The Galway hurlers are on the lookout for a new senior manager after Micheál Donoghue stepped down from the role last night. The 2017 All-Ireland winning manager was expected to stay on for a fifth year but told local radio he felt the time was right to step aside. Seán Moran writes this morning that Tipperary showed how All-Ireland success has become a matter of timing, because the new championship format makes it harder for teams to go through the summer unbeaten. Following the question marks over Hawk-Eye's ability to determine whether a ball has crossed the bar, as well as whether it has passed between the goalposts, following John Donnelly's point for Kilkenny in Sunday's final - the GAA has confirmed the competency of the score detection system. In his column this morning (Subscriber Only), Darragh Ó Sé writes that Kerry aren't in bonus territory in the upcoming football decider – Clifford and the rest are young but they need to win now.
After 13 weeks off, Gordon D'Arcy's column is back! He's looking ahead to next month's Rugby World Cup and this weekend's warm-up match against England. He says Ireland need to find new or old ways through or around the England defence: "Going full throttle this weekend comes with a guaranteed cost but I'm worried; we need to see Ireland's best team and we need them to go to another level sooner because I fear there will be no time later." Reporting from Ireland's training camp in the Algarve, Gerry Thornley explains that with Joey Carbery an ongoing doubt for Japan, one or even both of Jack Carty and Ross Byrne are set to make the 31-man cut amongst three outhalves.
Manchester United have expressed "disgust" at the racial abuse suffered by Paul Pogba following the 1-1 draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday. Arsenal women's midfielder Katie McCabe accepts the FAI is doing its best to recruit the right successor for Colin Bell, with the Irish squad content to start their European Championship qualifying campaign against Montenegro on Tuesday week under caretaker manager Tom O'Connor.
Meanwhile Steve Smith has been officially ruled out of Thursday's third Ashes Test at Headingley following the delayed concussion inflicted by a Jofra Archer short ball. On Tuesday he was a bystander at practice before Justin Langer, the head coach, confirmed he would not be ready in time.
