Tipperary’s Patrick ‘Bonner’ Maher retired from inter-county hurling in a similar fashion to the way he played it – no-nonsense and to the point.
The announcement came at 8.30am on Monday morning, with no special Instagram stories or TikTok videos needed to add extra pomp or emotion to it.
He leaves with three All-Ireland medals to his name, five Munster titles and two All-Star awards, tallies that hold sway with anybody outside Kilkenny in the modern era.
His departure means that Noel McGrath is the only remaining link to Tipp’s All-Ireland win of 2010. There may be regret due to the fact that Tipp is closer to the bottom of the mountain than the top as he departs, but the Lorrha-Dorrha man certainly couldn’t be accused of lacking commitment to the cause.
In 2019, ‘Bonner’ – he was often mistakenly called ‘Bonnar’, people believing it was a nickname in tribute to the Bonnars of Cashel, when in fact it came from Packie Bonner – suffered a cruciate ligament injury.
Having come back from that, he had to endure an Achilles problem in 2021, but that was not enough to hasten his retirement either, and he was back for 2022.
The last couple of years have been tough for the Premier County, but Maher continued to give his all and while some of the younger additions to the panel have had a difficult start to life at inter-county level, they will surely benefit from having him around.
It almost became a cliché to laud Maher’s work rate, but to focus on that would diminish his hurling skill and brain.
He leaves with three All-Ireland medals to his name, five Munster titles and two All-Star awards, tallies that hold sway with anybody outside Kilkenny in the modern era
It’s an underrated gift for a player to be as aware of his or her weaknesses as their strengths, but Maher knew what he knew and knew what he didn’t know – just as crucially, he was more often than not able to get the ball to the player who was best-placed to receive it.
It might look easy, but if it were so simple then players like Maher wouldn’t be universally lauded. Equally, his tally of 7-26 in 45 championship games across 15 years featured more than a few of the proverbial ‘scores at the right time’.
Liam Sheedy, the manager for the wins of 2010 and 2019, summed up Maher’s impact in a tweet: “What a role model and his presence on the pitch and in the dressing room was just immense.”
No flash, no fuss, just consistently doing a good job – he was valued by teammates, managers and fans and respected by opponents. We can almost hear the lament from five or 10 years into the future – “Tipp need another ‘Bonner’ Maher."
The league nobody wants to win
John Martin of Shelbourne is tackled by Sean Hoare of Shamrock Rovers, during the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match at Tallaght Stadium. \Seb Daly/Sportsfile
It is October. Shelbourne are top of the SSE Airtricity League of Ireland Premier Division table. Shelbourne have won one league game since June.
Somehow, all three of those things are 100% accurate, with Damien Duff’s side still just about leading the slow bicycle race that is the battle for the domestic title.
However, Sunday’s 2-0 defeat of Shamrock Rovers had a double significance. It brought Rovers – winners of the last four titles, but seemingly off that level this year – within touching distance of the top, but it also means that Shels could be overtaken at the top if Derry City win its two games in hand.
Duff was unhappy after the Rovers loss, especially with the comments of his Hoops counterpart Stephen Bradley, who suggested that the quality of the league this season had dropped.
Naturally, the Shelbourne boss was keen to defend his players, but they head the table with a total of 54 points from the 33 games played, an average of just 1.64 points per game. The same record across 36 matches in last year’s league would only have secured fifth place.
Duff did also say that three more wins would be sufficient for this team to become champions and he is technically correct. It is still in Shels’ hands – especially as it’s worth noting that, while Derry is in the FAI Cup final, its last league win was in August – but the margin for error has been eroded.
Things could go down to the last match of the season – when Shels travel Foyleside to visit the Ryan McBride Brandywell. And yet, it may well be that the game finishes in a draw and allows Shamrock Rovers to complete perhaps the unlikeliest five-in-a-row of all time.
First launched in 2019, but, like so much else, affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Athletics Ireland Cross Country Xperience has proven to be a huge success.
Cross-country running helps to build strength and results in lower joint-impact, but of course, a suitable trail may not be freely available to the average recreational jogger.
A purpose-built cross-country track was created at the Sport Ireland Campus in Blanchardstown, Dublin for the European Championships that were due to be held in 2020, but which had to be postponed until 2021. That provides the route for the Cross Country Xperience.
The event takes place on Sunday at 3.15pm and is open to athletes of all abilities aged 15 and over. A €15 booking fee applies, and all participants will receive a commemorative, eco-friendly medal.
Read more
Sport: jumping for Joyce
Sport: our cup has runneth over
Tipperary’s Patrick ‘Bonner’ Maher retired from inter-county hurling in a similar fashion to the way he played it – no-nonsense and to the point.
The announcement came at 8.30am on Monday morning, with no special Instagram stories or TikTok videos needed to add extra pomp or emotion to it.
He leaves with three All-Ireland medals to his name, five Munster titles and two All-Star awards, tallies that hold sway with anybody outside Kilkenny in the modern era.
His departure means that Noel McGrath is the only remaining link to Tipp’s All-Ireland win of 2010. There may be regret due to the fact that Tipp is closer to the bottom of the mountain than the top as he departs, but the Lorrha-Dorrha man certainly couldn’t be accused of lacking commitment to the cause.
In 2019, ‘Bonner’ – he was often mistakenly called ‘Bonnar’, people believing it was a nickname in tribute to the Bonnars of Cashel, when in fact it came from Packie Bonner – suffered a cruciate ligament injury.
Having come back from that, he had to endure an Achilles problem in 2021, but that was not enough to hasten his retirement either, and he was back for 2022.
The last couple of years have been tough for the Premier County, but Maher continued to give his all and while some of the younger additions to the panel have had a difficult start to life at inter-county level, they will surely benefit from having him around.
It almost became a cliché to laud Maher’s work rate, but to focus on that would diminish his hurling skill and brain.
He leaves with three All-Ireland medals to his name, five Munster titles and two All-Star awards, tallies that hold sway with anybody outside Kilkenny in the modern era
It’s an underrated gift for a player to be as aware of his or her weaknesses as their strengths, but Maher knew what he knew and knew what he didn’t know – just as crucially, he was more often than not able to get the ball to the player who was best-placed to receive it.
It might look easy, but if it were so simple then players like Maher wouldn’t be universally lauded. Equally, his tally of 7-26 in 45 championship games across 15 years featured more than a few of the proverbial ‘scores at the right time’.
Liam Sheedy, the manager for the wins of 2010 and 2019, summed up Maher’s impact in a tweet: “What a role model and his presence on the pitch and in the dressing room was just immense.”
No flash, no fuss, just consistently doing a good job – he was valued by teammates, managers and fans and respected by opponents. We can almost hear the lament from five or 10 years into the future – “Tipp need another ‘Bonner’ Maher."
The league nobody wants to win
John Martin of Shelbourne is tackled by Sean Hoare of Shamrock Rovers, during the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match at Tallaght Stadium. \Seb Daly/Sportsfile
It is October. Shelbourne are top of the SSE Airtricity League of Ireland Premier Division table. Shelbourne have won one league game since June.
Somehow, all three of those things are 100% accurate, with Damien Duff’s side still just about leading the slow bicycle race that is the battle for the domestic title.
However, Sunday’s 2-0 defeat of Shamrock Rovers had a double significance. It brought Rovers – winners of the last four titles, but seemingly off that level this year – within touching distance of the top, but it also means that Shels could be overtaken at the top if Derry City win its two games in hand.
Duff was unhappy after the Rovers loss, especially with the comments of his Hoops counterpart Stephen Bradley, who suggested that the quality of the league this season had dropped.
Naturally, the Shelbourne boss was keen to defend his players, but they head the table with a total of 54 points from the 33 games played, an average of just 1.64 points per game. The same record across 36 matches in last year’s league would only have secured fifth place.
Duff did also say that three more wins would be sufficient for this team to become champions and he is technically correct. It is still in Shels’ hands – especially as it’s worth noting that, while Derry is in the FAI Cup final, its last league win was in August – but the margin for error has been eroded.
Things could go down to the last match of the season – when Shels travel Foyleside to visit the Ryan McBride Brandywell. And yet, it may well be that the game finishes in a draw and allows Shamrock Rovers to complete perhaps the unlikeliest five-in-a-row of all time.
First launched in 2019, but, like so much else, affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Athletics Ireland Cross Country Xperience has proven to be a huge success.
Cross-country running helps to build strength and results in lower joint-impact, but of course, a suitable trail may not be freely available to the average recreational jogger.
A purpose-built cross-country track was created at the Sport Ireland Campus in Blanchardstown, Dublin for the European Championships that were due to be held in 2020, but which had to be postponed until 2021. That provides the route for the Cross Country Xperience.
The event takes place on Sunday at 3.15pm and is open to athletes of all abilities aged 15 and over. A €15 booking fee applies, and all participants will receive a commemorative, eco-friendly medal.
Read more
Sport: jumping for Joyce
Sport: our cup has runneth over
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