Over The Bar

The red and black of Down is one of the most recognisable jerseys in Gaelic football. But where did those famous colours come from, and how did they become synonymous with one of the game's great footballing counties? In this episode of Over The Bar, Michael Foley and Ciarán O'Hara trace the origins of Down's distinctive jersey, exploring the history, personalities and circumstances behind its adoption, and how a simple combination of colours became an enduring symbol of pride, identity and footballing success.

A teenage sensation announces himself on the biggest stage, while a Mayo club celebrates a breakthrough that would live long in local memory.This week on Over The Bar, Michael Foley and Ciarán O’Hara revisit the remarkable impact of a young Christy Ring on his senior debut for Cork, and travel west to Garrymore to discover how a community celebrated its first Mayo Senior Football Championship title.

Few figures in Kerry football history commanded as much respect, loyalty and controversy as Páidí Ó Sé. Two All-Ireland titles as manager had cemented his legendary status, but by 2003, his relationship with the Kerry public and county board was coming under increasing strain. From his infamous remarks about Kerry supporters to a turbulent championship campaign and a bitter parting of ways, we examine how one of Gaelic football’s most successful managerial reigns came to such an extraordinary end.

One of Cork hurling’s great rivalries and an All-Ireland Final from the early days of the GAA feature in this week's journey through the archives. We revisit the fierce city rivalry between Glen Rovers and St Finbarr’s, a pairing that has produced some of the most memorable occasions in Cork Senior Hurling Championship history. Then we travel back to 1914, when Clare and Laois met in an All-Ireland Hurling Final with a remarkable story of its own.

Sixteen years of frustration, near misses and fading glory. By 1986, Tipperary's Munster hurling famine seemed endless. But change was coming. A new generation, fresh belief and two extraordinary summers would finally bring Tipp back to the summit of Munster hurling. How did Tipperary turn sixteen years of failure into one of the county's most celebrated triumphs?

Three decades, three memorable encounters, and three very different chapters in GAA history. This week, Michael Foley and Ciarán O’Hara revisit a dramatic October when All-Ireland glory was still up for grabs, a new chapter in Ireland's sporting rivalry with Australia was unfolding, and another football championship required a second day to settle the destination of Sam Maguire.

In 1971, Tipperary were Munster and All Ireland Champions. Few could have imagined that it would be sixteen years before they would rule the province again. In Part One of this two-part mini-series, Michael Foley and Ciarán O’Hara trace Tipperary’s extraordinary decline from the heights of 1971 through to 1985. As Cork reasserted their dominance and a new force emerged in Limerick, Tipp endured a succession of disappointments, false dawns and changing fortunes. How did one of hurling’s great powers go from All-Ireland champions to spending more than a decade looking on as their Munster rivals collected the silverware?

This week on Week That Was, we revisit three All-Ireland Finals separated by almost a century — but each with a story that has lived long beyond the final whistle. There’s the September afternoon that helped launch one of Gaelic football’s defining rivalries, a replay that produced one of the most remarkable individual performances ever seen on All-Ireland Final day, and a journey back to 1928, when two counties met for Sam Maguire in a very different GAA world.

By the end of the 1990s, the demands being placed on inter-county players had changed dramatically. Training commitments were increasing, the GAA was becoming more commercial, and yet the players themselves had no independent organisation to represent their interests. In 1999, that changed with the formation of the Gaelic Players Association. In this episode of Over The Bar Michael Foley and Ciarán O’Hara look back at the origins of the GPA, the players and personalities behind its creation, the issues that drove them to organise, and the often difficult relationship between the new body and the GAA establishment.