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Ireland Rugby team to play Scotland – Kick off 4:45pm

Andy Farrell has named his Ireland rugby team to play Scotland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, Kick off 4:45pm.

It seems this is just a follow on from Joe Schmidt with Sexton and Murray in the team with many of the players that started the embarrassing defeat to New Zealand are still playing.  Amazingly 13 of the team that played against Scotland in the world cup start on Saturday. Only O’Mahony and the retired Best don’t start.

Murray has not been at his high standards for nearly two years and with John Cooney the best player in Pro14 it’s a real pity Farrell didn’t have the ambition to start the Ulster player.

Johnny Sexton has been out with an injured knee for nearly two months but comes straight into the team ahead of the in-form Ross Byrne. Sexton the new Ireland captain would really have wanted to play and Farrell is lucky that Ireland is playing a very poor Scotland team at the weekend so even Sexton at 60% Ireland will still win easily.

 

Betting

Its Ireland – 13 with most bookmakers, so expect Ireland to win by at least 14pts. You can use Unibet code and maybe place a bet on Conway to score the first try at 12/1.

Ireland Team & Replacements (v Scotland, Guinness Six Nations Championship, Aviva Stadium, Saturday 1st February 2020, KO 16.45)

15. Jordan Larmour (St Mary’s College/Leinster) 21 caps
14. Andrew Conway (Garryowen/Munster) 18 caps
13. Garry Ringrose (UCD/Leinster) 28 caps
12. Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht) 23 caps
11. Jacob Stockdale (Lurgan/Ulster) 25 caps
10. Jonathan Sexton (St Marys College/Leinster) 88 caps Captain
9. Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster) 78 caps

1. Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster) 95 caps
2. Rob Herring (Ballynahinch/Ulster) 8 caps
3. Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster) 41 caps
4. Iain Henderson (Queens University/Ulster) 53 caps
5. James Ryan (UCD/Leinster) 23 caps
6. CJ Stander (Shannon/Munster) 38 caps
7. Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster) 23 caps
8. Caelan Doris (UCD/Leinster)*

Replacements:
16. Ronan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)*
17. Dave Kilcoyne (UL Bohemians/Munster) 36 caps
18. Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster) 23 caps
19. Devin Toner (Lansdowne/Leinster) 67 caps
20. Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster) 64 caps
21. John Cooney (Terenure College/Ulster) 8 caps
22. Ross Byrne (UCD/Leinster) 3 caps
23. Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster) 40 caps

 

 

2020 Six Nations fixtures

Ireland vs Scotland, 16.45, Saturday, February 1

Ireland vs Wales, 14.15, Saturday, February 8

England vs Ireland, 15.00, Sunday, February 23

Ireland v Italy, 14.15, Saturday, March 7

France vs Ireland, 20.00, Saturday, March 14

2021 Six Nations fixtures

Wales vs Ireland, 15.00, Sunday, February 7

Ireland vs France, 15.00, Sunday, February 14

Italy vs Ireland, 14.15, Saturday, February 27

Scotland vs Ireland, 15.00, Sunday, March 14

Ireland vs England, 16.45, Saturday, March 20

GAA Tips this Weekend

With the National League Hurling and Football back in full swing, we will have GAA betting tips to follow every week.

  1. Roscommon to beat Fermanagh – The Rossies looked to have easily beaten Laois at the weekend only to concede two goals in injury time. There will be no mistakes this weekend so get on Roscommon -2 at 11/10
  2. Cork to hammer Leitrim – Leitrim footballers face Cork this weekend and after a surprise draw against Derry last weekend it seems bookies have overreacted. It was more of a shocking performance by Derry that a super display by Leitrim. Cork will easily win this match so get on Cork -6 ay 1/1.
  3. Waterford to hammer Westmeath  – It was probably the performance of the weekend by Waterford to come back and beat Cork who scored two goals in the first three minutes. Westmeath had a hard day playing with 14 for much of the match against Galway, so expect Waterford to score four or five goals and easily cover the handicap. Get on Waterford hurlers – 10

If you would like to email our updated tips that include weather and team updates just drop us an email at info@sportsnewsireland.com

Division 1 Football: Kerry v Galway, Preview, Team News and live scores

Galway make the trip to Kerry on Saturday night with a 7pm in Tralee knowing a win will put them in an excellent position following their opening round win over Monaghan. We have a preview, team news and betting information. We will also be updating on the score of the game.

Preview

Padraig Joyce will be delighted his side got the win over Monaghan at Pearse Stadium. There is always room for improvement but he will be delighted to get the two points on the board. Speaking to RTE Sport he said, “It was very important to get the win with a couple of tough away matches coming up,”. He continued, “It’s a start, it’s a base, it’s the end of January, nothing is won until later in the year, but it’s great to get two points early in this tough league.”

Galway were full value for their win in my opinion. They had some impressive performances from Shane Walsh, Rob Finnerty and Finian O’Laoi. Joyce will be hoping the trio can put in a similar performance against Kerry in Tralee.

Kerry will be delighted with their performance over Dublin. They are not far away at all from them. What really impressed me was the fight they showed not to give up to the final whistle. Peter Keane was also impressed with the performance, he said after the game, “Had we won I wouldn’t have been jumping out of my skin in here and had we lost I wouldn’t have been crying,”. David Clifford, James O’Donoghue and Paul Murphy all impressed in that game for me and these will likely be key to Kerry getting a win here to.

Team News

Teams are not yet named. However, here are the teams from their last round of games.

Kerry: Shane Ryan; Jason Foley, Tadhg Morley, Brian O Beaglaoich; Paul Murphy ,Shane Enright, Gavin Crowley, Adrian Spillane, Sean O’Shea ; Gavin O’Brien , Paul Geaney  Stephen O’Brien ; James O’Donoghue , David Clifford , Tommy Walsh.

Galway: Connor Gleeson; Johnny Heaney, Seán Mulkerrin, Johnny Duane; Garry O’Donnell, John Daly, Cillian McDaid; Paul Conroy, Cein D’Arcy Michael Boyle, Finian Ó Laoí ,Michael Daly; Adrian Varley , Shane Walsh  Robert Finnerty

Betting

Kerry are favourites at odds of 4/11. Galway are outsiders at 10/3. I fancy Kerry to come out on top by 4 or 5 points here.

 

Division 1 Football: Mayo v Dublin, Preview, Team News and live scores

Mayo will meet Dublin on Saturday evening at 7pm in MacHale Park, Castlebar in Round 2 of the Allianz Football League. We have a preview, team news and match betting ahead of the game. We will also be providing live scores of the game.

Preview

Both sides come into the game on the back of drawn games in their opening fixtures. James Horan’s side needed a stoppage time goal from James Durcan to come away from Donegal with a draw. Dessie Farrell’s first game in the National League as Dublin boss ended in a 1-19 to 1-19 draw with old foes Kerry. Both sides will be very eager to get maximum points here.

James Horan will likely look to players Colm Boyle, Tom Parsons and Diarmuid O’Connor for leadership once more. Dessie Farrell will look to Ciaran Kilkenny, Dean Rock and Brian Fenton who was superb against Kerry landing four points from play.

Team News

Teams have yet to be revealed. However these were the teams that played last weekend first round games for the respective teams.

Mayo – D Clarke; O Mullin, B Harrison, C Boyle; P O’Hora, S Coen, P Durcan; T Parsons, J Flynn; B Walsh , D O’Connor, F Boland; R O’Donoghue, B Reape  J Carr

Dublin – E Comerford; P McMahon, D Byrne, E Murchan; E Lowndes, J Small, J McCarthy ; B Fenton  B Howard; N Scully  C Kilkenny , K McManamon  C McHugh , P Andrews, D Rock

Betting

Dublin are 8/15 to win the game, while Mayo are 2/1 for the win. The draw is available at around 8/1.

 

Division 2 Football: Fermanagh v Roscommon, Preview, Team News and live scores

Fermanagh will meet Roscommon on Sunday at 2pm in Brewster Park, Enniskillen. We have a preview, team news and betting ahead of the game. We will also be providing updates of the game.

Preview

Fermanagh played Kildare in their first round meeting at Newbridge. Fermanagh lost out in that game 2-12 to 0-14. They will certainly be looking for a win here or they could find themselves in trouble even at this early stage. Fermanagh will likely look to Conall Jones, Darren McGurn and Ryan Jones.

Roscommon come into the game on the back of a 2-14 to 2-14 draw against Laois. The Rossies threw the game away in truth as they were six points up going into injury time,

Laois scored two goals in the final few minutes of the game to grab a draw. Anthony Cunningham will be rather disappointed that his side didn’t win. However, Enda Smith and Donie Smith both impressed in the game.

Team News

Teams have yet to be announced but here are the sides from last weekend Allianz League games

Roscommon – C Lavin; D Murray, B Stack, G Patterson; P Scott, N Daly  R Hughes; T O’Rourke, S Killoran ; N Kilroy , E Smith , F Cregg; D Smith , C McKeon , C Cregg .

Fermanagh: James McGrath; Johnny Cassidy, Che Cullen, Kevin McDonnell, Declan McCusker, Richard O’Callaghan, Shane McGullion, Eoin Donnelly, Ryan Jones , Aidan Breen, Ultan Kelm , Ciaran Corrigan, Stephen McGullion, Conall Jones , Darragh McGurn

Betting

Roscommon are 4/7 favourites to win this game. In contrast, Fermanagh managed by Ryan McMenamin are 15/8. I expect this game to go right down to the wire but Roscommon for me should win by 2 or 3 points.

Dublin Racing Festival Preview | Racing Postcast

Racing Post’s Maddy Playle is joined by Nick Watts and Paddy Power’s Paul Binfield for a look back at all of the weekend’s highlights and a look towards the best bets this week.

DUBLIN RACING FESTIVAL

The Dublin Racing Festival will combine the best that the city has to offer over one weekend – join the party for the best of Dublin culture, music, fashion, food and jump racing that will simply take your breath away. Dazzle your senses in our jubilant celebration of Dublin with a full entertainment programme that supports culture, comedy, music, culinary delights and fashion. Savour the atmosphere that is unique only to Dublin – full of welcome, easy conversations, wit, warmth and humour.

*Children under the age of 18 enter for free but must be accompanied by a paying parent/guardian who is over 18*

France set for shock Six Nations win

The rugby world cup last autumn is a good marker for this upcoming six nations tournament. England fell agonizingly close to winning their second rugby world cup but were upstaged in the final by South Africa, who in the end won the match well.

England performed very well throughout the tournament winning their pool comfortably and then beating Australia in the quarter-final and their best performance against New Zealand in the semi-final. Unfortunately, England couldn’t repeat their performance against New Zealand and couldn’t bring the trophy home.

England had some top performers during the work cup in Owen Farrell, Jonny May, and George Ford who all played superbly well in their respective positions. However, the key player to stand out was Mario Itoje who was very impressive against New Zealand especially. Given the forward position he played is important Itoje looks a top prospect.

Naturally, with a runner up position at the world cup, England goes into this Six Nations tournaments as favourites at odds of 1.9 (10/11), however, they may not find it their own way.

WALES IN THE SIX NATIONS

The next best performer from Europe during the world cup was Wales. They were narrowly defeated 19-16 in the semi-final of the world cup and played a good tournament. They just rain out of steam in the 2nd half of the semi-final and were undone by the forward strength of the South Africans, but they can be proud of themselves and a few key standouts were Leigh Halfpenny and Dan Biggar who both should be fit and ready for this six nations tournament. 

As defending champions, the pressure will be on Wales to deliver a repeat performance however they have to visit England and Ireland during the tournament which won’t be easy.

Next best after Wales was Ireland and France. Ireland were heavily defeated by New Zealand in the quarter-finals and with a squad who is aging they will need young talent to come through to keep them in the race for this years tournament. 

Ireland will always be competitive, but they may well miss out on glory given France, England and Wales have better squads.

The French are improving and have a good crop of young talent coming through which could cause problems in this tournament. They were defeated 20-19 by Wales in the quarter-final and there isn’t much between these sides and the French will be well prepared for this tournament.

 

Preview:

France opens this year’s tournament with a home match against England who may still be wounded by that final loss to South Africa. If so France can pounce with home advantage and newfound confidence in the backs and forward line. With Italy at home after that, France outperforms their odds of 8.0 (7/1).

As mentioned England are hot favourites to land the six nations at 1.8 (4/5) but we would be wary of advising punters to go in on an odds on price when this tournament should be very competitive and close.

Ireland are 5.0 (4/1) to win the tournament and like France, Ireland will have to get off to a great start with a win over Scotland to have any chance of lifting the trophy in March. They have back to back home matches and after Scotland, they face Wales at home before heading to Twickenham to face England. 

Wales are next best at 7.0 (6/1) to win the six nations and have a nice schedule on paper to lead from the front and do well. They start with a home match against Italy which should be a comfortable victory. 

Tips

Our top tip for the six nations may be a surprise to many but the young French team can cause a lot of problems and with the increased power in their forward ranks and more flair in the backs, the French can defeat England in the opening match follow up with another victory over Italy. They travel on the road to Wales and Scotland then the final match, which may well be the key match is at home to Ireland.

Our next tip is in the ‘Grand Slam’ Winner market. This market is won if a team successfully wins all their matches. England are the most likely team to win at  the odds on the best sportsbooks of 2.62 (13/8), but our top tip for this market is now a winner at 2.25 (5/4). This is our best bet for the tournament as the quality of the teams is high and it’s likely that each team will suffer at least one defeat, meaning.

 

Top Tip

8.0 (7/1) France to win the Six Nations Tournament 

2.25 (5/4 ) No winner of the Grand Slam

2020 and 2021 Six Nations Fixtures confirmed

New Ireland rugby manager Andy Farrell will begin his tenure in the Six Nations with a home against Scotland on the 1st of February 2020 it has been confirmed after the fixture details for the 2020 and 2021 were released.

The second game will also be at home to 2019 Grand Slam winners Wales on Saturday 8th of February 2020 , while Farrell will travel to a place he knows oh so well on the 23rd of February when he brings Ireland to Twickenham, the fourth side Ireland will face in the tournament that year is Italy also at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday 4th of March , whether Conor O’Shea will be at the helm still we just have to wait and see.

LAST GAME

The final game which could potentially be a Grand Slam game for Ireland presuming they beat all other 4 teams is a difficult assignment in Paris against France. This game will the final game of the tournament for 2020, it’s on the 14th of February.

The tournament chiefs have also released the 2021 fixtures. It looks a very difficult assignment again. Ireland will travel to Wales for their first game of the 2021 Six Nations on Sunday the 7th of February, a week later on Valentine’s Day they welcome France to the Aviva Stadium. A loss in either of these game would impact their Six Nations hugely. On the 27th of February Ireland will travel to Rome to play Italy, before they finish with two very tough games away to Scotland on Sunday 14th of March and home to England on Saturday the 20th of March.

Fixture details of both Six Nations 2020 and 2021 can be seen below with times and dates:

2020 Six Nations fixtures

Ireland vs Scotland, 16.45, Saturday, February 1

Ireland vs Wales, 14.15, Saturday, February 8

England vs Ireland, 15.00, Sunday, February 23

Ireland v Italy, 14.15, Saturday, March 7

France vs Ireland, 20.00, Saturday, March 14

2021 Six Nations fixtures

Wales vs Ireland, 15.00, Sunday, February 7

Ireland vs France, 15.00, Sunday, February 14

Italy vs Ireland, 14.15, Saturday, February 27

Scotland vs Ireland, 15.00, Sunday, March 14

Ireland vs England, 16.45, Saturday, March 20

Classy Cats beat Dublin 3-21 to 0-18

Brian Cody’s Kilkenny made the perfect start to the league after a convincing 3-21 to 0-18 win over Dublin at Nowlan Park. The 12 point was even made the more better as Kilkenny finished the game with just 14 players after Richie Leahy was sent off on 26 minutes.

Both sides tried to lay down a marker early on with the tackles going in hard but fair. Oisin O’Rorke opened Dublin’s account from a free after Danny Sutcliffe was fouled. Dublin would not lead the game anymore however. Kilkenny minus the Ballyhale contingent got a super goal on 11 minutes when Ger Aylward finished to the net after some good play from Paddy Deegan, Billy Ryan and Walter Walsh.

The Cats got their second major on 24 minutes. This time Billy Ryan was the scorer as he intercepted a handpass before running and firing to the net. It was 2-06 to 0-06 now, but Richie Leahy then dismissed by Paud O’Dwyer for a frontal challenge. Ronan Hayes pointed the free. Niall Brassil almost instantly went down the field and raised a white flag for Kilkenny, as did Alan Murphy (free), to make it 2-08 to 0-07. Murphy continued his accuracy from frees taking Kilkenny in 2-10 to 0-10 at the break.

Sean Moran registered Dublin’s opening score of the half, Eamonn Dillion then followed that up. Murphy and Brassil though extended the Kilkenny lead back out to 6 points by the 44th minute. Then game the game clincher on 54 minutes. Billy Ryan grabbing his second goal of the game Dublin keeper Alan Nolan unable to keep it out. Brian Cody was delighted with the win speaking to RTE Sport he said, “Before the game we would have been looking at it as a huge, huge battle to try to win it. I suppose we got into the game early and we kept it going well, and we’re happy today”. He also said Richie Hogan is going well in training and is likely to return next weekend for the Carlow game, he said, “Richie (Hogan) is going well in training, and he might be available for next week’s game (against Carlow).”

Kilkenny: E Murphy; C Wallace, H Lawlor, C Delaney; M Cody, P Deegan (0-2), M Carey (0-1); C Fogarty (0-2), A. Murphy (0-8, 7f, ‘65); J Donnelly (0-1), W Walsh (0-2), R Leahy; B Ryan (2-0), G Aylward (1-0), N Brassil (0-2). Subs: M Keoghan (0-1) for G Aylward (46mins), J Maher for A Murphy (52), T Walsh for Cody (57), B Sheehan (0-1) for B Ryan (60), L Scanlon (0-1) for Brassil (65).
Dublin: A Nolan; P Smyth, E O’Donnell, J Madden; C Crummey (0-1), D Gray, C O’Callaghan; F Whitely, R McBride (0-1); T Connolly (0-1), D Sutcliffe (0-1), R Hayes (0-2, 1f); C Boland, O O’Rorke (0-6, 4f), E Dillon (0-2). Subs: S Moran (0-4, 3f) for F Whitely (30mins), Jake Malone for J Madden (HT), Mark Schutte for C Bolang (40), L McMullen for T Connolly (57), J Hetherton for McBride (65).

Waterford Hurlers claim valuable 1-24 to 3-17 result over Cork

Liam Cahill’s Waterford hurlers opened their Allianz League account with a valuable 1-24 to 3-17 win over Cork at Walsh Park. Kieran Kingston’s side though will be wondering how they let the game slip by them shooting an astonishing 17 wides. 

In fairness to Cork they made a superb start to this game rattling in two goals in the opening three minutes. Shane Kingston grabbed the first major, which was soon followed up by a strike from Conor Lehane. However, the Bennett brothers, Kieran and Stephen brought the Deise back into contention with some excellent points.

CORK GOAL

Patrick Curran netted on 12 minutes to reduce the gap to the minimum. Calum Lyons and Neil Montgomery doing most of work before laying the ball off to Curran. Jack Fagan and Stephen Bennett knocked over points to give Waterford the lead on 14 minutes. Patrick Horgan was been well marshalled by the Waterford defence, in fact the Glen Rovers man failed to score from play in the game. However, his accuracy from frees kept Cork firmly in the hunt. Shane Kingston should of done better on 27 minutes when his goal bound shot went wide. Stephen Bennett hit two points over in added time, while Patrick Curran also raised two white flags as Waterford led at the break 1-13 to 2-08.

Waterford started the second half where they left off. Stephen Bennett firing over two points in just over a minute. However, Cork defenders Mark Coleman and Damian Cahalane pointed for Kieran Kingston’s charges. However, Waterford pushed on in the an 11 minute outscoring the Rebels by three points. Horgan and Bennett traded points from frees on 68 minutes, before Shane Kingston goal meant Cork had a chance of rescueing a draw. Damian Cahalane registered his third point of the game with a point now between the sides. Waterford held on for the win they deserved in on the balance of play. 

 

Waterford: S O’Keeffe; C Gleeson, C Prunty, S McNulty; C Lyons, D Fives, I Daly (0-01); J Prendergast (0-01), J Dillon; N Montgomery, J Fagan (0-02; 0-01 sideline), K Bennett (0-5; 0-01 sideline); D Hutchinson, S Bennett (0-11; 0-07f, 0-01 sideline), P Curran (1-03).

Subs used: K Power for C Lyons (Blood, 22-25), S Fives for C Gleeson (30), M Kearney (0-01) for J Dillon (50), P Hogan for D Hutchinson (54), D Lyons for N Montgomery (59) and T Barron for J Fagan (62).

Cork: A Nash; N O’Leary, R Downey, S O’Donoghue; C O’Leary, T O’Mahony, D Cahalane (0-03); B Cooper, M Coleman (0-02); S Harnedy (0-02), D Fitzgibbon (0-02), A Walsh; C Lehane (1-00), S Kingston (2-02), P Horgan (0-06f).

Subs used: L Meade for A Walsh (50), S O’Leary Hayes for N O’Leary (54), S Twomey for C Lehane (60) and R O’Flynn for S Harnedy (68).

 

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