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What TV channel is Leinster vs Bulls on? FREE stream, kick-off time and odds for Croke Park URC final

What TV channel is Leinster vs Bulls on? FREE stream, kick-off time and odds for Croke Park URC final

The Irish Sun14-06-2025
LEINSTER and Bulls will contest the 2025 URC final from the unusual setting of Croke Park this evening.
The Blues secured their spot in the play-off finale by
Bulls, meanwhile, triumphed in an all-South African affair as they won their semi-final
Here's everything you need to know about today's match-up:
What TV channel is Leinster vs Bulls on?
The showpiece game will be shown live on TG4 as well as Premier Sports 1. So everyone can avail of the free streaming platform provided by the TG4 Player.
Kick-off from Jones' Road will be at 5pm.
Read More On Irish Sport
What are the odds?
Leinster team:
Leinster have been boosted by
Ross Byrne is on the bench for what is his last game before he joins Gloucester but
LEINSTER: J O'Brien; T O'Brien, Ringrose, Barrett, Lowe; Prendergast, Gibson-Park; Porter, Sheehan, Clarkson; McCarthy, Ryan; Baird, van der Flier, Conan.
Most read in Rugby Union
Reps: Kelleher, Boyle, Slimani, Snyman, Deegan, McGrath, Byrne, Osborne.
What's been said in the build-up?
Cullen has insisted that Leinster
'Pierre loving retirement' - Peter O'Mahony's wife teases Ireland legend as kids run amok in cute snap
If the province do not
During that time, they have lost three finals and one semi-final in the Champions Cup and three semi-finals in the URC, twice when they had finished top of the standings in the regular season.
They topped the pile again this time around and Cullen does not believe his charges deserve to be automatically dismissed if they cannot get over the line again.
He said: 'They're all individual games. Every play-off game is a final as such. We have played in lots, whether they come in a quarter-final, semi-final or final.
1
This will be Jordie Barrett's last game for the province
'The group is learning all the time, young players come through, you are adding layers of experience.
'I think the way some of the questions are leading me, it's like, 'Whoever loses is a failure'. In this game there are two good teams going at it. If you lose in a final, are you classified as a failure?
'You can play your best game in the final. So both of these teams could play their best games of the season but unfortunately one of the teams has to lose.
'So one of the teams, who has just played their best game, they are classified as losers because they have lost but are they failures?
"You are guaranteed nothing. So you have to prepare the best you can with the time you have to put in your best performance. I hope the group goes out and does itself justice. It's on the day.'
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Celtic fans sing 'sack the board' amid draw in home Champions League qualifier

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What time and channel is Shelbourne v Linfield on today? TV and stream info, start time and more for the Europa Conference League playoff
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What time and channel is Shelbourne v Linfield on today? TV and stream info, start time and more for the Europa Conference League playoff

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Stephen Bradley's Euro verdict on huge night for Shamrock Rovers and Shelbourne
Stephen Bradley's Euro verdict on huge night for Shamrock Rovers and Shelbourne

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time3 hours ago

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Stephen Bradley's Euro verdict on huge night for Shamrock Rovers and Shelbourne

Stephen Bradley would love to see Shamrock Rovers AND Shelbourne make the league phase of this season's Europa Conference League. The two teams are in play-off action tonight, with the Hoops in the Azores to face Portuguese top-flight side Santa Clara, and Shels at home to Linfield in an all-island rematch. Bradley believes progress by both clubs would represent another step in the right direction for Irish football - and would bring the dream of Champions League qualification closer. 'I'd love to see it,' he said. 'Obviously I am (in a Rovers mindset), but the bigger picture is, I'd love to see two Irish teams in the group stages. 'We were saying that the aim is to keep pushing and make the league better on and off the pitch. I think we've made great strides in that, I think we all agree. 'Everyone's played their part in that, on and off the pitch. 'But you think, where's the next step? We have all been banging on about the facilities, and that's not going to go away, we need to keep banging that drum. 'But for us on the pitch as teams, can we go and get two teams in group stages? 'When that becomes a regular thing, can we go and push and do the same in Europa League? And eventually the game has to be, can someone break the Champions League? 'It's extremely difficult. That has to be the end goal for someone. I'm not saying it happens tomorrow, but I'm saying that it's the end goal. It has to start somewhere. 'If two can do it, it's another step in the right direction for the league. And I'd love to see it. That's what we've got to be aiming for. We shouldn't shy away from that. 'We shouldn't try and hide behind anything other than wanting two or three Irish teams in group stage football. 'And I think we can get that. If not this year, next year, the year after, I think we can get that.' This is the second year in a row that two Irish teams are within 180 minutes of league phase football. Last year, St Patrick's Athletic bowed out at the play-off stage, while Rovers made it all the way to the Conference League proper, and embarked on a historic run to the last-32. 'We have a chance again to do it,' he said. 'That's progression. And you hope Shelbourne go and do the business over two legs. 'I think you can see every year, it's not just us doing it, those teams getting close every year. And the more we do that, the more we keep knocking on the door, the more the door will open. 'We're getting there and we've got to be aiming for that. Like I said, I can see it happening. If not this year, definitely in the coming years, because the standard of the league is getting better and better all the time.' Bradley's men will have their fitness and pace tested in the Estadio de Sao Miguel tonight, with temperatures expected to be in early-to-mid-20s by kick-off. But it's not only the heat that presents a challenge - the pitch is the biggest on which Rovers have ever played, with the dimensions at the limit of what FIFA will allow. According to Bradley, it's 15 yards longer than the Tallaght Stadium surface, and he said: 'It's the biggest pitch we've played on by quite some distance. 'You can see why they have the big pitch. Wing-backs are quick, obviously, two 10s are quick, so you can see why they like it. 'But I've always said that we like spaces as well. So it's, it's how you use the spaces, how you manipulate them on the day. So, yeah, it's fine. It's a big pitch, but it is what it is.' Connor Malley is out for Rovers, while Jack Byrne hasn't made the trip. If Rovers do progress, it will be the first time that an Irish side has made the group stages or league phase outside of the champions' path. 'It would obviously be something that's never been done before. We would create history,' said Bradley. 'But that's what this team has done time and time again, you know, and we've always been a team that embraces challenges and records. 'When we came in, the challenge for us was, could we go and match the four-in-a-row team in terms of leagues? We never said that aloud from day one, but that was always the challenge. And we did that. 'Then you think, can we build on that with European stuff? We've done that. 'This is another challenge. It would obviously be a big achievement considering where Santa Clara finished last year (fifth) in a really, really good league. 'So it would definitely be up there with the achievements for Irish teams. But we have to play two legs now to see what we do.' Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email .

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