SPORTS REVIEW OF 2023
In Ireland there is no doubt that Gaelic football and hurling are the most popular sports, but I think it’s also true to say that we Irish love to know how foreigners view us. Visitors to Ireland are fascinated when they learn that Gaelic games are amateur sports, but I think internationally we are probably judged by our performances in sports like soccer and rugby.
It certainly was a good year for rugby with our men winning the Six Nations back in the spring and then putting in a great performance at the World Cup tournament in the autumn. And our women’s sevens team qualified for next year’s Olympic Games in France.
We were ranked number one in the world heading to France for the World Cup in September and after wins over Romania, Tonga, South Africa and Scotland topped our group. But going into the quarter-final against New Zealand every Irish fan was aware that we had fallen at the quarter-final stage in our eight previous tournaments.
We were beaten 56-14 by New Zealand in the quarter-final in 2019, but this time we fought back from being 13-0 down in the first half to really make a game of it. We had the ball for 37 phases in injury time, but couldn’t break through the resolute All Blacks line for a winning try and lost 28-24.
Andy Farrell was named Coach of the Year and Bundee Aki was among the four players nominated for World Player of the Year.
In May, the Irish women sevens team qualified for the 2024 Olympics with a win over Fiji in the World Rugby Seven Series. Since then, the IRFU has recruited former Meath Gaelic footballer Vicki Wall, who should be great addition to the sevens squad next year. Also Munster’s long wait for a trophy was ended when they beat the Stormers in the URC final in Capetown in May.
Our women’s soccer team made history by playing in their first-ever World Cup final tournament in Australia. They didn’t get out of their group and manager Vera Pauw, who was regarded as too cautious, didn’t have her contract renewed. Under caretaker manager Eileen Gleeson the team played more attacking football and won promotion to League A of the Nations League after six straight wins. Gleeson has since been appointed the manager on a permanent basis.
Our men started impressively and gave France a proper game at the Aviva in March, but didn’t get any points. After that, it got progressively worse for manager Stephen Kenny, with defeats to Greece home and away being the straw that broke the camel’s back. After only two competitive wins in 2024, his contract was not renewed by FAI.
Domestically Shamrock Rovers recovered from a bad start to win the Premier Division for the fourth season in a row. St Patrick’s Athletic won the FAI Cup for the second time in three years and Athlone Town won the Women’s Cup final for the first time. Kerry FC made history by joining the League of Ireland First Division.
In England, Manchester City held off the challenge of Arsenal to win the EPL. They also beat Manchester United in the first-ever all-Mancunian FA Cup final and then they beat Inter Milan 1-0 in Istanbul to win the Champions League final and become European champions for the first time.
Katie Taylor at the weigh-in before her Dublin rematch with Chantelle Cameron. [Inpho/Tom Maher]
At the end of April, Clare ended Limerick’s 16-game unbeaten championship run, but when the Munster final came round Limerick beat Clare by a point to ensure an easy route to the All-Ireland final. John Kiely’s team had a comfortable win over Galway in the semi-final and then faced Kilkenny under new manager Derek Lyng in the final. Thanks to an early goal from Eoin Cody the Cats led by three points at half-time and despite another Kilkenny goal from Paddy Deegan in the second half, Limerick pulled away to win by nine points thanks to some excellent point scoring.
In football Dublin manager Dessie Farrell managed to persuade some of the Dubs most experienced players like James McCaffrey, Paul Mannion and goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton to come back to the squad. After beating Laois in the quarter-finals, Farrell caught everybody by surprise when Cluxton started in the Leinster semi-final against Kildare. It was Cluxton’s first appearance since December 2020. Louth under manager Mickey Harte qualified for their first Leinster final since 2010 with an extra time win over Offaly. Harte would later surprise us all when he left Louth to take charge of Derry.
Mayo, who had beaten Galway in the National League final, were knocked out of the Connacht Championship by Roscommon at the first hurdle, but as a division one club they were guaranteed a place in the new-look round robin series. Mayo finished third in their group and were paired with Galway in a preliminary quarter-final where they won by a point, but they were no match for Dublin in the quarter-finals. The Monaghan-Armagh quarter-final ended level and after extra time failed to separate them, penalties were needed where Monaghan won out. Kerry had an easy win over Tyrone, while Derry beat Cork in a boring game.
In the semi-final Monaghan put up a good show against Dublin, while Kerry beat Derry in the other semi-final. So to the final, which most pundits had predicted, yet another meeting between Dublin and Kerry. Much was expected of Kerry’s star man David Clifford, who sadly for Kerry supporters had a poor day in front of goal and it was The Dubs who triumphed by two points to win their 31st final. In the second tier Tailteann Cup, Meath beat Down in the final.
Adam Murphy of St. Patrick’s Athletic in action with Gary O’Neill of Shamrock Rovers during an October league game. Rovers won the league again this year, while Pats prevailed in the FAI Cup. [Inpho/Ryan Byrne]
Earlier in the year there was controversy when it was discovered that Kilmacud Crokes had 16 players on the field towards the end of their All-Ireland club final win over Glen. But there was to be no replay. Ballyhale Shamrock beat Dunloy to win the All-Ireland club final for the ninth time. Also 78-year-old Billy Morgan coached UCC to win the Sigerson Cup for the 24th time. Billy’s first win in the competition was as a player in 1964.
Disappointment for Katie Taylor in May as the Bray-born boxer’s unbeaten run was ended by Chantelle Cameron in what was Taylor’s homecoming fight at the Three Arena in Dublin. But six months later Taylor gained revenge when she won the re-match at the same venue on a majority decision.
At Cheltenham Willie Mullins was top trainer once again and the Carlow-based trainer also won the Gold Cup with Galopin Des Champs ridden by Paul Townend. Mullins, in addition, trained I am Maximus to win the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse, a fourth winner for owner J.P McManus.
On the flat, it was another great year for Aidan O’Brien. In June he became the most successful trainer in Royal Ascot history after Paddington won the St James’s Palace Stakes. The following month Auguste Rodin followed up his Derby win at Epsom in the Curragh equivalent. And in September the Ballydoyle trainer had his 4,000th winner when Henry Longfellow won at The Curragh.
In golf, Rory McIlroy held off a challenge from Patrick Reed to win the Hero Dubai Desert Classic for a third time in January. Later in the year McIlroy and Shane Lowry were part of European Ryder Cup team that beat USA in Rome. Swedish golfer Vincent Norman won the Irish Open at the K Club.
It’s very rare to see an Irish swimmer break a world record, but that’s what Daniel Wiffen from County Down did earlier this month. He broke the oldest world swimming record in the 800-metre freestyle final at the European Short Course Championships in Romania. Also this month Nick Griggs, Niall Murphy and Jonas Stafford combined to win gold at the European Under 20 Cross Country Championships in Brussels
We lost a lot of well-known sports people during the year – like 57-year-old Teddy McCarthy, the only player to win All-Ireland hurling and football medals in the same year; another Cork great Jimmy Brohan; footballers Tom Long of Kerry, Jim McKeever of Derry, Meath’s Berite Cunningham and Offaly’s Donie Hanlon; former Tyrone manager Art McRory and former Mayo player and GAA president Dr. Mick Loftus; soccer internationals Peter Thomas, Gerry Ryan, Ronnie Nolan, Miah Dennehy and Shelbourne’s Theo Dunne, who was the first player to lead out an Irish team in a competitive game against Barcelona at the Nou Camp in 1963.
In England, Bobby Charlton and Gordon McQueen lost their battle with Alzheimer’s, with former leading stars Trevor Francis, John Hollins and Francis Lee also dying. Two Belfast-born boxers, Jim McCourt and Hugh Russell, also passed. McCourt was Ireland’s only medallist at the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 1964 when he won bronze, while Russell who would later become a successful photographer, also won bronze at the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow. And most recently, Ulster, Ireland and Lions prop forward Syd Millar died at age 89.
