| Event | International Rules Series | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Australia win series 107–100 on aggregate | |||||||
| First test | |||||||
| |||||||
| Date | 13 October 2002 | ||||||
| Venue | Croke Park,Dublin,County Dublin | ||||||
| Referee | Brian White (Ireland) Scott McLaren (Australia) | ||||||
| Attendance | 44,221 | ||||||
| Second test | |||||||
| |||||||
| Date | 20 October 2002 | ||||||
| Venue | Croke Park, Dublin, County Dublin | ||||||
| Referee | Brian White (Ireland) Scott McLaren (Australia) | ||||||
| Attendance | 71,544 | ||||||
←2001 2003 → | |||||||
The2002 International Rules Series was the ninth annualInternational Rules Series and the fifth time a test series ofinternational rules football has been played betweenIreland andAustralia since the series resumed in1998.
The series was won by Australia, who recorded their second win in the series following a seven-point win in the first test and a draw in the second test, finishing with a superior aggregate margin of 107–100 points. This marked just the second time in the history of the series that a match had finished in a draw, whilst the attendance atDublin'sCroke Park for the second test was the highest in the history of the series at that stage.
Led by captainShane Crawford, Australia defeated Ireland 65-58 in the first test at Croke Park. Ireland were the superior side for much of the first half, a flurry of overs fromDarragh Ó Sé,Dessie Dolan,Joe Bergin andCiaran McManus giving them a 21-10 point lead at quarter time. Tempers flared in the second quarter, withDavid Neitz of Australia sent off for a high shoulder charge on Ireland'sPaul McGrane and an all-in-row soon followed, resulting in Evan Kelly of Ireland sent off for an undisciplined punch. An over byDerek Savage in the last minute of the quarter fired Ireland into a 38-19 advantage at half-time. Irish publicationHogan Stand reported that the Aussies looked rattled and the Irish were well on course for victory.[1] The second half saw a complete reversal of fortunes, a sloppy kick out by Irish keeper Peter Burke was swooped on byMatthew Pavlich who ran in and duly slotted home low and hard to get the Australians within ten points. A golden missed opportunity for goal was missed byPádraic Joyce and by the end of the quarter Australia had closed the gap to two points, trailing 45-43. Forward dynamoNathan Brown put Australia into the lead early in the final quarter with another classy over and it got worse for Ireland whenDaniel Kerr scored another six-pointer after some brilliant combination play with team mates. Despite a clever high ball from Joyce resulting in a 12th-minute goal toDessie Dolan, it was ultimately a 16th minute over from Brown of Australia which sealed the test match; the visitors winning 65-58.
The second was an even tighter, lower-scoring affair played in freezing conditions before the biggest crowd in the series' history up to that point, 71,544.John O'Keeffe's men handled the conditions better in the first quarter, leading 12-4 at the first break mainly thanks to accurate kicking fromDessie Dolan andGraham Geraghty in front of the goals. The Australians hit back in the second quarter, overs toStephen Milne andNathan Brown closing the gap for the visitors, though the quarter was marred by an ugly act of thuggery fromBrisbane Lions back-manBrad Scott, who punched Geraghty in the face. Scott would later be found guilty at a specially convened tribunal and suspended for three international rules games.[2]
Trailing 18-17 at the main break, Ireland charged to what appeared to be a match winning lead in the third quarter,Cormac McAnallen seizing onto a loose ball near the box and soccering high into the net. Inaccurate kicking from the likes ofTadhg Kennelly andPádraic Joyce meant Ireland could've had a bigger lead at the final break, though the fact they dominated possession and kept Australia scoreless ensured the lead 37-18 with a quarter to play. With the breeze at their backs, the Australians came charging home in the final quarter, a hopeful punt into the square being palmed home byLuke Darcy for six points and the likes ofJosh Francou,Chris Judd andNathan Brown scoring overs for fun. Ireland held firm though,Eamonn O'Hara scoring a valuable over to leave his side six points ahead in the test match with five minutes to play. High drama followed as the Irish came forward in waves, playing their best stuff of a patchy overall performance, and Evan Kelly's intuitive flick under a high centre could well have nestled in the net on another day. Alas, it was not to be as Australia dictated play in the final two minutes,Chris Johnson scoring twice to leave the match tied at 42-42, and the Australians ahead on aggregate 107-100.[3] Australian keeperAndrew Kellaway was awarded theJim Stynes Medal as Australia's best player of the series, a rare feat for any Australian keeper made all the more impressive by the fact that there is no such position inAustralian rules football.
Seamus Moynihan (C), Joe Bergin, Graham Canty, Paddy Christie, Stephen Cluxton,Ray Cosgrove, Dessie Dolan, Graham Geraghty, Trevor Giles, Colin Holmes,Brendan Jer O'Sullivan, Pádraic Joyce, Evan Kelly, Tadhg Kennelly, Anthony Lynch,Declan Meehan, Cormac McAnallen, Kieran McGeeney, Ciaran McManus,Seamus Moynihan, Eamonn O'Hara, Darragh Ó Sé, Tomas Ó Sé, Derek Savage, Paul Barden
Australia[4]
Shane Crawford (C), Mark Bickley, Craig Bradley, Nathan Brown, Cameron Bruce,James Clement, Chad Cornes, Luke Darcy, Tyson Edwards, Josh Francou,Chris Johnson, Chris Judd, Andrew Kellaway (GK), Daniel Kerr, Angelo Lekkas,Stephen Milne, Brett Montgomery, Robert Murphy, Matthew Scarlett, Brad Scott,Adam Yze, Adam Simpson, Warren Tredrea |||Australian Manager: Garry Lyon
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Ireland | 0.6.3 (21) | 0.11.5 (38) | 0.12.9 (45) | 1.14.10 | (58) |
 Australia | 0.3.1 (10) | 0.5.4 (19) | 1.10.7 (43) | 2.15.8 | (65) |
| Australia win by 7 points | |||||
| Date | Sunday, 13 October 2002 |
|---|---|
| Scoring (IRL) | Goals: Dolan Overs: Kennelly 3, Dolan 2, Jer O'Sullivan 2, Joyce 2, |
| Scoring (AUS) | Goals: Kerr, Pavlich Overs: Brown 5, Pavlich 3, Johnson 2, |
| Best | IRL: Kennelly, Burke, Jer O'Sullivan, Dolan, Joyce, D. O'Se AUS: Pavlich, Kellaway, Brown, Johnson, Bradley, Kerr |
| Injuries | IRL: Nil AUS: Nil |
| Venue | Croke Park,Dublin,County Dublin |
| Attendance | 44,221 |
| Umpires | Brian White (Ireland) Scott McLaren (Australia) |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 0.3.3 (12) | 0.4.5 (17) | 1.7.10 (37) | 1.8.12 | (42) |
| Australia | 0.1.1 (4) | 0.5.3 (18) | 0.5.3 (18) | 1.11.3 | (42) |
| Draw (Australia win by 7 points on aggregate) | |||||
| Date | Sunday, 20 October 2002 |
|---|---|
| Scoring (IRL) | Goals: McAnallen Overs: Dolan 2, O'Hara 2, Geraghty, Joyce, McManus, Savage |
| Scoring (AUS) | Goals: Darcy Overs: Brown 4, Johnson 3, Francou, Judd, Milne, Murphy |
| Best | IRL: Giles, Cluxton, Moynihan, Kennelly, Geraghty AUS:Simpson, Brown, Clement, Kellaway, Johnson |
| Injuries | IRL: Nil AUS: Nil |
| Venue | Croke Park,Dublin,County Dublin |
| Attendance | 71,544 |
| Umpires | Brian White (Ireland) Scott McLaren (Australia) |
