O'Sullivan may need to look abroad to revive careerON RUGBY: A minute from the end of the Ulster-Castres game in the Heineken Cup at Ravenhill last October, the French team suddenly…Tue Jan 15 2013 - 00:00
Bottom line for Howlett is Munster are still aliveFailure to get over in five-minute window before half-time did cost them bonusMon Jan 14 2013 - 00:00
Clermont through: Five tries secures spotClermont Auvergne ran in five tries to secure their place in the knockout stages with a bonus-point victory over ExeterMon Jan 14 2013 - 00:00
Victory secured but Munster left to rue bonus chance that got awayPool One: Edinburgh 17 Munster 26 Munster came away from a predictably hollow Murrayfield, which was one-tenth full, with a …Mon Jan 14 2013 - 00:00
Munster and Leinster set for showdown as both still playing catch-up with game to goHEINEKEN CUP: There is still the outside possibility that both Munster and Leinster could join Ulster in the quarter-finals …Mon Jan 14 2013 - 00:00
O'Donnell takes another giant step in a burgeoning careerThe most surprising thing about Tommy O’Donnell is he’s all of 25 already and in his fourth season as a professionalSat Jan 12 2013 - 00:00
Lam recognises that underdog thing - and he knows how to use itPat Lam is fully aware of the task facing him as the next head coach at Connacht, but far from finding the role of underdog daunting…Sat Jan 12 2013 - 00:00
Struggling Munster should still have too much in hand for poor EdinburghSuch is their capacity for walking tightropes in the competition they helped make as much as anyone, Munster have been dangling…Sat Jan 12 2013 - 00:00
Ulster first team into last eight but not home yetUlster 23 Glasgow 6: An unrelenting downpour may have been something of a leveller but it didn’t damped Ravenhill’s spirits …Sat Jan 12 2013 - 00:00
Ulster continue to roar as the beast in Court finally comes to surfaceHeineken Cup: It’s taken a while, but the beast in Tom Court has finally come to the surfaceFri Jan 11 2013 - 00:00
Ulster must put down Warriors’ uprising to make the knockout stages once againHEINEKEN CUP Pool Four: Ulster v Glasgow Warriors Ulster’s defeat at home to Northampton before Christmas hasn’t hugely undermined…Fri Jan 11 2013 - 00:00
O'Callaghan believes it's time players stood up for Penney and Munster supportersPool One Edinburgh v Munster : As one of one of the more experienced heavy-hitters returning to the Munster mix this week, Donncha…Fri Jan 11 2013 - 00:00
O'Connell sets sights on a return to action in AprilPaul O’Connell has confidently outlined a timeframe for recovery from his latest back operation as some time in April when, he…Thu Jan 10 2013 - 00:00
Not a pretty picture for Penney as Sherry and Murray struggleMike Sherry and Conor Murray were unable to train with Munster yesterday and remain doubts for their must-win trek to Edinburgh…Thu Jan 10 2013 - 00:00
Precariously placed Leinster and Munster need some tricky permutationsThe Heineken Cup resumes with the final two rounds of pool games, and the typically complicated array of permutations, which …Wed Jan 09 2013 - 00:00
Anscombe hopes injuries won't hobble UlsterRUGBY: Atop pool four and the best placed of the Irish sides, Ulster have nonetheless been hit by an untimely spate of injuries…Wed Jan 09 2013 - 00:00
Savour these pool finale dramas - they might be nearly the lastIt’s back and, as ever, not a moment too lateTue Jan 08 2013 - 00:00
Munster left a little bloodied by defeat as Leinster look in rude healthRUGBY: A week is a long time in sport, as the week just passed ably highlighted, and Munster and their supporters will be fervently…Mon Jan 07 2013 - 00:00
Poster boy with the happy-go-lucky nature was born to run for MunsterMunster have their poster boy signed up for three more years and, despite interest from Toulouse, that suits Simon Zebo just …Sat Jan 05 2013 - 00:00
Lam emerges as frontrunner for Connacht positionRUGBY: Although no deal has been signed or sealed, the former Auckland Blues head coach Pat Lam has emerged as the front-runner…Sat Jan 05 2013 - 00:00
Hanks, King and Lam head contendersThe Kiwi and former Wasps and Sale coach Tony Hanks, current Clermont Auvergne backs coach Alex King, and former Auckland Blues…Fri Jan 04 2013 - 00:00
Munster secure Zebo with new three-year dealRUGBY: Munster have fended off the covetous advances of Toulouse to secure Simon Zebo with a three-year contract extension, …Fri Jan 04 2013 - 00:00
Ulster's dominant scrum paves the way for sweet victory over LeinsterUlster 27 Leinster 19: It was always likely that Ulster were going to be more motivated and inspired by a raucous Ravenhill …Sat Dec 22 2012 - 00:00
Schmidt rings the changes for LeinsterRUGBY: In recent years, what with the demands of the Heineken Cup either side of the festive period as well as the player welfare…Fri Dec 21 2012 - 00:00
Away defeat to Metro may come back to haunt MunsterTo go toe-to-toe in back-to-back matches with the heavyweight Saracens’ bruisers was no mean feat, and Munster emerged with an…Tue Dec 18 2012 - 00:00
Schmidt's observations true, flaws of Cup are also its beautiesON RUGBY: Amid all the bleating and bully boy demands from the English and French clubs to suit their own, if contrasting, needs…Tue Dec 18 2012 - 00:00
Ulster now the only realistic contenders for last eightIrish rugby hasn’t known such a demoralising weekend in a long timeMon Dec 17 2012 - 00:00
'Their power up front was key in the second half'A normally ebullient Simon Zebo could scarcely conceal his disappointmentMon Dec 17 2012 - 00:00
Munster left with that sinking feeling after losing a titanic battleSaracens 19 Munster 13 Over the course of two good old-fashioned and titanic European arm wrestles, there was little or nothing…Mon Dec 17 2012 - 00:00
Blue army turns out in Leinster's hour of needA team can’t win the Heineken Cup in December, but they can lose it – and this applies in spades to the reigning holders today…Sat Dec 15 2012 - 00:00
Laulala gets his big chance as Munster go on another missionThere was something old-fashioned about last week’s tryless first bout in the Thomond Park cauldron and such are the stakes here…Sat Dec 15 2012 - 00:00
Biarritz ring changes for Connacht clashConnacht can expect a Biarritz backlash this evening in the Basque country judging by the fallout from the westerners’ 22-14 …Fri Dec 14 2012 - 00:00
Seasonal re-appearances: Fitzgerald and O'Malley nearing returnLuke Fitzgerald and Eoin O’Malley are both expected to make their seasonal reappearances for Leinster in their Rabo Direct Pro…Thu Dec 13 2012 - 00:00
Trimble meeting Gilroy challenge head onCome the Six Nations and if Craig Gilroy isn’t picked for Ireland’s opener against Wales, Declan Kidney will assuredly receive…Thu Dec 13 2012 - 00:00
McCarthy set to accept Leinster's three-year dealMike McCarthy is set to leave Connacht at the end of the season in order to take up an offer of a three-year contract from back…Wed Dec 12 2012 - 00:00
Wounded beast a big worry for AnscombeHistory has shown us that when heavyweight contenders bump into each other in the pivotal back-to-back rounds in the pool stages…Wed Dec 12 2012 - 00:00
Next week can't come quick enough - BossCue Leinster, and the need for an equally feverish atmosphere in the Aviva next SaturdayTue Dec 11 2012 - 00:00
Only the Irish can prevent an Anglo-French carve-upOn Rugby: All quiet on the ERC front, although as expected the tension amongst the stakeholders as the English clubs especially…Tue Dec 11 2012 - 00:00
One that got away as Leinster fail to reel in ClermontPOOL FIVE Clermont Auvergne 15 Leinster 12: Leinster made the retreat from Clermont last night with an abiding feeling that …Mon Dec 10 2012 - 00:00
Defeat puts Leinster under immense pressureHEINEKEN CUP: Leinster seriously threatened to complete an historic Heineken Cup four-timer for the Irish provinces yesterday…Mon Dec 10 2012 - 00:00
Cullen feels more could have been gained from a cagey encounterAs the unshowered players negotiated the narrow passageways underneath the main stand, sidestepping or stopping amid the camera…Mon Dec 10 2012 - 00:00
Moment of truth for injury-hit MunsterRUGBY: If it’s Saturday tea-time with a high-flying English team strutting into Thomond Park intent on storming the garrison…Sat Dec 08 2012 - 00:00
Best can't wait to get in on the act as high-flying Ulster tackle the SaintsHe’s 30 now, with 131 Ulster caps and 62 Ireland caps, and hence he should know betterFri Dec 07 2012 - 00:00
Scrumhalf taking and making the breaksDue to his exploits with the Connacht and Ireland Under-20s in the last two years, good judges had already begun to earmark Kieran…Fri Dec 07 2012 - 00:00
Back-to-back ties can break spine of a seasonRUGBY : The upcoming back-to-back fixtures in the Heineken Cup always had a make-or-break look to them and if anything the opening…Thu Dec 06 2012 - 00:00
Ferris season in doubt after ankle surgeryIn what must be a devastating blow for the player himself, Stephen Ferris’ season and with it his Lions’ hopes have been placed…Thu Dec 06 2012 - 00:00
Ulster refuse to be weighed down by unbeaten runBoasting European rugby’s only unbeaten record this season, rarely, indeed perhaps never, will Ulster have travelled abroad in…Wed Dec 05 2012 - 00:00
Draw gives Ireland good opportunity to proceed but topping pool looks essentialInsomuch as one can forecast how things might be panning out in almost three years’ time, Ireland were handed a reasonably negotiable…Tue Dec 04 2012 - 00:00
All Blacks looked tired, but England win still makes north less grimON RUGBY: And in an hour and a half or so in a little corner of south west London, the world changed on its axisTue Dec 04 2012 - 00:00
