Who is Ireland's greatest ever Lion?
And with Tadhg Furlong in line for his ninth consecutive start for the Lions in Test matches this Saturday, is he in the conversation of greatest ever Irish Lion?
John O'Sullivan and Nathan Johns preview the third test between the Lions and the Wallabies.
Produced by John Casey.
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The Irish Sun
7 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
Nicole Owens reveals she nearly quit before fairytale All-Ireland triumph send-off with Dublin
Dublin star Nicole Owens admitted she was ready to walk away from inter-county football before being convinced to stay on FULL-TIME Nicole Owens reveals she nearly quit before fairytale All-Ireland triumph send-off with Dublin DUBLIN star Nicole Owens was ready to walk away last year before her fairytale ending. Owens and Hannah Tyrrell waved inter-county football goodbye after Sunday's sizzling 2-16 to 0-10 All-Ireland final win over Meath at Croke Park. 2 Dublin reclaimed the All-Ireland title after a comfortable win over Meath on Sunday 2 Nicole Owens ended her inter-county career with another title at GAA HQ The 32-year-old suffered her second torn ACL in 2022 before an achilles problem further hampered her progress last season. Mick Bohan walked as manager before Paul Casey and Derek Murray took the reins. And Owens was coaxed to stay on and win her fifth All-Ireland to bow out at the top. Owens hailed Orlagh Nolan for helping her through the dark days before Sunday's dream send-off. Nolan battled back from her own cruciate hell to make a stunning comeback in their All-Ireland semi-final win over Galway last month, before starting in Sunday's showpiece against all the odds and bagging the player of the match award. Owens said: 'I was on the fence about coming back or not this year and I think I was in a bad way starting. "I think it speaks to this team, a few of the girls I would have chatted to, Paul and Derek would have been on to me. 'I was in a really bad way at the start of this year. They just kind of put an arm around me and got me back in. 'We already spoke about Orlagh Nolan on the pitch, but off the pitch, having someone there on the s**t days, to be in the gym doing the same stuff over and over again, that was massive. 'I'm so proud of this team and how that ended, and how we had a performance when it mattered. I'm glad that I managed to score a goal to cap it off.' 'Aged like milk on a windowsill in July' - Watch BBC's GAA pundits ALL predict Donegal to beat Kerry Owens admits her injury woes took their toll, but helped her find a new resolve to keep going. Winning another All-Ireland was beyond her wildest dreams when she was about to quit less than 12 months ago, but the support of Dublin's new bosses was vital as they delivered the goods in their first year in charge. She said: 'If you look at the likes of Martha (Byrne) down here and Leah Caffrey, who've probably missed about one game in the past 12 years. I'd love to have been that consistent and that solid. 'But, unfortunately… some of us maybe weren't made to play football to this extent! It's allowed me to develop a bit of resilience, and, look, I've always been given a lot of trust. 'The lads backed me when I came back this year, and I was given chances because of what I'd done in previous years. "And I think you can't understate the importance of that, the team trusting me and the role that played. I'm just delighted.' FINISHED BUSINESS And Owens knew on Sunday morning that Dublin would get the job done. She felt they had unfinished business from their semi-final win over Galway. They needed extra-time to win 3-14 to 2-14 in Tullamore as Carla Rowe's cheeky back-heel in overtime proved crucial. Meath bore the brunt of a serious backlash in Sunday's final, as Dublin raced into a 2-9 to 0-4 half time lead and never looked back. Owens said: 'Yeah, I felt really good on Sunday morning, to be honest because I think after the last game, as a team and as an individual, a lot of us weren't very happy. 'I think we knew that we hadn't really done ourselves justice and done the work we've put in justice, and the work the background team have put in and the stats team have put in justice. 'I think the first half was probably the best performance we've put in for quite a while.'
Irish Times
7 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Lions had special moments but lacked consistency needed to be ranked among greats
How best to describe the 2025 British and Irish Lions tour? Even before the final Test was interrupted by lightning, it was a strange old series. To the Lions the spoils but it was Australia who led for all but 60 seconds of the last two Tests. Just a solitary point divided the teams over three games and it was only courtesy of Will Stuart's late consolation that the visitors collected 10 tries compared to the Wallabies' nine. What would have happened had Joe Schmidt's side had an extra warm-up fixture or made a faster start in Brisbane? Had Will Skelton been fit for the pivotal opening game, or Rob Valetini and Taniela Tupou featured for more than 40 and 60 minutes in the series respectively? If Australia had not lost their first-choice outhalf on the eve of the series, or protected their 23-5 lead in Melbourne? Not forgetting, of course, the hairline margins in the final minute of the second Test as the match officials sought to establish whether or not Jac Morgan's clearout on Carlo Tizzano was permissible. As they sipped their winners' champagne on the long flight home the Lions will be aware their 2-1 series victory was way too close for comfort. At which point there are two schools of thought. The first is that winning is the only currency worth discussing, particularly on this kind of tour. This is only the second victorious Lions series since 1997, which makes it a pretty rare achievement. Losing a dead rubber at the end of another absurdly long season should not overshadow everything that has gone before. READ MORE The evidence of the past two months, however, has been rather less black and white. When you publicly set your stall out to smash your hosts by a whopping 3-0 margin it subsequently becomes difficult to claim sporting immortality if you scrape over the line against a team recently ranked eighth in the world. The Lions have still not won a series in South Africa or New Zealand this century. Will Skelton of the Wallabies runs as Tom Curry of the British and Irish Lions during the third Test in Sydney. Photograph:There can also be no glossing over one or two other uncomfortable facts. Remember the pre-departure Argentina game in Dublin when the Pumas fully deserved their 28-24 victory? Give or take the sheeting rain on Saturday night, there were similarities in the way the Wallabies expertly seized their opportunities and also looked the more energetic side. And how often, as Andy Farrell himself has acknowledged, did his squad really click into top gear, even against weakened Super Rugby opposition? The honest answer is not often enough given the resources, financial and personnel-wise, at their disposal. Aside from the estimable Morgan and Tadhg Beirne , how many Lions finished the tour visibly in better form than they started it? Part of that could simply be individuals easing off slightly with the series already decided. But Farrell and Maro Itoje had repeatedly stressed that their players remained highly motivated by the possibility of a clean sweep. More pertinent was the excessive amount of rugby played by several of these Lions this season and, consequently, the accumulated wear and tear. The Wallabies' sharp improvement also has to be taken into account. They are a particular threat with turnover ball in hand, never took a backward step and appear to be turning a corner under Schmidt. That said, the acid test of their resurrection still awaits. Their next two Tests against the world champions South Africa, in Johannesburg and Cape Town this month, will be instructive, particularly if they can get all their best players on the pitch at the same time. And maybe that caveat also sums up the slightly contradictory 2025 Lions? When Itoje, Dan Sheehan , Beirne, Jamison Gibson‑Park and the supreme Finn Russell were all out on the field together, with Tom Curry and Morgan riding shotgun, they looked a serious team. Beirne won the medal for player of the series and Russell picked up the prize awarded by the tour sponsor Howden. Ireland's Tadhg Beirne was named player of the series. Photograph: Billy Stickland/Inpho In the final analysis, however, they perhaps needed a couple more world-class performers to elevate the squad to the pantheon. While Farrell's Lions had their special moments they did not ultimately show the consistency to demand inclusion among the truly great British and Irish squads of yesteryear. What was never in dispute, though, was the touring team's collective bond. Elliot Daly and Tomos Williams may have left early with injuries but both still loved the experience. Itoje was a respected leader while Farrell Sr's man-management continues to be a strength. The only sadness was that, media access-wise, the Lions comms strategy made the Kremlin press office look relaxed and open-minded. Such blinkered thinking grows even more self-defeating as rugby desperately seeks to market itself more effectively. The good news is that this tour should have helped to boost the sport's profile across Australia before the 2027 Rugby World Cup. As the tour manager Ieuan Evans rightly put it: 'If you weren't captured by the drama of that second Test at the MCG then, quite frankly, you haven't got a soul.' Plenty of good work is also going on behind the scenes at Rugby Australia, although Schmidt is still due to depart his post next year. It will be fascinating to see how the Wallabies fare when they go to Europe to play England, Italy, Ireland and France in November, by which time Farrell will be back in an Ireland tracksuit and Itoje will be wearing white again. Being part of a winning Lions series, however, remains a privilege and the shared dressingroom memories will live for ever. – Guardian
Irish Times
43 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Shelbourne and Linfield could meet again in Conference League playoff with €4m at stake
Shelbourne and Linfield are on course to meet in a Uefa Conference League playoff with the winner guaranteed €4 million in prize money for reaching the group stage. Shelbourne already knocked Linfield out of the Champions League , in the first-round qualifier last month, 2-1 on aggregate, but David Healy's side recovered to beat Zalgiris from Lithuania and the NIFL Premiership holders are expected to see off Vikingur of the Faroe Islands. Shels can still reach the Europa League group stage, if Joey O'Brien's squad overcome the odds and get past Croatian champions Rijeka. The League of Ireland champions travel to Croatia this week for the first leg on Wednesday before the second leg at Tolka Park on Wednesday week. If they were to get through they would face either Greek side PAOK or Wolfsberger AC of Austria in the playoff round. If they are eliminated, they drop to the Conference League to play the winners of Linfield and Vikingur. READ MORE The north Dublin club confirmed that they will host a Europa or Conference League playoff at Tolka following their recent investment to improve stadium facilities. With Richmond Park falling short of Uefa standards, St Pat's face the Ole Gunnar Solskjær-managed Besiktas at Tallaght Stadium this Thursday in the first leg of the Conference League third-round qualifier. If Stephen Kenny's side pull off a win, they will face the winners of Lausanne (Switzerland) and Astana (Kazakhstan) in a playoff. As it stands, three Dublin clubs remain on course for group stage football. Shamrock Rovers could set up another all-island contest, against Larne, to reach the Conference League for the third time since 2022 but only if they overcome Ballkani (Kosovo). The first leg is at the Pristina City Stadium in the Kosovan capital on Thursday. Last October, Rovers made light work of Larne, winning 4-1 in a Conference League tie at Windsor Park. Larne, however, must beat Portuguese side Santa Clara to progress, with the first-leg at the Ballymena Showgrounds on Thursday before a seven-hour flight to Ponta Delgada for the second leg in the Azores on August 14th. The Conference League playoffs take place on August 21st and 28th. Reaching the group stage guarantees each club over €4 million in prize money, with Rovers banking €6 million after qualifying for the knock-out stages last season. Europa League playoff draw Winners of Shelbourne v Rijeka (Croatia) play winners of PAOK (Greece) v Wolfsberger AC (Austria). Uefa Conference League playoff draw Losers of Shelbourne v Rijeka (Croatia) play winners of Linfield (Northern Ireland) v Vikingur (Faroe Islands). Winners of Larne (Northern Ireland) v Santa Clara (Portugal) play winners of Ballkani (Kosovo) v Shamrock Rovers. Winners of Lausanne (Switzerland) v Astana (Kazakhstan) play winners of St Patrick's Athletic v Besiktas (Turkey).
