Latest news with #English-born
Sydney Morning Herald
4 days ago
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Moorabbin to the MCG: The magical journey of Wallaby Harry Potter
On Saturday, English-born Harry Potter will step out onto the MCG to represent Australia's Wallabies against the British and Irish Lions in front of a predicted 90,000-strong crowd. But a few months ago, Potter secretly attended another Melbourne rugby ground, albeit a much smaller one with equally enthusiastic fans. In April, the 27-year-old made a surprise visit to Moorabbin Rugby Club – where he played as a junior after moving to Australia from England when he was 10. Club president Ian Nathan said Potter dropped by one night to help three of Moorabbin's junior teams with their training. 'It's amazing to have guys of that calibre come down,' Nathan said. 'It gives the kids a chance to see that even though Melbourne is supposedly not a rugby place, we've got guys playing for Scotland, Samoa, Japan and Australia, representing all parts of the world.' Nathan said Potter spent time with the juniors and offered them advice, saying, 'if you work hard, you can make it anywhere'. 'I think that's great for the kids to hear,' Nathan said. 'You don't have to grow up to be six foot four to be able to play ... that's one of the wonderful things about rugby, because it does cater for all shapes and sizes.' Nathan remembered Potter showing 'signs of being a really good player' in his early days at Moorabbin. The inevitable wizard puns and magic jokes ramped up once he moved back home. (The first J. K. Rowling book was published in 1997, the year the future Wallaby was born, before burgeoning into a literary juggernaut and movie franchise.)
The Age
4 days ago
- Sport
- The Age
Moorabbin to the MCG: The magical journey of Wallaby Harry Potter
On Saturday, English-born Harry Potter will step out onto the MCG to represent Australia's Wallabies against the British and Irish Lions in front of a predicted 90,000-strong crowd. But a few months ago, Potter secretly attended another Melbourne rugby ground, albeit a much smaller one with equally enthusiastic fans. In April, the 27-year-old made a surprise visit to Moorabbin Rugby Club – where he played as a junior after moving to Australia from England when he was 10. Club president Ian Nathan said Potter dropped by one night to help three of Moorabbin's junior teams with their training. 'It's amazing to have guys of that calibre come down,' Nathan said. 'It gives the kids a chance to see that even though Melbourne is supposedly not a rugby place, we've got guys playing for Scotland, Samoa, Japan and Australia, representing all parts of the world.' Nathan said Potter spent time with the juniors and offered them advice, saying, 'if you work hard, you can make it anywhere'. 'I think that's great for the kids to hear,' Nathan said. 'You don't have to grow up to be six foot four to be able to play ... that's one of the wonderful things about rugby, because it does cater for all shapes and sizes.' Nathan remembered Potter showing 'signs of being a really good player' in his early days at Moorabbin. The inevitable wizard puns and magic jokes ramped up once he moved back home. (The first J. K. Rowling book was published in 1997, the year the future Wallaby was born, before burgeoning into a literary juggernaut and movie franchise.)
RTÉ News
5 days ago
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Ireland U-21 defender Eiran Cashin joins Birmigham City on loan
Republic of Ireland Under-21 international defender Eiran Cashin has joined Birmingham City on a season-long loan from Brighton. Cashin, who joined the Seagulls from Derby in February for a fee believed to be in the region of €10.3m (£9m), made two Premier League substitute appearances towards the end of the season. The English-born 23-year-old, who has represented Ireland since U-18 level having qualified through his grandmother, follows Evan Ferguson in a loan move out of the club after the striker joined Roma earlier this week. Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler said the move is key for the development of the young defender. "Eiran has benefitted from the period of time he's been with us and had a strong pre-season," he said. "This loan offers him the opportunity to play regularly and continue his development. We'll be keeping a close watch on him as the season progresses." Cashin started the last two group games and both play-off legs of the unsuccessful qualifying campaign for the 2023 European Under-21 Championships and has been linked with a senior call-up. The defender caught the eye of a number of suitors before joining Brighton after four years at Derby where the back-to-back Young Player of the Year winner and was handed club captaincy.
Irish Independent
18-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
James McManus sets Sligo Rovers on way to victory over wasteful Dundalk
Sligo Rovers' recent history in this competition has been a tale of shock exits to First Division opposition and while Dundalk's standing makes them an unlikely underdog, the gap between the two leagues is arguably growing rather than closing. For an in-form Rovers side that is showing signs that they can make a late push to avoid a relegation playoff, exiting the cup to the Lilywhites would have been hard to swallow. But they had to ride their luck to advance here, with the final scoreline not quite telling the full story of proceedings. They were under the cosh for a large part of the first half and were extremely fortunate to avoid going in behind with Harry Groome firing a left-footer wide of the post when it appeared easier to score. The let-off galvanised the guests who didn't appear to be enjoying the unpredictable surface. They emerged from the break to effectively put the game to bed with two moments of quality. Russell's July window business has centred around bringing in Premier players that know the league. The spotlight coming into the game was on Dundalk native Ryan O'Kane's first visit to Oriel Park since his loan move from Shelbourne to the Bit'O'Red. He was booed throughout, but the locals were silenced when James McManus – a temporary arrival from Bohemians – found the top corner with a delicious right-footer after a corner broke in his direction. Before Dundalk could recover from the gut punch, they were two down with Jake Doyle-Hayes glancing a Will Fitzgerald cross past Enda Minogue. It was hard to take for Ciaran Kilduff as for the second week in succession, his team fired blanks in a two-goal defeat where they had most of the chances. Their league loss to Bray is more important in the bigger picture, but Kilduff will still be frustrated by the wastefulness. His team are doing a lot of things right in the attacking department, but they met another in-form goalkeeper with Sam Sargeant making big saves from Gbemi Arubi and Daryl Horgan as the Lilywhites tried to provide a grandstand finish. Dean Ebbe squandered another big opportunity, and it's stating the obvious to declare that Dundalk will need to be more clinical if they are to achieve their aim of returning to the top flight at the first attempt. Otherwise, they could be reunited with Rovers in an end-of-season playoff. Russell and his players are thinking bigger and Drogheda's success in this competition last term has proven that cup joy and battling the drop can go hand-in-hand. With an improved league ranking meaning this is the most lucrative renewal of the competition ever with €700,000 in UEFA money guaranteed to the winners. That is a distraction that every participant will welcome. There could be further negative consequences from the night for Dundalk after the match officials noted an offensive comment made to visiting player Owen Elding in the first half. It's understood the comment from the home section was related to the player's nationality. English-born Elding is actually in the process of declaring for Ireland via citizenship rules. Elding went on to play a big role in the second half when switched to a central role and assistant boss Ryan Casey said the player wasn't bothered by the episode. Dundalk: Minogue, Wilson, Leonard, McHale (O'Keeffe 22), Keogh (Spaight 73); Dervin, Tracey (Paraschiv 60); McDaid (Kenny 60), Groome, Horgan; Arubi (Ebbe 60)
Irish Examiner
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Republic of Ireland international Patten puts pen-to-paper on new Aston Villa contract
Republic of Ireland international Anna Patten has signed a new contract with Aston Villa, keeping her at the club until June 2028. English-born Patten has made a big impression since linking up with Ireland in March 2024. She joined Villa permanently in the summer of 2023 from Arsenal, having first been on loan in 2022, and has since become a mainstay at centre-half for the club. The 26-year-old is now closing on 100 appearances for the club and has scored five goals.
