M. Donnelly Inter-provincial Football Final Preview

Sunday, February 26
M. Donnelly GAA Football Inter-provincial Championship Final
Ulster v Munster, Morgan Athletic Grounds, Armagh

Ulster put their Interprovincial title on the line when they face Munster at the Morgan Athletic Grounds in Armagh on Sunday afternoon.

Ulster are the reigning champions, but the competition was last played in 2009, when they beat today’s opponents, Munster, in the final by 0-15 to 1-8 in London, on a day when Derry’s Paddy Bradley top scored with 0-3.

Munster won their last title a year previously, beating Connacht in the final by 1-9 to 0-7 in Portlaoise, thanks to impressive performances from Cork duo Donncha O’Connor and Daniel Goulding, neither of whom are involved today. Ger O’Sullivan was also the Munster manager on that occasion.

Ulster’s recent record in the competition is far more impressive, winning 14 of their last 18 games, while Munster’s record since 2000 shows nine defeats in 14 games played.

Ulster have defeated Munster in the last eight Inter-provincial finals they have contested, dating back to 1979. Munster’s last victory over Ulster in a final came in 1978 after a replay on a scoreline of 4-12 to 0-19.

The sides have played 48 times in the Inter-provincial football competition since their first meeting in 1927. Ulster have won 25, Munster 18 while there have been 5 draws.

Ulster lead the way in the overall roll of honour with 29 titles, with Munster lagging way behind on 15, although that figure is skewed by the fact that they failed to win the competition between 1950 and 1971.

Munster reached today’s decider with an impressive 1-16 to 1-13 defeat of Leinster at Parnell Park last Sunday, where manager O’Sullivan included seven Allianz Football League Division IV players in his starting XV. That gamble paid off as Clare’s David Tubridy and Waterford’s Gary Hurney were the stand-out performers on the day, scoring 1-8 between them.

Limerick's Seanie Buckley (injured) and Waterford's Thomas O'Gorman (family commitments) are ruled out of the Munster panel, while manager O'Sullivan has added Rory Donnelly (Clare), Pearse O'Neill (Cork) and Marc Ó Sé (Kerry) to the panel.

O'Sullivan said of Ó Sé's addition to the squad: "We knew that he was unavailable last weekend but that he would be committed if we got over Leinster, and that he would come on board if we needed him." Tomás Ó Sé, Marc's older brother, will once again captain the Munster team.

Joe Kernan’s Ulster had it much easier in their semi-final, cruising to a 3-16 to 0-11 win over Connacht in Sligo, with the goals coming from Peter Harte, Mark Poland and Martin Penrose.

Most Recent Ulster v Munster Meeting

2009 Final - Ulster 0-15 Munster 1-8 – Ruislip on November 8th

Munster Team: Paul Fitzgerald (Tipperary); Tomas O’Gorman (Waterford), Johnny McCarthy (Limerick), Padraig Reidy (Kerry); Maurice O’Gorman (Waterford), Michael Shields (Cork); Pa Ranahan (Limerick); Nicholas Murphy (Cork), Pierce O’Neill (Cork); Patrick Kelly (Cork), Donncha O’Connor (Cork – Captain), Paul Kerrigan (Cork); Gary Hurney (Waterford), Daniel Goulding (Cork), Liam Ó Lionáin (Waterford)

Subs: Robbie Costigan (Tipperary) for Maurice O’Gorman, James Ryan (Limerick) for Paul Kerrigan, Seamus Scanlon (Kerry) for Pierce O’Neill, Aidan Walsh (Cork) for Liam Ó Lionáin. Joe Hayes (Clare). Alan O’Connor (Cork), Colm O’Neill (Cork), Shane Walsh (Waterford), Ger Quinlan (Clare) played in the semi-final.

Ulster Team: J Devine (Tyrone); K Lacey (Donegal), Justin McMahon (Tyrone), G O’Kane (Derry); A Kernan (Armagh), C McKeever (Armagh), R Flanagan (Cavan); K Hughes (Tyrone), E McGinley (Tyrone); P Finlay (Monaghan), B Coulter (Down), Joe McMahon (Tyrone); P Bradley (Derry), S O’Neill (Tyrone), M Murphy (Donegal)

Subs: C Gormley (Tyrone) for McKeever (28); R McCloskey (Fermanagh) for Lacey (ht); D Hughes (Down) for Joe McMahon (41); D Gordon (Down) for Murphy (43); T Freeman (Monaghan) for Hughes (52).