Death of Nevin Spence is a huge lossRUGBY NEWS: WORDS REALLY do seem futile at times like thisMon Sept 17 2012 - 01:00
ERC blindsided by new TV dealRUGBY: FAR FROM adopting a more conciliatory stance after lobbing a grenade into ERC and European rugby the day before, yesterday…Fri Sept 14 2012 - 01:00
Munster to do the fortress storming this timeA TYPICALLY slow-burning start to the season rises a few degrees at Ravenhill tonight for the first derby and first five-figure…Fri Sept 14 2012 - 01:00
Trimble tuned up and ready to go againRABODIRECT PRO 12: THE IRFU Player Welfare Programme has some interesting side effectsThu Sept 13 2012 - 01:00
Schmidt set for one-year extensionNEWS: LEINSTER ARE hopeful of agreeing and announcing a one-year extension to Joe Schmidt’s contract before the end of this …Wed Sept 12 2012 - 01:00
Ferris back in Ulster squad for visit to champions OspreysRUGBY: STEPHEN FERRIS is set to play his first game since Ulster’s defeat in the Heineken Cup final against Leinster after Mark…Wed Sept 05 2012 - 01:00
Lions coach Gatland ready for 'one hell of a challenge'RUGBY: HE MAY be a Kiwi, but as first-time appointments to the role of Lions head coach go, it’s doubtful whether anyone has…Wed Sept 05 2012 - 01:00
Fundraising initiative targets €1m for clubsRUGBY : THE FIGHT on behalf of the club game carries on in ever more difficult times, what with the rampant expansionism of …Wed Sept 05 2012 - 01:00
Leinster look to toughen up for visit of DragonsOPENING DEFEATS on the first weekend of the League, or being left red-faced by the Scarlets, are not new experiences for Leinster…Tue Sept 04 2012 - 01:00
Leinster seek an opening night for onceFEW SQUADS, in fact no squads in this league, contain the same depth as LeinsterSat Sept 01 2012 - 01:00
Weakened Munster have their work cut outTWO COACHES who will come under close if differing scrutiny this season kick off a new campaign at a cavernous Murrayfield in…Sat Sept 01 2012 - 01:00
Ulster give youth its fling on opening nightTHERE’S ALWAYS a tendency to describe a team as new-look at the outset of another season but the description applies in spades…Fri Aug 31 2012 - 01:00
Onwards and upwards the mantra for Elwood and ConnachtCONNACHT’S IMPROVEMENT under Eric Elwood has been markedThu Aug 30 2012 - 01:00
Schmidt has Nacewa back to face SaleLeinster, Munster and Ulster all complete their pre-season programmes tonight against English Premiership opposition who, generally…Fri Aug 24 2012 - 01:00
Howlett to be new Munster captainDOUG HOWLETT is set to become the next Munster captain after Paul O’Connell indicated his intention to step down from the job…Thu Aug 23 2012 - 01:00
All to play for in season that ends with a big roarTO SAY that the onset of a new rugby season signals the end of summer would indeed be a laugh, besides which the rugby season…Wed Aug 22 2012 - 01:00
Blackest of nights for Irish rugbyNew Zealand 60 Ireland 0: THERE WERE mitigating factors in defeat. Missing six LionsMon Jun 25 2012 - 01:00
All black for Irish as Kiwis run riotNew Zealand 60 Ireland 0: The 17th test of Ireland’s 51-week season proved a bridge too far, all the more so without their half…Sat Jun 23 2012 - 01:00
Last chance saloon for IrelandRUGBY THIRD TEST New Zealand v Ireland: IRELAND WENT into a record 17th Test of the season desperately seeking a first ever …Sat Jun 23 2012 - 01:00
So long to the Land of the Long White CloudNEW ZEALAND LETTER: Certainly there is every likelihood Ireland won’t tour New Zealand again until 2024Sat Jun 23 2012 - 01:00
Kidney's men gird their loins for a final effortJUST ONE more almighty effort required against the All Blacks who do, perhaps, look a little less mighty without Dan CarterFri Jun 22 2012 - 01:00
Earls back as O'Mahony moves to number eightONCE MORE into the breach! In the 51st week and 17th Test of the season, Declan Kidney has kept changes to a minimum as Ireland…Thu Jun 21 2012 - 01:00
'Nugget' Smith set for a golden futureRUGBY NEW ZEALAND TOUR: THE POOR old Auckland BluesWed Jun 20 2012 - 01:00
Kiss can tell Ireland only getting into their strideNOTHING IS hidden from the prying eye of the television cameraWed Jun 20 2012 - 01:00
Squad down to bare bones as D'Arcy and Heaslip ruled outRUGBY: THE IRISH squad licked their considerable wounds and moved on to a well-timed four-day stop-off in the picture-postcard…Mon Jun 18 2012 - 01:00
Late fateful call so cruel on IrelandNew Zealand 22 Ireland 19: THIS WAS, as Dan Carter noted afterwards, true test match rugby, but, as with David Pollock’s questionable…Mon Jun 18 2012 - 01:00
Self-pity out as Irish squad fix on ultimate one-off prizeTHE SERIES may be lost – but the ultimate one-off prize remainsMon Jun 18 2012 - 01:00
New Zealand sneak past gallant IrelandNew Zealand 22 Ireland 19: A magnificent Irish performance – extracted from a severe beating last week and in the 50th week …Sat Jun 16 2012 - 01:00
Ireland need 'controlled abandon'RUGBY SECOND TEST VIEWED REALISTICALLY, beating the All Blacks last week on the ground where they were crowned as world champions…Fri Jun 15 2012 - 01:00
'Saturday was just a game. This is real life'WITHIN A couple of hours of their arrival the entire Ireland squad was taken through the downturn area of Christchurch now known…Fri Jun 15 2012 - 01:00
Thomson comes in to replace injured VitoNZ SELECTION: AS EXPECTED, the All Blacks have made just one enforced change to the side which beat Ireland 42-10 last week …Thu Jun 14 2012 - 01:00
'Saturday was just a game. This is real life'WITHIN A couple of hours of their arrival the entire Ireland squad was taken through the downturn area of Christchurch now known…Thu Jun 14 2012 - 01:00
Kidney gives Murray his backing at nineOn the premise that some of those who underperformed in the first Test will now be more acquainted with the unremittingly rapid…Thu Jun 14 2012 - 01:00
Healy '50-50', while Sexton is troubled by tight hamstring in AucklandRUGBY: NOT FOR the first time this season, Jonathan Sexton was troubled by a recurring hamstring problem in the warm-up to last…Tue Jun 12 2012 - 01:00
Ireland demolished by All Black powerNEW ZEALAND 42 IRELAND 10: THE IRISH squad conducted their ‘recovery’ session yesterday morning on Takapuna beach, but the recuperative…Mon Jun 11 2012 - 01:00
Christchurch Test just got tougher as Earls ruled outTHE PROSPECT of a snowy Christchurch welcoming the All Blacks yesterday in readiness for next Saturday’s first Test there since…Mon Jun 11 2012 - 01:00
Nothing to fear from the start of some new beginningsNEW ZEALAND TOUR FIRST TEST: “WHY SHOULD we fear the Irish?” asked the New Zealand Herald yesterday on the top right of page…Sat Jun 09 2012 - 01:00
Ireland thumped by All BlacksNew Zealand 42 Ireland 10: As feared, the newly crowned world champions are not only at peace with the world but also concocting…Sat Jun 09 2012 - 01:00
World Cup success leaves a rugby land at peaceLETTER FROM AUCKLAND: Former player Grant Fox says it’s a ‘privilege’ to be back at the forefront of New Zealand rugby – this…Sat Jun 09 2012 - 01:00
Ominously for Ireland, Carter appears to be back to his bestRUGBY TOUR: WHEN DAN Carter winced after attempting a long-range penalty in the first half of the Crusaders’ 51-18 rout of the…Fri Jun 08 2012 - 01:00
Looking to get the All Blacks off our backsNEW ZEALAND TOUR FIRST TEST: NEW ZEALAND v IRELAND A BOLDLY assembled side attempts to go where no Irish team has gone before…Fri Jun 08 2012 - 01:00
Kidney rings changes as Zebo makes debutNEW ZEALAND TOUR IRELAND SELECTION OFTEN, and unfairly, portrayed as an innately conservative selector with undue loyalty to…Thu Jun 07 2012 - 01:00
Mike Ross ruled out of first testNot surprisingly, Mike Ross has been ruled out of Ireland’s first of three tests against New Zealand this Saturday due to the…Thu Jun 07 2012 - 01:00
Hansen chooses perfect blendIN AN intriguing, and slightly ominous selection for Saturday’s first test, new All Blacks’ head coach Steve Hansen has dipped…Thu Jun 07 2012 - 01:00
Vito relishing the chance to inflict pain on IrelandAS WITH the start of any new four-year World Cup cycle, opportunity knocks for a number of players and even the world champions…Wed Jun 06 2012 - 01:00
Ireland management to give Ross as much time as possibleTIME WAS when Mike Ross was considered superfluous even to the Irish provincial circuit as he cut his teeth with Harlequins for…Wed Jun 06 2012 - 01:00
Kiss hoping for a happy return to Eden ParkIRELAND HAVE fond memories of their last visit to Eden Park but if Ireland’s record against the All Blacks is a bleak one – one…Tue Jun 05 2012 - 01:00
