Carlton's Cork man – Setanta Ó hAilpín – has paid tribute to Tadhg Kennelly

Carlton’s Irish brigade has paid tribute to Tadhg Kennelly following the announcement of his retirement at the end of the season, with Setanta Ó hAilpín endorsing his compatriot as a future senior coach.

Both Ó hAilpín and Zach Tuohy sang the praises of Kennelly who has been a great support to other Irish players attempting to transition from Gaelic football to AFL. Former hurler Ó hAilpín said that effectively, Kennelly has already been acting coach to the AFL’s young Irish signings.

“He was the first person who rang me when I came out here and we caught up,” O’ hAilpin said.

“We speak regularly on the phone. He watches some of my games and gives me really good advice. I’m sure he’s doing that with many of the other Irish players too that are in the system at the moment.

“He’s a good friend to have and I know that as long as I continue he’ll continue to ring me and try to make me a better player. I suppose that’s what makes him a great person and athlete.

“What he’s done for Ireland out here is amazing. He’s really put it on the map. A lot of Irish people can be proud of him and what he’s achieved.”

Kennelly has played 195 games for the Swans so far with his final tally dependent on their finals campaign which starts with an elimination final against St Kilda on Saturday night at Etihad Stadium.

:: Medallion

Carlton’s defeat against St Kilda denied the 30-year-old another chance to line out for the Swans in Sydney with the Saints win ensuring a home final for them after what’s been a turbulent season.

The former Gaelic footballer won a Premiership with the Harbour City club in 2005 and added an All-Ireland medal to his collection in 2009 while on a year’s sabbatical to pursue his Gaelic football dreams from the Swans. Ó hAilpín, who has played 78 games with the Blues said that “words can’t describe” a career like the Kerry man’s.

“He’s the second greatest player to ever play from Ireland behind Jim Stynes. He’s had an amazing career. It’s a fairy tale really to come out here win a Premiership, go home and play for Kerry and win an All-Ireland and come back out.

Words can’t describe a career like that. I’m sure when he sits back in 20 or 30 years time he’ll feel that he’s fulfilled everything he wished for and even more. I’d like to congratulate him on an amazing career. I’ve no doubt that whatever he decides to do he’ll excel in that also.”

Ó hAilpín’s team mate Zach Tuohy, who has now played 10 games with the Blues says he’d love to emulate Kennelly’s achievement and become the next Irish man to own a coveted Premiership medallion. Tuohy played alongside Ó hAilpín for the second time for the club’s round 24 clash with St Kilda at the weekend.

“Tadhg is the only Irish guy to ever win Premiership and I suppose that’s what I strive for, to be the next one. But it’s not about him being Irish. If any player who played AFL played close to 200 games, and became a Premiership player it would be amazing.

“That’s what most guys play for. It’s what they dream of. And it’s not just about the fact that an Irish player has done that. Any player who could do that is amazing,” explained Tuohy.

It’s a big weekend for the AFL’s Irish recruits with three players lining out for their clubs in the senior competition.

The Sydney Swans Tadhg Kennelly

It will be an emotional night for Tadhg Kennelly and the Sydney Swans at the SCG as the Harbour City club’s coach Paul Roos and co-captain Brett Kirk make their last appearance at the team’s home ground.

Kennelly has made no secret of his close relationship with Roos, who has been at the helm since the 2002 season when he took over as caretaker coach for the sacked Rodney Eade. Ironically the Swans take on Eade’s current club the Western Bulldogs.

The Swans desperately need a win to cement their spot in the top eight.

Meanwhile Down man Jamie O’Reilly has retained his place in the senior Richmond side for the Tiger’s Saturday clash with St Kilda. O’Reilly made his debut last weekend in the club’s 89-point loss to Carlton.

Mayo’s Pearce Hanley will play his seventh consecutive senior game as the Brisbane Lions take on Essendon at Etihad Stadium on Sunday. However he won’t face his compatriot Michael Quinn. Despite being named on an extended interchange bench for the Bombers, he was listed as an emergency player when the final team was released on Friday evening.

At Carlton Setanta O’hAilpin’s remains out of favour. He’s been named on the emergency list for the Blues match against Geelong on Friday night. It’s the sixth week running that the former hurler has been left out of the first 22.

Tadhg Kennelly has been named in the Swans' starting line-up ahead of their clash with Port Adelaide on Saturday night.

Tadhg Kennelly has made a shock return to the Sydney Swans’ starting line-up for Saturday night’s clash with Port Adelaide after recovering much more quickly than expected from a medial ligament injury he suffered against the Fremantle Dockers on May 22 at the SCG.

Kennelly was initially ruled out for at least four weeks with the injury, but has recovered far more rapidly than anyone expected and last night was named in the starting side to take the Power in Adelaide on Saturday night (7.10pm local time).

Elsewhere, Mayo youngster Pearce Hanley has been provisionally named on the Brisbane Lions’ interchange bench ahead of their clash with the Western Bulldogs in Melbourne on Sunday afternoon (2.10pm local time).

Hanley is one of seven players named on the provisional bench but will have to wait to find out whether or not he will get a run out against the Melbourne side at Etihad.

Meanwhile, in-form Cork star Setanta Ó hAilpín has been named at full forward for the Carlton Blues ahead of their clash with North Melbourne at Etihad Stadium tonight (7.40pm local time).

Tadhg Kennelly will miss at least three rounds with knee ligament damage.

Sydney Swans’ Irish defender Tadhg Kennelly will be out for at least three weeks as the result of a knee injury he picked up against the Fremantle Dockers on Saturday afternoon.

The Kerryman went off injured in the opening minutes of the Swans’ defeat at the SCG when he suffered a bang to the side of his left leg, and scans today revealed that he had suffered a medial ligament strain in his knee.

“The early indications are three weeks. Tadhg’s normally pretty good… at recovering so who knows, but at this stage we’d plan to not have him for the next three games,” Swans coach Paul Roos said today.

Elsewhere, Setanta Ó hAilpín’s Carlton Blues suffered a heavy loss at the hands of Hawthorn in Melbourne yesterday. The big Corkman had just three possessions as his side suffered their first defeat in three games.

Maria Twomey, Kathleen O’Sullivan, Setanta Ó hAilpín, Theresa O’Sullivan, Christine O’Sullivan and Susan O’Leary at last year's Emer Casey Memorial Run in Melbourne. This year's event takes place on May 23.

Sonia O’Sullivan, the former World 5,000m champion from Cobh in Co Cork, will lead the field in a charity fun run in Melbourne on May 23, organisers have revealed.

The Emer Casey Memorial Run commemorates the life of a young Irishwoman whose life was cut tragically short through cancer, and the run raises much-needed funds for cancer research.

Emer, from Youghal, died on June 10, 2006 from ovarian/uterine cancer. She had turned 28 four days earlier.

The run, which is being held for the second time, is at Monash University in the Melbourne suburb of Clayton.

This year’s race will be a bigger event than last year’s, not least because it offers the opportunity to run alongside one of Ireland’s greatest ever athletes over the 5km or 10km course, depending on your preference.

Registration on the day begins at 8.30am with both the 5km and 10km races starting at 10.15.

Sonya previously ran, and won, in the Emer Casey Memorial Run in Youghal last year.

Emer’s friend Jennifer Ring, who organised the Melbourne run, is looking forward to this year’s event.

“We’re overwhelmed with the support we’ve had in Melbourne. The continued backing of the event by Setanta Ó hAilpín and the enthusiastic participation this year of Sonia O’Sullivan is fantastic.

“It’s also great to see this growing as an Irish / Australian event with Monash University hosting the run this year,” she said.

The organisers of the run say they hope to have up to 400 participants this year and raise around $10,000 for cancer research.

Register for the run online here.

Collingwood say they are hopeful that Marty Clarke could return to the club.

Collingwood have not given up hope of luring departed Irish recruit Marty Clarke back to the AFL, according to a report in Ireland over the weekend.

Clarke, 22, spent two years with the club before returning to Ireland last year, where he has been in superb form for Down in the National Football League.

Magpies CEO Gary Pert, however, has been quoted in the Irish Daily Mirror as saying that he had not given up on securing a potential return to Australia for the Irish youngster some time in the future.

“Martin left Collingwood in 2009 for personal reasons and we respected that but we have been in contact with him since then to try and get him back when he’s ready,” Pert is reported as saying.

“He came off the playing list last year but we are working with the AFL to put a mechanism in place to get him back because to go over to Ireland to recruit Marty was a big and time-consuming exercise.

“It also wasn’t cheap to recruit him and the AFL recognises that.

“If a player moves back for personal reasons it’s only logical he be allowed to return to the original club so we are monitoring how it unfolds.”

Sources close to the player, however, have indicated that the Down star will not be returning to Melbourne any time soon.

Elsewhere, it was another strong weekend from the two leading Irish exponents of the Aussie game.

Carlton’s Setanta Ó hAilpín kept himself in the Coleman Medal shake up with a two-goal haul in his side’s defeat to Essendon.

The big Corkman lies in fifth place on the ladder of top scorers behind Jonathan Brown (17), Nick Riewoldt and Jared Roughead (11) and Barry Hall (10).

Flying Sydney Swans half-back Tadhg Kennelly, meanwhile, continues to rack up the possessions in his first season since returning from Ireland.

The Kerryman had 22 disposals in his side’s win over Richmond at the SCG on Saturday.

Setanta Ó hAilpín bagged three goals for the Blues in their season-opening win over Richmond last night.

Setanta Ó hAilpín got his AFL season off to a flying start last night as he bagged three goals in the Carlton Blues’ 18.12 (120) to 9.10 (64) win over the Richmond Tigers at the MCG.

The Corkman was been named in the forward line for the season-opening win, and he repaid the faith of Carlton coach Brett Ratten by bagging a hat-trick of six-pointers.

Setanta’s new forward role came as Ratten attempts to fill the void left by departed target man Brendan Fevola who signed with the Brisbane Lions at the end of last season.

Ó hAilpín’s first real test will come next Thursday night when the Blues travel to Brisbane to take on Fevola’s Lions at the Gabba in what is set to be one of the games of the season.