Limerick began their All-Ireland championship defence with a seven point defeat to Cork at the Gaelic Grounds on Sunday. The Rebels bounced back immediately after last week's loss to Tipperary in the Munster championship round-robin, while Tipp continued their own impressive form with a double scores victory over 14-man Waterford. In Leinster, TJ Reid was to the fore as Kilkenny laid the platform for a comfortable win over Carlow with an early first half scoring blitz, and Dublin rescued a draw against Wexford thanks to a stoppage time goal via a Sean Moran 21-metre free. In the football championship, Kieran McGeeney's Armagh finally won a provincial match, but needed extra time to see off Down. While Sligo were no match for Galway in the Connacht semi-final. In his column this morning Nicky English reflects on Cork's regained form after a week of burning criticism: "the Gaelic Grounds was further proof that in Irish sport you're always better off skulking into a contest, your ears burning with criticism, than with the glow of medals reflecting in your face."
A coronation almost turned into a calamity but Brooks Koepka survived to win the PGA Championship for a second consecutive year on Sunday night. The American, who had held a seven-stroke lead at the start of the final round, almost lost control of the title when he made four successive bogeys from the 11th hole before staving off Dustin Johnson for a two-stroke victory at Bethpage Black. Shane Lowry and Rory McIlroy, who both showed their own brand of resilience, each closed with rounds of 69 to finish on 281, one-over-par, and in a tie for eighth at the season's second Major.
Manchester City won Saturday's FA Cup final against Watford 6-0, completing the domestic treble in the process, but according to Ken Early - City's domination has been bought and not earned: "It's been the most successful week in City's history, and the pity is that their manager, fans and PR department have seldom sounded more angry. It's time to accept that oil-funded success and mass popularity are never going to go together."
Following their Pro14 semi-final win over Munster, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen was asked if his team need to retain the Pro14 title to make it a successful campaign? "The big thing is just getting to finals," he explained. "You've got to just get there, then it comes down to on the day. So we want to be in finals. We want to win finals. We were gutted with last week. Were we happy with last week? No, of course we weren't. If we're in a final we want to win the final."
