Simon Easterby is unlikely to let Ireland’s miserly defence rest on their laurels as last Saturday’s defensive performance was one of the rocks upon which an epic win over France was founded, writes Gerry Thornley. Even so, it wasn’t without its imperfections. Ireland missed 38 tackles out of 186 attempted, which equates to a 79.5 per cent success rate, whereas France stayed in the game largely through making an eye-catching 248 tackles out of 271 (91.5 per cent). In his column, Johnny Watterson asks about concussion protocols: what if the opposition say it’s not safe for your school’s best player to play? With the senior school’s rugby competition in full swing, coaches involved with teams making real-time decisions about player welfare may be faced with new issues. If you want all the angles on this year’s Six Nations, sign up for The Counter Ruck, our new weekly rugby newsletter from Gerry Thornley.
On the PGA Tour, Tiger Woods marked his return to competitive action with a closing trio of birdies as he carded 69 during the first round of the Genesis Invitational. Playing alongside Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas, all three players birdied the last hole in a grandstand finish. McIlroy opened with a 67 to put him in a strong position, three shots off the lead. Lowry shot the same as Woods, a 69 that featured two eagles. They are out again today at 3.24pm. In soccer, Manchester United were denied a win in Barcelona in the Europa League by Raphinha’s equaliser in a classic end-to-end encounter that saw 35 attempts on goal between the teams. Meanwhile for Manchester City, they face their biggest fixture yet – fighting the Premier League’s financial rules. If found guilty of financial violations, the Gulf-funded club faces a range of punishments, including expulsion from the England’s top flight.
In GAA, Congress 2023 aims to challenge a culture that facilitates unacceptable behaviour. Matt Shaw is one of the lawyers who helped to devise Congress proposals to ramp up ineffectual penalties. “Firstly, for a team official, mentor or supporter misbehaving at an under-age game, the minimum penalty will be twice the applicable penalty at adult level. We’re trying to change the culture at those age groups by making it twice as serious a matter. We hope that it will get support at Congress because at present our rules aren’t saying that,” he says. In the Fitzgibbon Cup, University of Galway and UL are to meet again in the decider after Galway were brought to extra-time in a tense clash with UCC.
