There are many cures out there for the coronavirus lockdown boredom that besets us all at different times of the week and one that is becoming increasingly popular is online poker. A few games with friends and a few drinks has become one of the ways to enjoy some sort of social interaction on a weekend night but there are some pitfalls. This morning we look more closely at things like a lack of age verification and difficulty withdrawing money which have shown up as feaures of some popular sites. Also in our Pay for Play pages this week we pick five sports documentaries on Netflix to kill some of the time when we're all stuck in our houses.
On to rugby and Gerry Thornley writes in his column this morning that, if Rob Kearney has played his final game for Leinster, it will be a major disappointment if he is unable to get the fitting send off her deserves. "Kearney was of a mind to continue playing, but even finding alternative employers in the current climate looks difficult. Fergus McFadden is another who is both out of contract at the end of June and deserving of some recognition," he writes. Meanwhile, Leo Cullen has spoken of his pride of the frontline health workers during the current crisis and also hasn't ruled out the possibility of a month-long isolation training camp for his Leinster players. "I think playing behind closed doors, if it does come to that and revenue can be generated from that, and we get back into that rhythm of playing games, I think it would be a positive thing in the situation that we're in," he said. Finally, James Cronin has accepted his month-long suspension for an unintentional anti-doping violation after he tested positive for prednisolone and prednisone due, the investigation found, to a pharmacy distribution error.
In our favourite sporting moment series this morning we're bringing it a bit closer to home as Barrie Hanley reflects on the two best games he's seen in Croke Park – both of which were Cumann na mBunscol epics involving his son playing for Scoil Bhríde which outstripped being at USA '94, the 2002 World Cup, seeing Ireland beat the All Blacks in Lansdowne Road and even being there to see Manchester United complete the treble in 1999. As he writes himself, "the sporting gods have truly been kind."
Finally to GAA and former president Liam O'Neill yesterday told Seán Moran that, when this is all over, he'd like history to remember the GAA putting the people first. "We can deal with the 2020 championships any way we choose – play them in 2021 or whatever – but I'd like history to record that the GAA put its people first over everything; that we said we'd lead our people through it as best we can and will be there at the end of it to play our games," he said.
