McCarthy is an utterly totemic figure in terms of respect. More than Cluxton. Comfortably more, because of personality, he has a warmer, more accessible personality than Cluxton. Itâs not a power grab, because he already was the power, but he has decided to exercise that power in a benevolent way, without trying to piss on anybody, though Dessie is being pissed on quite a bit. But he isnât being humiliated for political reasons, both because there is a respect there for Farrell as a great figure in Dublin football and because nobody needs the aggro. McCarthy has brought the band back together for a farewell tour and Dessie gets to come along for the ride too. Thatâs the deal. As I see it anyway. It could yet all go wrong in the final when somebody will have to make serious decisions, but who knows.
I was at the semi final with the young lad last year and McCarthy was phenomenal,his point from the side line in the second half was absolutely vicious, nearly dragged Dublin over the line on his own
Must take serious coin to coax these lads out of retirement
McCarthy has us purring
McCarthy is Dublin in the rare auld times.
Dessie Farrellâs current position is very like Leo Cullen with Leinster rugby. When Dublin win Dessie is only putting out the cones, when they lose itâs his fault and he needs to go.
Pat Gilroy garnering all the credit from Joe for last weeks performance against Mayo but presumably is absolved of any connection to the turgid performances in Croker against Kildare and Roscommon earlier in the summer.
Its a very important skill in life to be able to twist things.
Joe is brilliant at it.
This clicking into Twitter thing is a bit of a balls. Not giving out to the custodians.
Joe has turned into an awful fanny. No getting away from it.
I think itâs great. I remember a time clicking and nothing. Then youâd slap the side of the telly and voila 
Me ma slapped the telly in our house, me da slapped the rest of us
Joe Brolly: Natural, unforced and argumentative â BBC pundits are miles ahead
Compelling characters like Mickey Harte keep coverage real
Joe Brolly
July 23 2023 02:30 AM
The author and entertainer Garrison Keillor said that the secret of good broadcasting is false friendship. He meant that for a programme to succeed, strangers have to be comfortable having you in their living room.
BBC Northern Irelandâs GAA coverage passes his test. My own test is a variation on Keillorâs: Is it the sort of conversation you would enjoy being part of in the pub or clubhouse?
Here, again, the Beeb passes with honours.
For last Sundayâs All-Ireland semi-final between Derry and Kerry, they had Mickey Harte in studio (RTĂ need not apply)
Edgy, prickly, funny, stubborn and real, Mickey is a compelling personality. He said beforehand: âKerry think they know what they are facing today but they donât. Theyâll find that out when they go toe to toe. Theyâll soon realise this will go down the stretch. After that it is up to Derry.â
Kieran McKeever, the greatest corner-back of his generation, who should have got six or seven All Stars but kept getting sent off (in those days that was a barrier to the statuette) was glowing with mischief on the sideline.
ââI wish I was playing today. I wish I was marking Clifford.â So did we as it turned out. Peter Canavan once said it was his misfortune to be born at the same time as McKeever. Lucky for Peter all those young Tyrone guns came along after McKeever (âFeverâ we called him because he raged like a fever) retired.
When Derry got the early goal, commentator Tommy Niblock, who hails from Derry aristocracy, shouted, âDerry hit the onion bagâ. Tommy is one of the finest people you could meet. The sort of boy if he came to the house with your daughter, he would peel the spuds for the dinner then wash up afterwards.
His uncles are Derry and Ulster legends. Hugh, who won an Ulster title with Derry then left for Cork during the northern bother, won All-Ireland club medals with Nemo before going on to become the replacement striker for Pele at the New York Cosmos.
I had the pleasure of playing with Tommy at St Brigidâs where his delight in the games and the lads shone through. We are very proud of him in Derry.
When Kerry goalie Shane Ryan took Shane McGuigan out with an extremely dangerous head-high hit before scoring a point, Tommyâs co-commentator Philly McMahon positively gushed. âBig score. Not only did he give McGuigan a big hit as he went through, he also popped it over.â
Tommy asked for Maurice Deeganâs verdict. One of the best things the Beeb has done is to have Maurice as the eye in the sky for their games. Maurice, who is very comfortable and likeable on the telly, said, âDefinite free for Derry. The goalie clearly jumps and turns into the Derry playerâs head. Definite card.â
Philly said, âThatâs not a foul Maurice. The two of them were going for the ball.â To be fair, Philly doesnât think anything is a foul.
When the half-time panel argued over the black card for Diarmuid OâConnor, Maurice was called for again.
OisĂn McConville: It has to be a deliberate pulldown. Itâs in the rules. He did not pull him down.
Maurice: It doesnât have to be a pulldown OisĂn. Just a deliberate trip.
OisĂn (irritated): Did he pull him down?
Maurice: No he didnât. All he has to do is trip him with his hand, which he did. A deliberate hand trip is a black card.
Mickey: Maurice is right.
Maurice (laughing): And just for the record, I picked Derry to win.
Michael Murphy (laughing): I think itâs the first time I have ever agreed with one of Mauriceâs decisions.
OisĂn (sullen, like a chastised child): I disagree.
Mickey: Take it like a man. OisĂn. Take it like a man.
When they turned to the Shane Ryan incident, Mickey didnât put a tooth in it.
Mickey: His feet are clean off the ground. He clearly turns and deliberately hits him with his hinch [Tyrone for âhipâ] into his face.
Maurice: Mickey is right. Shane knew what he was doing.
OisĂn: You are both wrong ⌠again. (laughter in studio).
The whole thing is natural and unforced. Sarah Mulkerrins is relaxed and likeable in the presenter role.
âLike all good presenters she simply throws in the ball and lets them at it. This way, the conversation can go in any direction. The pundits chat amongst themselves, as they would in a clubhouse. There are no artificial interruptions.
The host is a host, not a school master. As a result, we feel as if we are eavesdropping on them. And so, it satisfies the Keillor test for great broadcasting. More than that, it is important public service broadcasting.
âŚ
Meanwhile on RTĂ, Competition time: Q. Which Richard canât remember his salary? Is it A) Richard Collins B) Richard the lionheart C) Richie Rich D) Rich tea biscuits? Texts cost âŹ5. No Taliban or Northerners. Prize: The all new Renault Invoice (no paperwork required).
Joe is going to turn into Ewan. Heâll be calling people âvile cuntsâ next
Heâs correct about the BBC coverage,itâs miles better than RTE
Looking forward to the hurling later, Christ I couldnât deal with RTE, they are shocking, and that goes every sport they cover, female presenters and pundits just for the sake of it, it would sicken your hole.
Jacqui and Maria are fine presenters, its the school master there is an issue with
How is he so lacking in self awareness to just keep going on and on about RTE. Itâd be like a fella being dropped off a team and going on and on and on and on about the management and the fellas whoâve replaced him in the pub. For years. Or a fella going on about his ex and her new fella. Nobody would do it. Even if they thought it theyâd be aware itâd make them look foolish.
That discussion he transcribes there too is just a run of the mill disagreement. Sure they surely had a similar discussion on rte.
Heâs an awful childish cunt. I picked up the sports section and it was the only article I read though
Yeah, I used the ex-analogy before. Itâs terribly sad. Iâd say itâs only 4-6 weeks since his last Sindo article was devoted entirely to RTEâs GAA coverage & there have been plenty before that. Now heâs doing that thing the youngsters call sub-tweeting or sub-posting. Heâs not directly talking about RTĂ but everything in that article about BBCâs coverage is for RTĂâs benefit & a series of thinly veiled digs at them. Sarah Mulkerrins is a great host because she knows her role is to let the guests speak & she doesnât carry on like a schoolmaster etc. The current RTĂ scandal has opened up another avenue for him to launch a few grenades at the organisation & circle back to criticising their GAA coverageâŚagain.
The beige brigade donât like it up 'em
Just as well it was on local tv