Irish Times GAA correspondent Sean Moran is beavering away and should have his match report in soon. Until then Armagh supporters can stare at this poster.
Armagh manager Kieran McGeeney: “We knew it was going to be that. Coming to the end, thinking Jesus not another draw. I feel for Joycer (Galway manager, Pádraic Joyce), he has put his life and soul into this. The fellas have been amazing. It takes a special bunch to keep coming back and looking for it (the victory). You have t hand it to them they never stopped, they never quit. Today the boys dug deep and ruck to the plan.”
Armagh captain Aidan Forker on McGeeney: “I think I have missed out one, Kieran, Kieran McGeeney. This win today would not have happened if Geezer hadn’t returned 10 years ago. Thank you Geezer.”
Armagh captain Aidan Forker: “We are not dreaming; we are 2024 All Ireland champions. Pay a word of thanks to Galway. You are a top team.”
Armagh win a second title following on from their first success in 2002. Kieran McGeeney was captain the first day and he’s manager today. The Orchard County were due a bit of luck given recent years and they earned it on the day with plenty of perspiration and grit. Galway will be disappointed that their free-taking wasn’t up to scratch after losing Rob Finnerty to an early knee injury.
Armagh man and GAA President Jarlath Burns has tears in his eyes as he celebrates with his son Jarly Óg. He speaks first as President of the organisation and then as an Armagh man.
Armagh’s Rory Grugan: “It’s 10 years of work for so many people. The boys came off the bench to win it for us. Trust in what we are doing, trust in the management. We believed in what we were doing.”
Armagh’s Rian O’Neill: “Oh my god. I don’t know what to say. We shown for four years we keep coming back and we have done it.”
Fulltime: Armagh 1-11 Galway 0-13
Armagh are All Ireland champions.
74 mins: One point game. Galway going back and across the pitch. It ends when Dylan McHugh hits the post. Armagh 1-11 Galway 0-13
70 mins: Walsh under-hits a free that drops into the hands of Armagh goalkeeper Blaine Hughes. There will be six minutes of injury time. Campbell pulls a shot wide as Armagh break free.
68 mins: Darcy kicks a third point of the game to bring an end to a 13-minute spell without scoring for Galway. And like buses there’s second immediately. McDaid kicks a point to make it a one-point game. Armagh 1-11 Galway 0-13
65 mins: Galway’s shooting is panicked and Joyce is trying to get his team to calm down. Armagh’s Oisin O’Neill shows them how it’s done with a brilliant point. Armagh 1-11 Galway 0-11
61 mins: Walsh misses a long ran range free. Armagh sweep down the pitch and Grimley kicks a doozy off the post, a second point for the midfielder. McDaid is the latest Galway player to miss a good point scoring chance. Armagh 1-10 Galway 0-11.
58 mins: Darcy misses a decent point-scoring chance.
54 mins: Darcy with a response for Galway, a point after another excellent cameo from Dylan McHugh. Armagh 1-09 Galway 0-11
There is a debate whether Campbell was trying to fist a point of looking to play the ball inside to McKay for the goal. IT matters not one iota. The Armagh fullback finished the chance to the net.
49 mins: Armagh’s Rory Grugan will be leaving with a knee injury. Jarly Óg Burns is on for Conor Macken.
45 mins: Walsh kicks a free, Galway captain Sean Kelly is on for Jack Glynn. Stefan Campell and Ross McQuillan are on for Armagh. Galway 0-10 Armagh 0-9
GOAL: Armagh. Campbell makes an instant impact his run and fisted pass, is finished to the net by fullback Aaron McKay. Armagh 1-09 Galway 0-10
42 mins: Tiernan Kelly brings the teams level for a seventh time. Galway 0-9 Armagh 0-9
36 mins: Conroy’s third point is another for the scrapbook, thunderous from long range. Galway 0-7 Armagh 0-6.
37 mins: Cillian McDaid point, a second from Galway, exactly as manager Pádraic Joyce would have hoped. However, Armagh’s Conaty responds with a tidy finish, his third point of the game. Galway 0-8 Armagh 0-7
40 mins: O’Neill’s long range effort brings the sides level for a sixth time. Galway 0-8 Armagh 0-8
41 mins: Shane Walsh with his first point of the final. Galway 0-9 Armagh 0-8
The tale of the half (2): Shane Walsh (Galway) missed a couple of handy frees, Joe McElroy (Armagh) failed to convert a mark into a point, while Armagh free-taker Conor Turbitt also missed a free he would have expected to convert. Armagh are getting up the pitch quickly from their kickouts, Galway not really pressing with any aggression.
John Maher has been brilliant, outstanding work-rate, great block on Grimley that denied the Armagh man a point and kicked a superb one himself.
No changes to either side at halftime. RTE pundits believe it’s advantage Armagh.
The tale of the half. Galway lost captain Séan Kelly before the start. He is on the bench, but Céin D’Arcy took Kelly’s place in midfield and kicked a point. The Tribesmen also lost their free-taker and top scorer Rob Finnerty to a knee injury. Galway had 66 percent possession and took six out of 10 scoring opportunities. Armagh also took six of 10 opportunities. They have relied on massed defence. Armagh midfielders Ben Crealey (2) and Niall Grimley have contributed three of their side’s six point total.
Armagh midfielder Ben Crealey’s second point brings his side level.
Half-time: Galway 0-6 Armagh 0-6
34 mins: Crealey with his second point of the game, a lovely finish from the big fielder following a swift counterattack. Teams level for a fifth time. There will be one added minute. Galway 0-6 Armagh 0-6
31 mins: Paul Conroy kicks his second point of the game. Joe McElroy misses an easy enough chance from a mark. Galway 0-6 Armagh 0-5
29 mins: Seán Ó Maoilchiaráin is fouled by Grugan, a clumsy tackle. Walsh misses a second free. Galway 0-5 Armagh 0-5
25 mins: John Maher kicks a point for Galway, Barry McCambridge responds with a beauty for Armagh, his kick rode the breeze beautifully. The teams are level again for a fourth time. Galway 0-5 Armagh 0-5
19 mins: Conor Turbitt misses a free for Armagh but Céin D’Arcy makes no mistake following a flowing, sharp, incisive move from Galway. Galway 0-4 Armagh 0-3.
16 mins: Galway are happy to adopt a patient approach, 20 plus passes at a time as they try and work a scoring opportunity. However Cillian McDaid elects to take on a shot from long range that drifts wide, the first of the game for the Tribesmen. Down the other end of the pitch John Maher makes a brilliant block to avert danger as Niall Grimley tried to get a shot off. Galway 0-3 Armagh 0-3
23 mins: Matthew Tierney fouled but Shane Walsh misses the resultant free. Finnerty’s absence following his early knee injury a factor for the first time. Armagh captain Rory Grugan grabs his team’s first score in 14 minutes. The sides are level again. Galway 0-4 Armagh 0-4.
9 mins: Armagh midfielder Ben Crealey brings an end to a slick move with his team’s third point to draw the team’s level. A significant blow for Galway as their free-taker and top scorer in the Championship Finnerty limps off with a knee injury. Johnny Heaney is on.
3 mins: Armagh respond immediately through Oisin Conaty. He elects to fist the ball over the bar rather than take on the more difficult goal scoring chance. Galway 0-1 Armagh 0-1
5 mins: Liam Silke kicks a point, Galway win the Armagh kick-out and Rob Finnerty kicks his 17th free of the championship. Conaty kicks a second point for Armagh. Galway 0-3 Armagh 0-2
2 mins: Galway win the throw-in and keep possession for 131 seconds and the patience ends with a brilliant long range point from Paul Conroy. Galway 0-1 Armagh 0-0
RTÉ pundit Tomás Ó'Sé believes that Kelly’s absence from the starting lineup is a significant loss.
Sean Hurson throws in the ball and the All Ireland final is underway. Armagh playing into Hill 16
Teams are being presented to an Uachtarán Michael D Higgins.
Planes, trains, automobiles and apparently the FERRY
15 minutes to throw-in.
The Galway captain is replaced by Céin D’Arcy in midfield, but Kelly is fit enough to take his place on the bench and performed the pre-match toss.
Sean Kelly has been ruled out of the Galway team.
Armagh team are out on the pitch
Armagh manager Kieran McGeeny’s nickname ‘Geezer’ dates back to his childhood and a friend who gave him the label on a day when they were discussing geysers in class. McGeeney was fiery of temper back in those days apparently.
Sean Hurson will referee his 34th Championship match today when he takes charge of the All Ireland football final at Croke Park. It will be the second senior final over which the Galbally Pearses club man has presided having taken charge of the 2022 decider between eventual champions Kerry and Galway.
He also refereed the All-Ireland Minor Final in 2018, U20 All-Ireland Final in 2021 and the All-Ireland Senior Club Final in 2022 and the All-Ireland Football Final in 2022. He referred the group game between tomorrow’s protagonists Armagh and Galway.
His umpires will be Martin Coney and Cathal Forbes both from the Ardboe O’Donovan Rossa club, Mel Taggart from Clonoe O’Rahilly’s and Shane Dorrity from Coalisland Na Fianna. The line umpires are Kildare’s Brendan Cawley, who will be the standby referee, and Roscommon’s Paddy Neilan. The sideline official is Derek O’Mahony from Tipperary.
Galway are out on the pitch.
Sean Boylan and his Meath All Ireland winning team of 1999 are honoured before the game.
A poignant image ahead of today’s game at Croke Park
It’s important to stay hydrated on a warm afternoon, something that the Armagh and Galway supporters have taken to heart.
Michael Murphy goes man for man with the Armagh team here
If you want to know more about the Galway team Irish Times columnist Darragh O’Sé provides his insight here.
Malachy Clerkin wrote: “They buried Pádraig O’Neill on Wednesday. The funeral was in Carlingford, at St Michael’s Church at the top of the village where the Cooley Mountains finish their tumble down into the Lough. He played for Louth and for Armagh back in the day, a hardy corner back alongside his brother Gareth. “He won three Sigerson Cups in the 1980s with Ulster University. He played for Cooley Kickhams until he was nearly 40.
“A fortnight ago, Pádraig O’Neill left Croke Park after watching Gareth’s boys Rian and Oisin see Armagh through to their first All-Ireland final in 21 years. He and his wife Susan headed for home but they weren’t in the car long before he suffered a heart attack. It happened seven minutes away from Beaumont Hospital, so he couldn’t have got quicker or better treatment. But the damage was too great. He died six days later, at the criminally young age of 58.
You can read the full article on Armagh’s Rian O’Neill here
Galway last won the final in 2001, their ninth success in the competition, and the team that succeeded them, Armagh, who recorded their only win in 2002. Today’s managers, Galway’s Pádraic Joyce and Kieran McGeeney (Armagh), played in those respective All-Ireland title winning teams, the latter as captain under Joe Kernan’s stewardship.
Hello and welcome to the Irish Times blog for the All-Ireland Football Final between Armagh and Galway at Croke Park. John O’Sullivan here and I’ll take you through all the afternoon’s build-up and then the action once the game starts.
I’m not sure how many people would have envisaged a final between these two teams prior to the start of the Championship but there’s no quibbling that Armagh and Galway having thoroughly merited their respective places at Croke Park today for Gaelic football’s marquee occasion.
The teams are very familiar with each other, having met three times during the Championship since 2022. On the first occasion, two years ago, Galway won a titanic tussle on penalties, Armagh then edged out the Tribesmen by a point in game two, while in June the teams drew thanks to a late Stefan Campbell point in a group clash at Markievicz Park.
Irish Times GAA correspondent Sean Moran has a definite view on the outcome of today’s game. He wrote: “It may be that Armagh, whose progress has been thoroughly admirable, will be further liberated by finally getting to the All-Ireland but the view here is that Galway are a more seasoned unit, enjoying better form from key players, and can achieve the landmark of moving into double figures on the roll of honour.
Here are the teams:
ARMAGH: B Hughes; P Burns, A McKay, B McCambridge; C Mackin, T Kelly, A Forker (capt); N Grimley, B Crealey; J McElroy, R O’Neill, O Conaty; R Grugan, A Murnin, C Turbitt.
Subs: E Rafferty, G McCabe, P, McGrane, C Higgins, R McQuillan, S McPartlan, J Duffy, O O’Neill, S Campbell, A Nugent, J Burns.
GALWAY: C Gleeson; J McGrath, S Fitzgerald, J Glynn; D McHugh, L Silke, S Mulkerrin; P Conroy, S Kelly (capt); M Tierney, J Maher, C McDaid; R Finnerty, D Comer, S Walsh.
Subs: C Flaherty, J Daly, E Kelly, D O’Flaherty, K Molloy, C Sweeney, C Darcy, J Heaney, L Ó Conghaile, T Culhane, N Daly.
