Latest news with #BernardJackman
RTÉ News
18-06-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
RTÉ Rugby podcast: Leinster's end of season grade and Lions tour come into focus
Neil Treacy is joined by Bernard Jackman and Eddie O'Sullivan to recap Leinster's BKT United Rugby Championship final win against the Bulls. We examine whether the province can look back on 2024/25 as a success or not, even with a trophy in the bag (4:30), and break down how a clinical start to the game sent them on their way (24:50). The panel also discuss the form of Ryan Baird and Thomas Clarkson, who have stepped up when it's counted in recent weeks (32:45). And we also begin our look ahead to the 2025 British and Irish Lions tour (38:30), and discuss the Test places up for grabs.
RTÉ News
11-06-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
RTÉ Rugby podcast: Leinster's siege mentality and inside the Irish RWC camp
Neil Treacy is joined by Bernard Jackman and Johne Murphy as we preview Leinster's BKT United Rugby Championship final against the Bulls on Saturday. We also react to Finlay Bealham's call-up to the Lions squad, as well as the Irish squad named for the summer Tests in Georgia and Portugal. Later (55:20), Neil speaks to Ireland co-captain Edel McMahon, and back row Brittany Hogan, to find out how things are going in the early stages of Ireland's Rugby World Cup training camp.
BBC News
06-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Can Glasgow take advantage of Leinster's 'performance anxiety'?
United Rugby Championship semi-final: Leinster v Glasgow WarriorsVenue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin Date: Saturday, 6 June Kick-off: 14:45 BSTCoverage: Listen on BBC Radio Scotland, BBC Sport website & app, online text updates. When Leinster crushed Glasgow Warriors 52-0 in the Champions Cup quarter-final back in April, the Irish side looked destined to sweep all before them this season, with visiting head coach Franco Smith describing them as the best club side he had ever forward eight weeks and Leo Cullen's all-star team are starting to show some cracks in their armour.A shock home defeat by Northampton Saints in the Champions Cup semi-final has cast a big old cloud over the Irish side, and perhaps some seeds of doubt, as they prepare to face Glasgow again in the United Rugby Championship semi-final in Dublin on Saturday."The Leinster players don't seem to be playing with any real anger," Bernard Jackman, a former European Cup-winner with Leinster, told the BBC's Scotland Rugby Podcast. "In actual fact, it looks like their confidence is gone. "We have to talk about Leinster this season pre-Northampton Saints and post-Northampton Saints. Pre-Northampton Saints, it looked like they were timing their run to perfection."It's amazing what a defeat can do to you."While Glasgow's quarter-final display in victory over the Stormers hinted at a return to the kind of form that led them to go all the way in the URC last season, Leinster's laboured win over the Scarlets hinted that all is not well in their losing the last three consecutive finals, the Champions Cup was the trophy they desperately craved and that stunning Northampton victory has led to a lot of soul searching within Irish rugby.A URC title might be viewed as small consolation by some Leinster fans. Indeed, a relatively low crowd of 12,000 turned out for the quarter-final against Scarlets, but there is a feeling the URC crown is the bare minimum if Cullen is to remain in post as head coach next season. 'Leinster heavy favourites, but Glasgow peaking' For a team considered one of the best-resourced in the world, boasting a plethora of Ireland internationals, British and Irish Lions and global stars such as Jordie Barrett and RG Snyman, a fourth consecutive trophyless season would be unacceptable."Leo must be under an immense amount of pressure," Jackman said."The players probably owe him a performance, or two, and a trophy. But that doesn't necessarily mean you're going to get it."People might say how can one defeat, even against a good Northampton side, knock you off? "But the reality is, when you add them all up together - the Bulls a couple of years ago, the Bulls last year in Pretoria in the URC semi-final, the Toulouse Champions Cup final in 2024 that goes to extra time, La Rochelle three seasons in a row - there's been quite a few big, high-profile disappointments."You probably look around and go, what are we doing wrong? Is it coaching? Is it management? Is it selection? Is it culture? Is it their mentality to be able to dog it out in those tight games? All those things are a doubt."They shouldn't be physically tired. But is that burden of expectation, is that burden of pressure, creating this performance anxiety?" Glasgow revisited the scene of their Champions Cup humbling three weeks ago and, while they were unable to exact any revenge, the 13-5 URC defeat in the Aviva Stadium was far more competitive. They had to show, to themselves as much as Leinster, they can go toe-to-toe with their Irish are still heavy favourites, for the semi-final and the tournament, but this tie no longer has the look of the mismatch that might have been predicted a few short weeks have got their talisman, Sione Tuipulotu, back and the Scotland centre looks to be firing on all cylinders despite his lengthy injury absence. If anything, he looks refreshed from the Henco Venter returned from his suspension to deliver a towering display against the Stormers, with the likes of Rory Darge and Tom Jordan stepping up with big performances."I was very impressed with Glasgow on Friday night," Jackman said."I watched that and I just thought to myself, 'Wow, Franco Smith and his coaching staff have just got this team peaking at the end again'."They're full of energy and fight and fun and they're just enjoying themselves."Scarlets came to Leinster at the weekend and they weren't afraid. I've absolutely no doubt Glasgow will be even more confident because they have a trophy in their locker."They have just had a performance that I think gives them momentum into this weekend. And they have some players who are absolutely bang on form."I think it's fascinating. It's going to be an unbelievable game."
Irish Examiner
06-06-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
'I spent years being ashamed of myself and not speaking about it': Opening up about men's health
When it comes to their health, Irish men have often taken their lead from the ostrich: Burying their head in the sand and suffering through either physical or mental pain, rather than going to their GP or even 'troubling' their friend with an issue. Thankfully, things are changing. Men are now talking more to medical professionals and their friends. Increased awareness around mental health and physical wellbeing, along with campaigns targeting men's health, seem to be making a difference. There is still room for improvement, and the upcoming annual Men's Health Week (June 9 to 15) will again shine a spotlight on preventable health issues, the importance of early detection, and the benefits of healthier lifestyles. This year's theme, 'Shoulder to shoulder, connecting for health,' encourages men to connect with one another and, if needed, to seek out relevant support services. Former Ireland rugby international Bernard Jackman has been a supporter of Men's Health Week for many years. He has seen the difference that access to services and attitude to health can make. 'I was very lucky,' says Jackman. 'As professionals, we had medicals every Monday and access to a doctor whenever we needed it. "Then, as a coach, I got regular feedback about my team, whether that was from physios or a doctor. That was a bit different, and it properly shocked me. "As a player, you only really know about your own health but, as a coach, you know so much more about different ailments and things that are going on in players' lives, maybe around mental health. Sean Blake who is in recovery from an eating disorder. Picture: Moya Nolan. "These were the fittest professional athletes, who were eating the right things and getting well looked after, and yet they had lots of different things going on. 'When I got out of the game and I was in the corporate world, I really saw the difference in people who didn't have the time, sometimes even the money, to get themselves checked, and I wanted to help highlight the importance of getting yourself checked out. I think, as men, we often just carry on and keep the head down.' When he stopped playing, Jackman was at the forefront of highlighting an issue that had dogged his beloved game for years: Concussion. Though it took some time, changes around concussion and the rules around tackling that often cause it have made the game safer. 'When I retired in 2010, I spoke about how we weren't taking concussion seriously,' Jackman says. 'In the dressing room, you were seen as soft if you missed a game because of it. And I think that's similar to men's attitudes to lots of things around health. We just don't want to stop and say, 'I need to get this looked at'. Thankfully, the attitude has changed; players are now happy to come off if there is a suspicion of concussion, and if they are concussed, they stay off.' That type of culture shift is precisely what Men's Health Week aims to inspire across the broader health spectrum. Once taboos are broken, more men tend to speak up. Speaking out helps Dubliner Seán Blake is bravely challenging those taboos. Some years ago, he became obsessed with running and with losing weight. He would wake at 5am to run in secret and rigidly control his diet. Eventually, he was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa. He doesn't say how much weight he lost, but he was days away from a serious health crisis, before getting the treatment that likely saved his life. 'I spent years being ashamed of myself and not speaking about it,' says the 43-year-old. 'I don't know where that came from, but it's definitely some sort of trauma. Only for my wife, and, later, my brother, I don't know where I'd be. He was my rock during the toughest times. We're closer than we've ever been.' The father of four has gone from 'painfully shy' to becoming an advocate. He now volunteers and speaks publicly about his struggles, in the hope that he can help others. Last year, he appeared in a television documentary, Anorexia, My Family & Me. 'Speaking out has helped me so much,' Blake says. 'I even have my own social-media page, where I talk about how I'm doing. That's something I would never have done before.' Through the likes of Blake and well-known advocates, such as Bressie and Brent Pope, men's mental health is now part of the public discourse. Dr Noel Richardson, of the HSE health & wellbeing team, says that over the last five to 10 years men have become more open about their mental wellbeing. 'There is a greater willingness to normalise conversations around mental health,' he says. 'Advocates are challenging the stigma. They're saying that being vulnerable is part of the human condition, and it's normal to feel low at some points.' 'Vital' that men talk Changing that culture can be challenging. As Colin Fowler, director of operations at Men's Health Forum in Ireland (MHFI), points out, encouraging men to look at health, let alone deal with it, involves a different approach to communication. 'Firstly, we don't overload them with information,' says Fowler. 'You want to whet their appetite, so they will want to find out more. Also, most men have a black sense of humour, so if you can add a bit of humour, they're more likely to engage, because it's less threatening.' The final piece of the jigsaw was inspired by MHFI founder Dr Ian Banks and his interest in cars. 'Men like things set out logically,' says Fowler. 'So, in the early 2000s, Ian approached publishers Haynes manuals and asked them if they could write about men's health in the same way they approach writing about cars. That's how the idea of comparing health checks to MOTs or NCTs came about, comparing the body to a machine needing regular servicing.' Dr Noel Richardson, National Centre for Men's Health Ireland, IT Carlow and HSE Health & Wellbeing MHFI's work was pioneering, and many of its ideas have been adopted worldwide. Thanks to its campaigns and advocacy, Ireland became the first country in the world to create a national men's health policy. A second five-year government policy was published in 2024, with goals to improve men's health in ways that benefit not only themselves but also their families and communities. 'Men used to associate health with illness,' says Fowler. 'We spent money treating men when they were sick, but not enough to keep them well. If we can help men understand that staying well helps them care for their families and communities, it resonates more than simply telling them to go to the doctor.' For Seán Blake, it all starts with a conversation. 'It's vital that men talk,' he says. 'It makes a huge difference. It takes the weight of the world off your shoulders. And you'd be surprised, people don't judge you. Everyone has something going on, and talking can make the difference between life and death.' BodyWhys - The Eating Disorder Association of Ireland Helpline: 01 2107906; email support: alex@ Shine Mental Health Recovery Support Services, 086 0407701; support@ Men's Health Forum in Ireland, Advocates challenge the stigma. They're saying being vulnerable is part of the human condition
RTÉ News
04-06-2025
- General
- RTÉ News
RTÉ Rugby podcast: Connacht land Lancaster as URC play-offs provide the drama
Neil Treacy, Bernard Jackman and Jonny Holland react to the big news of the week in Irish rugby. This week, we discuss Connacht's high profile appointment of Stuart Lancaster as their next head coach, and the impact that could have on rugby both in the west of Ireland and on the national team. We also look back on last weekend's URC quarter-finals, firstly with Leinster defeating the Scarlets, albeit in unconvincing fashion (17:25). And we discuss Munster's agonising defeat to the Sharks in Durban, following a place-kicking competition which drew up quite a bit of controversy (38:45).
