There is no shortage of star power among the four squads that will trial new rules in a novel Inter-Provincial Series in Croke Park this Friday and Saturday night as the seven core enhancements recommended by Jim Gavin’s Football Review Committee (FRC) are put to the test in a competitive environment.
Ulster, guided by Fermanagh manager Kieran Donnelly, face Munster in the second of the Semi-Finals and there will be nine of Armagh’s 2024 All-Ireland SFC winners on show for the former, with Orchard skipper Aidan Forker and the O’Neills, Rian and Oisín, spearheading the Ulster charge.
Nine-time All-Ireland SFC winners Stephen Cluxton and James McCarthy, as well as other big names like Ciarán Kilkenny, John Small and Brian Howard, lead an eight-strong Dublin contingent in a Leinster squad, managed by former Westmeath boss Dessie Dolan, that features 11 counties.
Leinster face Connacht, managed by Galway supremo Pádraic Joyce, in the first semi-final on Friday at 6.0 and Joyce will call on eight of his Tribesmen – led by Footballer of the Year nominee John Maher – while Mayo star Aidan O’Shea and Roscommon All-Star Enda Smith also form a strong 30-man squad that features eight standby players.
John Cleary’s Munster squad is probably the weakest of the four on paper with just five players on board from Munster kingpins Kerry – led by regular starters Diarmuid O’Connor and Tadhg Morley – while David and Paudie Clifford do not feature despite East Kerry’s departure from the Kerry SFC last weekend.
Saturday’s opener will see the two losing sides from the Friday night games duke it out in the curtain-raiser while the main event – both are being broadcast live on RTÉ – will feature the two Semi-Final winners on a weekend that could set the template to revolutionise Gaelic football.
Leinster: Stephen Cluxton, Sean Bugler, Brian Howard, Ciarán Kilkenny, James McCarthy, Eoin Murchan, John Small, Paddy Small (all Dublin), Mark Barry, Killian Roche, Paul Kingston, Evan O’Carroll (all Laois), Kevin Feely, Daniel Flynn, Ryan Houlihan (all Kildare), Ciaran Byrne, Ciaran Downey, Craig Lennon (all Louth), Ray Connellan, Ronan Wallace (both Westmeath), Michael Bambrick, Ross Dunphy (both Carlow), Dean Healy, Kevin Quinn (both Wicklow), Ronan Jones, Donal Keoghan (both Meath), Peter Cunningham, Lee Pearson (both Offaly), Darren Gallagher (Longford), Eoin Porter (Wexford).
Connacht: Brian Stack, Enda Smith, Diarmuid Murtagh, Daire Cregg, Conor Carroll, Ruaidhrí Fallon, Conor Cox, Donie Smith, Ciaran Murtagh, Ultan Harney (all Roscommon), Connor Gleeson, Johnny McGrath, Sean Mulkerrin, Cillian McDaid, John Daly, John Maher, Matthew Tierney, Johnny Heaney (all Galway), Eoghan McLaughlin, Jack Carney, Bob Touhy, Aidan O’Shea, Diarmuid Duffy, Fergal Boland (all Mayo), Mark Diffley, Barry McNulty (both Leitrim), Aidan McLoughlin, Liam Gallagher (both London), Shane Brosnan (New York), Pat Spillane (Sligo).
Ulster: Paddy Burns, Oisin Conaty, Aidan Forker, Niall Grimley, Joe McElroy, Peter McGrane, Ross McQuillan, Rian O’Neill, Oisin O’Neill (all Armagh), Niall Morgan, Mark Bradley, Aidan Clarke, Conn Kilpatrick, Darren McCurry, Eoin McElholm, Kieran McGeary (all Tyrone), Daniel Guinness, Pat Havern, Odhran Murdock (all Down), Niall Toner, Eoin McEvoy, Diarmuid Baker (all Derry), Ronan McCaffrey, Sean McNally (both Fermanagh), Daire Ó Baoill, Ciaran Thompson (both Donegal), Padraig Faulkner, Gerry Smith (both Cavan), Marc Jordan (Antrim), Barry McBennett (Monaghan).
Munster: Colm O’Callaghan, Sean Meehan, Darragh Cashman, Chris Kelly, Maurice Shanley, Chris Og Jones, Matty Taylor, Tommy Walsh, Paul Walsh (all Cork), Killian Spillane, Donal O’Sullivan, Diarmuid O’Connor, Tadhg Morley, Damien Bourke (all Kerry), Eoin Cleary, Aran Griffin, Emmet McMahon, Brian McNamara, Alan Sweeney (all Clare), Josh Ryan, James Naughton, Danny Neville, Sean O’Dea (all Limerick), Conor Ó Currin, Dermot Ryan, Caomhin Walsh, Sean Walsh (all Waterford), Darragh Brennan, Jimmy Feehan, Mark Stokes (all Tipperary).