Eddie Dunbar To Continue Banteer’s Legacy At Tokyo Olympics

Team Ireland’s Eddie Dunbar will be competing in his first senior Olympics on Saturday morning when he takes part in the Men’s Road Race alongside Dan Martin and Nicholas Roche.

Dunbar took part in the 2011 European Youth Olympics in Trabzon, Turkey so he feels comfortable in an Olympic setting.

The 24-year-old Irishman is excited to represented Ireland at the Olympics, even if he believes there are bigger events on the professional cycling calendar.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m incredibly proud to represent Ireland in the Olympics and I always love representing my country, it’s something that means a lot to me,” said Dunbar.

“But as I said, I think in terms of cycling itself, it’s something that’s you don’t think of like I’m not thinking [of Paris] in three years time, you know, I’m thinking ‘Oh next year I’d love to do the tour’ or ‘I’d love to do the Giro’ or something like that.”

Dunbar is the youngest rider of the trio to represent Ireland on Saturday and will follow in the footsteps of Ireland’s first-ever Olympic medalist, Pat O’Callaghan – the gold medal winner was also from Banteer.

The Olympian was only 10 when a statue of O’Callaghan was erected in his hometown and always heard about the hammer throw champion growing up.

He has also been interested in rugby from a young age and used to get the same Munster players’ autographs every week at Musgrave Park.

“I probably watch more rugby than I do cycling being honest.”

The road cyclist comes into the Olympics off the back of a strong performance at the Tour de Suisse, where he won the prize of Best Youth Cyclist after helping INEOS Grenadiers teammate Richard Carapaz to the Yellow jersey.

His performances from Frauenfeld to Andermatt came several months after a crash at the Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali.

He was slow to come back from the crash but felt confident heading into the race in Switzerland.

“I trained super good for two and a half weeks, I got called into Suisse, probably rode the best race my life there.”

The young cyclist is part of the Olympic cycling team ahead of Sam Bennett, who would have got in had the selection process been based on rankings.

However, Dunbar is a specialist when it comes to hills and with the course featuring 4,800m worth of climbing to do, the Banteer man is a good selection for the job.

The cyclist is expecting a different kind of race compared to the tours on the cycling calendar – the race being for one day only is a clear example of the differences it has.

From speaking to Nico Roche and his 2008 Olympics teammate Philip Deignan, Dunbar has concluded that the race relies more on individual confidence and awareness rather than a set strategy.

“I think it’s a race where you have to go in open-minded and see what happens. Just be attentive. And yeah, if you feel good, at a certain point, just go for it, you know?”

To see the Olympic schedule for Irish athletes on Saturday, July 24th, click here.

WATCH: Lions 1st Test v South Africa 2009

The British and Lions will play South Africa for the first time in 12 years on Saturday evening after completing their warm-up tests.

The team selected by Warren Gatland and his selectors scream set-piece play, which is a big strength of Rassie Erasmus’ South Africa side.

It is an aspect of the game that has been woven into the DNA of South African throughout time, with the first test in 2009 being a great example of that.

One thing the 2021 Lions will not want to do is reveal their trick plays too early like Ian McGeechan’s 2009 team did after seven minutes in Durban.

Their (fantastic) move was stopped on the try-line by Jean De Villiers and that moment set the tone for the first half – frustration.

Tendai ‘The Beast’ Mtawarira dominated the Lions and was a living, breathing nightmare for Lions tighthead Phil Vickery.

Their lineout was filled with easy targets to win the ball, including Victor Matfield.

Stephen Jones, although brilliant on the ball when the Lions fought back, missed some early penalties, which would have won them the game had they gone over.

Francois Steyn, who is in the 2021 Springbok squad, and former Ulster star Ruan Pienaar shone with their territorial kicking, constantly applying pressure to the Lions’ starting fullback Lee Byrne.

When Rob Kearney entered the fray, things got better for the 2009 Lions but they were down 26-7 after 50 minutes.

The touring side’s best moments in the game came from their centre partnership, Jamie Roberts and Brian O’Driscoll.

Parallels can be drawn to the upcoming Lions centre partnership of Henshaw and Daly and the 2009 duo.

Roberts, much like Henshaw, is a world-class crash-ball option that can use his power to burst through defensive lines.

Daly is a facilitator, an extra wide man – not on the level of Brian O’Driscoll, but is anyone?

Brian O’Driscoll’s mazy runs and Roberts’ steamrolling carries brought life into a deflated Lions side in the first test in 2009.

Tom Croft benefitted from O’Driscoll’s mazy runs and scrum-half distributor Mike Phillips also got over the line thanks to a space the Lions were able to open up with their physicality in the final 30 minutes.

The Springboks’ physicality proved to be too much to handle for most of the first test but the lack of a bomb squad let McGeechan’s men back into it.

However, their trick plays, namely O’Driscoll using a dummy runner to open up space for himself and an inventive lineout involving Jamie Heaslip did not go to plan.

Ugo Monye was unable to convert a second time late into the game, having been the final person in the first trick play.

Gatland will have to wait for the right time to play his cards right in this tour if he is to avoid the mistakes that were made in 2009.

The 2009 Lions could have won the series without those mistakes against the 2007 World Champions.

A repeat of the same scenarios will only spell disaster.

British and Irish Lions: 15 Lee Byrne (Ospreys/Wales), 14 Tommy Bowe (Ospreys/Ireland), 13 Brian O’Driscoll (Leinster/Ireland), 12 Jamie Roberts (Cardiff Blues/Wales), 11 Ugo Monye (Harlequins/England), 10 Stephen Jones (Scarlets/Wales), 9 Mike Phillips (Ospreys/Wales), 8 Jamie Heaslip (Leinster/Ireland), 7 David Wallace (Munster/Ireland), 6 Tom Croft (Leicester Tigers/England), 5 Paul O’Connell (Munster/Ireland – captain), 4 Alun-Wyn Jones (Ospreys/Wales), 3 Phil Vickery (London Wasps/England), 2 Lee Mears (Bath/England), 1 Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues/Wales).

Replacements: 16 Matthew Rees (Scarlets/Wales), 17 Adam Jones (Ospreys/Wales), 18 Donncha O’Callaghan (Munster/Ireland), 19 Martyn Williams (Cardiff Blues/Wales), 20 Harry Ellis (Leicester Tigers/England), 21 Ronan O’Gara (Munster/Ireland), 22 Rob Kearney (Leinster/Ireland).

South Africa: 15 Frans Steyn, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adi Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 John Smit (c), 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.

Replacements: 16 Gurthrö Steenkamp, 17 Deon Carstens, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Danie Rossouw, 20 Ricky Januarie, 21 Jaque Fourie, 22 Morné Steyn.

Hurling Preview: Clare v Cork – Live Scores, Betting, Team News

Here is all you need to know ahead of the senior hurling Round 2 qualifier this Saturday between Clare and Cork

CLICK HERE FOR LIVE SCORES ON CLARE V CORK

This match will throw in at 16:30 in the LIT Gaelic Grounds, Limerick. The match will also be televised by Sky Sports for anyone without a ticket.

Clare was relegated to the qualifiers after a contentious game against Tipperary in the Munster championship. The Banner since beat Wexford by three points last weekend.

Other than the obvious choice of Tony Kelly, young corner forward Mark Rodgers was a bright spark when he came on in the last two games. Hopefully he can improve on those performances against Cork.

On the other hand, Cork were one of many teams to be taught a lesson by reigning champions, Limerick in Munster. Cork did not play badly in the game but could not match Limerick’s quality across the field.

Corner forward, Shane Kingston managed to score 1-01 in that loss so he will be a major part of Cork’s attack in the remainder of the championship.

These two nearby counties last faced each other in the league in May. Cork won that game in a close 0-22 to 1-18, expect this game to also go down to the wire.

Clare’s All-Ireland Rd2 Qualifier v Cork takes place in the LIT Gaelic Grounds in Limerick on Saturday at 4.30pm.
The support from the stands provided a huge boost to the players last Saturday so make sure to back the Banner again. Contact your club secretary for tickets ASAP pic.twitter.com/I1eC8Z0Rbo

— CLUB CLARE (@ClubClareHS) July 19, 2021

Predicted Starting 15

Clare

E. Quilligan; R. Hayes, C. Cleary, P. Flanagan; D. Ryan, J. Conlon, P. Fitzpatrick; C. Galvin, C. Malone; A. McCarthy, D. Reidy, R. Taylor; A. Shanagher, T. Kelly, M. Rodgers.

Cork

P. Collins; S. O’Donoghue, D. Cahalane, N. O’Leary; E. Cadogan, M. Coleman, T. O’Mahony; D. Fitzgibbon, G. Millerick; C. Cahalane, S. Harnedy, R. O’Flynn; S. Kingston, P. Horgan, J. O’Connor.

Betting

Cork is the bookmakers’ favourites to win with odds of 5/6.

A draw has odds of 9/1.

Clare are very narrowly underdogs with odds of 6/5 to win.

Score Prediction

Either way this game goes, it is going to be a very close affair. Both teams seem evenly matched in every position.

But Clare have fuelled themselves with confidence after beating Wexford and this may spur them on to victory. Expect them to beat Cork by less than three points.

Watch the Half-Time Highlights of @GaaClare v @OfficialWexGAA in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Qualifier Round 1 here!
Half-Time Score:
Clare: 1-15
Wexford: 1-10#GAANOW pic.twitter.com/oexJjz5m84

— The GAA (@officialgaa) July 17, 2021

Dundalk Equalise Twice To Ensure Exciting Tie In Tallinn

Dundalk came from behind twice against Levadia Tallinn in Tallaght Stadium on Thursday night in the second qualifying round of the UEFA Europa Conference League to ensure an exciting second leg.

It took just 66 seconds for the side to go behind to the 2020-21 Estonian Cup winners, courtesy of a Bogdan Vastsuk strike.

However, Dundalk were level within a minute of play after League of Ireland standout Will Patching put a finishing touch to Dan Kelly’s ball.

Yet, Dundalk continued to struggle to get a grip on the game throughout the early stages and their nervy start allowed Levadia to cause more problems.

Ernest Agyiri looked very dangerous on the left flank after already assisting in the game but their second goal came from another avenue of play.

Zakaria Belgarishvili spotted Vastsuk when he got the ball between the lines and fed the striker, who chipped Alessio Abibi to regain the lead.

Dundalk started to find the desired tempo soon after going behind for a second time.

David McMillan missed a strong chance before taking another one moments later to bring the sides level once again.

Dundalk dominance grew in front of the 1,000 fans in the stadium and some penalty shouts helped to get the crowd louder.

Dundalk continued to impose pressure on the Estonians in the second-half, with Vinny Perth’s side doing all but finishing off plays.

Greg Sloggett’s introduction in place of Wilifred Zahibo gave the FAI Cup champions even more urgency in attack.

However, try as they did, the third goal did not come for the Louth-based side, who now must travel to Tallinn and win to go through.

Dundalk will face Levadia Tallinn at the Le Coq Arena in Estonia’s capital city on Thursday, July 29th at 5:30 pm IST.

To see the report for the Bohemians game, click here.

Dundalk: Allessio Abibi; Raivis Jurkovskis, Andy Boyle C, Sonni Nattestad, Darragh Leahy; Will Patching, Wilfried Zahibo (Greg Sloggett, 58), Samuel Stanton (Sean Murray, 75); Daniel Kelly, Patrick McEleney, David McMillan (Ole Erik Midtskogen 87).

Levadia Tallinn: Karl Andre Vallner; Ilja Antonov (Trevor Elhi, 56), Maximiliano Ugge, Maksim Podholjuzin, Miljian Ilic (Rasmus Peetson, HT); Frank Liivak (Karl Rudolf Oigus 79), Marko Puntincanin, Brent Lepistu C, Bogdan Vastsuk, Ernest Agyiri (Mark Oliver Roosnupp, 67); Zakaria Beglarishvili.

Sanita Puspure easily wins her heat in the Women’s Single

Today was the opening day of action in Tokyo for Team Ireland athletes this morning, with all attention firmly focused on rowing as Sanita Puspure in the Women’s Single (W1X) and Philp Doyle and Ronan Byrne in the Men’s Double (M2X) took to the water early on.

Puspure demonstrated her class by cruising home first in her heat in a time of 7:46.08, almost eight seconds ahead of second-placed Kenia Lechuga of Mexico and progressing straight through to the quarter finals. In the men’s event meanwhile, with only the top three moving to the semi-finals, Doyle and Byrne finished just outside automatic qualifying in fourth place in a time of 6:14.40 and will now compete in the repechage tomorrow (Saturday) morning.

Puspure led from the start, and was never under pressure throughout the race. However, the competition is proving extremely high in this event, with the fastest heat times being posted in heat six by Emma Twigg (New Zealand) and Anna Souwer (Netherlands). Timings on the course may hold little relevance though, with conditions ever changeable.

Speaking after her race, Puspure was relieved to get her Tokyo 2020 Olympic campaign underway: “That’s the first race done, I’m focusing on the next one now and taking it one race at a time. I’m not thinking too far ahead, and am staying calm and collected. The conditions were okay, it swings around a lot. For our race, we had a cross head, and you can see by the flags here it is a tailwind so it changes rapidly. You just have to go with it.”

Elsewhere in swimming, Shane Ryan will not start in the Men’s 100M Backstroke. His decision to withdraw is based on persistent shoulder pain that he has been experiencing, which is specific to this particular stroke. The decision was made in consultation with the Team Ireland swimming and medical staff in Tokyo. He will, however, still compete in the Men’s 100M Butterfly and the Men’s 4x200M Freestyle Relay.

The official Opening Ceremony of the 2020 TokyoOlympic Games will take place later this evening Tokyo time (12pm noon Irish time), while Day One tomorrow (Saturday, July 24^th) is an action-packed day for Irish athletes with a host of rowers in action and the men’s road race in cycling. Gymnast Rhys McClenaghan will also get his first taste of action in the morning, while Kurt Walker will be first up in the boxing ring for Ireland. Jack Woolley will begin his Olympic campaign in Taekwondo, swimmers Ellen Walshe and Darragh Greene will hit the water in the evening, while the Irish hockey team faces South Africa in their first pool match.

ENDS

MORNING RESULTS DAY ZERO: JULY 23^RD, 2021

ROWING

Women’s Single Heats: Sanita Puspure (IRL) 1^st with 7:46.08 (Progresses to quarter-final).

Men’s Double Heats: Philip Doyle and Ronan Byrne (IRL) 4^th with 6:14.40 (Progresses to Repechage)

DAY ONE SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES ARE IRISH TIME): JULY 24^TH, 2021

*Note the schedule may be subject to change*

01:40 Rowing – Philip Doyle and Ronan Byrne – Men’s Double Repechage

02:00 Gymnastics – Rhys McClenaghan – Men’s Qualification

02:10 Rowing – Monika Dukarska and Aileen Crowley – Women’s Pair, Heats

02:50 Rowing – Aoife Casey and Margaret Cremen – Women’s Lightweight Double, Heats

03:00 Cycling – Nicolas Roche, Dan Martin & Eddie Dunbar – Men’s Road Race

03:30 Rowing – Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy – Men’s Lightweight Double, Heats

04:00 Rowing – Aifric Keogh, Eimear Lambe, Fiona Murtagh, Emily Hegarty – Women’s Four, Heats

04:03 Boxing – Kurt Walker (IRL) v Jose Quiles Brotons (Spain), Men’s Feather Round of 32

05:15* Taekwondo – Jack Woolley (IRL) v Lucas Guzman (ARG), Men’s -58kg Round of 16 (*further fights to be confirmed throughout the day)

11:28 Swimming – Ellen Walshe – Women’s 100m Butterfly, Heat 2

12:32 Swimming – Darragh Greene – Men’s 100m Breaststroke, Heat 4

13:15 Hockey – Ireland v South Africa – Pool Match

Olympic Rowing: Ireland’s first athletes compete at Tokyo 2020

Team Ireland opened their account at Tokyo 2020 with women’s skulls and men’s double skulls at the Sea Forrest Waterway this morning

W1x heat – Women’s single skull – Sanita Puspure

The 39-year-old Puspore lined up against Uganda, Greece, Trinidad and Tobago, Singapore and Mexico in the heat 2.

The first three rowers home would qualify for the quarterfinals on Monday.

Puspure is one of the more accomplished athletes at these Games, having competed at London 2012 and Rio 2016, carving a path for Ireland in international rowing.

The race set off at 10:40 in Tokyo, Puspore starting slow and composed but got herself into first place before the first 500 metres.

The Latvian born Irish rower held her lead for the remaining 1500 metres extending it to give herself comfortable qualification for the next round.

Finishing the race eight seconds ahead of Mexico and Greece who also qualified, she has sent a message to the other high performers in Team GB, Russia and the USA that she is a main contender in this event.

🚣‍♀️ #rowing

Well that was, eh, dominant. Sanita Puspure qualified safely to the quarter finals in the opening #TeamIreland ☘️ event in #Tokyo2020

Her time 7:46.08 was 8 seconds clear of Mexico with Greece taking the final spot 👏 pic.twitter.com/htoDbKCQOm

— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) July 23, 2021

M2x heat – Men’s double skull – Ronan Byrne and Philip Doyle

Byrne and Doyle would face Switzerland, New Zealand and Poland in their first heat of Tokyo 2020. Top three in this race would qualify for the semi-finals on Monday.

The two men came into this competition aiming for the finals and even medal places after finishing second at the 2021 Lucerne World Rowing Cup.

The pair has been competing together for some years even though they hail from opposing ends of the country; Byrne is from Cork while Doyle lives in Belfast.

Their race set off at 11:40 in Tokyo’s warm morning, the contest began close and fast. Poland started in first and held the lead throughout.

The other three nations battled it out and disappointingly the Irish men finished last with Switzerland in second and New Zealand in third.

Byrne and Doyle will now battle it out in the repechage to see if they can make the semi-finals.

🚣‍♀️ #rowing

Next up is the Men’s Double of Philip Doyle and Ronan Byrne competing at 02:40 Irish time. Top three advance to the semi finals:

Ireland
Switzerland
New Zealand
Poland

Let’s go #TeamIreland #Tokyo2020 pic.twitter.com/VkuL1zZSKG

— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) July 23, 2021

Tomorrow’s Races – Saturday 24th (Irish time)

02:10 – W2 – Women’s pair – Monika Dubarska, Aileen Crowley

02:50 – LW2x – Lightweight women’s double skull – Aoife Casey, Margaret Cremen

03:30 – LM2x – Lightweight men’s double skull – Fintan McCarthy, Paul O’Donovan

04:00 – W4 – Women’s four – Aifric Keogh, Eimear Lambe, Emily Hegarty, Fiona Murtagh

https://3.249.64.60/other_sports/olympic-games/olympics-schedule-fri-sat-23rd-24th-july-irish-athletes-timetable/

Olympics Schedule Fri/Sat 23rd/24th July – Irish Athletes Timetable

Here is a schedule with all Irish athletes competing in the Olympics on the days Friday, 23rd night into Saturday, 24th July morning.