Louth and Sligo have become the latest counties to announce their decision to vote for the abolition of Rule 21 at the GAA's Special Congress next Saturday week, but the more telling view of the remaining Ulster counties won't be known until much closer to decision time. Monaghan and Cavan will announce their intentions after county board meetings next Monday night and the remaining counties - Antrim, Tyrone and Down - are not expected to decide until two days before the Congress.
Armagh, Derry and Fermanagh have already voted to have the rule retained while, as of yesterday, Donegal was the sole Ulster county to vote for its abolition. It is expected, however, that Monaghan and Cavan will follow suit.
Dessie Farrell, meanwhile, has called on all inter-county players to attend Saturday's a.g.m. of the Gaelic Players Association (GPA) in Portlaoise. The GPA chairman expects the occasion to be a "watershed" for the players' body, and non-members of the GPA should also make every effort to attend.
The clash with the Railway Cup semi-finals, however, has already ruled out a number of inter-county players from attending the a.g.m. Munster announced its hurling and football teams yesterday and not surprisingly they are built on players from the provincial winning teams.
Tipperary have six players starting in the hurling team that plays Leinster in Nenagh, starting with goalkeeper Brendan Cummins, along with defenders Philip Maher, Eamonn Corcoran and Paul Kelly, and forwards Mark O'Leary and Eoin Kelly.
Kerry names feature strongly in the football team that also plays Leinster in Tralee. Called up were goalkeeper Declan O'Keeffe, defenders Michael McCarthy and Mossy Lyons, and forwards Donal Daly, Noel Kennelly and Mike Frank Russell. Cork players also feature prominently, with Graham Canty, Anthony Lynch, Nicholas Murphy and Brendan Ger O'Sullivan all included.
MUNSTER (SF v Leinster): D O'Keeffe (Kerry); M McCarthy (Kerry), G Canty (Cork), A Lynch (Cork); M Lyons (Kerry), D Reidy (Limerick), S Maher (Tipperary); N Murphy (Cork), J Stokes (Limerick); BJ O'Sullivan (Cork), D Daly (Kerry), N Kennelly (Kerry); M F Russell (Kerry), P Hehir (Clare), M Reidy (Limerick). Subs: P Ryan (Tipperary), D Russell (Clare), M O'Sullivan (Cork), B Considine (Clare), F Murray (Cork), L Dalton (Waterford), S Collum (Tipperary), D Quill (Kerry).
LEINSTER (SF v Munster): C O'Sullivan (Meath); M O'Reilly (Meath), D Mitchell (Westmeath), C Daly (Offaly); D Healy (Westmeath), N Nestor (Meath), K Doyle (Kildare); R O'Connell (Westmeath), N Garvan (Laois); C McManus (Offaly), P Barden (Longford), E Kelly (Meath); C Quinn (Offaly), G Geraghty (Meath), G Heavin (Westmeath). Subs: F Byron (Laois), D Curtis (Meath), J Higgins (Laois), L O'Brien (Wexford), D O'Shaughnessy (Westmeath), M Stanfield (Louth), M Lynch (Kildare), J Hegarty (Wexford), P Davis (Longford), P Conway (Westmeath).
MUNSTER (SH v Leinster): B Cummins (Tipperary); P Maher (Tipperary), TJ Ryan (Limerick), F Lohan (Clare); E Corcoran (Tipperary), O Moran (Limerick), P Kelly (Tipperary); C Carey (Limerick), P Queally (Waterford); M O'Leary (Tipperary), K McGrath (Waterford), S McGrath (Cork); E Kelly (Tipperary), A Browne (Cork), N Gilligan (Clare). Subs: J Healy (Kerry), D Reale (Limerick), D Kennedy (Tipperary), B O'Meara (Tipperary), D Forde (Clare), D Barrett (Cork), B Geary (Limerick), T Costello (Tipperary).
