Heineken Champions Cup Round of 16 Fixtures

The Heineken Champions Cup round of 16 games have been confirmed following this weekend’s action in Europe’s premier rugby tournament.

With Ulster, Leinster and Munster all having home advantage in the second leg, they will travel away on the weekend of 8, 9, 10 April.

Ulster visit Toulouse, Leinster have the short journey to Connacht, while Munster travel to Exeter Chiefs.

In all-French clashes Stade Francais will host Racing 92 while Union Bordeaux-Begles will entertain Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle.

Sale Sharks are at home to Bristol Bears in an all-English match, while French sides Montpellier and Clermont Auverge will host English teams Harlequins and Leicester Tigers respectively.

The second leg games will be played on the weekend of 15, 16, 17 April.

Exact dates and kick-off times will be confirmed in the coming days.

HEINEKEN CHAMPIONS CUP
Round of 16 first leg – 8/9/10 April
Stade Francais v Racing 92
Toulouse v Ulster
Union Bordeaux-Begles v La Rochelle
Connacht v Leinster
Sale Sharks v Bristol Bears
Exeter Chiefs v Munster
Montpellier v Harlequins
Clermont Auvergne v Leicester Tigers

Round of 16 second leg – 15/16/17 April
Racing 92 v Stade Francais
Ulster v Toulouse
La Rochelle v Union Bordeaux-Begles
Leinster v Connacht
Bristol Bears v Sale Sharks
Munster v Exeter Chiefs
Harlequins v Montpellier
Leicester Tigers v Clermont Auvergne

Two tries for Zebo as Munster Rugby claim 45-7 Champions Cup win over Wasps

Munster v Wasps — Simon Zebo scored two tries in Munster's Champions Cup win over Wasps. Credit: @Munsterrugby.

Munster Rugby scored a bonus-point 45-7 win over Wasps at Thomond Park on Sunday afternoon, with Johann van Graan’s side set to play Exeter Chiefs in a two-leg tie in the knock-out stages of the Heineken Champions Cup.

Munster, who like the other Irish provinces had already qualified for the business end of the competition prior to today’s game, produced a dominant performance against the English Premiership Rugby side.

Murray opens the scoring

Conor Murray opened the scoring in usual circumstances. With Munster dominant in possession in the opening stages of the game, Wasps knocked the ball back to Murray when attempting to prevent Tadhg Beirne receiving possession. With many of the visitors believing Beirne had knocked the ball on, some stopped playing as Murray touched down.

The TMO was called into action, with the referee deciding, Beirne hadn’t knocked on when he consulted his officials and viewed the TV footage. Ben Healy added the extras to give the hosts a 7-0 lead within the first 10 minutes of the fixture.

With constant pressure from Munster, Wasps could not withstand the Munster effort and soon conceded a penalty. Healy opted to kick for the posts to extend his team’s advantage to 10-0.

Zebo now Munster’s highest try-scorer in Champions Cup

A deftly chipped through ball from Healy saw Simon Zebo, who was named in the starting team in place of Keith Earls, collect the ball and fight to touch down for his side’s second five-pointer of the afternoon, the first of two on the day for the former Racing 92 man.

The score saw the Corkman join Brian O’Driscoll as the third-highest try-scorer in Heineken Champions Cup history, and surpass the late Anthony Foley as Munster’s top try-scorer in the competition with 24 – it would become 25 later in the day. Ben Healy maintained his 100% record kicking for the posts by converting for 17-0 with less than 20 minutes on the clock.

ZEBO! ZEBO! ZEBO! 😄

Simon Zebo becomes @Munsterrugby‘s top European try scorer, surpassing the late great Axel Foley 🙏

Look at what it means! 🙌#HeinekenChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/Ce5cw9soLe

— Rugby on BT Sport (@btsportrugby) January 23, 2022

Dan Robson finally got the Premiership club on the scoreboard when touching down right of the Munster posts in the 26th minute. With Charlie Atkinson adding the conversion, Wasps’ delight was short-lived as Munster immediately headed downfield.

O’Donoghue try on 150th appearance in red

With Wasps scrambling to get back into position, Gavin Coombes burst through the Premiership Rugby side’s defensive effort, before Jack O’Donoghue, on his 150th appearance in red, scored his side’s third try of the afternoon. The reliable Healy kicked the two points for a 24-7 lead with only 30 minutes played.

Gavin Coombes what a carry! 😳😅

Charlie Atkinson bounces off Coombs who blasts his way past the Wasps defence, setting it nicely for Jack O’Donoghue to finish for @Munsterrugby #HeinekenChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/olJv9DF3J0

— Rugby on BT Sport (@btsportrugby) January 23, 2022

Gavin Coombes paid the price for constant Munster infringements when yellow-carded minutes before half-time. With Wasps nestled on the Munster line, the home side were penalised a number of times before Coombes was sent to the bin.

With Johann van Graan’s men missing the powerful Coombes, Wasps would have expected to cross the line, but incredible defensive work from the men in red saw them hold out with the referee eventually awarding them a penalty, which relieved the pressure.

A neck injury for Wasps’ Thomas Young saw the player treated on the field with the game stopped for 10 minutes, before being stretchered off to respectful applause from the crowd. The back-row was replaced by Ben Morris.

Half-time: Munster Rugby 24 Wasps Rugby 7

Loughman secures bonus-point try

Prop Jeremy Loughman, named in the starting team earlier in the day when Dave Kilcoyne was sick, scored his first Champions Cup try within the opening minute of the second half.

Munster, who had a penalty kick, opted for the line-out and despite the absence of Coombes, who was still in the sin-bin, the men in red powerfully drove for the try-scoring line, before Loughman crashed over.

With the bonus-point try now secured, Ben Healy added another two points to the score board, which read 31-7 in favour of Munster, with 46 minutes on the stadium game clock.

As both sides emptied their benches, an action that took the continuity and flow out of the game, it didn’t prevent Munster striking for two further tries late in the game.

Simon Zebo scored a second try to the cheers of the Munster faithful, before Rory Scannell claimed a five-pointer with the clock in red. Both scores were converted by Jack Crowley, leaving Johann van Graan’s side 45-7 victors.

Today’s game gave more valuable Champions Cup experience to some of Munster’s younger players, while veteran of 150 appearances in red, Jack O’Donoghue was named Heineken Star of the Match. The Waterford man, at 27 years of age, becomes the youngest Munster player to reach the 150 milestone.

Final score: Munster Rugby 45 Wasps Rugby 7

Munster Rugby:

15. Mike Haley, 14. Andrew Conway, 13. Chris Farrell, 12. Rory Scannell, 11. Simon Zebo, 10. Ben Healy, 9. Conor Murray.

1. Jeremy Loughman, 2. Diarmuid Barron, 3. Stephen Archer, 4. Jean Kleyn, 5. Tadhg Beirne, 6. Peter O’Mahony (captain), 7. Jack O’Donoghue, 8. Gavin Coombes.

Munster Replacements:

16. Scott Buckley, 17. John Wycherley, 18. John Ryan, 19. Fineen Wycherley, 20. John Hodnett, 21. Craig Casey, 22. Jack Crowley, 23. Alex Kendellen.

Try: Murray, Zebo (2), O’Donoghue, Loughman, R Scannell

Conversion: Healy 4, Crowley (2)

Pen: Healy

Wasps:

15. Ali Crossdale, 14. Marcus Watson. 13. Paolo Odogwu, 12. Michael Le Bourgeois, 11. Josh Bassett, 10. Charlie Atkinson, 9. Dan Robson.

1. Tom West, 2. Tom Cruse, 3. Elliot Millar-Mills, 4. Elliott Stooke, 5. James Gaskell, 6. Brad Shields (captain), 7. Thomas Young, 8. Nizaam Carr.

Wasps Replacements:

16. Gabriel Oghre, 17, Rodrigo Martinez, 18. Pieter Scholtz, 19. Tim Cardall, 20. Ben Morris, 21. Will Porter, 22. Rob Miller, 23. Sam Spink.

Try: Robson.

Conversion: Atkinson.

Energia Men’s All-Ireland League Round-Up

Garryowen battled past local rivals Young Munster to win 31-24 and end their six-match losing streak in the Energia All-Ireland League.Mike Sherry’s men earned a deserved bonus point at Dooradoyle thanks to two Colm Quilligan tries and one each from Munster scrum half Neil Cronin and Bryan Fitzgerald.Munster Academy out-half Tony Butler pulled the strings for the Light Blues by having a hand in three of the tries and kicking 11 points.Young Munster’s stand-in captain Dan Walsh picked up two tries and Evan Cusack landed a late penalty for a losing bonus point.The D’Arcy twins, Matt and Adrian, both scored tries as Division 1A leaders Clontarf beat Dublin University 23-9 at College Park.James Ryan’s younger brother David scored the decisive try in UCD’s exciting 32-27 defeat of Lansdowne, who had winger Liam O’Sullivan sent-off just before half-time.Former Connacht back Colm de Buitléar’s hat-trick helped Terenure College win 27-23 at Ballynahinch to move up to third place.Munster’s Seán French ran in the first of Cork Constitution’s three tries in a 24-7 derby victory over UCC.

Division 1B

Division 1B pacesetters Old Wesley edged out Banbridge 21-16, aided by tries from captain Iain McGann and Josh Pim.A terrific 27-point first half saw a Neil Faloon-inspired City of Armagh upset Highfield by six points, while Conall Bird’s debut try proved vital in Old Belvedere’s 37-30 win at Navan.Munster’s Jake Flannery converted all six tries – including one from his brother Alan – in Shannon’s 42-24 dismissal of Malone, and St. Mary’s College are up to third after Conor Dean kicked 17 points in their 27-17 victory over Naas.WEEKEND RESULTS:

DIVISION 1A:BALLYNAHINCH 23 TERENURE COLLEGE 27, Ballymacarn ParkScorers: Ballynahinch: Tries: Rory Butler 2; Cons: Greg Hutley 2; Pens: Greg Hutley 3Terenure College: Tries: Colm de Buitléar 3, Craig Adams; Cons: Jake Swaine 2; Pen: Jake SwaineHT: Ballynahinch 9 Terenure College 8BALLYNAHINCH: Conor Rankin; Ronan Patterson, Tagen Strydom, Ryan Wilson, Aaron Cairns; Greg Hutley, Conor McAuley; Nacho Cladera Crespo, Diego Vidal Souza, Kyle McCall, Thomas Donnan, John Donnan, Bradley Luney, Oli Loughead, Callum Irvine.Replacements: David Cooper, John Dickson, Tom Martin, Rory Butler, Chris Gibson, Connor Phillips.TERENURE COLLEGE: Jake Swaine; Sam Coghlan Murray, Colm de Buitléar, Peter Sylvester, Craig Adams; Cathal Marsh, Alan Bennie; Campbell Classon, Levi Vaughan, Andy Keating, Matthew Caffrey, Michael Melia, Harrison Brewer (capt), Conall Boomer, Jordan Coghlan.Replacements: Dewald Barnard, Adam Tuite, Mike Murphy, Adam Melia, James Thornton, Stephen O’Neill.CORK CONSTITUTION 24 UCC 7, Temple HillScorers: Cork Constitution: Tries: SeÁn French, Max Abbott, David Hyland; Cons: Aidan Moynihan 3; Pen: Aidan MoynihanUCC: Try: Jack Kelleher; Con: Cian WhooleyHT: Cork Constitution 10 UCC 0CORK CONSTITUTION: TomÁs Quinlan; JJ O’Neill, Greg Higgins, Niall Kenneally, SeAn French; Aidan Moynihan (capt), Gerry Hurley; Liam O’Connor, Max Abbott, Paddy Casey, Cian Barry, Eoin Quilter, John Forde, Luke Cahill, David Hyland.Replacements: Luke McAuliffe, Shane O’Hanlon, Dylan Murphy, Michael Casey, Gary Bradley, Johnny Murphy.UCC: George Coomber; Louis Bruce, Killian Coghlan, Daniel Squires, Joe O’Leary; Cian Whooley, Andrew O’Mahony; Alessandro Heaney, Tadgh McCarthy, James French, Richard Thompson, Mark Bissessar, Jack Kelleher (capt), Jack O’Sullivan, Jack O’Sullivan.Replacements: Billy Kingston, Corey Hanlon, Peter Hyland, Sam O’Sullivan, Eoin Monahan, Timothy Duggan.DUBLIN UNIVERSITY 9 CLONTARF 23, College ParkScorers: Dublin University: Pens: Aran Egan 3Clontarf: Tries: Matt D’Arcy, Cian O’Donoghue, Ivan Soroka; Con: David Hawkshaw; Pens: David Hawkshaw 2HT: Dublin University 3 Clontarf 12DUBLIN UNIVERSITY: Rob Russell; Ronan Quinn, Liam Turner, Gavin Jones, Hugh Twomey; Aran Egan, Louis O’Reilly (capt); Giuseppe Coyne, Lee Barron, Thomas Clarkson, Jack Dunne, Joe McCarthy, Harry Sheridan, Alan Francis, Diarmuid McCormack.Replacements: Cole Kelly, Mark Nicholson, Thomas Connelly, Anthony Ryan, Ted Walsh, Louis McDonough.CLONTARF: Conor Kearns; Tadhg Bird, Michael Courtney, Matt D’Arcy (capt), Cian O’Donoghue; David Hawkshaw, Angus Lloyd; Ivan Soroka, Dylan Donnellan, JP Phelan, Alex Soroka, Fionn Gilbert, Martin Moloney, Adrian D’Arcy, Tony Ryan.Replacements: Cathal O’Flynn, Ben Griffin, Darragh Bolger, Andrew Feeney, Aitzol Arenzana-King, Ed Kelly.GARRYOWEN 31 YOUNG MUNSTER 24, DooradoyleScorers: Garryowen: Tries: Colm Quilligan 2, Neil Cronin, Bryan Fitzgerald; Cons: Tony Butler 4; Pen: Tony ButlerYoung Munster: Tries: Dan Walsh 2; Con: Evan Cusack; Pens: Evan Cusack 4HT: Garryowen 10 Young Munster 13GARRYOWEN: Liam Coombes; Colm Quilligan, Bryan Fitzgerald, Jack Delaney, Tommy O’Hora; Tony Butler, Neil Cronin; Mark Donnelly, Dylan Murphy, Jack Mullany, Tim Ferguson, Kevin Seymour (capt), Roy Whelan, Jack Daly, SeÁn Rennison.Replacements: Kieran McCarthy, James Kendrick, Dan Feasey, Alan Fitzgerald, Evan Maher, Dave McCarthy.YOUNG MUNSTER: Patrick Campbell; Conor Hayes, Pa Ryan, Dan Goggin, Jack Harrington; Evan Cusack, Adam Maher; David Begley, Aaron Hennessy, Conor Bartley, Tom Goggin, SeÁn Rigney, Conor Moloney, John Foley, Dan Walsh (capt).Replacements: Mark O’Mara, Colm Skehan, Eoin O’Connor, Bailey Faloon, Jack Lyons, Evan O’Gorman.UCD 32 LANSDOWNE 27, UCD BowlScorers: UCD: Tries: Paddy Patterson 2, Bobby Sheehan, David Ryan; Cons: James Tarrant 3; Pens: James Tarrant 2Lansdowne: Tries: Peter Sullivan, Dan Murphy, Ruairi Clarke; Cons: Charlie Tector 3; Pens: Charlie Tector 2HT: UCD 17 Lansdowne 7UCD: Dylan O’Grady; David Ryan, Ben Brownlee, Tommy O’Brien, Jack Ringrose (capt); James Tarrant, Paddy Patterson; Rory Mulvihill, Bobby Sheehan, Evin Coyle, Jonathan Fish, Mark Morrissey, SeÁn O’Brien, Scott Penny, James Culhane.Replacements: Charlie O’Carroll, Chris Hennessy, Robert Byrne, Gerard Hill, Richie Fahy, Tim Corkery.LANSDOWNE: Stephen Madigan; Liam O’Sullivan, Andy Marks, Corey Reid, Peter Sullivan; Charlie Tector, Jack Matthews; Ben Popplewell, Luke Thompson, Conan Dunne, Dan Murphy, Jack Dwan, Clive Ross, Jack O’Sullivan (capt), Mark Boyle.Replacements: Jamie Kavanagh, Temi Lasisi, Ruairi Clarke, James Kenny, Paul Kiernan, James Reynolds.DIVISION 1B:BANBRIDGE 16 OLD WESLEY 21, Rifle ParkScorers: Banbridge: Try: Penalty try; Con: Pen try con; Pens: Adam Doherty 3Old Wesley: Tries: Iain McGann, Josh Pim; Con: Ian Cassidy; Pens: Ian Cassidy 3HT: Banbridge 10 Old Wesley 13BANBRIDGE: Adam Doherty; Conor Field, Andrew Morrison, Joe Finnegan, Andrew Denver; Harry Bird, Neil Kilpatrick; Callum Reid, Jonny Murphy, Stuart Cromie, Brendan McSorley, Matthew Laird, Alex Weir, Peter Cromie (capt), Max Lyttle.Replacements: Timothy Savage, Josh Chambers, Martin Vorster, Ryan Hughes, Aaron Kennedy, Dean Hayes.OLD WESLEY: Alex Molloy; Tommy O’Callaghan, Eoin Deegan, James O’Donovan, David Poff; Ian Cassidy, Ben Murphy; Harry Noonan, Ben Burns, Cronan Gleeson, JJ O’Dea, Iain McGann (capt), Alastair Hoban, Josh Pim, Reuben Pim.Replacements: Howard Noonan, Jacob Barrett, Sam Pim, Conor Gaston, Paddy McKenzie, Charlie O’Regan.CITY OF ARMAGH 27 HIGHFIELD 21, Palace GroundsScorers: City of Armagh: Tries: Jack Treanor, Ross Taylor, Matthew Hooks; Cons: Harry Boyd 3; Pens: Harry Boyd 2Highfield: Tries: 2 Penalty tries, Mark Dorgan; Cons: James Taylor, 2 Pen try consHT: City of Armagh 27 Highfield 0CITY OF ARMAGH: Kyle Faloon; Andrew Willis, Tim McNiece (capt), Ross Taylor, Shea O’Brien; Harry Boyd, Gerard Treanor; Peter Lamb, Jack Treanor, Paul Mullen, Josh McKinley, John Glasgow, Nigel Simpson, Ryan O’Neill, Neil Faloon.Replacements: Jonny Morton, Philip Fletcher, James Crummie, James Morton, Chris Colvin, Matthew Hooks.HIGHFIELD: Shane O’Riordan; Ben Murphy, Paddy O’Toole, Mark Dorgan, Paul Stack; James Taylor, Chris Banon (capt); James Rochford, Travis Coomey, Daragh Fitzgerald, Eoin Keating, Fintan O’Sullivan, Dave O’Connell, Ronan O’Sullivan, Miah Cronin.Replacements: Robert Murphy, Callum Mackintosh, Ryan Murphy, Cathal Gallagher, David O’Sullivan, Sam Burns.NAVAN 30 OLD BELVEDERE 37, Balreask OldScorers: Navan: Tries: Ben McEntagart, Evan Dixon, David Clarke; Cons: Mark Farrell 3; Pens: Mark Farrell 3Old Belvedere: Tries: Ryan McMahon, Will McDonald, David Wilkinson, Fionn McWey, Conall Bird; Cons: Justin Leonard 3; Pens: Justin Leonard 2HT: Navan 13 Old Belvedere 22NAVAN: Ben Daly; Paddy Fox, Seán McEntagart, Evan Dixon, Ben McEntagart; Colm O’Reilly, Mark Farrell; Liam Carroll, Jack Nelson, Niall Farrelly, Colm Carpenter, Conor Hand, Shane Faulkner, Conor Farrell (capt), Hardus van Eeden.Replacements: David Clarke, Leigh Jackson, Eoghan Noonan, Conor Ryan, Harry Hester, Keith Kavanagh.OLD BELVEDERE: Colm Hogan; Jack Keating, David Butler, Justin Leonard, Ariel Robles; David Wilkinson, Peter O’Beirne; James Bollard, John McKee, Ryan McMahon, Will McDonald, Connor Owende (capt), Fionn McWey, Calum Dowling, Tom Ryan.Replacements: Joe Horan, Hugh Flood, Dean Moore, Tommy Whittle, Conall Bird, Jamie McAleese.SHANNON 42 MALONE 24, Thomond Park back pitchScorers: Shannon: Tries: Kieran Ryan, Lee Nicholas 2, Killian Dineen, Alan Flannery, Declan Moore; Cons: Jake Flannery 6Malone: Tries: Dave Cave, Aaron Sexton, Daryl Maxwell; Cons: Andy Bryans 3; Pen: Andy BryansHT: Shannon 21 Malone 17SHANNON: Jake Flannery; Aran Hehir, Killian Dineen, Alan Flannery, Josh Costello; John O’Sullivan, Ian Leonard; Kieran Ryan, Jordan Prenderville, Luke Rigney, Ronan Coffey, Jade Kriel, Lee Nicholas (capt), Kelvin Brown, Colm Heffernan.Replacements: Declan Moore, Roman Salanoa, Conor Glynn, Ikem Ugwueru, Ethan Coughlan, Daniel Okeke.MALONE: Aaron Sexton; Andy Bryans, David McMaster, Ben McCaughey, Rory Campbell; Callum Smith, Shane Kelly; Aidan McSwiggan, Claytan Milligan, Ricky Greenwood, Adam McNamee, Stewart McKendrick, James McAlister, Daryl Maxwell, Dave Cave (capt).Replacements: Dan Kerr, Jonathan Caskey, Zach Devine, Thomas Leitch, Nick Andress, Connor Kelly.ST. MARY’S COLLEGE 27 NAAS 17, Templeville RoadScorers: St. Mary’s College: Tries: Craig Kennedy, Myles Carey; Con: Conor Dean; Pens: Conor Dean 5Naas: Tries: Gary Kavanagh, Craig Ronaldson, Jamie Osborne; Con: Peter OsborneHT: St. Mary’s College 12 Naas 5ST. MARY’S COLLEGE: Dave Fanagan; Tim MacMahon, Myles Carey, Mick O’Gara, Craig Kennedy; Conor Dean, Adam McEvoy; Daniel Lyons, Richie Halpin (capt), Mick McCormack, Peter Starrett, Liam Corcoran, David Aspil, Niall Hurley, Ronan Watters.Replacements: Niall McEniff, Padraig Dundon, Daniel Leane, Joe Nolan, Mark Fogarty, Matt Timmons.NAAS: Peter Osborne (capt); Donal Conroy; Jamie Osborne, Craig Ronaldson, Gary Kavanagh; Bryan Croke, Tim Murphy; Jack Barry, John Sutton, Adam Coyle, Paul Monahan, David Benn, Cillian Dempsey, Will O’Brien, Ryan Casey.Replacements: Connor Johnson, Jack Coyle, Phillip Jordan, Patrick Corrigan, Connor Halpenny, Matt Stapleton.DIVISION 2A:Ballymena 42 UL Bohemians 17, Eaton ParkDolphin 24 Cashel 36, Musgrave ParkMU Barnhall 20 Buccaneers 20, ParsonstownOld Crescent 21 Nenagh Ormond 20, Takumi ParkQueen’s University 38 Rainey Old Boys 14, Dub LaneDIVISION 2B:Galway Corinthians 43 Galwegians 15, Corinthian Park (played on Friday)Dungannon 20 Blackrock College 22, Stevenson ParkMalahide 35 Ballina 25, Estuary RoadSligo 19 Greystones 20, Hamilton ParkWanderers 45 Belfast Harlequins 8, Merrion RoadDIVISION 2C:Bangor 24 Sunday’s Well 10, Upritchard ParkBruff 27 Enniscorthy 38, Kilballyowen ParkCity of Derry 14 Skerries 23, Judge’s RoadClonmel 6 Tullamore 15, SpafieldMidleton 14 Omagh Academicals 21, Towns Park

Energia Women’s All-Ireland League Round-Up

Hannah O’Connor’s 11-point kicking haul proved crucial as Blackrock College won 16-13 to end Railway Union’s 10-match unbeaten run in the Energia Women’s All-Ireland League.O’Connor converted Meabh Deely’s 79th-minute try as ‘Rock’s statement win at Park Avenue moved the Top Four leaders a step closer to a place in next month’s final.Good hands off a close-in scrum saw Railway’s Molly Boyne, Ailsa Hughes and Molly Scuffil-McCabe combine to send USA international Tess Feury over for a 17th-minute try.Nikki Caughey had landed an earlier penalty, and after a brilliant O’Connor three-pointer from distance, Railway conjured up a second try for the impressive Feury.She jinked over from the edge of the Blackrock 22 after good work by captain Niamh Byrne at the breakdown and full-back Scuffil-McCabe’s precise pass.O’Connor closed the gap to 13-6 for half-time, and despite Blackrock dominating territory during the third quarter, Railway’s well-organised defence kept them out.A superb break from scrum half Hughes had the hosts hunting down a third try, but Blackrock won the battle of the breakdown and influential replacement Jackie Shiels turned the screw.Shiels followed up on her own kick to win a penalty which O’Connor fired over, making it 13-9, before full-back Deely scampered over for the all-important try, released by passes from Shiels and Aoife Wafer.Captain Chloe Pearse and Enya Breen scored two tries each as UL Bohemians handed Old Belvedere a 41-7 beating to move into second place.UL out-half Nicole Cronin opened the scoring at the UL Arena, throwing a neat dummy and darting over from 12 metres out. Alana McInerney’s weaving break had Belvedere on the back foot before that.Pearse picked from a ruck and rumbled over, quickly adding her second five-pointer with a strong run from the edge of the visitors’ 22.Munster’s Interprovincial title-winning skipper Sarah Quin squeezed over for the bonus point score and a 22-0 interval lead for the Red Robins.Spurred on by Johnny Garth’s half-time words, Belvedere hit back with an early try from hooker Vic Dabanovich O’Mahony, who barged over from a few metres out after Jemma Farrell had tapped a penalty.However, Bohs made sure they bounced back to winning ways with another purple patch. They reeled off three more tries in 10 minutes, some nice footwork taking replacement Clodagh O’Halloran in under posts following Muirne Wall’s quick tap and break.Centre Breen closed out the scoring with a breakaway double, her first try seeing her use a strong fend to accelerate past halfway for an excellent 60-metre run-in. The 22-year-old showed her power and pace to score again, wide on the left.The battle for the Conference trophy looks a three-horse race with Suttonians and Galwegians level at the summit, and Ballincollig just two points behind.Ballincollig won the clash of the promoted clubs, lock Denise Redmond landing seven points from the tee in their 17-14 triumph at Wicklow.Suttonians continued their terrific recent form, building a 22-5 half-time lead at home to Malone. Catherine Martin broke a tackle and sent a well-timed pass out for the flying Molly Fitzgerald to score the opening try from 30 metres out.The same two players spearheaded a pacy break downfield straight from the restart, with Fitzgerald feeding a pass back inside for captain Lauren Farrell McCabe to outpace her opposite number, Shirelle Wilson, and score from Malone’s 10-metre line.A lovely jink and burst of pace took Malone full-back Holly Brannigan through a gap for her sixth try of the campaign, but Sutts wrestled back control to give themselves a 17-point cushion at the break.Lena Kibler crossed from close range before hard-working centre Martin deservedly bagged the bonus point, surging over via an inviting flat pass from out-half Nicole Carroll.With Malone losing number 8 Lauren Maginnes to the sin bin, Healy took centre stage with two strong carries for tries and then a superb solo effort from the visitors’ 10-metre line that showed exactly why she is on the cusp of an Ireland cap.Number 8 Aifric O’Brien drove over from a few metres out to complete a runaway 46-5 victory for Stephen Costelloe’s charges. They have won four of their last five games and host Galwegians next Saturday in a mouth-watering top of the table clash.Winger Rhiann Heery touched down twice during Galwegians’ 27-7 dismissal of Cooke. The Blue Belles built early momentum when Orla Dixon nipped over for her seventh try of the league season.They added two more scores through Dearbhla Canty and Heery, who was released for the left corner, before Cooke scrum half Hannah Downey sidestepped her way over to close the gap to 17-7.Into the second half at Crowley Park, young second row Faith Oviawe notched the bonus point for Jarrad Butler’s side, and they stretched Cooke’s defence for Heery’s second of the day, set up by a well-timed pass from captain Mairéad Coyne.WEEKEND RESULTS:

TOP FOUR – ROUND 2:RAILWAY UNION 13 BLACKROCK COLLEGE 16, Park AvenueScorers: Railway Union: Tries: Tess Feury 2; Pen: Nikki CaugheyBlackrock College: Try: Meabh Deely; Con: Hannah O’Connor; Pens: Hannah O’Connor 3HT: Railway Union 13 Blackrock College 6RAILWAY UNION: Molly Scuffil-McCabe; Tess Feury, Niamh Byrne (capt), Aoife O’Shaughnessy, Ava Ryder; Nikki Caughey, Ailsa Hughes; Lindsay Peat, Chloe Blackmore, Katie O’Dwyer, Sonia McDermott, Siobhan McCarthy, Keelin Brady, Emma Murphy, Molly Boyne.Replacements: Lisa Callan, Amanda McQuade, Megan Collis, Kate McCarthy, Deirdre Roberts, Hazel Simmons, Emer O’Mahony.BLACKROCK COLLEGE: Meabh Deely; Natasja Behan, Michelle Claffey (capt), Katie Fitzhenry, Kate Cullen; Lisa Mullen, Aoibheann Reilly; Laura Feely, Emma Hooban, Christy Haney, Anna Potterton, Eimear Corri, Dorothy Wall, Maeve Óg O’Leary, Hannah O’Connor.Replacements: Niamh Tester, Casey O’Brien, Aoife Moore, Aoife Wafer, Ali Coleman, Jackie Shiels, Maggie Boylan.UL BOHEMIANS 41 OLD BELVEDERE 7, UL ArenaScorers: UL Bohemians: Tries: Nicole Cronin, Chloe Pearse 2, Sarah Quin, Clodagh O’Halloran, Enya Breen 2; Cons: Nicole Cronin 3Old Belvedere: Try: Vic Dabanovich O’Mahony; Con: Jemma FarrellHT: UL Bohemians 22 Old Belvedere 0UL BOHEMIANS: Aoife Corey; Alana McInerney, Rachel Allen, Enya Breen, Eimear Considine; Nicole Cronin, Muirne Wall; Chloe Pearse (capt), Kate Sheehan, Fiona Reidy, Claire Bennett, Ciara O’Halloran, Sarah Garrett, Lily Brady, Sarah Quin.Replacements: Geena Behan, Eilis Cahill, Caoimhe O’Neill, Clodagh O’Halloran, Louise Costello, Abbie Salter-Townshend, Aoibhinn O’Loughlin.OLD BELVEDERE: Fiona Tuite; Laura Carty, Elise O’Byrne-White, Sene Naoupu, Clare Gorman; Aine Donnelly, Jemma Farrell; Alice O’Dowd, Vic Dabanovich O’Mahony, Katie Layde, Clodagh Dunne, Elaine Anthony, Jennie Finlay, Rachel Winters, Jenny Murphy (capt).Replacements: Melissa Hayden, Rachel Murphy, Ciara O’Dwyer, Niamh O’Dowd, Amber Redmond, Hannah Heskin, Vanessa Hullon.CONFERENCE – ROUND 2:

GALWEGIANS 27 COOKE 7, Crowley ParkScorers: Galwegians: Tries: Orla Dixon, Dearbhla Canty, Rhiann Heery 2, Faith Oviawe; Con: Emma KeaneCooke: Try: Hannah Downey; Con: Amanda MortonHT: Galwegians 17 Cooke 7GALWEGIANS: Mairéad Coyne (capt); Saskia Morrissey, Ursula Sammon, Orla Dixon, Rhiann Heery; Emma Keane, Olivia Haverty; Ellen Connolly, Nolwenn Dubois, Jessica Loftus, Fiona Scally, Faith Oviawe, Katelyn Bourke, Lisa-Marie Murphy, Dearbhla Canty.Replacements: Ruby Lynch, Hannah Coen, Ann Marie Herward, Celia Killilea, Ina Butler, Megan Walsh, Emma Clery.COOKE: Teah Maguire; Georgia Boyce, Lucy Thompson, Kelly McCormill, Tamzin Boyce; Amanda Morton, Hannah Downey; Fiona McCaughan, Megan Simpson, Aishling O’Connell (capt), Caolinn McCormack, Sorcha Mac Laimhin, Naomi McCord, India Daley, Helen McGhee.Replacements: Alanagh van Staden, Eimear McQuillan, Dolores Hughes, Coral Lapsley, Ashleigh Orchard.SUTTONIANS 46 MALONE 5, JJ McDowell Memorial GroundsScorers: Suttonians: Tries: Molly Fitzgerald, Lauren Farrell McCabe, Lena Kibler, Catherine Martin, Mary Healy 3, Aifric O’Brien; Cons: Nicole Carroll 3Malone: Try: Holly BranniganHT: Suttonians 22 Malone 5SUTTONIANS: Soneva Scott; Molly Fitzgerald, Catherine Martin, Meabh Donohoe, Jools Aungier; Nicole Carroll, Lauren Farrell McCabe (capt); Katie Grant Duggan, Carrie O’Keeffe, Katie Reel, Grainne Tummon, Aislinn Layde, Lena Kibler, Louise Catinot, Aifric O’Brien.Replacements: Megan Cullen, Julia O’Connor, Mary Healy, Ciara Farrell, Aoife Brennan, Shannon Touhey, Emily McKeown.MALONE: Holly Brannigan; Nicole Rafferty, Jill Stephens, Emma Jordan, Sophie Armstrong; Alexa Grudgings, Shirelle Wilson; Sarah Murphy, Ashleigh Currie, Chrissie McKee, Hannah Beattie, Jasmine Ward, Erin Jones, Peita McAlister (capt), Lauren Maginnes.Replacements: Cara O’Neill, Rachael McIlroy, Anna Stanfield, Fern Wilson.WICKLOW 14 BALLINCOLLIG 17, Ashtown LaneScorers: Wicklow: Tries: Sarah Gleeson, Ella Roberts; Cons: Beth Roberts 2Ballincollig: Tries: Clare Coombes, Sarah O’Donovan; Cons: Denise Redmond 2; Pen: Denise RedmondHT: Wicklow 7 Ballincollig 7WICKLOW: Ella Roberts; Megan McConnell, Vicky Elmes Kinlan, Tammy Breen, Meagan Parkinson; Beth Roberts, Erin McConnell (capt); Kathy Byrne, Robyn Mullen, Lauren Barry, Jessica Schmidt, Caitlin Griffey, Emma Curran, Emily Ryan, Niamh Ni Dhroma.Replacements: Noelle Ward, Eimear Douglas, Laura Newsome, Shauna Soady, Nicole Humby, Sue Brady, Sarah Gleeson.BALLINCOLLIG: Lauren Fahey; Heather Kennedy, Jayne Pennefather, Mona Fehily, Alison Kelly; Kelly Griffin, Gemma Lane; Alix Cunneen, Clodagh Walsh (capt), Roisin Ormond, Sarah O’Donovan, Denise Redmond, Katelyn Fleming, Niamh O’Regan, Kira Fitzgerald.Replacements: Aoife Flynn, Olivia Hay Mulvihill, Clare Coombes, Gillian Coombes, Eimear Perryman, Valerie Heffernan, Sinead O’Reilly.

Super Rugby Aupiki – Preview, Fixtures, and Kick-Off times

Super Rugby Aupiki – Preview, Fixtures, and Kick-Off times – The countdown to the start with the draw and naming rights partner announced this afternoon.

Mirroring the first ever women’s Super Rugby match in New Zealand last May, the Blues will host the Chiefs Manawa at Eden Park on Saturday 5 March to get the inaugural season underway. The opening weekend concludes with Matatū going head-to-head with the Hurricanes at Orangetheory Stadium.

The four clubs all get one home match, with round three dubbed the ‘Super Round’ with the competition descending on Hamilton for a women’s rugby extravaganza.

The two top placed teams will battle it out for the title in a Final in the last weekend of March.

New Zealand Rugby General Manager of Professional Rugby and Performance Chris Lendrum said the inaugural season of Sky Super Rugby Aupiki was a game-changer for the women’s game.

“This year is going to be like nothing we’ve seen before when it comes to the women’s game and Sky Super Rugby Aupiki is a great way to get things underway.

“We’ve seen the four clubs assemble strong, exciting squads and this draw was the last piece of the puzzle before launching the competition in March. We’re looking forward to seeing New Zealand get in behind the players and teams and make this first season really set a benchmark for years to come,” said Lendrum.

All matches are live and exclusive on Sky – who have cemented their support for the women’s game, coming on board as the naming rights partner of the competition.

“As part of Sky’s commitment to elevating women in sport in every aspect, we are absolutely delighted to be naming rights sponsor and official broadcaster for the Sky Super Rugby Aupiki competition. New Zealanders are hungry for more with the inaugural Super Rugby match between Blues and Chiefs among proving popular amongst fans in 2021,” said Sky CEO Sophie Moloney.

“Our sponsorship and expert coverage of this landmark competition for women’s rugby in Aotearoa will enable us to showcase their skill and talent and tell the stories of the wāhine toa who love this game. But our support doesn’t stop there.

“Sky is committed to ensuring everyone in Aotearoa can watch our wāhine in action, so to support this new exciting competition we will proudly offer all Sky Super Rugby Aupiki games free to air on Prime as well as Sky Sport,” said Moloney.

Super Rugby Aupiki at a glance

Format:
• 4 teams: Blues, Chiefs Manawa, Hurricanes, Matatū
• 3 regular season matches (one home, one away, one Super Round fixture)

Playoffs:
• 1v2 play standalone Final on the weekend of 26-27 March

Super Rugby Aupiki draw

Round One
Saturday 5 March
Blues v Chiefs Manawa, Eden Park, kick off 12:45am (Friday Night)

Sunday 6 March
Matatū v Hurricanes, Orangetheory Stadium, kick off 2:45am (Saturday Night)

Round Two
Saturday 12 March
Hurricanes v Blues, Sky Stadium, kick off 12:45pm (Friday Night)

Sunday 13 March
Chiefs Manawa v Matatū, FMG Stadium, kick off 2:45am Saturday Night)

Round Three – Super Round – FMG Stadium
Saturday 19 March
Blues v Matatū, kick off 12:45am (Friday Night)
Chiefs Manawa v Hurricanes, kick off 3:35am (Friday Night)

FINAL
Saturday 26 or Sunday 27 March

Ireland Rugby 2022 Six Nations – Squad, Team News & Fixtures

Andy Farrell will named his Ireland Six Nations 2022 squad at 4 pm with not many surprises and mostly the same squad as the November internationals.

Kieran Marmion, Conor Oliver, Stuart McCloskey, and Shane Daly all look set not to make the squad with Andy Farrell seemingly not caring about current form.

The squad will be captained by Johnny Sexton who earned his 100th cap for his country against Japan during the November international window.

Ireland will host Wales, Italy and Scotland at the Aviva Stadium over the course of the Championship while also travelling to Paris and London to face France and England respectively.

There are two uncapped players named in the extended squad – Ulster’s Michael Lowry and Connacht’s Mack Hansen. Both have trained with the national squad in the past few months, Lowry during the Vodafone Summer Series in July and Hansen during the Autumn Nations Series in November.

Michael Lowry training with Ireland during the Vodafone Summer Series, July 2021

Connacht’s Cian Prendergast will join the squad for the training camp in Portugal as a Development Player. The former Ireland U20 player has made nine appearances for Connacht this season.

Andy Farrell, Ireland Head Coach, commented: “In November we challenged the group to get up to speed quickly so that the team could perform at international level. The same will apply for this Six Nations campaign, we need to be at our best against Wales on the opening weekend.

“We have a strong squad with competition for places across the board, there is a nice blend of experienced internationals and guys who have had their first taste of this level in the past 12 months. The games in November gave us a good foundation to build on and areas where we know we will have to improve.

“It will be an exciting Championship with so many strong squads and impressive performances across the board during the Autumn.”

Ireland’s opening fixture of the 2022 Six Nations Championship is against Wales on Saturday 5th February. A week later, the squad will travel to France to take on Les Bleus in Paris. In Round 3, on Sunday 27th February, Ireland host Italy at the Aviva Stadium and then travel to Twickenham to take on England two weeks later.

In the final round of the Championship, Ireland host Scotland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday 19th March.

All games will be available on free-to-air television in both the Republic and Northern Ireland. ITV (NI) will broadcast all of Ireland’s games, RTE (ROI) will broadcast the games against Wales and England while VIRGIN (ROI) will broadcast the games against France, Italy and Scotland.

IRELAND Guinness Six Nations Squad 2022

Backs (17)
Bundee Aki (Connacht/Galwegians) 33 caps
Robert Baloucoune (Ulster/Enniskillen) 2 caps
Joey Carbery (Munster/Clontarf) 27 caps
Jack Carty (Buccaneers/Connacht) 10 caps
Craig Casey (Munster/Shannon) 4 caps
Andrew Conway (Munster/Garryowen) 27 caps
Keith Earls (Munster/Young Munster) 96 caps
Jamison Gibson Park (Leinster) 12 caps
Mack Hansen (Connacht) uncapped
Robbie Henshaw (Leinster/Buccaneers) 53 caps
James Hume (Ulster/Banbridge) 1 cap
Hugo Keenan (Leinster/UCD) 16 caps
Jordan Larmour (Leinster/St Mary’s College) 30 caps
Michael Lowry (Ulster/Banbridge) uncapped
Conor Murray (Munster/Garryowen) 92 caps
Garry Ringrose (Leinster/UCD) 37 caps
Johnny Sexton (Leinster/St Mary’s College) 101 caps CAPTAIN

Forwards (20)
Ryan Baird (Leinster/Dublin University) 6 caps
Finlay Bealham (Connacht/Buccaneers) 18 caps
Tadhg Beirne (Munster/Lansdowne) 25 caps
Jack Conan (Leinster/Old Belvedere) 22 caps
Gavin Coombes (Munster/Young Munster) 2 caps
Caelan Doris (Leinster/St Mary’s College) 12 caps
Tadhg Furlong (Leinster/Clontarf) 52 caps
Cian Healy (Leinster/Clontarf) 112 caps
Iain Henderson (Ulster/Academy) 65 caps
Rob Herring (Ulster/Ballynahinch) 23 caps
Ronan Kelleher (Leinster/Lansdowne) 16 caps
Dave Kilcoyne (Munster/UL Bohemians) 45 caps
Peter O’Mahony (Munster/Cork Constitution) 79 caps
Tom O’Toole (Ulster/Ballynahinch) 2 caps
Andrew Porter (Leinster/UCD) 40 caps
James Ryan (Leinster/UCD) 40 caps
Dan Sheehan (Leinster/Lansdowne) 2 caps
Nick Timoney (Ulster/Banbridge) 2 caps
Kieran Treadwell (Ulster/Ballymena) 3 caps
Josh van der Flier (Leinster/UCD) 35 caps

Development Player
Cian Prendergast (Connacht)

— Joe Naughton (@JosephNaughton4) January 19, 2022

Team News

James Ryan, originally named as Captain for Leinsters game against Montpellier, was removed from the line-up after picking up a hamstring injury in the captain’s run. He will be further assessed this week before a final decision is made on his involvement.

Tadhg Furlong (calf) and Jordan Larmour (dead leg) picked up knocks during the game and will also be monitored further ahead of the trip to Bath.

Winter Million – Irish raiders primed for Sovereign Handicap Hurdle

Ireland launches a three-pronged assault on the £100,000 Sovereign Handicap Hurdle (3.35pm) at Lingfield Park on Friday, January 21, the highlight on day one of the Winter Million.

Emmet Mullins is responsible for Carrarea and Sevenna Star as he seeks yet another big handicap success on these shores, with Paul Townend an eye-catching booking on Carrarea, while compatriot Sean Doyle sends over the in-form Lucky Max.

Lucky Max made a winning reappearance at Clonmel in October and has continued his rise through the handicap with a pair of comfortable victories at Cork, most recently in early December.

Doyle said: “Lucky Max seems to be in very good form. He started heading over this morning and should arrive at Lingfield this evening, so fingers crossed he travels over OK.

“After maturing really well, he has started to hurdle properly. He was a little up in the air, even going back to his point-to-points, and it has taken him a while to get his jumping together. He probably wasn’t quite right last season either, but he seems a different horse now.

“We are hoping for the best – it is a competitive race and definitely a step up on anything he has faced before. If he could pick up some nice prize money, we would be delighted.”

The home challenge is led by the Harry Fry-trained Metier, who tackles heavy ground for the first time since bolting up in last season’s G1 Tolworth Hurdle at Sandown Park.

Gary Moore has a 30 per cent strike rate over jumps at Lingfield Park this season and the West Sussex handler aims to continue the trend with recent course and distance scorer Hudson De Grugy.

Gowel Road tops the weights for Nigel Twiston-Davies after finishing third in a Listed handicap hurdle at Newbury in November, while bottom weight Destrier is one of two runners for Dan Skelton alongside Antunes.

The 12 runners are completed by Hacker Des Places, Mack The Man, Chti Balko and Thibault.

Castleford Handicap Chase victor Eclair D’Ainay concedes weight all round in the £50,000 racehorselotto.com Handicap Chase (1.50pm). The two-mile contest also features recent Kelso scorer Cedar Hill and Frero Banbou for the in-form combination of Venetia Williams and Charlie Deutsch.

A closely matched field of seven go in the £50,000 Weatherbys NHstallions.co.uk Novices’ Chase (3.00pm) over just shy of three miles, including wide-margin Exeter winner Broken Halo and Fantastikas, who was third in the G2 Dipper Novices’ Chase last time out. Queenohearts, a G2-winning hurdler for Stuart Edmunds, makes her debut over fences for Kim Bailey.

Grade 2 winners On The Blind Side and Emitom feature among five runners in the £50,000 Cazoo Hurdle (2.25pm) over two miles and seven furlongs, in which high-class chaser Top Ville Ben also runs.

Anthony Honeyball has two leading chances in the £45,000 Winter Million EBF Mares’ Novices’ Handicap Chase (1.20pm) courtesy of Belle De Manech and Deja Vu. Crossgalesfamegame is a first runner at Lingfield Park for Sandy Thomson, who also saddles the aforementioned Cedar Hill.

Love Envoi and Nurse Susan put their unbeaten records on the line for Harry Fry and Dan Skelton respectively in the opening £30,000 Winter Million Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle (12.50pm) over two miles. Paul Nicholls is represented by Rainyday Woman, who brought up a three-timer in a Listed event at Taunton last time out.

A field of 10 in the concluding Winter Million Handicap Chase (4.08pm) includes impressive recent Warwick winner Neil The Legend for Nicky Henderson.

Connacht Rugby sign six professional contracts for academy graduates

Cathal Forde, Shane Jennings, Oisin McCormack, Darragh Murray, Ciaran Booth, and Diarmuid Kilgallen have all signed pro contracts for Connacht.

Galway-born Cathal Forde can cover the 10 or 12 positions and played a significant role in Ireland’s U20 Six Nations campaign last year, earning plaudits for his performances. The 20-year old has represented Galway Corinthians RFC at club level and played school rugby with Colaiste Iognaid (The Jes).

Like Forde, Shane Jennings also made a big impact on the Ireland U20 scene last year. Another product of the Connacht pathway system, Jennings has played for Ballinasloe RFC and Garbally College and predominately plays centre. More recently he was a member of the Ireland Sevens squad at the World Sevens Series in Canada.

Oisin McCormack is another alumni of Garbally College and Ballinasloe RFC, playing with friend Shane Jennings from an early age. McCormack holds a unique accolade of scoring tries in consecutive Connacht Schools Cup finals, touching down in both the 2018 and 2019 Senior deciders. The 20-year old can play across the back row.

Darragh Murray is the second Murray brother to graduate from the Academy, following in the footsteps of his older brother Niall. A fellow lock, Darragh was a member of the 2021 Ireland U20s and captain of the Connacht U18s that won the 2018 Interprovincial Series. He came through the pathway at Buccaneers RFC and Colaiste Chiarain Athlone.

Ciaran Booth first joined the Connacht Academy in the summer of 2020, arriving from Sale Sharks. The 21-year old was born in Stockport and is Irish qualified, having played for Ireland in the 2019 U20 Rugby World Championship. Primarily a flanker, Booth can also play as a number 8 or in the second row.

Diarmuid Kilgallen is no stranger to Connacht supporters having already made 5 appearances with the Pro team. The back three player made his debut at the Aviva Stadium against Munster in August 2020, and Lansdowne Road was also the scene for his first try, scoring an intercept against Ulster last October.

Connacht Rugby Academy Manager Eric Elwood has paid tribute to the six players:

“I’d like to congratulate the six men on their impending move to the Pro team, and to their respective clubs and schools that have played a big part in their success. Everyone at Connacht Rugby has worked tremendously hard at all levels to give them the platform to succeed and I’d like to acknowledge the work done by the coaches as well as the wider Academy staff. That said, it’s up to the players themselves to take the opportunities afforded to them and they’ve done just that. I know they each have what is required to take that next step in their careers.”

Connacht Head Coach Andy Friend has congratulated the six players on their contracts:

“This is a special day both for Connacht Rugby and for Ciaran, Cathal, Shane, Diarmuid, Oisin and Darragh. They have each forged their own paths to professional rugby through hard-work and dedication, and with the help of their coaches, parents and volunteers along the way. It’s particularly pleasing that 4 of the 6 players came through the Connacht pathway, playing their club and school rugby here in the West of Ireland. I’m looking forward to further integrating them into the Pro setup and help us challenge for honours in the years ahead”

Introduction to Coaching Gaelic Games course announced

A course aimed at introducing coaches to Gaelic games will increase the number and quality of coaches involved in developing players across the GAA, LGFA and Camogie Association and make it easier for them to acquire coaching credentials.

In a significant step, this collaborative project has produced a coach education programme which will ensure that beginner coaches in Gaelic games do not need to take code specific introduction courses.

This new course will be shared cross each of the three Associations and will, for the first time, ensure that beginner coaches of any of our codes come together and engage in a common programme. Coaches operating in clubs that have different codes, particularly One Club model clubs, now can take one coaching course, which is a huge benefit to our volunteer coaches.

Since 2019 the three Gaelic games Associations have worked closely together to develop this new common Introduction to Coaching Gaelic Games or ICGG Award.

Launching this new course today at Croke Park, the three Associations believe that this approach will ensure that beginner coaches, regardless of their code of choice, will learn from and share with each other and assist their coach development.

This course has been designed to be more interactive and practical than previous introductory courses, with a significant emphasis on coaches learning by doing.

Last year 300 coach developers, from across the three Associations, took part in collaborative upskilling events in preparation for the ICGG programme delivery in 2022 – with a start date to be agreed when pandemic restrictions allow.

The ICGG Award course has been designed to support new coaches develop a solid foundation of knowledge, skills, competencies, and values for coaching the child, youth or adult playing population.

The Introduction to Coaching Gaelic Games award is structured around three key elements:

The Coach | ‘Being a Coach’, ‘How to Coach’, and ‘Preparation for Planning’.
The Player | ‘Who are you coaching?’. Whether they are child, youth or adult players, male or female and address the need to be inclusive.
The Game | a focus on movement for Gaelic games, skill development and games.

This programme will provide coaches with awareness, knowledge and experiences related to:

Why do you Coach? | Each coach is an individual, and each will bring their own skills and characteristics to our games.
How do you Coach? | A set of skills and behaviours which coaches can use in games and training sessions
What do you Coach? | The games and developmental activities that can be used by coaches, and how to structure sessions to hone the skills of players
Who do you Coach? | The specific players that a coach has within their team/group; looking at age, stages of the player pathway they are at, the importance of inclusivity and how it impacts upon their coaching

Upon completion of this Award, coaches can then choose learning and development opportunities specific to them, their needs, and abilities with specific reference to the stage of the player pathway (see attached graphic) that they coach.

Welcoming this new ICGG award;

Uachtarán CLG, Larry McCarthy said: “Working in partnership with the LGFA and the Camogie Association, I believe that this new introductory coaching to Gaelic games course will have a profound effect on our volunteer coaches. This streamlined and collaborative approach will allow new coaches to concentrate on how to coach and how to coach well and will allow them to maximise their time and the impact they have in developing players. Tús maith leath na hoibre, we are told, and this can put Gaelic games on a strong footing.”

Uachtarán of the Camogie Association, Hilda Breslin said: “We are delighted to be involved in the development of the first collaborated coaching programme within the Gaelic games family. This collaboration will provide prospective coaches within the Gaelic games Associations to come together and learn the fundamentals in a supportive and inclusive environment. We are excited for the future success that this collaboration will bring, and I thank my colleagues in the GAA and LGFA for their continued support in the development of this programme”.

Speaking on behalf of the LGFA, President Mícheál Naughton said: “The launch of the Introduction to Coaching Gaelic Games is another major collaborative project between the Ladies Gaelic Football Association, the GAA and the Camogie Association. This is a very important step for the provision of coach education at grassroots level and ensuring courses are more accessible at local level. The benefits will be evident for clubs all over the world, with this single course now being provided for coaches regardless of the code they are coaching, rather than having to attend multiple events. We would like to thank everyone involved for the hard work in bringing this to fruition and we look forward to getting coach developers active across the country, and beyond.”

7 Tips to Help You Choose an Online Gambling Website

Taking your time when picking an online casino is very important. Virtually anyone with basic computer skills can create a convincing gambling site and use it to steal either your information, money, or both. Other sites will use tactics to sucker you in and won’t live up to their promises. You also have casinos that are outdated, don’t offer the best experience, or are unreliable. This is why you need to know how to identify a good website before you start looking at options. Let’s take a look at a few tips to help you choose an online gambling website.

Look at their Certification

The most important thing when picking an online casino is checking their licensure. If a casino is unlicensed, there is no reason for you to play there as this is the clearest sign of a fraudulent casino.

If you want to know where you can find the licensing information, you should be able to see it in a site’s footer or on their about page. This would be a good time to look up the information you find there and see how detailed it is. The more details you can get about the company, its ethos, and its history, the better.

You also have to know that there are only a handful of regulatory bodies that you can trust and are respected by the community. These include the UK Gambling Commission, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Curacao e-Gaming, the Malta Gaming Authority, the Gibraltar Regulatory Authority, and the Alderney Gambling Control Commission. If the casino is not licensed by one of those, you can always check their background history, but it’s wiser to stay away.

Look at the Bonus Structure Closely

You’ll notice that almost all online casinos offer some sort of bonus to new players. Most of the time, they will offer a deposit match on your first and sometimes second, third, and even fourth deposit.

You have to be very careful with those bonuses as they can be deceiving. First of all, if any casino offers a match deposit over 300%, beware. This usually means that the casino is either a fraud or that some hidden terms make the bonus almost impossible to redeem.

The thing you have to pay very special attention to when looking at a match bonus is the wagering requirements. All these bonuses will require that you spend a certain amount of money before you can withdraw your money, and that’s understandable. But this amount needs to be reasonable.

Ideally, you want to pick a bonus with the lowest wagering requirements possible. The lowest you’ll find is 20 times your initial deposit plus bonus, but the average bonus will require that you spend anywhere from 30 times to 40 times that amount. If any bonus requires you to spend more than that, it’s not worth it.

Look at Reviews

The easiest way to find a great casino is to look up reviews on reputable casino sites. These sites will usually have extensive reviews of different casinos and reputable review sites will make sure that all the casinos on their list are legit.

If you’re looking for a great review site, we suggest you look at OnlineCasinos. OnlineCasinos has a list of all the best casinos along with details on what you can expect when playing there. They speak about the bonuses they have to offer, the types of games they have there, and other things like security, customer service, and payment options.

Check if the Casino Performs Regular Audits

Another thing you should look at is how fair the odds are at a certain casino. The only way to know this is to check an audit report. Reputable casinos will go the extra mile to show that their games are fair and seeing that a casino has been audited recently is a great sign. If you go on the website and you notice that it has been audited by eCOGRA, AuditNet, or GamingLabs and it’s licensed, then you can play there with complete peace of mind.

Look at their Software Provider

Not everyone knows this, but most online casinos will use software from a third party to run their games. There are a few reputed software providers in the business and knowing which provider a casino uses will give you a good idea of what you can expect as far as gameplay goes.

If you go with a casino that is powered by Microgaming, for instance, then you can expect it to have a huge selection of games with great themes. The same goes for NetEnt. If the casino is powered by Playtech, on the other hand, then you can expect games with advanced graphics, soundtracks and sound effects, and traditional gaming aspects. So, learn about the different providers in the business and their specialties.

Download and Test Their Software

Once you’ve found a few casinos that you can trust, you can check the quality of their software. Download the software on multiple devices and see how well it runs. Try a few games using their free play option and see how smooth the animations are.

You should also pay very special attention to how stable the connection is. The last thing you want is for you to get disconnected in the middle of a high-stakes hand of blackjack, so check the quality of their servers before you start playing seriously.

Check their Customer Service

While you’re at it, you should also check how good the casino’s customer service is. If the casino has a live chat option, try to use it and see how fast you can get access to a rep. You should also give their customer service a call and have a few questions ready. You could ask them about their history, the number of games in their selection, or what software they use. How they answer should give you a good idea of whether they care about their clients.

Finding a great casino to play at should not be difficult once you know what to look for. Be sure that the casino is operating lawfully first and foremost and start looking at the fine details afterwards.

SportsNewsIreland