The match is one of the most eagerly anticipated Super Bowls in history, with both teams running into a rich vein of form at the most crucial time of the year. The Giants have won five matches in succession, while the Patriots have won 10 in a row.

Three points separated the sides four years ago, when the wildcard Giants shocked the then 18-0 Patriots. Sunday’s encounter promises to be just as close and a last minute drive by Tom Brady or Eli Manning could win the game. Experts are split, with the Vegas odds-makers narrowly favouring the Patriots (-2.5) and a small majority of analysts seemingly leaning towards the Giants.

The teams are both built around dynamic passing attacks and will be hoping to partly disprove the old adage “Defense wins Championships”. No team with a defense ranked lower than 25th has ever won the Super Bowl and the Patriots (31st total yards) and Giants (27th total yards) struggled on defense throughout the regular season. The Patriots’ scoring defense (15th) shows Bill Belichick’s team may be able to slow offenses down once they reach the end zone, however.

Despite the regular season troubles, both defenses have impressed during the playoffs. The Giants shut down the previously unstoppable Green Bay Packers offense and only allowed two points against the Atlanta Falcons. The Patriots defense saved New England during the AFC Championship Game when Tom Brady had an uncharacteristically inaccurate performance.

The Giants’ players have been outspoken in the run up to the Super Bowl and the defense feels it is in Brady’s head. New York has won the last two matches against New England, including a 24-20 win in week nine. After a scoreless first half, the match burst to life in the fourth quarter. The offenses marched up and down the field and Eli Manning won the match with a one yard pass to Jake Ballard.

The key to disrupting Brady is a potent pass rush and the Giants boast a wealth of talented pass rushers in Osi Umenyiora, Jason Pierre Paul and Justin Tuck. The pass rush is widely regarded to have been instrumental in the Giants win in Super Bowl XLII and the Patriots will have to find a way to slow the Giants’ blitzes. If Tom Brady is given time, he could dismantle the 29th ranked Giants pass defense.

The Giants biggest match-up advantage is in the passing game. The Patriots secondary was porous throughout the season, although they have shown some improvements in the post-season. The Giants have three big-play receivers in Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz and Mario Manningham.

Nicks has been one of the post-season’s star performers. The wide receiver already has 335 yards and four touchdowns for the Giants and could have a big day against the Patriots.

Victor Cruz, who was an undrafted free agent, had a sensational season, totalling 82 catches, 1,536 yards and nine touchdowns. The slot receiver could also be covered, at times, by wide receiver Julian Edelman. The Patriots man will likely have safety help on every play, but Cruz could torch the converted cornerback.

Mario Manningham is often the forgotten man of the Giants wide receiving trio, but he will be matching up with relatively poor cornerbacks. The Patriots ranked 31st against the pass and their secondary includes Edelman (7th round wide receiver), Kyle Arrington (undrafted), Stirling Moore (undrafted) and James Ihedigbo (undrafted).

The underrated story-line is the Patriots’ defensive line. Led by an inspired Vince Wilfork (six tackles, one sack, three tackles for a loss), the d-line played an instrumental part in the Patriots’ narrow victory over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game. Wilfork, Kyle Love, Mark Anderson and Brandon Deaderick go up against a questionable Giants offensive line.

Against the San Francisco 49ers, who are one of the league’s best defenses, Eli Manning was under pressure all game due to questionable play by his offensive line. Manning was sacked six times and hurried constantly as he somehow managed to throw for 316 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. The Giants quarterback was lucky not to be intercepted on a couple of occasions, however. If the Patriots defensive front can create a similar amount of pressure as the Ravens game, they could disrupt Manning and help their weak secondary.

Neither team rushes or defends the run particularly well, but the Patriots’ run defense is slightly more stout. The run game will likely only be used by both teams to keep the defense off-guard, but the Patriots’ Ben Jarvus Green-Ellis and Stevan Ridley, if he plays, and New York’s Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs could have success running and play crucial roles.

The Patriots major worry entering the game is the fitness of star tight-end Rob Gronkowski. The 22 year old had the best tight-end season in history, breaking NFL records for touchdowns (17) and yards (1,327). Gronkowski suffered a high ankle sprain against the Ravens, however, and is questionable for Sunday’s match. The tight-end is almost certain to play, but if he is limited by the injury, the Patriots offense will be a lot more defendable.

Key Match-Ups:

(1) Giants receivers Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz and Mario Manningham against the Patriots exploitable defensive backs, including wide receiver/return man/converted cornerback Julian Edelman
(2) Patriots defensive line, which was instrumental in beating the Baltimore Ravens, against the porous Giants offensive line.
(3) Giants vaunted defensive line against the Patriots steady offensive line.
(4) Tom Brady vs Eli Manning. Whoever exploits the other team’s weak secondary will likely to win the match.
(5) The turnover battle. Interceptions in regular season: Patriots defense (2nd – 23) vs Giants defense (6th – 20)

Prediction:

This match is one of the hardest to call in Super Bowl history. With both defenses improving in the post-season, the game may not be as high scoring as originally predicted. The contest will come down to Tom Brady against Eli Manning and who can better dissect the opposing pass defense, however. The turnover battle will be critical and the match should be decided in the dying minutes. The match could go either way, but Tom Brady and the New England Patriots would be my slight favourites to gain a narrow victory and their fourth Super Bowl.

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Katie Taylor is Ireland’s great Olympic hope at London 2012 and and she’s women’s boxing’s great hope for a positive response to the sport’s first inclusion at the Olympic Games since 1902. The 24 year old Bray native though isn’t thinking of that yet, she knows it’s a long road between now and the qualifiers in Beijing next May and first up is this week’s attempt at claiming her fifth European Championship in a row.

Speaking to SportsnewsIreland at the ESB Olympic Hopefuls event recently Taylor said that despite the hype and pressure surrounding her Olympic challenge, next summer in London was at the back of her mind.

“I’m just taking each competition as it comes along really”, she said “I try not to think too much about it to be honest.”

“I’ll try and take it in my stride and concentrate on the European’s first of all.”

Despite dominating at the Europeans for the last four years Taylor says that as the sport improves the competition gets tougher and she knows that for newer fighters she is a scalp.

“There’s always that pressure coming into any tournament and succecss at previous European championships doesn’t really matter. It’s irrelevent really”, Taylor said expressing a hunger and knowledge that no top athlete can afford to rest on their laurels.

“I have to keep proving myself over and over at these competitions.”

Taylor has been spearheading women’s boxing for the last five years so there is no one better placed to assess the health of the sport as it continues its growth coming into it’s first modern Olympic Games.

“The last few years it is getting harder and harder it’s always a new challenge to retain your titles. The strength and depth involved at each weight now, every fights a tough fight. You don’t get any easy fights any more.”

Two fighters in particular will be on Taylor’s mind at this weeks championship in Rotterdam. Sofya Ochigava of Russia and Gulsum Tatar from Turkey will both compete in Taylor’s 60kg category this year and both have defeated Taylor. Ochigava was the women who ended Taylor’s magnificant 42 bout winning streak in March of 2010.

“That didn’t have any effect on me at all. It’s amateur boxing and you’re boxing week in, week out, so you’re going to lose every now and then and you just have to get on with things.”

Even if they can manage to beat Taylor this week she says it will have no effect on her.

“People make such a big deal of me losing but it doesn’t really have any effect on me at all, I just go home and have a week off.”

Taylor though is confident that she can claim that fifth gold medal.

“Training’s going really well and I’m looking forward to it but I’ll have to be at my best to win it.”

The Uruguayan returns from an eight game suspension and is back in contention for a starting spot but it is still unclear if Kenny Dalglish will put the striker straight back into the first team.

Liverpool have picked up just two wins in the league since Suarez last played on St Stephen’s day and Dalglish will surely be looking to introduce the spark Suarez provides into the game against Spurs at some point.

Stephen Gerrard is back in the squad after being rested for Liverpool’s 3-0 win over Wolves on Tuesday and Dalglish has a relatively injury-free squad to choose from; Lucas Leiva is still out with a long term injury however.

Tottenham’s two new signings Louis Saha and Ryan Nelsen are both in line to make their debuts at Anfield as Jermain Defoe is unlikely to play because of a hamstring injury.

Emmanuel Adebayor came off early with a hamstring injury during Spurs win against Wigan last week and Rafael Van der Vaart is also struggling with a calf injury, which could give Saha the opportunity to start against Liverpool.

Aaron Lennon is also struggling with a hamstring injury and is a major doubt while William Gallas and Tom Huddlestone are not available but Ledley King and Kyle Walker should be fit enough to start.

80 Mins

Scorers

Ireland:
J Sexton (Pen, Con, Pen, Pen)
R Best 38 (Try)
T Bowe (Try)

Wales:

J Davies (Try, Try)
Halfpenny (Pen, Con, Pen)
North (Try)

Commentary:

Wales deserve their victory. Ireland were not in the match for large periods of the match and, at times, didn’t match Wales’ intensity all over the pitch but should have Davis seen red instead of yellow? Not sure that would have made the difference in the end as Ireland lost four tries to two and should have killed off the game after Halfpenny missed the conversion.

Many questions remain over Ireland’s defense which was overrun for 50 minutes. Ireland has now lost the last three games against Wales

Ireland now have to travel to France and win, something they haven’t done since 2000.

80 Mins Wales win at the Aviva.
80 Mins He scores. Is there enough time left for Ireland???
79 Mins Penalty to Wales inside final minute and this will win Wales the game. Ferris sees yellow. Poor from Ireland. This is the Six Nations journey over before it has begun.
76 Mins Halfpenny MISSES! O’Gara and Reddan are in.
75 Mins TRY for Wales. North looks like he touched down. TMO to make a big decision. If the conversion goes over, Ireland will be behind with less than four minutes remaining.
73 Mins He misses but having a shot from inside his own half, he can be forgiven for that. Cian Healy to be replaced by Ulsters Tom Court.
70 Mins Donnacha Ryan is having a stormer since coming on. His tackle has led to a turnover and penalty for Ireland. Sexton to attempt a long-range shot at goal to put Wales out of try-scoring range.
68 Mins TRY for Ireland. Tommy Bowe in the corner. It all came form Sextons kick into the corner, Ryan stole the Welsh lineout and a number of phases followed, Sexton threw it out to Kearney who fed Bowe who was never going to miss from 10 meters out. Sexton misses the conversion.
64 Mins Lock Bradley Davis has seen yellow for dropping Ryan in a spear like tackle, akin to Warburton’s red in NZ – Should have been RED!!
64 Mins Something has happened off the ball here, Touch judge has signaled to the referee.
63 Mins Wales are employing a tactic of kicking to Ireland’s back three instead of touch, where Ireland have a superior set-piece. D Ryan replaces D Callaghan for Ireland.
59 Mins Sexton gives Ireland the lead but just one point in it. Still all to do for ireland.
57 Mins A try saving tackle from North there. Took man and ball and that man was O’Connell. Wales are deliberately slowing the ball down when Ireland had possession. Great response from Ireland. Sexton with another kick at goal.
55 Mins Davies scores his second try. What an off-load from North to let Davies to slip in. All from the lineout that Tommy Bowe caused. It was a simple catch he should have made. This game is Wales’ for the taking.
52 Mins It squeezes inside the post for Halfpenny. Ireland need to get hands on the ball and be patient. Wales have too much possession. Bowe has just taken his eye off the ball and now Wales have a line out just outside Ireland’s 22′
52 Mins Another needless penalty for Wales within kicking distance. Lee Halfpenny has taken the ball and lines it up.
49 Mins An absolute howler from Priestland. Nowhere near making the posts. Hook and Halfpenny should step up now and demand to be given a chance to kick. Ireland win the restart.
47 Mins Ireland’s defense looks more cohesive in this half, no panicking but Wales still have possession and going through the phases. Ah penalty to the Welsh within kicking distance. Preistland lines it up. Crowd gone very quiet here.
43 Mins No miss this time from the Leinster out-half. Eight pints ahead now Ireland.
42 Mins Sexton with an early shot at goal near the side of pitch. Already Ireland have up their intensity.
40 MinsSECOND-HALF GETS UNDERWAY. James hook has replaced Alex Cuthbert and Justin Tipuric repalces Warburton as Sexton gets us underway.

Rumours that Warburton has gone off for Wales.

40 Mins HALF-TIME here at the Aviva. Ireland somehow lead going into the break despite Wales absolutely dominating possession and territory. Priestland might rue his missed kicks come full-time but Ireland need to change their tactics and stop being so predicable. Positive notes are we are dominating at the line out. O’Connell stole two consecutive welsh lineouts. Expect O’Gara to replace Sexton after ten minutes to keep Wales in their own half. It’s still all to play for here. Stay tuned for the second half!
37 Mins TRY for Ireland. Rory Best scores the easiest try of his career. Made by Tommy Bowe out of nothing really. Fergus McFadden, Heaslip and O’Brien heavily involved in the build up. Sexton adds the extras. The Welsh players really must be shocked at this.
32 Mins Finally we see O’ Brien and Heaslip get their hands on the ball and make some yards. Scrum to Wales inside their own 22′.
30 Mins Ireland can’t get out of their half here. Think Sean O’Brien has carried the ball for first time in match. We need him, Ferris and Heaslip to take the initiative and carry the ball over the game-line. Ireland’s backs don’t look like getting through Wales’ defense.
28 Mins Sexton misses it. Don’t believe that.
27 Mins The touch judge has a word with the ref about Mike Phillips let tackle on Tommy Bowe. Penalty to Ireland here and Sexton with kick number two, unbelievably Ireland could take the lead her despite Wales’ domination.
25 Mins Wales still have majority of possession. They are getting massive numbers at the breakdown everytime and Ireland are holding on. lets hope their experience shows as they game progresses.
22 Mins O’Connell steals a Wales lineout. More of the same needed of Ireland are to get a foothold in this game, which is incredibly open now – Which suits Wales perfectly.
20mins: An absolute brilliant take from Rob Kearney, from Sexton’s up and under. But Conor Murray is offside. Wales clear their lines.
15mins: You just can’t take your eyes off this game. Wales look like they can score a try form basically anywhere on the pitch. currently dominate possession and Ireland’s defense is been run ragged. Preistland misses a sitter in front of the posts, Ireland on the break.
13mins: TRY for Wales, Johnathan Davies gets the touch down. Going to TMO but surely a try. Wales are running with power and pace, Ireland just can’t deal with them. It’s been coming. Priestland’s effort at the conversion hits the post.
11mins: Wales look the better team so far. Like the World Cup dominating at the breakdown as Ireland look all over the place. They need to settle quickly.
8mins: Early engagement from the Welsh at the scrum, penalty to the home side. Let off for Ireland. George North just ran over Kearney during last section of play. Kind of worrying.
7mins: NO TRY. 5 meter scrum to Wales. Not out of danger yet.
6mins: Well what a few minutes of rugby from Wales. Bradley Davies made the initial break from a lineout as Ireland fell asleep and a number of players almost crossed the line for the Welsh. Desperate defense from Ireland and now we wait on the TMO.
3mins: Sexton gives Ireland an early lead. Could be a high scoring game this afternoon.
2mins: The Leinster out-half can make amends with this shot at goal here. Blistering opening three minutes from Ireland.
2mins: Poor from Sexton. Didn’t make touch when in actual fact he should have gone for goal. Early let off for Wales.
0mins: Rhys Priestland gets the game underway at the Aviva!

Michael D has just made Ronan O’ Gara smile. Not every day you get a wry smile out of ‘ROG’. Now for the national anthems.

Just over 20 minutes to KO and the excitement is building. What are your thoughts on McFadden replacing Earls? Good, bad? George Hook reckons we have two No. 12′s in the centre now and Ireland have no plan ‘B’. Anyone agree?

Ireland Team:
(15-9)R Kearney, T Bowe, F McFadden,G D’Arcy, A Trimble, J Sexton,C Murray;
(1-8) C Healy, R Best, M Ross, D.O’Callaghan, P O’Connell (c), S Ferris, S O’Brien, J Heaslip

Replacements.
16 – Sean Cronin
17 – Tom Court
18 – Donnacha Ryan
19 – Peter O’Mahony
20 – Eoin Reddan
21 – Ronan O’Gara
22 – Dave Kearney

Wales:
(15-9)Leigh Halfpenny; Alex Cuthbert, Jonathan Davies, Jamie Roberts, George North; Rhys Priestland, Michael Phillips;
(1-8)Rhys Gill, Huw Bennett, Adam Jones, Bradley Davies, Ian Evans, Ryan Jones, Sam Warburton (C), Toby Faletau.

Replacements: Ken Owens, Paul James, Andy Powell, Justin Tipuric, Lloyd Williams, James Hook, Scott Williams

Click here for the latest odds on winning the Six Nations from Betfair

Sunday 5 February

Allianz FL Division 1
Armagh 0-10 1-07 Cork, Morgan Athletic Ground FT

Allianz FL Division 2
Derry 1-11 1-15 Galway, Celtic Park FT
Louth 0-12 1-06 Westmeath, Haggardstown FT

Allianz FL Division 3
Longford 2-15 0-08 Offaly, Pearse Park FT
Wexford 4-09 1-13 Cavan, Wexford Park FT
Roscommon 1-12 0-12 Tipperary, Kiltoom FT

Allianz FL Division 4
Clare 1-17 0-12 Waterford, Cusack Park FT
Kilkenny 1-01 3-25 Wicklow, Freshford FT
Leitrim 0-09 1-09 Limerick, Carrick-on-Shannon FT
London OFF Fermanagh, Ruislip, 1pm

Walsh Cup SH semi-finals
Kilkenny 1-23 1-16 Westmeath, Castlecomer FT
Galway 2-19 0-11 Laois, Ballinasloe FT

Walsh Cup SH Shield final
Offaly 0-22 1-14 DIT, Tullamore AET

Waterford Crystal Cup SH quarter-final
Waterford 3-19 1-19 UCC, WIT FT

Kehoe Cup SH semi-final
Meath 1-16 5-16 St. Pats Drumcondra, Pairc Tailteann FT

Harty Cup
Nenagh 1-12 2-09 Ardscoil Ris FT

Bord Gáis Energy Ladies Gaelic National League
Division 1
Donegal v Cork, Ballyshannon, 12.30pm, (J Niland)
Monaghan v Laois, Tyholland, 2.00pm, (E O’Hare)
Kildare 0-01 3-08 Dublin, Ballykelly, 2.00pm, (P Kehoe)
Meath v Tyrone, Ashbourne, 2.00pm, (M Henry)
Division 2
Tipperary v Kerry, Cahir, 2.00pm, (J Flood)
Clare v Waterford, Doonbeg, 2.00pm, (M Duffy)
Galway v Mayo, Tuam Stadium, 2.00pm (D McEnery)
Fermanagh v Cavan, Kinawley, 2.00pm, (S McIntyre)
Division 3
Armagh v Sligo, Crossmaglen, 2.00pm, (P Swift)
Wexford 3-09 2-14 Wicklow, Bellefield FT
Roscommon v Westmeath, Strokestown, 2.00pm, (Y Duffy)
Leitrim v Down, Ballinamore, 2.00pm (S Regan)
Division 4
Offaly v Limerick, Mucklagh, 2.00pm, (G McMahon)
Longford v Louth, Emmett Park, 2.00pm, (P Fahy)

In the stand-out fixture of this World Series of Boxing (WSB) weekend,
Astana Arlans delight their home supporters with a hard-fought win
against Group A leaders the Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder.

The Venky’s Mumbai Fighters move into quarter-final contention with
quality victory over Bangkok Elephants as Dynamo Moscow beat the Los
Angeles Matadors in Russia.

Istanbul Bosphorus outclass the visiting Leipzig Leopards and Baku
Fires power past Paris United as Germakhanov books his place for the
WSB Individual Championships in May.

You can relive all the matches on www.worldseriesboxingtv.com

Match of the week:

It was a real test of character for the Astana Arlans at the packed
Almaty Sports Palace on Friday evening as the top ranked team in Group
A the Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder came to town for a clash of epic
proportions. 20-year-old Khabibulla Ismail-Akhunov worked hard but was
ultimately undone by the experienced Ukrainian southpaw Vitaliy Volkov
as Milano drew first blood to go ahead in the tie. Merey Akshalov who
started off slowly quickly found his range in the Lightweight contest
to outbox Miklos Varga and draw the match level.

Sergiy Derevyanchenko once again proved he is almost in a class of
his own with the valiant Astana’s Kanat Slam quickly running out of
ideas to break him down in their Middleweight match-up as the Italian
outfit went ahead for the second time in the match. Benchabla’s
tactical master class then frustrated Frenchman Ludovic Groguhé as the
scores were once again level with all eyes then turned to the
Heavyweight contest that would decide the outcome of this nail-biter.

Debutant Milano Cameroonian Romarick Ngoula Tangoum started off on the
front foot and his exuberant style seemed to be leaving him vulnerable
to Ruslan Myrsatayev’s counter-attacks. With both fighters throwing
lots of punches, this was anyone’s fight and the crowd was sensing the
drama as they cheered each fist that landed. In the fourth round,
Myrsatayev connected with a solid overhead right that landed hard on
Ngoula temple and form there, there was no way back. The TKO handed
Astana Arlans a well earned 3:2 victory, moving them level on points
with the Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder team in Group A.

Fight of the week:

Billed as Chapter III in this enthralling saga, Astana’s Benchabla vs.
Milano’s Groguhé did not disappoint, with this fight on a real knife
edge throughout five excellent rounds of boxing action. The
intelligent Algerian Benchabla was tactically spot-on in this contest,
moving well and ensuring he kept Frenchman Groguhé at arm’s length
with some clever jabs. With Benchabla comfortable in the knowledge he
had won the first three rounds, Groguhé went on the rampage to try and
claw his way back into the fight. Although the Milano Light
Heavyweight orthodox fighter had his opponent in quite some trouble
late on, Benchabla combination punching was too good as he stuck to
his clever game plan to triumph.

Rest of the action:

Baku Fires remain simply unstoppable as Paris United’s resistance was
overcome in this Group B match. The Azeri pace-setters’ 3:2 victory
ensured they remain unbeaten this season. This was a bad-tempered
affair with seemingly a lot of bad blood left in between the two
teams, ever since Pairs United triumphed in last season’s semi-finals.

The contest looked like boiling over several times with both sets of
boxers going at it hard from the off. Baku Fires Gairbek Germakhanov
consolidated his place as the top ranked Bantamweight, to look almost
certain to fight at the WSB Individual Championships in May, after
defeating Samir Brahimi in the evening’s opening contest. 25-year-old
Abdelkader Chadi then drew Paris United level at 1-1 with a quality
display versus Madadi Nagzibekov.

Michel Tavares saw his hopes of reaching the Individual Finals dented
after succumbing to defeat against Heybulla Mursalov as Baku Fires
went 2-1 up in on the night. Ramazan Magomedau made it four wins out
of four this season for himself as he out-boxed Paris United’s
Croatian Hrvoje Sep to give the home team the overall victory.

Filip Hrgovic then reduced the deficit as he dominated his
Heavyweight rival Abdulkadir Abdullayev, but the night belonged to the
Baku Fires once again. Watch this match again LIVE on WSB TV

Dynamo Moscow were ruthless in the Russian capital as Bantamweight
Anvar Yunusov and rising Middleweight star Aleksandr Ivanov set the
tone to overawe the visiting Los Angeles Matadors.

This comprehensive victory for the home team sees them draw level on
points with Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder and Astana Arlans in Group
A, who they will each now face in the remaining two fixtures of the
regular season. The next fortnight will be a defining one in the race
to top this tightly contested Group.

The Venky’s Mumbai Fighters moved up to fourth place in Group B with a
convincing 4:1 victory over the Bangkok Elephants. Middleweight
Israeli Konstantin Snigour looked class as he gave the Mumbai team an
early lead at the T-Box Mobile Arena at the Inorbit Mall.

Leanid Charnabayeu came out on top in the Light Heavyweight contest to
earn himself a first victory this season and give the Indian Franchise
a 2-0 lead in the tie. Bantamweight Satjapron Jumroensan then clawed
one back for the visiting Bangkok Elephants as he convincingly
outpointed Mirbek Sherov.

Charly Suarez made sure of the win as he triumphed in the Lightweight
contest and Uaine Fa confirmed his growing reputation with a
sensational demonstration of power against Anatolii Antoniuk in the
Heavyweight contest.

Leipzig Leopards continue to struggle away from home as they taste
defeat once again, this time to the well-organised Istanbul Bosphorus.
The unpredictability of these two teams made it a very intriguing
contest; however no one could have predicted that the Turkish team
would have been so dominant on the night.

Veteran Huseyin Dundar was too good for Edgar Walth in the opening
Bantamweight fight before Bunyamin Aydin rocked Rashid Kassem in the
fourth round on his way to make it 2-0 for the Istanbul Bosphorus.

Jaba Khositashvili then showcased his skills to win against Patrick
Thomas Wojcicki and give the home team an unassailable lead for the
overall victory. Bahram Muzaffer surprisingly lost to Enrico Kölling
in the Light Heavyweight fight before Belarusian southpaw Viktar Zuyev
overwhelmed Alexander Overnov to give the Istanbul Bosphorus a
comprehensive 4:1 victory in Group B.

Boxer of the week:

Filipino newcomer Charly Suarez announced his arrival to the WSB
competition in explosive style as the 23-year-old orthodox Venky’s
Mumbai Fighters’ Lightweight spectacularly knocked-out his opponent.
Suarez had looked hungry from the first bell, hounding down his taller
rival throughout and when he unleashed a combination straight left to
the chin and a hard right hook to the face midway through round two,
Egkachai Prommaka hit the canvas and never recovered. Suarez was
punching the air in delight and that performance had the crowds in
raptures. He will be one to watch.

The Mexico City Guerreros vs. Beijing Dragons tie was postponed due to
problems with the issuing of visas for the visiting team. A new date
for the match will be announced shortly.

Keep up to date with the latest news and headlines on WSB’s website
www.worldseriesboxing.com

It was McNulty who set the early pace in his Subaru winning the first spectator stage at Dyke Road in Galway city. From there McNulty increased his lead over the first three stages to lead by 22.3 seconds from Eugene Donnelly in his Mini WRC with Gass in third.

With Stage 4 cancelled McNulty continued to set the pace on Stage 5 extending his lead to 30 seconds from Donnelly and 49 seconds from Gass. However is was Stage 6 that changed the event as McNulty hit two bales damaging his suspension and it was from here that the Meath man began to lose pace.

Gass and Donnelly continued to cut McNulty’s lead over stages 7 and 8 before Gass took the lead outright on Stage 9 to lead by 9.2 seconds from McNulty and Donnelly in third, 17 seconds back. The Armagh native held out on the final stage to win by just over a second from Donnelly and McNulty in third.

This win puts Gass on top of the Irish Tarmac Leaderboard after this first round of championship with the next event being the Circuit of Ireland rally in across the Easter weekend April.

In the Nivea Women’s SuperLeague, DCU Mercy returned to winning ways away to Singleton’s Super Valu Brunell, while Team Montenotte Cork, 11890 Killester and Waterford Wildcats all claimed wins on Saturday.

DCU Saints remain nine points clear at the top of the Northern Conference after their 82-63 win over Belfast Star.

The Saints appeared in complete control at the break, leading by 20, but their Head Coach David Donnelly was unhappy with the way his side let their standards slip in the third quarter.

“We made hard work out of it,” said Donnelly. “We had a poor third quarter and they really pressurized us. I feel we can play much better. They were missing Paul Cummins so that weakened them.

“We have a few difficult away games on the horizon but it’s crucial we get top spot and have that home advantage in the Play-Off’s.”

The Saints’ Dublin rivals 11890 Killester made light work of their clash with UCD Marian, winning 93-54 to maintain the pressure at the top of the Northern Conference.

The win gave Head Coach Darren O’Neill a welcome boost after a disappointing couple of weeks, which saw them dumped out of the National Cup at the semi final stage and also suffer a league defeat to Moycullen.

“It was very important to get those wins particularly after those defeats,” said O’Neill. “It was also important to get the points considering the likes of Pete Madsen are out through injury. The win assures us of second and we can now push for that top spot.”

Bord Gais Neptune’s hopes of getting home advantage in the play-off’s remain intact after their 62-53 win at home to Moycullen.

Neptune’s American Ron Thompson was once again to the fore, scoring 25 points, while Phil Taylor and Ger Noonan also impressed. Moycullen were once again without their American Luke Enos.

“It was a tough win but we are delighted to get it,” said Neptune Head Coach Mark Scannell. They had no American, which didn’t help their cause but I am delighted with our defensive effort, restricting them to just 53 points, which is pleasing.

“We have five games left and the focus is on getting that place in the semi finals,” he added. “We managed to give time to 11 out of the 12 players, which is also encouraging.”

DCU Mercy put their National Cup disappointment behind them to record a 72-64 win away to Singleton’s Super Valu Brunell in the Nivea Women’s SuperLeague.

It’s a big win for Mercy, particularly coming just two days after their dreams of a three in a row cup triumph came to an end.

“We weren’t at full tilt, it was difficult to play so soon after Friday,” said Mercy Head Coach Mark Ingle. “We will move on, we have two months to get ready for the Play-Off’s now. They played well, shot the ball well but I have to praise my players for responding with a win.”

Team Montenotte Cork outlined their intentions for the remainder of the season with a 20 point win over Oblate Dynamos.

Key players, Grainne Dwyer, Claire Rockall and Niamh Dwyer were pivotal in the win as the Cork giants maintained the pressure on the newly crowned National Cup champions UL.

“It is a tough place to go but I felt we kept our discipline and put in a really professional display,” said Montenotte Head Coach Cormac O’Donoghue. “It was very important we got the win particularly with games coming up against Killester and DCU Mercy.

“UL’s excellent recent display in the cup final shows how difficult it will be but we will keep pushing and hopefully we will have a good end to the season.”

11890 Killester had 11 points to spare over Meteors (55-44) as they kept up their hopes of finishing in the play off positions.

Meteors have been showing good form in recent weeks but came unstuck against their capital rivals, who continue to be without the massively influential Ashling Sullivan.

“It was a big win for us as I was curious how we would react to the loss of Ashling Sullivan,” said Killester Head Coach Mark Grennell. “The girls were excellent at times. We relied heavily on our defence and it did not disappoint. It was a good all round team performance.”

Waterford Wildcats bounced back from their recent league hammering to DCU Mercy to claim a slender 56-51 win away to Liffey Celtics.

Niamh Mullaly secured 21 points in the win but the Wildcats were made to work for the three points by a gutsy Celtics.

ENDS

Basketball Ireland Weekly Results

Friday February 3rd 2012

Men’s SuperLeague National Cup Final
UL Eagles 72 (34)(R Taylor 29, N Campbell 12, M Hall 9) UCC Demons 65 (39)(S Atupem 16, S Coughlan 11, K Hosford 9)

Women’s SuperLeague National Cup Final
DCU Mercy 27 (13)(L Peat 10, S Maguire 6, S Woods 4) UL 64 (23)(M Fahy 16, R Vanderwal 15, R Clancy 10)

Saturday February 4th 2012

Nivea for Men’s SuperLeague
Bord Gáis Neptune 62 (39)(R Thompson 25, P Taylor 15, G Noonan 10) Moycullen 53 (31)(C Nihill 21, P O’Brien 19, O Maxwell 4)

11890 Killester 93 (54)(J Turner 19 O Chubb 13 R Clarke 12) UCD Marian 54 (24)(K Foley 17 D James 11 C Meany 7)

Belfast Star 63 (25)(J Johnson 24, S Dawson 16, S Summersgill10) DCU Saints 82 (45)(K Anderson 27, M Trimmer 20, M Provisors 12)

Nivea Women’s SuperLeague
11890 Killester 55 (23)(L Gray 13, E Stone 12, M Clarke 5, C Flynn 5) Meteors 44 (16)(J Daly 12, R Fitzgerald 9, L Delaney 6)

Liffey Celtics 51 (18)(A Pupin 16, A O’Connor 13, K Mealey 9)Waterford Wildcats 56 (25)(N Mullally 21, E Kinnington 10, G Maher 9)

Oblate Dynamos 60(25)(L Scully 21, T Harrison 12, T Solan 7) TM Cork 80(44)(G Dwyer 22, C Rockall 17, N Dwyer 14)

Basketball Ireland Men’s Division One
Team Left Bank Kilkenny 73 (39)(J O’Keeffe 24, J Butler 19, P Morrissey 15) Team Garvey’s St Mary’s 74 (34)(S Marcinkevicius 8, D Wall 25, A Fitzgerald 23)

Team Loftus Recycling Ballina 50 (24)(L McHale 19, R O’Malley 12, K McHale 5) Maree 77 (33)(L Conroy 15, K Hansberry 14, S Zublinskas 13)

Basketball Ireland Women’s Division One
Team Tom McCarthy’s St.Mary’s 52 (23)(M Leane 14, R O’Loughlin 10, L O’Connor 9) Tralee Imperials 54 (23)(S Mackessy 15, E Sherwood 15, E Gallagher 9)

Sunday February 5th 2012

Nivea Women’s SuperLeague
Singleton’s SuperValu Brunell 64 (27)(M O’Leary 25, D O’Leary 19, A Kearney 12) DCU Mercy 72 (43)(S O’Connor 29, S Woods 12, L Peat 10)

Basketball Ireland Men’s Division One
Blue Demons 78 (43)(N Hartigan 20, S McCarthy 16, T O Halloran 14) MOF Chemists Titans 83 (36)(P Peldgius 16, P Freeman 16, W Archambur 13)

Neptune 67 (44)(G Quinlan 13, J O’Donoghue 12, I Skeyres 10) Team Meadowlands St. Brendan’s 65 (31)(F O’Sullivan 23, L O’Sullivan 12, L O’Dowd 6)

Ballon 88 (44)(M Cepliauskas 15, I Aim 14, A Dimiciukas 13) Portlaoise 58 (20)(D Debosz 22, J Marchal 8, D Kearney 6)

Basketball Ireland Women’s Division One
Brittons Insurance Donegal Town V Scruffys St. Paul’s Killarney, Abbey Vocational School, 13:00;

UL 47 (25)(A McGuire 9, K Murphy 8, N Power 6) Meteors 81 (43)(L Caffola 18, K McDaid 16, C Healy 13)

O’ Carroll, who represented his county in all three GAA codes in 2011 secured his first Munster 40×20 victory at senior level without dropping a game as he ousted Cork’s Colm Jordan 21-18, 21-9 in the quarters before accounting for Kerry’s Dominic Lynch 21-13, 21-14. The deciding match up brought O’Carroll together with Ireland’s most promising junior talent, Mallow’s Killian Carroll.

The Cork star who recently claimed his third USHA Junior National gong in Tucson in December had also reached the final of the third annual John Gaffney senior event in mid-January. That didn’t deter the Cappagh club man whose intense winter training programme paid dividends at the conclusion of his Munster crusade.

The Cork teenager dominated the early proceedings and jumped into a 7-1 lead but O’Carroll then took 20 of the next 29 points to win the opening game 21-16. After the restart, the Limerick man continued to utilise his power and accurate offensive attack to good effect which ensured his first Munster 40×20 senior championship, winning game two 21-10.

“In the final I was up against Killian Carroll of Cork and this guy is definitely one to watch out for in the future. He’s a great athlete and a brilliant player for his age as has been proven from his recent results in the states at the US Juniors, the Ballaghaderreen tournament and last weekend’s Munster Championship,” said O’Carroll.

“In the first game I started very slow and was 7-1 down. I knew I just had to stay in touch at the start because I knew as the game went on that my power and the fitness from the winter training with the Limerick Senior Footballers would kick in. I won a tough first game 21-16 and in the second game I got more into my rhythm and got my serving going and that along with my power and kill shots won out 21-10.”

O’Carroll tasted senior glory in 2011 in the senior hardball code when he reached the singles and doubles finals but faltered to the hands of Westmeath’s Robbie McCarthy and Dublin respectively. He is relishing the upcoming 40×20 senior series but believes that no one will stop Cavan’s Paul Brady from bagging his eighth successive senior GAA Handball crown.

“I was over the moon when the final ended and especially after last year’s disappointment I wanted to come back better this year and win my 1st senior singles title. I have won the Munster senior doubles this past two years and it was nice to finally get that single’s accolade.”

“This is my first senior Munster title and hopefully it’s not the last. It’s probably been my main aim since I grew up watching the likes of Tony Healy, John Herlihy and Dominick Lynch competing for the title. It’s really nice because my coach Donal Hayes has been coaching me from day one and to see the pride he had in me winning was special. Hopefully it won’t be too long before I win my 1st All-Ireland singles title.”

“Looking forward I feel confident heading into the All-Ireland Championship and I think anyone outside of Paul Brady is beatable on the day and there seems to be no stopping that man yet. I suppose there are so many good players in the championship at the moment. It looks to be more and more exciting each year and harder and harder to win any game. The main achievement outside of the Munster Singles title was the ranking points on offer so hopefully I may get a kinder draw now and hopefully give this year’s championship a good rattle.”

All four senior provincial championships are very competitive at present with Munster now looking like one of the most hotly contested. In recent seasons, it was dominated by the former four times Irish senior champion, Cork’s Tony Healy but that has changed dramatically with an impressive array of talented young players now in the mix.

“There’s no such thing as an easy game in Munster any more. It’s probably one of the youngest provinces as well and I think if you asked anyone at the start of the championship who would win it, I think everyone would have picked someone different. Some of the country’s top young players are in Munster such as CJ Fitzpatrick, Diarmuid Nash, Killian Carroll and Fergal Collins but you then have guys such as Dominick Lynch, Ger Coonan, Colm Jordan and Brendan Fleming who are very difficult opponents on any given day. It’s exciting times in Munster and hopefully in the next few years the next senior champion will hail from probably the strongest and most keenly contested province.”

In Ulster last weekend, Cavan’s Brady controlled his final opponent, Antrim’s Ricky McCann 21-7, 21-6. This was the current world champion’s first outing in singles competitive action since his final win last April.

In Connaught, Mayo’s Joe McCann took the honours with victories over Roscommon’s Chris Doolin and Galway’s Martin Mulkerrins before beating fellow Ballaghaderreen club man, Stephen Cooney in the final 21-3, 21-15.
In Leinster, the 2011 senior softball champion, Westmeath’s Robbie McCarthy is favourite to prevail and he is recognised as the key challenger to Brady’s throne in the coming months.

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic in Atlanta last weekend, Armagh’s Charlie Shanks, now based in New York, continued his rise in the USA standings after reaching the semi-final with wins over Emmett Peixoto (Boston, MA) and nine times USA Open winner, David Chapman (Weldon Spring, MO). The 2010 and 2011 40×20 senior runner up, then fell short against California’s Naty Alvarado in the last four but Shanks is happy with his progress since his move to the States last September.

“I’m currently ranked 6th and I’m gradually moving up the seeding with the more events I attend. I had good wins over Peixoto and Chapman, but then I had to play Alvarado who had a handy enough run for him. My arms were too sore and he was too fresh for me on the day. That’s the first time I’ve beat those two guys at this level, so it was a good weekend on that front. I’m sitting 4th in the race for eight standings with two events left before the showdown in Seattle in May. I’m starting to hit some form again so I’m looking forward to Salt Lake City in two weeks.”

He’s also spoken about the rumours linking him with two clubs and about the recent hot topic of violence in the GAA.

Will the GAA turn professional?
I think it’s inevitable really, people talk about professionalism being unsustainable. I can’t see it being any less sustainable than amateurism at the moment, in terms of the difficulties that exist at the minute trying to sustain an amateur game, it’s obviously proving difficult. Money is changing hands and the levels players are asked to go to, if they feel that the preparation isn’t right to get the best out of themselves, we’ve had strikes and walkouts and I think that day (when players get paid) will come.
Rumours that Paul was transferring to Antrim club St Gall’s?
No. I got a newspaper in my post, from a newspaper up the north with a picture of me on the front of it and an absolutely fabricated story that I was going up to do some course up in Jordanstown and I was joining St Gall’s. It was completely untrue.
And the rumours of a move to a Dublin club?

No, again similar story. I was living in Dublin. That caused me annoyance, completely untrue, no foundation yet it’s on the front page of a newspaper. I happened to meet the journalist who wrote it and I asked him about it and he had his sources but there’s never anything you can do.

On violence in the GAA:
I had an experience when I was a young fella. A guy came in from the sideline and gave me a punch in a club game. I was around 16 or 17, playing a senior game.
It’s difficult to differentiate between violence in the GAA and violence anywhere else. It’s a problem outside of sport as well. I would agree that there’s more respect and more tolerance in the game of rugby that there is in GAA, be it towards referees or towards opponents. It’s something I admire a lot about rugby but referees in rugby are more communicative and that’s a huge factor, that’s a reason for tolerance between players and the referee.
Involvement from the coaching staff on the sideline:

It’s very apparent in GAA. I certainly see quite a bit of it. I see it in club situations more so, not as much with inter-county. You’d be left shaking your head at times, the level of indiscipline on the sidelines particularly. When it happens on the sideline it feeds into the field of play.
If I see our sideline, with my club, getting on the case of referees or opponents or the opposition dugout, it annoys me.
Would he ever tackle the coaches about it?
I have done, yeah. It does affect players, it doesn’t happen very often at my club. It’s a matter of responsibility but it’s a tough one to address.

iTalkSport runs every Sunday 11:30am – 1pm on Setanta. It’s presented by Eoin McDevitt and Paul Kimmage. Paul Galvin will a guest again next Sunday, Feb. 12th.