It’s back.
It was a difficult three weeks or so there with no football in our lives. The beauty of this jam-packed calendar we keep crying about every year? Well, it’s just delightful for the spectator.
Inter-county teams all over the country got their 2016 seasons back up and running with just two days to prepare thanks to the water-tight restrictions of the winter training ban.
And the media in Derry were given an excellent ribbing for their first Sunday on the job this year.
Belfast Telegraph journalist, Declan Bogue, was in Owenbeg to watch the Oak Leafers’ 4-16 to 2-12 slaying of Antrim in the McKenna Cup and, overlooking him and his colleagues throughout the game was the legendary All-Ireland-winning manager Eamonn Coleman with a gentle little reminder.
On the wall at the press box at Owenbeg, today; pic.twitter.com/mKVGlcKBsV
— Declan Bogue (@DeclanBogue) January 3, 2016
Meanwhile, a little further south in Omagh, Tyrone and Queen’s played host to the most January picture of the day as the Red Hands saw off the university outfit with 15 points to spare, 3-17 to 0-11.
In the FDB Senior Football League, Stephen Rochford got his Mayo tenure off to a winning start, beating NUI Galway 1-12 to 0-10 and there were no shortage of pictures of the new boss alongside selector Tony McEntee.
Galway, on the other hand, were responsible for the most GAA picture of the day having beat Sligo 2-9 to 0-12.
https://twitter.com/NoelSteede/status/683682708241924097
Wexford let a seven-point half time lead slip in the O’Byrne Cup as they were held to just one score in the second period by 2015 quadruple champions, Dublin.
FOOTBALL RESULTS
McKenna Cup
Derry 4-16 2-12 Antrim
Tyrone 3-17 0-11 Queens
Donegal 1-11 0-11 Down
Fermanagh P-P St Mary’s
Armagh 0-11 2-8 Cavan
Monaghan 1-9 2-16 UUJ
O’Byrne Cup
Wexford 2-6 0-12 Dublin
IT Carlow 2-6 3-20 DCU
Louth 1-9 0-13 Offaly
Kildare 0-24 1-7 DIT
Carlow 1-4 1-18 Meath
Laois 1-10 1-9 UCD
Wicklow 0-13 1-14 Westmeath
Longford 0-18 1-9 NUI Maynooth
McGrath Cup
Clare 1-10 1-9 Tipperary
Cork 1-10 0-12 Limerick
FDB SFL
Roscommon 1-20 0-10 IT Sligo
Mayo 1-12 1-10 NUI Galway
Galway 2-9 0-12 Sligo
Leitrim 3-16 1-6 GMIT
HURLING RESULTS
Walsh Cup
Laois 3-17 1-19 Antrim
Wexford 2-17 1-13 IT Carlow
Offaly 4-28 0-10 DIT
Meath 1-13 0-19 Carlow
Westmeath 2-20 2-17 DCU
Munster SHL
Limerick 2-23 0-18 Kerry
Clare 1-14 0-14 Cork
