would be the hurling one, the first Sunday. And then we'd have the big weekend in, we'd have the big weekend in Leopardstone and the Curragh and combine it with the All-Ireland football. So there's a, I just wonder, is the calendar having an effect on it? It has to be because I think they jumped in too soon and moved it too far. You know, they should have maybe moved it gradually. You know, just go maybe two weeks back and see how it worked. And, and, you know, if another week, you know, if, if it was working well with both clubs and counties. But jumping head over heels in and, and, and bringing it back a couple of months without, you know, consultation. I don't know how much consultation was done between the clubs. And the clubs, you see, would always be looking for their county players anyway. So, but it, it has caused a lot of problems, a huge amount of problems. And there are other interests that seem to be taking preference, which is not good. Yes, yes. I mean, next year now you have two big concerts in Croke Park again in August, which, you know, blocks the year. They're talking about maybe pushing out the season a bit. But if you're going to have that in Croke Park in August, well, that gives them a good, a great excuse not to do anything. Well, I mean, the recovery of the pitch alone is going to be, is going to be huge. You know, the whole thing. Transferring across early days in, in the soccer scene, we meet up on new management now, new management here. We meet England and I'm just wondering, I'm just wondering, will there be a kind of an experience that we had one time in the Aviva when England came over, the match tomorrow in, in the start of the Europeans? It'd be interesting. Yeah, it possibly will. I think they were caught on the hotbed that last time, you know, they weren't expecting or hadn't kind of supervised or the crowd that came over and the group of English, English supporters, you know, put them in a place where they could rip, rip seats out and throw them down on the Irish supporters, things like that. You know, there was no thought from dentists. I'd say a lot more has been done now to, to manage it in a far better way. And, and, you know, the allocation of tickets and stuff like that, hopefully because it, it, it would be very bad for the game. Now, you know, you're going to have a bit of a anti-English thing with the likes of, of, of, of Grealish and, and, and Rice and, and Charles, you know, he, he, so there'll be a bit of booing and jeering, but if it's, you know, it's left at that, then it will be all right. Yeah, indeed. The kickoff, the premiership, anyone other than, and I must congratulate you on what Liverpool have delivered so far. Salah is burning again, but are they going to stop City? Well, unless somebody cuts the lad's ponytail and he loses his scoring touch because he's been unbelievable, you know, and he, he's not playing wonderful, but he's just there and he's taken goals at will, you know, left foot, right foot, headers and, and he's unstoppable really at the moment, you know, and De Bruyne and, you know, they have built up a great partnership and, and it's going to be very hard to stop them. Liverpool are playing quite well, they're still, you know, coughing up chances at the back, that's a, that's a, the ponytail fellow wouldn't be long taken, but they're playing well going forward. He has, he has tweaked the midfield a bit and, you know, they're playing faster ball. Salah, you know, played well, kind of dropped a hint on interviews in the last week, that might be his last visit to, to Old Trafford, you know, whether he's just playing games and looking for a bigger contract, but it's, it's sadly, you know, that there's two or three of them down to that their contract is running out at the end of the year, Van Dijk and, and Salah, they're two at least, and, you know, it shouldn't come down to that. No, it shouldn't. I probably won't either. Under new management, I suppose, it's going to take them a bit of time to put their legs under the table and, and sort that end of it out, you know. Arsenal are, I thought they made a decent start, but the right sending off last week unsettled them. They never recovered and let Brighton back in. Yeah, it was, it was a poor, too kind for us. Missing a few feet there. Sterling coming in at the last minute, I don't know if he fits in too well with, with, with Arsenal's style of play. You know, he wasn't getting any game at Chelsea and has never played since he left Liverpool in the Winter City. And, you know, he's been kind of declining since, you know, so we'll see how he, when he, when he does get a game with Arsenal, how he'll, how he'll fit in. Yeah, I, I don't think, I think he's too much like, he's like too much like Saka in his, in his, in his play. And, and you have Martinelli out there on the wing already. I just don't see a place for him, but that's not for me. Rice has been a disappointment anyway. He has, yeah, he's, he's, he's seems to be a bit involved more in, in disagreements and stuff like that, you know, that he's, he's, he's, he's getting involved in little spats with, with... Yeah, he, he's disappointed for England as well. And, and, and not concentrating and, and, and, yeah, he's not as good as he was initially, you know, but maybe he will, he will come back tomorrow. We'll see how he plays for England tomorrow under pressure playing against Ireland, you know, when he had played for Ireland already. Yes, that's true. Yeah, yeah, that would be true, change of camps there and just to see what, what, what happened there, yeah. Nothing much more, Jack, to relay or to talk to the folks out there about, I think. There's not a lot, no, things are quite, the club scene has kicked off, Gigi Kerr has shown an odd match on a Sunday, that's a letter more and, and, and Salt Hill left, left Sunday, Salt Hill were far, far, far better than them, but there was a match on, there was a match on Kerry beforehand and the difference in standards was, was quite amazing. I saw, OK. You know, and we had quite a few county players playing for Salt Hill and a few ex-county lads playing for a letter more, but yeah, it's, it's, it's a long time until next, I suppose whenever the league kicks off again next March or April. Yes, yes, it's a big gap, a big gap, yeah. Hopefully we'll have resurrected, resurrected something, a few, a few teams. Catch up during Arts Festival and maybe have a pint and a chat, but for now, thank you for taking time out from the paintbrush. If there's a streak, if there's a streak on the wall, she'll blame you anyway. Sorry? I'd say if there's a streak on the wall, you'll be blamed. Wouldn't be the first time, Jack Cosgrove. No, no, no. Thank you. Anyhow, good to talk to you and talk to you soon again. Hopefully we'll catch up over there. Absolutely, yeah. Thank you, Jack. Cheers, God bless, bye. Take care now, yeah, indeed. A big thank you to Jack there and to Joe Gorham, earlier on Joe Gorham and indeed to Derek McNamara, to James, back at the studio, technician for me this Sunday, to you for listening, all being good. Talk to you Sunday morning. Take care, agus slán. This programme was kindly sponsored by Kylemore Abbey and Gardens. 095 52 001 095 52 001 095 52 001 095 52 001