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Paralympic Swimming: McClements and Flanagan fail to make finals

Team Ireland had two athletes in the Tokyo Aquatic Centre early this morning for men’s swimming heats

Patrick Flanagan – Men’s 400m Freestyle – S6 Heat 2

Flanagan’s first race of Tokyo 2020 commenced just after 01:00 Irish time this morning.

The Sligo man started in lane one in the water, giving him a distinct disadvantage to those that could jump from the block.

Starting behind most of the other swimmers, Flanagan remained in eighth place after the second turn. After the halfway mark, he continued to drop off from the strong Mexican swimmers leading the race.

Flanagan finished the race with a time of 5:40.48 in eighth place 28 seconds behind the leader. He may be disappointed with the result of the race today but hopefully, he can build on this for his next event, the Backcrawl tomorrow morning.

Barry McClements – Men’s 100m Butterfly – S9 Heat 2

McClements began his fourth and final race of what has been a very busy Paralympic campaign a half an hour after Flanagan this morning. He has already shown some very strong performances in the last six days at the Tokyo Aquatic center but he was hoping to reach another final today.

McClements started the race in lane six with five other swimmers. The 19-year-old started fast and had himself in fourth at the turn, he remained with the leaders and posted a time of 1:02.83.

He needed to have an agonizing wait for the third heat to know if he had qualified. After watching the Australian William Martin break a world record he knew he missed out on a final place by 0.7 seconds.

This marks the end of McClements’ strong Paralympic journey after competing in four events and reaching one final.

The future seems bright for the teenager and Paris in three years’ time cannot come any sooner as McClements can only improve.

Paralympic Canoe: O’Leary qualifies for two semi-finals

Team Ireland had one athlete taking part in two races of the men’s canoe sprint early this morning in Tokyo

Patrick O’Leary – Men’s Kayak Single 200m – KL3 Heat 1

Ireland’s leading Paralympic canoer had a busy morning in Tokyo with two important races in the space of an hour and a half. His first race began at 02:00 Irish time and the Irishman went in lane six.

The 48-year-old was in a very diverse race including the three-time world champion Tom Kierey. This is a very fast and energetic event and this race was no different.

O’Leary started well, remaining with the main group in the beginning. At the halfway mark he began to drop off into the sixth position but showed true fitness in the final sprint to push into fifth and qualify for the semi-finals.

He finished in a time of 43.502 but did not have a lot of time to celebrate as he had to prepare for his second race of the day.

Men’s Va’a Single 200m – VL3 Heat 1

Only 80 minutes later and O’Leary was at the starting line, raring to go and qualify for another semi-final.

He continued his stellar form into this traditionally Samoan-style race, as he got off to a speedy start. He always remained within touching distance of the leading rider and the 48-year-old finished the race in a time of 54.70 seconds.

This time earned him a fifth place which is good enough to qualify for the Va’a semi-finals this Saturday.

Now that O’Leary has found his form reaching two semi-finals at the Paralympics, there is more hope that he can better his Paralympic best, which was sixth in Rio 2016.

Republic Of Ireland Defeated By Portugal At The Death

The Republic of Ireland had their hearts broken when a last-minute winner for Portugal found the net in the form of a Cristiano Ronaldo header – the second in seven agonising minutes for Irish viewers.

Ronaldo’s two goals put him clear of Iran’s Ali Daei on the international goalscoring charts as the five-time Ballon d’Or winner became the all-time leading goalscorer at international level in front of a home crowd.

The Manchester United star had a 15th-minute penalty saved by Irish goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu at the Estadio Algarve after the referee decided to stick with his on-field following a lengthy VAR check.

Yet, it was Ireland who took the lead after a 45th-minute header of their own courtesy of newly-crowned Ireland Men’s Senior International Player of the Year John Egan when he connected well with a Jamie McGrath corner.

Stephen Kenny’s side put in their best performance yet under his guidance with a clear identity present throughout a game in which Ireland frustrated their opponents.

Forwards Adam Idah and Aaron Connolly were often given the ball on counter-attacks with the pair of them using it to varying success.

Idah often used the channels to create space for himself and others while Connolly found it hard to shrug defenders off and missed several opportunities to play in teammates in better positions and shots on goal.

Seamus Coleman impressed throughout the game at right wing-back in Ireland’s 3-5-2 setup and ran up and down the right flank throughout the match, whether it be to offer support for Idah or create a chance in the box.

Coleman survived losing his wing-back spot after centre-half Dara O’Shea went off following a tackle gone wrong.

The West Bromwich Albion man was replaced by Norwich City’s Andrew Omibamidele, who performed well on his international debut.

On the opposite flank, Matt Doherty also impressed and put in a strong shift defensively to prove any doubters wrong about his selection in the team.

The Tottenham Hotspur defender was forced off the pitch momentarily in the second half but carried on to finish the game.

Josh Cullen was the fulcrum of the side, changing defence to attack with well-weighted passes and good vision.

The spaces left by midfielders Bernardo Silva and Bruno Fernandes, as well as full-backs Joao Cancelo and Raphael Guerreiro were exposed when Ireland went forward.

Kenny’s side were still able to fashion attacks as the game grew tenser and tenser in the second half but nothing came of them

Portugal’s open setup allowed them to pile on the pressure in the second-half and after several heroics from various members of the Ireland team, the gates were finally breached when Ronaldo rose high to head home past Gavin Bazunu, who had denied Portugal multiple times before.

Bazunu’s fantastic saves and calm presence inside his six-yard box had put Irish minds at ease many times previous in the game.

His penalty save in the first half gave his side some much-needed inspiration that pushed them on to give the UEFA Nations League holders a competitive game.

James McClean almost added a second while the Portuguese were still resetting their shape but couldn’t convert via the angle he shot from.

Six minutes into the five minutes of added time, Cristiano Ronaldo rose high once again and added his second of the game to steal all three points in the dying moments of the game.

The loss leaves Ireland without a point in Group A of the 2022 Fifa World Cup Qualifiers and seven points off second.

The side are six points behind third-placed Luxembourg and level with Azerbaijan.

They now must look towards Saturday’s game against Serbia, to whom they lost 3-2 in the reverse fixture.

Their performance against Portugal on Wednesday night can motivate Kenny and his squad if they can look past the manner in which the result slipped out of their hands.

If not, a bright performance in Faro could be forever disguised by a negative result.

Man of the Match: Gavin Bazunu (Republic of Ireland)

Portugal: Rui Patrício; Joao Cancelo (Goncalo Guedes 82), Pepe, Rúben Dias, Raphaël Guerreiro (Nuno Mendes 62); Joao Palhinha (Joao Moutinho 73), Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes (Joao Mario 62), Rafa Silva (Andre Silva HT), Diogo Jota, Cristiano Ronaldo (C).

Republic of Ireland: Gavin Bazunu; Shane Duffy, John Egan, Dara O’Shea (Andrew Omobamidele 35); Seamus Coleman (C), Matt Doherty, Josh Cullen, Jeff Hendrick, Jamie McGrath (Jayson Molumby 90); Adam Idah (James Collins 90), Aaron Connolly (James McClean 72).

Portugal v Republic of Ireland – Preview, Lineups, Odds, TV Coverage

The Republic of Ireland men’s national football team return tonight when they face UEFA Nations League holders Portugal in Faro.

The game will kick off at 7:45 pm and will take place at the Estadio Algarve – no away fans are permitted to attend, under UEFA rules.

The Republic of Ireland have had a rough start to their 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, with losses to Serbia and Luxembourg putting them on the back foot after only two games.

Portugal, on the other hand, are top of Group A after three games after two wins and one draw – the draw being against Serbia.

Ireland called up a 25-man squad for the international break and a strong eleven is expected to be crafted from it tonight.

Caoimhin Kelleher and Gavin Bazunu are both available for selection between the sticks and head coach Stephen Kenny could choose either one of them.

Norwich City defender Andrew Omobamidele could be in line to make his senior international debut tonight, potentially in a three-man defence.

Shane Duffy, John Egan and Ryan Manning are also available for selection for tonight’s fixture.

West from loanee Jayson Molumby and Anderlecht’s Josh Cullen are expected to appear in midfield for the side.

Kenny could opt for a young frontline with three forwards aged 21 and under called up for international duty.

Joao Felix and Renato Sanches were named in the Portugal squad for the September international break but are currently sidelined through injury.

Captain Cristiano Ronaldo will be fit and looking to score the goal that will make him the stand-alone top goalscorer in international football – he is currently tied with Iran’s Ali Daei on 109.

Fellow Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes will also be available for tonight’s World Cup qualification clash.

It’s impossible to look past the quality of the Portuguese squad when considering the outcome of this encounter – it is unlikely Ireland will come away with a result.

Lineups
Portugal have wheeled out the artillery: Rui Patricio; Cancelo, Pepe, Dias, Guerreiro; Joao Paulinha, Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes; Diogo Jota, Andre Silva, Cristiano Ronaldo

Odds

Portugal 1/7

Draw 11/2

Republic of Ireland 17/1

Where To Watch

The match will kick-off at 7:45 pm Irish Standard Time. It will be available to watch on RTÉ 2 with coverage starting at 7 pm. It will also be available to watch on Sky Sports Premier League at 7:30 pm.

FAI Name John Egan As 2020 Men’s Senior Player of the Year

The FAI have named Sheffield United defender John Egan as the 2020 Men’s Senior Player of the Year.

The Sheffield United centre-back beat out his clubmate Enda Stevens and Tottenham Hotspur right-back Matt Doherty to claim the prize at the 31st FAI International Football Awards.

He takes the prize after David McGoldrick, who was the national team’s Player of the Year in 2019.

Denise O’Sullivan won the Women’s Player of the Year award for the second time in her career, edging out Arsenal’s Katie McCabe and North Carolina Courage’s Diane Caldwell (who was with German club SC Sand for the 2019-20 season).

O’Sullivan was previously the Women’s national team’s Player of the Year for 2015.

West Bromwich Albion’s Dara O’Shea was awarded the Young Player of the Year award after his breakthrough into the Irish side under Stephen Kenny.

O’Shea earned more votes than new West Brom teammate Jayson Molumby and Norwich City starlet Adam Idah to receive the award.

Former Republic of Ireland internationals John Giles and Paula Gorham were inducted into the FAI Hall of Fame.

Explaining the decisions, the FAI said on their website: “An Ireland captain and manager during his illustrious career, Giles is regarded as one of the greatest ambassadors of Irish football as he helped to transform the game as a player with 59 caps, as an international manager for seven years and as a driving force for change in the domestic game during his time as player-manager at Shamrock Rovers.

“Part of the Dundalk Ladies team who played against Corinthians Nomads in a famous ground-breaking game in 1970, Gorham scored a hat-trick on her Ireland Women’s Senior debut, the Irish team’s first official game in 1973 away to Wales. She went on to earn several more caps.”

Ellen Molloy won the Goal of the Year award for her strike against Iceland while playing for the Ireland Women’s U17s.

Jack Taylor was awarded the U21 Player of the Year award ahead of teammates Darragh Leahy and Joshua Kayode.

The SSE Airtricity League Player of the Year for the 2020 season is Jack Byrne, who has since moved to Cypriot side APOEL Nicosia.

The Special Merit Award was posthumously given to Liam Farrell, who was a founding member of North Dublin Schoolboy League and Chairman of the Schools Football Association of Ireland.

31st FAI International Football Awards

Men’s Senior Player of the Year – John Egan

Women’s Senior Player of the Year – Denise O’Sullivan

Young International Player of the Year – Dara O’Shea

International Goal of the Year – Ellen Molloy (Ireland Women’s Under-17 v Iceland)

Under 21s Player of the Year – Jack Taylor

SSE Airtricity League Player of the Year – Jack Byrne

Special Merit – Liam Farrell

Hall of Fame – John Giles / Paula Gorham

Mayo GAA season ticket holders to be placed in All-Ireland draw

Mayo GAA have announced that all season ticket holders from the 2020 season will be placed into a draw for a limited set number of tickets for the All-Ireland final on September 11th against Tyrone.

According to reports, the draw will take place by officials in Croke Park via the season ticket database from Mayo GAA.

It will also be extended to any and all adult members from clubs in Mayo and the standard season ticket holders from the 2020 season, with season ticket holders from Mayo reach approximately 3,000.

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic, the set number of tickets made available to Mayo people will be around 500 tickets, with Mayo GAA admitting on the struggle via a statement;

“it would be impossible to allocate all members a ticket as it would further reduce the current club allocations by another 55% on top of the reductions enforced by reduced capacity.”

“Mayo GAA do recognise and appreciate the scale of support within the Season Ticket Group. While the current public health situation has made it very difficult to accommodate all fans wishing to attend the All Ireland Final, we are making every effort to spread the base of support to all who have supported Mayo in huge numbers over the years.”

There have been rumours that Croke Park will allow up to an increase from 40,000 people to a 75% full capacity for the All-Ireland SFC final between Mayo and Tyrone, but only to those who have been full vaccinated.

The draw is expected to be finished by Wednesday, September 1, with a time still unconfirmed for who will receive a ticket, for those who have been lucky enough to successfully secure a ticket, will be communicated by email.

For more News and Stories on all things GAA, click here.

Joe McQuillan set to Referee All-Ireland Final

Joe McQuillan set to Referee All-Ireland Final between Mayo and Tyrone, the GAA have announced.

The 2021 All-Ireland SFC final will be the fourth time the Cavan native has been the main man officiating on All-Ireland football final day.

It will be a full 10 years on after his first All-Ireland senior final, where he was the referee in the 2011 final between Kerry and Dublin, where Dublin won their first title since 1995.

He has also refereed the 2013 (Dublin v Mayo) and 2017 (Dublin v Mayo) finals. With his fourth match also involving 2021 finalists Mayo.

If Mayo are to lose this final, it will be the third time when Joe McQuillan has been the ref, were they lose an All-Ireland Final at Croke Park.

McQuillan has been involved in the infamous ”spitgate” incident in the 2013 Allianz Football League game between Tyrone and Donegal saw Karl Lacey spat on my a Tyrone fan.

 

Joe McQuillan set to Referee All-Ireland Final

Joe has also refereed the All-Ireland Under 21 final in 2006, All Ireland Senior Club final 2008, three Leinster Finals, one Munster Final and two Ulster Finals.

In this year’s Football Championship, Joe has refereed the Munster Football Championship match between Limerick and Waterford and Connacht Semi-Final between Roscommon and Galway, and Ulster Semi-Final between Donegal and Tyrone.

His umpires on the day will be Ciaran Brady, and T.P Gray (Kill Shamrocks), Jimmy Galligan (Killygarry), Mickey Lee (Drumalee).

Meath’s David Gough will be the standby referee. The other linesman is Brendan Cawley (Kildare), and the Sideline Official will be Ciaran Branagan (An Dún).

For more News and Stories on all things GAA, click here.

Tomás Ó Sé Joins Offaly Backroom As Maughan Retains Top Job

Kerry legend Tomás Ó Sé has joined the Offaly senior football backroom as a selector for the 2022 season.

Ó Sé will be part of the coaching staff for the side’s first year in Division Two of the Allianz Football League after six seasons in the third tier.

Head coach Maughan will stay on with the side for the upcoming season, having already spent three years in charge of the Faithful County.

Offaly GAA chairman Michael Duignan confirmed the news to RTE Sport this morning.

“It’s a huge boost and we are delighted,” Duignan said. “We have been speaking to Tomas in the last few weeks. John Maughan already has a very strong management team in place and Tomás coming on board will add to it.

“Tomás is involved with the Glanmire team in Cork and he will be fully committed to them for this season. We look forward to him coming on board with us after that.

“He is one of the greats and as a player he was always one I was most impressed with. I always had great regard for him and we are good friends. He will be a big addition.”

Ó Sé was part of a golden generation of Kerry players in the 2000’s that won five All-Ireland’s in the decade.

The wing-back, who played for An Ghaeltacht during his inter-county career, collected five All Stars in Kerry’s green and gold and was crowned Footballer of the Year in 2009 before hanging up his boots in 2013.

He is lauded by many as one of the best wing-backs of all time and one of the best players to ever play the sport.

With the 43-year-old in its ranks, Offaly will make its first foray into the top 16 of league football in 16 years after achieving promotion following their Division Three semi-final win over Fermanagh.

Ó Sé will have the chance to introduce members of the All-Ireland winning Offaly U20 side to the senior level of Gaelic football during his tenure.

Tyrone refuse to answer any questions on COVID from Press

Tyrone refuse to answer any questions on COVID from Press that threatened their All-Ireland semi-final against Kerry at their media event in Garvaghey on Tuesday.

Before the start of the event, co-manager Feargal Logan announced to the media on call, that any questions revolving around COVID will be swiftly and politely declined for answering.

Logan stated;

“You will understand that we’re looking at a very important day on Saturday week, a very important footballing day for Tyrone generally, and all of ourselves,” he said.

“So in the circumstances, feel free to ask whatever you want to ask. If it strays beyond football and it enters arenas of Covid or vaccinations, we don’t feel it’s appropriate.

“We don’t mean any disrespect or ill-will if we say to you: ‘Listen, have you a football question please?’ That’s the way we’ll be dealing with it. There’s a time and a place. It’s a very serious issue, what’s happening around our own county at the moment. So we don’t think it’s appropriate to be batting it about.

“We’re happy to answer all your football questions. There will be a time and a place, if there’s further enquiry needed, we’ve absolutely no difficulty. But tonight is a good football night for everyone, so we look forward to it.”

Tyrone refuse to answer any questions on COVID from Press

Speaking on the full panel’s fitness and injury concerns ahead of the final against Mayo, Logan declined to speak;

“Whatever about any other debate, in the privacy of the squad we would just honour our position,” he said.

“We’ll review it all and see where it lands us, but be assured that there were several players that we just felt were not right.”

Logan also spoke about his hopes that Croke Park will allow more allocation from 40,000 people to a rumoured 75% full capacity if all ticket holders are fully vaccinated.

“On a very practical level, it would ease a bit of difficulty around this county on pure tickets but those are things that are way beyond our control and whatever number of thousand, we were appreciative and glad that there was 24,000 in last weekend and it added to the occasion.

“And, of course, in an All-Ireland final you would like to be there with 82,000, but whatever happens, we will just have to deal with it. I am sure everyone involved in it will deal with it sensibly and as best as possible in all the circumstances of a public health emergency we are dealing with.”

For more News and Stories about GAA, click here.

Connacht Rugby extends partnership with Bank of Ireland

Connacht Rugby extends partnership with Bank of Ireland

Connacht Rugby has announced that they will continue to partner with Bank of Ireland as a shirt sponsor after a deal was struck between the two parties to extend Connachts partnership with Bank of Ireland.

The partnership between the two will continue to see the Bank of Ireland logo on the back of the senior team for both men’s and women’s Connacht jerseys. Whilst also being extended to deliver significant support for the expanding youth and adult club competitions within the province.

Along with this news, Connacht Rugby has recently revealed their new away and European jerseys for the upcoming 2021/2022 season on their website.

Connacht’s Head of Commercial and Marketing Philp Patterson was more than happy with the extension, stating;

“Bank of Ireland have been a wonderful supporter of rugby in the West of Ireland and I’m delighted that both parties have agreed on an extension of our partnership. Supporters are well used to seeing the logo on the back of the men’s and women’s jerseys, and their support of Adult and Youth club competitions is also a significant boost. We look forward to continuing to grow our partnership in the years ahead.”

Connacht Rugby extends partnership with Bank of Ireland

Head of Bank of Ireland Galway, Marie Meehan spoke at the launch and said;

“Bank of Ireland is delighted to continue our partnership with Connacht Rugby for the next two seasons. We’ve been working together to make sure we can support them in their huge ambitions for their whole community. As a result, we will now be supporting the women’s team, expanding our current sponsorship of the men’s game, and sponsoring all club and community tournaments across Connacht.”

For more News and Stories on all things Connacht Rugby, click here.

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