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The Irish Sun
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Rugby legend compares Leinster to ‘Ferrari spreading silage' as he sends warning after ‘rudderless' win over Scarlets
DONNCHA O'CALLAGHAN has compared Leinster to a "Ferrari spreading silage" after their "rudderless" win over Scarlets. Leo Cullen's men set up a Glasgow Warriors with a 2 Leinster beat Scarlets to advance to the URC semi-finals Credit: Seb Daly/Sportsfile 2 Donncha O'Callaghan was critical of their performance Credit: Seb Daly/Sportsfile Aviva Stadium. They were aided by second-half yellow cards shown to Alec Hepburn and Vaea Fifita after the visitors went into the break trailing by just 15-14. However, Donncha O'Callaghan was less than impressed at what he saw from the Irish province, bringing out an unorthodox metaphor to illustrate his point. He told RTE: "It looked rudderless. Read More on Leinster Rugby "As ex-players, we are always really tough on players, but I would say management and coaches need to have a look at the performance there. "You have players like [Jordie] Barrett, one of the greatest player to ever play the game. "You have the likes of Hugo Keenan and James Lowe and all we're seeing at this point in the competition is them kicking the ball. "I know you got to win games an and find a way, but honestly, it's like having Most read in Rugby Union The game played out in front of a miserly attendance of 12,879 at Lansdowne Road . And O'Callaghan added: "It is really frustrating and you can see it with this crowd, like another poor turnout here today. Simon Zebo brutally trolls Rob Kearney after Leinster loss to Northampton "The Aviva is our home. This is where rugby should light up. You should be excited to come here. "You couldn't fault the crowd there for watching that type of rugby and it's a concern for me." Leinster have a quick turnaround to the semi-final, with next Saturday. The Blues beat the Scottish side 13-5 in the URC regular season last month, and also hammered them 52-0 in the And head coach he told RTE: "What we know is that they're kicking the ball quite a bit, even at the end, pinning us back in our end, and I think Glasgow will be doing something similar next week as well. "It's like this time of year now, making sure that we're nailed on for every moment within the game. "I don't think we quite did that today, but it's making sure we recover well now and turn the page quickly, and it's not one of those games that you're going to spend a huge amount of time reviewing."
Sunday World
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Sunday World
Damien Duff on ‘grassy knoll' pic that went viral – ‘It was an embarrassing photo for the league, not me'
IMPACT | Shelbourne boss insists global impact of Dalymount Park photograph is bad PR for League of Ireland Shelbourne manager Damien Duff stands on a grassy back at Dalymount Park during the SSE Airtricity Premier Division defeat to Bohemians last Friday. Photo: Seb Daly/Sportsfile And while the Shels boss admits that he has issues to deal with close to home and on the pitch, after the champions were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Drogheda United on Monday as their search for a goal goes on, the former Ireland international fears that the image sent out by last week's derby has damaged the league. Serving a touchline ban due to amassing yellow cards, Duff was restricted in terms of where he could watch their game away to Bohs and opted to observe from a grassy hill behind the Des Kelly Stand in Dalymount, but a picture, taken by Sportsfile photographer Seb Daly, of Duff certainly caught the eye – not in a good way as far as Duff is concerned. Shelbourne manager Damien Duff stands on a grassy back at Dalymount Park during the SSE Airtricity Premier Division defeat to Bohemians last Friday. Photo: Seb Daly/Sportsfile Aidan Fitzmaurice and Seán O'Connor look back on a big night of action in the two Monday games 'I'm not on the socials, obviously, but I'm not stupid, I'd imagine it got a lot of airtime, probably a lot of laughter. I'm sure an awful lot of people thought I was embarrassed, I wasn't one bit embarrassed. I find it a deeply embarrassing photo for the league,' Duff said after the scoreless draw with Drogheda United. 'I fought as much as anyone for the league for four years, so you could say I'm mortified - 'Oh, Damien is mortified for himself' - I'm not one bit mortified for myself, I'm mortified for the league. 'We call it the greatest league in the world, I call it the greatest league in the world, but a picture has gone to a lot of countries around the world, some big people in the football world have texted me, laughing. 'I think for too long now people have laughed at Irish football and everything about us. Let's not all fool ourselves and get carried away, the league is in a great place, a wonderful place. 'Yeah, great, the fans coming like you've never seen before, wonderful tight games, the most watched game, I think, in TV history, last year up in the Brandywell, the most exciting league finish in years upon years, but let's not get carried away, it was an embarrassing photo for the league, not me.' Asked by the Irish Independent if his reaction was a comment on the state of facilities at Dalymount Park and the fact that there were not many options for him in terms of staying within the confines of his touchline ban, he said: 'Read into it what you want, it's not me having digs. 'Like I said, it's probably got a lot of traction. I'm stood in a meadow on top of a hill. Here, as the Beatles sing, I was probably the fool on the hill. 'But again, I was probably the butt of the jokes, but I shouldn't be. Because it was an awful reflection of the league. 'A photo can speak a million words. You seen intrigued that I'm saying this I find it an awful photo for the league. That's all I'm saying. Embarrassing. 'Like I said, you can read into that what you want. I said it before, I said it after, because I utterly believe it.' Duff and his club had just come through a bruising 90 minutes at home to Drogheda, their fourth game in five matches without a goal scored and the Shels boss admitted that the champions didn't do enough to deserve a win as confidence has taken a hit. 'It's disappointing, we huffed and we puffed, did we do enough for me to come in here and say we deserved to win the game? I don't think so, we dominated possession, maybe three-quarters of the possession but did we do enough with the ball,' said Duff, who had to call on back-up keeper Lorcan Healy for most of the game as No. 1 Conor Kearns was forced off with a calf injury after half an hour. 'Drogheda, they are set up so well and work so hard for each other, brilliant, they have their way, it's a very efficient way, with Drogheda you have to wear them down, grind them down, and we didn't do that enough. 'They [Shels players] are maybe in a vulnerable time, not on a good run, as disappointing as tonight is, it's the many other games this season that we have let go by and dropped points is where you suffer, there have been more disappointing nights, for sure there's a lack of belief, a lack of spark and all we can do is stick together and keep working hard, as I told them at the end of the game. Read more
The Irish Sun
19-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Joey O'Brien warns Shelbourne's title defence at risk from ‘bad individual mistakes' ahead of ‘massive game' vs Drogheda
JOEY O'BRIEN reckons Shelbourne's title defence will be derailed if the Reds keep making mistakes. The champions host FAI Cup holders Drogheda United this evening in a clash brought forward from July because of both sides' European commitments. 2 Joey O'Brien warned Shelbourne their title defence could be scuppered if they keep making mistakes Credit: Seb Daly/Sportsfile 2 Shelbourne lost to Bohemians Credit: Seb Daly/Sportsfile But Shels' current issues are at home as they have won just one of their last seven games and lost three of their last four — including last The unpredictable nature of the season means they are still just seven points off top spot. But assistant manager O'Brien — who saw Mark Coyle and Ali Coote sent off in Dalymount — acknowledged that the club's problems are all too predictable. He said: 'It's just been bad individual mistakes. And the lads know . . . if it continues we're not going to go where we want to go. Read More on Shelbourne 'You can do a lot of work and talk about certain things, but if you keep making mistakes regarding the backline . . . 'With the goals we've been giving away, it's an uphill task. There's obviously a lot of good teams. Not a lot of difference in a lot of the teams I don't think. The first goal is a massive thing.' Shelbourne have kept just three clean sheets all year and none in the last seven games. Last season, they were also almost unstoppable after scoring first — dropping just four points after grabbing the opener. Most read in Sport But this term, they have won just five of the nine games where they have taken the lead. O'Brien — who stood in for Friday's derby with boss Damien Duff banned and taking up a vantage point behind the Des Kelly Stand — added: 'We got a turnover of players . . . the lads leaving in the summer. Shelbourne manager Damien Duff gives sweet birthday shoutout to his mother after his side's draw against St Pat's 'And then again this season there's been a turnover of players. So it's finding a way. But the standout thing is we weren't making mistakes. 'We weren't giving up goals that we've given up this year. You look at a lot of the goals we've given up, they've been really, really poor from an individual point of view. Mistakes, OGs. Some mad stuff.' Shels are short defensively without Paddy Barrett, Sam Bone and Lewis through injury, while Tyreke Wilson has only just returned. And they will be further hit tonight as captain Coyle — a midfielder moonlighting in defence for the past month — is suspended after being sent off against Bohs. 'MASSIVE GAME' But ex-Ireland ace O'Brien is confident Shels can turn it around. He continued: 'Our performances have been good in a lot of the games we've played in. 'Seeing how much possession you have, seeing how many chances you created, even the amount of chances we give up in games, there hasn't been many this year. 'It's great to have the game on Monday. Going into the two games now in a week at home, it's a great opportunity for us to go out and perform. 'I think our performances at home have been quite good all season. It's a massive game on Monday for the boys. 'Just to dust themselves down and attack the game on Monday.' Striker Seán Boyd will miss out as well as midfielder Coote. But manager Duff will be back on the sideline Drogheda United welcome back ex-Red Shane Farrell from suspension while Josh Thomas, Paul Doyle and Darragh Markey remain out. ODDS : Shelbourne 10-11, Drogheda United 3-1, Draw 11-5. VERDICT : Drogheda
The Citizen
17-05-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Lions have to change and a big win over Ospreys would be a start
The Lions can't finish higher than 11th on the log this season and comfortably off the points needed for a place in the URC top eight. 2180618961Lions prop Asenthi Ntlabakanye says the players need to take some responsibility for poor results on the field after they again failed to make the URC playoffs. Picture: Seb Daly/Sportsfile via Getty Images Lions powerhouse prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye admits that the players have to start taking some responsibility for their poor season, as they prepare to end another United Rugby Championship (URC) campaign outside the playoffs when they host Ospreys at Ellis Park on Saturday afternoon. It is now four straight URC campaigns that the Lions have been unable to break into the top eight, and after just missing out the past couple of seasons, finishing ninth on both occasions, and last year being pipped on games won, this season has been a big step back. If the Lions go down against Ospreys it will be their lowest ever finish on the URC log, below the 12th place they managed in their inaugural season, and regardless of how many points they pick up in the game, it will be their lowest ever points tally in the URC. It is thus bitterly disappointing to see the Lions languishing near the bottom of the table, especially after setting very lofty goals for the current season, and the least they can do is finish on a high and give their fans something to shout about, while also setting a platform for next season. Good and shocking 'There were times when we were good, but there were also times when the performances were shocking,' admitted Ntlabakanye about their season. 'Players can't control what happens off the field, but it is clear that on the pitch things need to change. We need to improve immensely next season and perform a whole lot better. As players we have to take responsibility for this season. 'We are the ones that step onto the field. Our coaches come up with plans and on a Saturday it is our job to execute them. We have to take huge responsibility as to why this season hasn't gone according to plan. 'We had ambitions as a squad to finish in the top eight and qualify for the Champions Cup, which we haven't done before. To fall short of those goals is majorly disappointing. We weren't at the level where we performed the way we wanted to week in and week out.' The Lions haven't beaten Ospreys in their last three games against the Welsh side, so getting a good win over them will be a positive and a start, but plenty will still need to be done in the off season to try and rectify what has been an incredibly poor campaign that started out so well.
The Irish Sun
27-04-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Alan Reynolds declares ‘the fans deserve it' after latest Bohemians comeback as Stephen Kenny rages at St Pat's red card
BOHEMIANS fans savoured their side's ongoing Renniesance as Stephen Kenny was left to lament Anto Breslin's red card. Nine points in a week have propelled Bohs to within two points of the top of the table, although just three points separate the top seven. 2 Bohemians produced another stunning comeback against St Patrick's Athletic Credit: Seb Daly/Sportsfile 2 It has eased the pressure on Alan Reynolds Credit: Seb Daly/Sportsfile James McManus broke Cork City's resistance on Good Friday and they then came from behind to score Bohs are only the second side to have managed three wins on the trot in the Premier Division in 2025 but, even more significantly, it has changed the mood music around gaffer Alan Reynolds. Rennie has had to endure regular calls for his dismissal — and there were still some boos at half-time on Friday night — but two dramatic Dublin derby wins have lifted everyone in D7. Reynolds said: 'All I keep saying is that we keep doing what we do, work hard, all that boring stuff I keep talking about — you get your rewards then. Read More on League of Ireland 'The players deserve it, the fans too. I thought the place was rocking and it was good for the new players to see that, even for players like Jordan Flores and Ross Tierney who have been here when it's been hard. 'But that's a real taste. We need more of it. 'In fairness to Pat's, they come and have a right go at you so the game becomes an entertaining one. 'I thought we were outstanding and I don't think we deserved to go behind. We definitely deserved to get something out of that, if not to win it. The character of the boys was unbelievable. Most read in Sport 'We're definitely fit and they never give in and they kept going and got big goals, with Rob Cornwall coming on to equalise. 'I'm delighted for him, and then Seán Grehan getting the winner. Cork City fans watch League of Ireland clash against Dundalk in cinema 'Archie Meekison did really well for the first goal after coming on. It's hard for him, he's had a difficult time here but we see it in training and that will help him.' Grehan had been penalised for handball in the first half when he blocked Axel Sjoberg's cross, with Chris Forrester netting the spot-kick. Reynolds said: 'It looked a bit harsh for me and then we could have got one but I don't want to be talking about decisions.' That was in reference to Luke Turner chopping down Tierney in the box between the two goals. 'HUGELY DISAPPOINTING' But, if he did not want to talk about Damien MacGraith's calls, Kenny did, specifically the dismissal of Breslin moments before that incident when he received a second booking after clipping Tierney. The Pat's boss said: 'To lose it so late is hugely disappointing, conceding second phase off sets. 'Obviously Anthony Breslin shouldn't have been sent off. It's definitely not a second yellow. He should not have been sent off. 'There was a lot of pressure put on from the Bohemians side at half-time. Whether that influenced things in the second half, I don't know. 'But the match probably would have finished out at 1-1. The sending-off was hugely impactful on the result in the end. The first one for not taking the throw quickly enough in the first half was incredibly harsh. 'The second one, it's not a deliberate trip, it's hardly even a coming together. I've watched it back and it's not a second yellow. I'm disappointed, it's a tough way to lose it. 'It's one that we should have been able to see out. There are different ways to win a game. 'We needed to win that game a little bit differently, just seeing out that period, and we didn't quite do it which is disappointing. We had opportunities on the counter-attack that we didn't utilise.' St Pat's are sweating over Forrester who left the ground in a protective boot. He came off at half-time after someone stood on his foot. Bohs, meanwhile, have a concern over Leigh Kavanagh, who limped off in the opening period.
