Sports Digest/ BOXING: A full house has been confirmed ahead of Bernard Dunne's challenge for the vacant European super bantamweight title against Englishman Esham Pickering at the Point Depot this Saturday night, writes Gavin Cummiskey.
The speed with which the 7,000-capacity Dublin venue was sold out led Ticketmaster managing director Eamonn O'Connor to express surprise at the renewed interest in boxing.
"The kind of demand we saw for this was comparable to what we see for some of the big-name bands and artists. It's just created a great buzz among the general public, and the fact that it's sold out reflects that."
RTÉ's live coverage begins at 10pm. The full undercard will be announced during Friday's weigh-in at the Burlington hotel.
Taylor now number one
BOXING: Back-to-back European lightweight champion Katie Taylor has punched her way to number one spot in the new world amateur rankings for October.
Taylor, from Bray, Co Wicklow, won her second European senior title on the trot when she beat Russian Tatyana Chalaya (ranked second) in her 60kg final in Warsaw in September.
The 20-year-old, who is coached by her father Peter, is expected to take part in the fourth women's World Championships which begin in New Delhi, India, next week.
Elsewhere in the women's rankings, Belfast light welterweight Alanna Murphy is ranked fifth.
In the men's European rankings, Neilstown's Ken Egan remains third in the light heavyweight division.
Carey helps Army coffers
EQUESTRIAN: Captain Shane Carey boosted the McKee Barracks coffers with victory in Sunday night's late-finishing Kill International Grand Prix, writes Grania Willis, Equestrian Correspondent.
The Limerick-born rider was last to go of 15 through to the timed decider and was chasing a time of 32.79 seconds set by Neal Fearon and True Illusion, but the nippy Hands Free provided exactly the right sort of horsepower for the Army man, slicing off almost half-a-second to claim the Canon Kirk Homes honours.
Fearon held on for second place and has now moved to within a single point of Temple Spa Autumn Grand Prix league leader Francis Connors.
