Leinster captain Isa Nacewa retired from professional rugby last weekend with a PRO14 title to add to a fourth Champions Cup medal with Leinster. Nacewa started in both of the province’s Champions Cup and PRO14 finals but this was it for him. The end of the line. ‘There won’t be a timeout. Time out to […]

8 years ago

Tadhg Beirne’s incredible season continued on Wednesday when he was awarded the European Rugby Champions Cup Try of the Season award. The Scarlets second-row’s step on Anthony Watson to score in the PRO14 finalists win over Bath in the pool stages was voted as the try of the season by fans with Beirne’s score beating […]

8 years ago

Former Ireland number eight Jamie Heaslip has said that playing in Ireland’s maiden win over New Zealand at Chicago’s Soldier Field was like playing in a Colosseum. Heaslip played the full 80 minutes in front of 62,300 people as Ireland snapped a 28 game winless streak against the All Blacks in November 2016. Heaslip listed the […]

8 years ago

Two-time Rugby World Cup winner Tim Horan has said that he does not want to see Wallaby backrowers David Pocock and Michael Hooper start alongside each other in the upcoming three-test series against Ireland next month. Hooper and Pocock are among Australia’s best players and they both played alongside each other in five of the […]

8 years ago

Manchester United are reportedly set to sign Porto right-back Diogo Dalot. It is understood that United have met the €20 million buy-out clause in his contract with Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho looking to strengthen his defence ahead of next season. Manchester United expected to sign Porto right-back Diogo Dalot after meeting the 20million euro […]

8 years ago

Saracens head coach Mark McCall has committed his long term future to the club by signing a reported three-year contract extension with the recently crowned Premiership champions. McCall has won four premiership titles and two European Cups with Saracens and he will continue to serve as the club’s Director of Rugby. McCall’s backroom staff have […]

8 years ago

‘If they don’t have a story these days, they’ll make one’. Sometimes as a writer you never really quite know where to start with a particular story but Drake lyrics usually aren’t at the top of the list for how to set a scene. The Canadian rapper has become one of the biggest stars in music this decade, and he […]

8 years ago

Scoil Oilibhéir student Luke Ring showed great heart and courage to cheer on his schoolmates after his leg snapped two minutes into his school’s Sciath na Scol final last Thursday. Ring, who has been playing for the Scoil Oilibhéir school team since fourth class, was named captain for the final but snapped his prosthetic leg within minutes […]

8 years ago

Former Leinster captain Kevin McLaughlin has questioned why the Scarlets players were talking about grazes and cuts in the build up to Saturday’s PRO14 final with Leinster at the Aviva Stadium. The Scarlets trounced Glasgow 28-13 in the semi-final on a 4G pitch at Scotstoun Stadium but a number of their players were unable to train […]

8 years ago

Former Ulster and Ireland centre Stuart Olding will be playing for Brive in the PRO D2 next season. Olding has not been able to find a new club since his Ulster and IRFU contract was revoked last month following a joint internal review between the province and the union in the wake of his acquittal […]

8 years ago

Former Munster centre James Downey believes Johnny Sexton is a decent bet for the 2018 World Rugby Player of the Year award. Sexton kicked the winning drop goal against France in the Six Nations, helped Ireland to a Grand Slam, won the Champions Cup and PRO14 with Leinster and was nominated for the EPCR Player […]

8 years ago

Connacht coach Andy Friend has announced that the club have signed 21-year-old Waikato winger Sevu Reece for next season. The Fijian will become Friend’s first signing since he was appointed Connacht head coach last week with Reece set to join the western province at the conclusion of Waikato’s Mitre 10 Cup run later this year. […]

8 years ago

Former Ulster and Ireland centre Stuart Olding has been linked with a move to join former Ulster, Ireland and Lions second-row Jeremy Davidson at Brive next season. Olding has not been able to find a new club since his Ulster and IRFU contract was revoked last month following a joint internal review between the province […]

8 years ago

Republic of Ireland manager Martin O’Neill has said that Denmark manager Åge Hareide ‘wasn’t such a great player himself’ ahead of Ireland’s friendly with France on Monday. O’Neill played and lived with Hareide during their time together as players at Norwich City and they faced off against each other as managers last year in the FIFA World Cup […]

8 years ago

Ireland international Jared Payne has retired from professional rugby to take up a role as Ulster’s defence coach next season. Payne has been sidelined since last summer’s Lions tour with migraine symptoms but has spent the majority of this year working as a defence coach for Ulster under Jono Gibbes. Payne was still technically listed […]

8 years ago

Defeat can live a lot longer in the memory of professional sports coaches than victory. Partly, because coaches are often discarded for the defeats they endure rather than the victories they have accumulated over their tenure, but there’s also the element that losing hurts and that the fear of losing can be greater than the […]

8 years ago

Tipperary came from nine points down at half-time to earn an incredible draw with Cork in the Munster Senior Hurling Championship at Semple Stadium. Jake Morris sealed a draw for Tipperary with the last puck of the game but it could have easily been a win for the Premier County if it wasn’t for an […]

8 years ago

Rugby referee Nigel Owens has said that UEFA should introduce a 15 minute sin bin rule and a citing process for all play acting and acts of simulation. Owens said that no sport needs the kind of behaviour that Sergio Ramos showed in Saturday’s Champions League final where the Real Madrid captain dropped to the […]

8 years ago

Jordan Larmour scored one of the tries of the season during Leinster’s PRO14 win over the Scarlets. With Leinster leading 28-11 in the second-half, Larmour stopped a Scarlets cross kick from going out into touch before booting the ball down the field, rounding the Scarlets defence and scooping the ball with one hand to score […]

8 years ago

Simon Zebo will be missed on the pitch by Munster next season but he will seemingly be missed off the field by his teammates too. The Ireland international will move to Paris later this summer after signing for Champions Cup finalists Racing 92 and Munster have released a video to farewell Zebo, Gerbrandt Grobler, Robin […]

8 years ago

Five-time Champions League winner Cristiano Ronaldo has said that Europe’s premier club competition should be named after him following Real Madrid’s 3-1 win over Liverpool on Saturday. Madrid seized their third consecutive Champions League title with a 3-1 win over the Reds with Ronaldo once again finishing the tournament as the competition’s top scorer with […]

8 years ago

The UFC have confirmed that the UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Till  main event in Liverpool this afternoon will proceed as planned after Darren Till kept his weight below the 188 pound limit. Till weighed in at 174.5 pounds, 3.5 pounds over the welterweight non-title fight limit of 171 pounds, at yesterday’s weigh-in in Liverpool and […]

8 years ago

A change is surely coming. Loris Karius conceded three goals in Saturday’s Champions League final loss to Real Madrid and two were very much of his own making. Simon Mignolet lost his place to the German earlier this season but few Reds fans believe he is a long-term solution. Former Liverpool goalkeeper Ray Clemence has […]

8 years ago

Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum said that manager Jurgen Klopp tried to encourage his players to put the loss of forward Mohamed Salah behind them during Saturday’s Champions League final against Real Madrid. Salah was forced off in the first-half with a shoulder injury after he was pulled down by Madrid captain Sergio Ramos and Wijnaldum […]

8 years ago

Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos has reached out to Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah after the Spanish international injured the Egyptian in Saturday night’s Champions League final in Kiev. Ramos locked arms with Salah in the first-half and flung Liverpool’s leading goalscorer to the ground in an attempted tackle that saw the Reds attacker leave the […]

8 years ago

He may be one of the best pundits in football but Gary Neville is still a Manchester United fan at heart. Neville has earned a lot of plaudits in recent seasons for his tactical analysis of football and for his ability to provide insight and relevant information to football fans, and while he is certainly […]

8 years ago

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has said that Champions League match winner Gareth Bale will have to consider his future at the club but that he can understand his desire for more playing time next season. Bale scored two goals off the bench for Madrid in a 3-1 win over Liverpool in Kiev to secure […]

8 years ago

World Rugby research consultant Ross Tucker has blasted former Wallabies winger Drew Mitchell for his criticism of the new tackle laws that will be trialed at the upcoming World Rugby Under 20 Championship in France later this month. The new laws will see a post-match sanctioning system introduced where any high tackle penalty, any head injury, […]

8 years ago

Brumbies hooker Folau Fainga’a has received a red card for headbutting Bulls prop Mattys Basson in his side’s 38-28 win in Pretoria on Saturday. Fainga’a nudged his head towards Basson’s nose and received a straight red card from referee Marius van der Westhuizen for the incident. Folau Fainga’a’s red card… pic.twitter.com/DcVNykQrvz — Steve Lenthall (@steve_l15) May 26, […]

8 years ago

Rory McIlroy had one of the greatest rounds of his career on Friday after he shot a second round of 65 at the PGA Championship at Wentworth. McIlroy finished the second day with a three shot lead at -12 under but he has since relinquished that advantage on the third day and is currently two […]

8 years ago

When you’re a Ballon d’Or winner like Zinedine Zidane you don’t lose your touch. The Real Madrid manager helped out at Los Blancos training this week by pinging a few balls towards his players as they went through some routine training drills. The drill is basic, cross the ball across the face of goal, let […]

8 years ago

Current and former Liverpool players Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Jamie Carragher are enjoying the build up to Saturday night’s Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid in Kiev. Both Carragher and Oxlaide-Chamberlain are in the Ukranian capital this evening as Liverpool look to claim a sixth European Cup and their first Champions League title since the […]

8 years ago

Rumours are circulating that Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale could start in Saturday’s Champions League final against Liverpool. Bale has scored five goals in his last five matches for Madrid and it is rumoured that he will start in place of striker Karim Benzema. Rumours getting stronger that @GarethBale11 will start for Real Madrid tonight, […]

8 years ago

‘A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush‘. IRFU High Performance Director David Nucifora doesn’t appear to be a big subscriber to the theory after the IRFU reportedly blocked Lions and South Africa fly-half Elton Jantjies from a potential move to Ulster next season. According to the BBC, Ulster’s hopes of signing […]

8 years ago

Former Ulster scrum-half Ruan Pienaar may be set for a return to the province next year as an assistant coach. Pienaar enjoyed an incredible season with Montpellier in French Rugby and garnered serious consideration for South Africa’s upcoming summer Test series against England next month. According to South African sportswriter Mark Keohane, South Africa Director […]

8 years ago

A Liverpool fan has broken down in tears after his son Sean Quinn flew from Australia to Kiev, Ukraine, for this Saturday’s Champions League final between Liverpool and Madrid. Several flights to the Ukranian capital have been cancelled this week after Borispil Airport had been unable to allocate times for planes to land in Kiev. Quinn […]

8 years ago

Sky Sports presenter Kirsty Gallacher will leave Sky Sports after more than 20 years with the company. Gallacher started at Sky in 1998 and has become synonymous with the broadcaster over the last two decades. The 42-year-old said she is leaving to start a new chapter in her life and Sky Sports News anchor Jim […]

8 years ago

Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos insists that you can’t compare Mohamed Salah to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Salah has scored 44 goals in 51 games this season for Liverpool, which is actually a better goals to games ratio than five-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi, who has scored 45 goals in 54 games for Barcelona […]

8 years ago

Defending BMW PGA Champion Alex Noren hailed Rory McIlroy’s round of 65 at Wentworth on Friday as ‘the best round he’s ever seen’. Noren shot a course record of 62 in the final round last year but was nevertheless mightily impressed with McIlroy’s offering on Friday as the Northern Irishman boasts a three shot lead over Sébastien Gros […]

8 years ago

Connacht trio Ultan Dillane, Denis Buckley and Niyi Adeolokun have all been named in Pat Lam’s Barbarians squad to play in Sunday’s Quilter Cup Match against England at Twickenham. Adeolokun has been named in an explosive back three alongside Toulon pair Chris Ashton and Josua Tuisova while Dillane will partner ex-Wallabies lock Sitaleki Timani in the second-row. […]

8 years ago

World Rugby will introduce new low tackle directive at this month’s World Rugby Under 20 Championship in France. The new laws will see a post-match sanctioning system introduced where any high tackle penalty, any head injury, any high tackle that was missed on the pitch and any head contact will be reviewed by a citing commissioner […]

8 years ago

Munster bound second-row Tadhg Beirne will start at number eight for the Scarlet’s PRO14 final against Leinster on Saturday. Beirne moves to the back of the scrum to replace injured captain John Barclay who was ruled out for the final with his Achilles tendon injury last week. Lewis Rawlins will now join Steven Cummins in the […]

8 years ago

“Have you talked to John? He’s one of the smartest people you’re ever going to meet” – SBG fighter Kiefer Crosbie told me last summer before his win over Waldemar Cichy. I hadn’t talked to Kavanagh before. I had asked him a few questions at one or two press conferences but I had yet to […]

8 years ago

United States of America President Donald Trump has suggested that NFL players who protest the American national anthem at games should ‘consider leaving the country’. Last season hundreds of NFL players knelt during the Star Spangled banner to protest racial inequality, unarmed killings and police brutality against African-Americans. Trump said last year that players who […]

8 years ago

Connacht have announced that former ACT Brumbies coach Andy Friend will take over as the club’s head coach next season after agreeing to a three-year contract with the western province. Friend takes over from New Zealander Kieran Keane who was released by the province earlier this month less than 12 months into a three-year contract. […]

8 years ago

Leinster will face the Scarlets in this Saturday’s PRO14 final in Dublin and head coach Leo Cullen should make a number of changes from the side that defeated Munster in last weekend’s semi-final at the RDS. Fly-half Johnny Sexton is expected to return to training this week after picking up a calf injury at training […]

8 years ago

The greatest season in Irish Rugby history will draw to a close this weekend when Leinster head to the Aviva Stadium for the PRO14 final with the Scarlets. The European Champions will be firm favourites to secure their first PRO Rugby title since 2014 after demolishing fellow finalists the Scarlets in the Champions Cup semi-finals […]

8 years ago

Cork have included four potential Championship debutants in his panel for Saturday night’s Munster senior football semi-final against Tipperary. Rebels manager Ronan McCarthy has handed corner-back Kevin Flahive his first championship start while Matthew Taylor, Sam Ryan and Ronan O’Toole could all experience their first taste of championship football after they were named on the bench. […]

8 years ago

Conor McGregor and Rory McIlroy have both been named on ESPN’s World Fame 100 list. The index compiles the 100 most famous athletes in the world with the US broadcaster examining 600 of the biggest names in sports, drawn from 68 countries. ESPN’s Sports Analytics Group ranked each athlete based on a proprietary formula that took […]

8 years ago

Five-time All Star Sean Cavanagh has questioned why his brother Colm Cavanagh was substituted at half-time during Tyrone’s Ulster SFC quarter-final defeat to Monaghan on Sunday. Cavanagh, Tyrone’s only current All Star, was hauled off at the break for Declan McClure in what was believed to be an injury related substitution but his older brother Sean […]

8 years ago