Episode 8 of Thank GAA It's Friday comes to you on Friday, August 21st on RTÉ 2 at 9:30pm as we build up to the first All-Ireland football semi-final between Kerry and Tyrone.

After lifting the All-Ireland last year, Kerry's Kieran O'Leary has missed out on the Kingdom's charge for successive football titles after rupturing his achilles tendon earlier this year. It was Kieran's late equaliser that secured a replay in last year's semi-final against Mayo and we chat to Kerry's former captain about the lengths he's going to in his recovery.

2003 provided a watershed moment in Gaelic Football when Tyrone defeated Kerry in that year's semi-final. Tyrone unleased the original blanket defence and changed football tactics forever. As the two sides go head-to-head in another semi-final, we caught up with some key architects in the restructuring of modern football. Tyrone's Ryan McMenamin, Kevin Hughes and Brian McGuigan take us through the historical moment.

St. Brendan's College in Killarney has provided a footballing education for Kerry's budding players for decades now. It provided SEVEN players in last year's All-Ireland football final panel including James O'Donoghue and Colm Cooper. We visited the school and spoke to teachers Ed O'Neill and Garry McGrath about nurturing this talent. Former pupil and double All-Ireland winner Killian Burns also spoke to us about his time in the Killarney institution.

We also join Wexford's young star Conor McDonald as he prepares for the county's U21 semi-final against Antrim. The Yellow Bellies have placed a lot of emphasis on developing youth in the recent past and McDonald follows in this tradition by passing on his knowledge to the youth of Naomh Eanna in Gorey. After winning their third Leinster U21 title in a row, can the current crop finally clinch that elusive All-Ireland success? 

Thank GAA It's Friday is repeated on Sunday 23rd August on RTÉ 2 at 2:15pm, before the big game on The Sunday Game.

Twitter: @ThankGAA, Email: [email protected]

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