CANOEING:The K Club and the river Liffey at Islandbridge are known for golf and rowing, but tomorrow they will be linked by the annual Liffey Descent.
The 28km race for canoes and kayaks starts at Straffan at 12.30 and goes to the boat clubs above the weir at Islandbridge. The 850-strong entry has been diminished only slightly by the clash with the World Marathon Canoeing Championships in Hungary this weekend. Mick Scanlon, one of the organisers, reckons if any clash has affected the entry it is that with the Rugby World Cup. There is a keen South African interest in the Liffey Descent, but the Springboks open their World Cup campaign against Samoa at 3pm Irish time in Paris.
EQUESTRIAN SPORT: Ireland's final hope of qualifying an eventing team for the Olympics has suffered a major blow with the withdrawal with ligament damage of the Army horse Balladeer Alfred from next week's European championships, reports Grania Willis. The team of just three horses - Hobby du Mee (Austin O'Connor), Millbridge Kalmar (Sally Corscadden) and Watership Down (Louise Lyons) will compete in Rome but, without the cushion of a discard score, qualifying hopes look slim.
Cian O'Connor, Conor Swail and the Army duo Commandant Gerry Flynn and Lieutenant Shane Carey represent Ireland in today's Czech Nations Cup in Prague.
MOTOR SPORT: Gareth MacHale in his Ford Focus WRC is fancied to add the weekend's Dick Bailey Wexford Rally to his recent Tipperary Stonethrowers win, but he will have to be firing on all cylinders to beat the Subaru drivers Eamon Boland (Wexford) and Stephen Murphy (Carlow), who share the record of seven wins, reports Brian Foley.
Murphy dominated this event in the early 1990s with five consecutive wins, from 1991 to 1995.
This is the 36th running of the Wexford Rally, which has attracted 239 entries, of which only 151 can start, plus five juniors.
FIXTURES: Saturday: Wexford MC, Dick Bailey Wexford Stages Rally, starts Wexford, 9am. Sunday: Wexford MC, Dick Bailey Wexford Stages Rally, restarts Wexford, 9am.
