From Rhys McClenaghan being crowned European champion in Rimini to Shannon Sweeney and Aoife O’Rourke collecting boxing gold in Belgrade; from Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry winning the Zurich Classic of New Orleans to Willie Mullins becoming the first Irish-based trainer since Vincent O’Brien 70 years ago to be crowned champion over jumps in Britain; from Margaret Cremen winning silver at the European Rowing Championships to the Irish women’s rugby team booking their place in next year’s World Cup, not to mention Rhasidat Adeleke running one of the fastest 100 metres in the world this year – that was a rather decent sporting weekend.
Back home, though, fortunes were, inevitably, mixed on the Gaelic games front, Denis Walsh rounding up an eventful Sunday that saw Limerick’s hurlers obliterate Tipperary and Cork left facing the prospect of their summer ending in Spring after their defeat by Clare.
Nicky English gives his take on the weekend’s hurling which included that Limerick stroll at the Gaelic Grounds, but one, writes Malachy Clerkin, that was clouded by an injury to Peter Casey. Denis Walsh was at Páirc Uí Chaoimh to see “a match of stunning twists” between Cork and Clare, while Seán Moran was at Pearse Stadium for the draw between Galway and Kilkenny.
In football, Gordon Manning was on hand to see the latest instalment of Donegal’s “journey of rediscovery”, Jim McGuinness’s side beating Tyrone in extra time to advance to the Ulster final. There they will meet Armagh who held off the challenge of Down in a “tempestuous” semi-final in Clones. Down in Croke Park, Dublin saw off Offaly with 20 points to spare.
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In rugby, Gerry Thornley reports on Ireland’s Six Nations victory over Scotland, one that saw them meet their pre-tournament target of a third-place finish, as well as World Cup qualification. He also heard from player of the match Brittany Hogan and coach Scott Bemand.
In the URC, Munster and Leinster completed contrasting URC trips to South Africa, while Connacht moved into the playoff places with their win over Dragons. Cork Constitution, meanwhile, became All-Ireland champions for a seventh time, surviving an early red card to beat Terenure. Gerry was at the Aviva Stadium to see their triumph and got the reaction of both sides’ coaches after the game.
In soccer, Ken Early is at a loss to understand why Ange Postecoglou doesn’t address his Spurs side’s inability to defend set-pieces, as they demonstrated yet again against Arsenal on Sunday in their north London derby defeat. And Denis takes a look at the progress of Brian Barry-Murphy, the innovative Irish coach who is making a name for himself as head of Manchester City’s elite development squads. If only there was a big vacancy in Irish football that he could fill.
TV Watch: Coverage of the snooker World Championships continues through the afternoon and evening on BBC2, BBC Four and Eurosport. TG4 has the meeting of Meath and Louth in the Leinster under-20 football championship this evening (7.30), while RTÉ2′s Against the Head has the highlights from the rugby weekend (8.0).
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