‘This is not a normal rugby team – it's a different league' – Bulls coach Jake White looks on Leinster's works and despairs
Bulls coach Jake White has heaped praise on Leinster in the wake of their dominant URC final win over his side.
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The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
Sam Mulroy and Ciaran Downey fire Louth past brave Clare in Portlaoise thriller
LOUTH manager Ger Brennan felt the huge support of the Louth supporters in more than one after nervously holding off Clare in Portlaoise. Brennan said it was like a home game in the stands as he praised the crowd. Advertisement 2 Louth overcame Clare in a tense clash on Sunday afternoon 2 Sam Mulroy was the star as he helped get the Leinster champions over the line He said: "It was probably nine to one in favour of Louth in the stand today." He added that the fans have become part of the team: "Even though we keep giving them heart attacks – and myself a heart attack on occasions – they are our 16th man." "The aim today was to win at all costs. It doesn't have to be pretty – and today it wasn't – but we got over the line and we're in the hat for tomorrow morning. That was the main aim." Two goals from Ciarán Downey and Sam Mulroy while Clare's Manus Doherty was in the sin bin made the difference, according to the Louth boss. Advertisement ewad more on gaa Brennan said his team found their feet after a sluggish start. The Loth boss added: "We found a bit of a rhythm after they took an early lead and that's been like our starts in the League and Championship this year – slow to get up and running." "It didn't take as long today and that's a bit of an improvement," he continued. "When Clare went down to 14 men we made hay and that probably got us over the line. We just didn't kill them off in the second half." Advertisement Most read in GAA Football He praised Clare's effort but said his players stood firm. "Clare put a lot of pressure on our lads in possession, but we came out by three points in the end and we're thrilled." From the other side, Clare manager Peter Keane was full of admiration for his players' resilience. Keane said the spirit shown in the second half was typical of their season. He said: "Oh, you couldn't but be proud of them." Advertisement "By Jesus, somebody said there they died on their backs and they died with their shoes on." Keane pinpointed the black card spell as the turning point. He added: "It wasn't looking good at half-time. "We struggled big time during the black card. We conceded something like 2-4 in that window and that really hurt us." Advertisement But he remained proud of how they fought back. He concluded: "Down eight at half-time, a kick of the ball in it at the end... It's one thing I've seen with these lads all year – they have tremendous heart and their fitness is very good. You'd have to be very proud of the lads." Eoin Cleary's goal gave Clare real hope, and he might have had another soon after — but chose to fist over. Advertisement
The 42
3 hours ago
- The 42
Louth progress to All-Ireland knockout stages as Clare exit
Results - All-Ireland SFC Louth 2-17 Clare 2-14 ***** Advertisement LEINSTER CHAMPIONS LOUTH enjoyed their first win of the All-Ireland group stages today to progress to next weekend's preliminary quarter-finals. Louth saw off Clare by three points in Portlaoise, grateful for goals from Sam Mulroy and Ciaran Downey as they went ahead 2-8 to 0-6 at the break. Downey starred in that opening period as he struck 1-5, while Mulroy grabbed 1-1. The first goal arrived after 20 minutes courtesy of Mulroy, before Downey netted soon after and then added a two-pointer to push them nine clear. Clare got an early second-half boost when Rory McMahon netted and then Eoin Cleary's late goal helped cut the gap Peter Keane's side faced to four points. They managed to cut the gap to three on two occasions in the closing stages but Clare couldn't secure the result they needed to prolong their championship with Conor Branigan notching an insurance score for Louth. More to follow…
Irish Times
4 hours ago
- Irish Times
Louth take the spoils in Portlaoise to see Clare out of the championship
All-Ireland SFC: Louth 2-17 Clare 2-14 Louth punched their away day ticket for next weekend's preliminary quarter finals after a nervy win over Clare in Portlaoise. The win was a much needed one nonetheless for the Leinster champions. In the do-or-die battle, Ger Brennan's side needed that knockout focus not to exit the championship without a win after their Leinster final success. Munster finalists Clare on the other hand were left without a victory in the All-Ireland group stages after nine attempts. Despite being competitive throughout and the manner in which the Banner pushed Louth all the way, Peter Keane's side could not recover from a Louth blitz in the opening half. READ MORE With Louth back to grips after a terrific Clare start, Manus Doherty was black carded for a foul on Craig Lennon and with that Louth proceeded to outscore the Banner 2-4 to 0-1 in that period. Louth smelt blood and Ciaran Downey and Sam Mulroy went for the jugular with first-half goals. The damage done. The midfield pairing of Dara McDonnell and Tommy Durnin gave them a solid platform and Lennon's positioning further up the field helped Louth find their groove and realign their season. Craig Lennon in action for Louth. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho Clare were competitive, particularly through Mark McInerney, but not threatening until the frantic finish. Emmet McMahon and McInerney landed late points to make it 2-8 to 0-6 at the half-time whistle. Confidence tangled with belief is a funny thing. Rory McMahon ticked both boxes when the cornerback fired home for the first score of the second half. That allowed Clare to stay in the game and gave them a sense the result they needed wasn't beyond their grasp. Despite the draw being sufficient for Louth to advance it played on their minds as Clare went for broke. Sam Mulroy landed two from beyond the arc, one from a free, to stretch the lead at times but there was a lack of fluency as a result. The Banner brought the energy and when veteran Eoin Cleary found the net he cut the gap to four. With minutes remaining, Louth tried to control things and struggled to halt Clare's momentum. But with substitute Conor Branigan's two-point impact off the bench either side of Cleary's heroic effort Louth's fine season continues for another week at least. LOUTH: N McDonnell; D McKenny, E Carolan, D Corcoran; C McKeever, P Lynch, D Nally; D McDonnell, T Durnin; C Grimes (0-0-1), C Downey (1-1-3), C Lennon (0-0-1), C Keenan, S Mulroy (1-2-2, 1tpf, 2f), R Burns (0-0-1). Subs: R Walsh (0-0-1) for Lennon (32 mins), C Branigan (0-0-2) for Grimes, D McConnon for Keenan (both 53), A Williams for Burns, T Markey for McDonnell (both 65), K McArdle for Downey (68). CLARE: S Ryan (0-0-1, 1f): M Doherty, R Lanigan, R McMahon (1-0-0); C Rouine, A Sweeney, I Ugwueru; B McNamara (0-0-1), D Walsh; D Coughlan, E McMahon (0-0-2), C Meaney; A Griffin (0-0-1), E Cleary (1-0-2), M McInerney (0-0-6, 3f). Subs: S Griffin for Meaney (24 mins), B Rouine for Walsh (50), J Stack for Sweeney (59), K Sexton (0-0-1) for Cleary (64), C Downes for McMahon (67). Referee: B Tiernan (Dublin).
