Biarritz cancel pre-season friendly with Munster

9 hours ago

MUNSTER HAVE confirmed today that their scheduled pre-season friendly away to Biarritz Olympique has been cancelled by the Basque club.
The game was planned to take place on 22 August, but it won't be happening because of a delay to pitch renovations at the Stade Aguilera.
A statement from the province added: 'Munster Rugby and Biarritz Olympique explored alternative venues in the hope that the match could be fulfilled, but no viable and workable solutions were found.
'Given the disappointing decision by Biarritz Olympique, Munster Rugby will now make alternative arrangements regarding pre-season preparations.'
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Cork have big defensive decisions to make before facing prolific Dublin

Irish Times

an hour ago

Irish Times

Cork have big defensive decisions to make before facing prolific Dublin

Cork will need to make a case for the defence if they are to progress to consecutive All-Ireland senior hurling finals. While Cork's attacking prowess has been well highlighted over the course of the season, their defence will be challenged on Saturday with stopping one of the most prolific goalscoring teams left in the competition. Dublin have scored 18 goals in this year's championship – and having played seven games they are averaging 2.57 goals per match. Fellow semi-finalists Kilkenny have also scored 18 goals but they amassed that in six games at an average of three goals per outing. Cork have scored 10 goals in five championship games – an average of two goals per match while Tipperary have raised 11 green flags in six games, an average of 1.8 goals per game. READ MORE The Cork defence has only managed one clean sheet in terms of shutting out goals in this year's championship – their Munster round two victory over Tipperary. But the Dublin defence has kept three clean sheets – Antrim, Galway and Limerick all failed to force a goal against the Dubs. At the other end of the field Dublin already have five players with multiple goals to their name in the championship – Seán Currie (4), Cian O'Sullivan (3), Ronan Hayes (3), John Hetherton (3) and Fergal Whitely (2). Cian O'Sullivan has scored three goals for Dublin in the championship so far. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho With that in mind, it will be interesting to see if Cork manager Pat Ryan recalls centre back Robert Downey, who is also team captain, and corner back Niall O'Leary to his starting team. Both suffered injuries during the Munster round-robin series and failed to start the provincial decider against Limerick. They are both expected to be available for selection this weekend. Séamus Harnedy has been ruled out with a hamstring injury. O'Leary had been an ever-present in the Cork defence throughout the season until he suffered a groin injury during the round-robin loss to Limerick in May. O'Leary subsequently missed Cork's win over Waterford but he did manage to come off the bench late in the Munster final victory last month. The Castlelyons man has praised the work of defensive coach Wayne Sherlock with the squad. 'We're very lucky in the group we have with the background team as well, Wayne was obviously a legend in Cork playing in the full-back line, so we're very lucky as a group to have him. 'We've learned a lot from him over the last three years and I think we've taken a lot of learnings from last year as well.' Cork's joint leading championship goalscorers are Patrick Horgan and Brian Hayes – who have both netted on three occasions. Both Cork and Dublin have scored at least one goal in all of their championship outings. Dublin's last championship win over Cork was in the 1927 All-Ireland final, but it is the lessons from last year's All-Ireland final defeat to Clare that the Rebels are looking to learn from this season. 'I know the end result didn't go our way, but I think that's a huge thing for us to get to an All-Ireland final and actually be competitive,' says O'Leary. 'This is my seventh year on the panel now, it's been a long enough seven years, not a whole pile of success in the seven years either so it's been great now the last two years to be competitive. 'I suppose the only thing we look at going forward is that we want to be remembered as a team in Cork and, to be honest with you, to be remembered you have to be winning All-Irelands.'

Denis Leamy: 'It's a great opportunity for the boys coming in to show what they can do'

Irish Examiner

an hour ago

Irish Examiner

Denis Leamy: 'It's a great opportunity for the boys coming in to show what they can do'

Paul O'Connell's Ireland squad take off for Tbilisi on Wednesday ahead of the first of two summer Tests which could prove to be pivotal to many of the 33 squad members international rugby aspirations. This Saturday's meeting with Georgia and the following week's Lisbon Test against Portugal represents perhaps the biggest window of opportunity in a generation for the 13 uncapped players in the touring party and the dozen with less than 10 Ireland caps thanks to the absence of 16 frontliners on British & Irish Lions duty, an injury to captain Caelan Doris and the international retirements post-Six Nations of Cian Healy, Conor Murray and Peter O'Mahony. 'It's a great opportunity for the boys coming in to show what they can do and just build on some of the things that have (been) done to date,' Denis Leamy said on the eve of departure as Ireland's interim coaching staff wrapped up preparations at the IRFU High Performance Centre in Abbottstown. Gavin Coombes has perhaps more reason than most to take advantage of that opportunity. The No.8 from West Cork has been a consistently shining light for Munster but Test recognition has eluded the 27-year-old since a Test debut off the bench against Japan in 2021 and the 80-minute start the following week against the USA, both on home soil four summers ago. Coombes was not jettisoned by head coach Andy Farrell, indeed the back-rower toured New Zealand the 12 months later and started both midweek games in the drawn series with the Maori All Blacks, alongside Cian Prendergast and Nick Timoney, both of whom will board the team plane with the hope of adding to their four and three cap tallies respectively. It was a trio that also started the November 2022 A international against an All Blacks XV at the RDS on a night when many observers feel Coombes became one of the fall guys for a 19-47 defeat that left Farrell seething in a manner not seen since his post-match media conference following the Lions' pre-tour defeat to Argentina. Tellingly Prendergast and Timoney have earned Test caps since that dark night in Dublin, though not since before the 2023 World Cup, when the former and Coombes were cut from the pre-tournament training squad. So does the door remain open? Ireland interim defence coach Leamy was asked just that of Coombes, with whom he also works at Munster, on Tuesday. Is the door open for Gavin Coombes? Picture: Leah Scholes/Inpho 'Gavin has turned up, he's looking fit, he's looking hungry the last few days. I think he's deployed himself really well, he's been really good in training. 'Gavin has been in and out of Irish squads over the last couple of years. The times he's been left out, he's understood the reasons why and (they) have been very fair. Gavin has gone away and worked hard on those parts of the games. 'He's back in now, he has that chance now on Saturday, hopefully, if selected, that he can go and apply that and put his best foot forward. He's a guy that over the last couple of years has been very good for Munster.' It will chiefly be O'Connell's feedback to a returning Farrell that counts most, of course, but Leamy believes Coombes has learned his lessons and deserves this latest shot at an Ireland return. 'I think he's hugely strong around opposition 22. His ability to make yards, score tries, he's one of the best around at that and his general play is improving all the time. He's worked great between 22 and 22. "His ability to make yards in open play, his ability to clock up big numbers in his tackles, his rucks and the fundamentals around his basic play, around number eight (working) at the base (of the scrum). He's learning and improving that all the time. That's why he's back in this environment.' O'Connell will name his matchday squad to face the Georgians from Tbilisi on Thursday with Craig Casey set to captain from scrum-half with the interim boss set for a big decision at fly-half where the duel between Sam Prendergast and Jack Crowley continues. For some Irishmen there remains the possibility of a call up to the Lions if injuries should crop up Down Under but Leamy spoke about the importance of staying focused on the task at hand in a green jersey. 'I lean on my own experience a little bit with that, being on tours in 2009 when you're on standby for the Lions. 'And it is a challenge, but you have to keep your mind on the job that's in front of you and you have to be very conscious of being as good as you can be in that space. Obviously, you're watching what's going on in Australia if there's an injury or an opportunity coming. 'But the boys will be very good around that. Their focus will be Ireland and whatever happens after that will happen.'

The 42

9 hours ago

The 42