NEED TO CATCH up? TheScore.ie brings you a round-up of today’s sports news…
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At the time of publishing, Rory McIlroy was leading the PGA Championship at Valhalla after a second-round 67. But with Lee Westwood and Kevin Chappell teeing off late this evening, he could be reeled in.
There have been rumours for a while now about the possibility of a NFL game being staged at Croke Park. But, stadium director Peter McKenna believes the league’s priority is to continue developing a presence in the UK.
Rotation is the key for Ireland Women’s rugby coach Philip Doyle. He’s made ten changes to his team for the final Pool B clash with Kazakhstan in Marcoussis tomorrow. The bodies are still probably a little sore after that magnificent victory against New Zealand.
Galway hurling manager Anthony Cunningham faces a tough challenge if he wishes to keep his job. Three other candidates have been nominated and there are likely to be more names added to the list before a final decision is made in mid-September.
New Munster boss Anthony Foley has accepted that there will be some added scrutiny this season given the backroom changes within the team but Axel is relishing making the step-up, especially with former team-mates Jerry Flannery and Mick O’Driscoll alongside him.
Ahead of Sunday’s All-Ireland senior hurling semi-final, Limerick captain Donal O’Grady thinks the current Kilkenny side is the greatest that’s ever played hurling but he’s hoping his own team can take motivation from their previous Croke Park disappointments.
Dublin manager Jim Gavin has praised Eoghan O’Gara for showing ‘composure’ during the now-infamous ‘incident’ that immediately overshadowed their Leinster football final victory over Meath.
Women’s National League champions Raheny United are in Romania as they seek to qualify from their Champions League group. They play three games in six days with the first fixture against local side Cluj tomorrow.
Away
Despite being thumped 6-1 on aggregate by Legia Warsaw and embarrassingly crashing out of the Champions League earlier this week, Celtic will take their place in the play-off round after the Poles’ were punished by UEFA for fielding an illegible player.
An hour after that news filtered through, Celtic were drawn to face Slovenian side Maribor in the Champions League play-off round. Elsewhere, Arsenal will take on Besiktas from Turkey. For the football hipsters out there, the juiciest tie pits Rafa Benitez’s Napoli against Spanish outfit Athletic Club.
The rain caused havoc at Valhalla with Mother Nature ensuring a 45-minute stoppage. Awful for all those involved but the conditions made for some great photos.
There was some sad news as Didier Drogba announced his retirement from international football after more than 100 appearances for Ivory Coast. More time to concentrate on trying to terrorise Premier League defenders again.
Luis Suarez was in Lausanne as his case was heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The Barcelona striker is hopeful he can get his four-month FIFA ban halved and he and his legal team spent five hours arguing their side.
The best thing we shared
Perhaps ‘best thing’ isn’t the right term to use but this clip from Olympic pole vault champion Jenn Suhr shows the danger involved in her chosen discipline. THAT noise is the worst. Luckily, she escaped serious injury but does face some time on the sidelines.
On the record
We went from the highs of playing in Croke Park, in with a chance of getting to the final, to the lows of opportunity lost. Most of the lads were either playing or involved that day. The hurt of that should be a motivation in itself.”
Donal O’Grady is still hurting after last year’s semi-final defeat to Clare. He and his Limerick team-mates will hope for much better this Sunday against Kilkenny.
The fixture list
- A big day at GAA HQ with a couple of All-Ireland senior football quarter-finals down for decision. Donegal take on Armagh at 4 o’clock while that’s followed by the Dubs’ clash with Monaghan at 6.
- It’s the third round of the PGA Championship at Valhalla where Rory McIlroy will attempt to build on his impressive start.
- Ireland Women are in action at the Rugby World Cup. They hope to close out the first stage with another victory – they face Kazakhstan at noon in Paris. A win would see them top the group.
- In the League of Ireland, Sligo take on Athlone with kick-off at The Showgrounds set for 7.45. In the First Division, Longford Town host Finn Harps at 7.30.
- The Championship properly gets underway with a ton of games. So many storylines to choose from, especially with a couple of crazy owners – the original and best, Vincent Tan at Cardiff and now Massimo Cellino at Leeds.
Showbiz, baby!
Ted Lasso entered our lives for the first time when NBC Sports launched its coverage of the Premier League in the US last August. Thankfully, famous actor-type Jason Sudeikis is back for the new campaign and he’s brought his alter-ego with him. Though maybe this version is more camp than before? Still very funny though.
“That’s kind of my whole face, like an egg with a beard”
