Previous Day
Gallas has the last laugh on Chelsea
SOCCER: William Gallas was hailed by Arsène
Wenger as an inspirational leader after his goal edged Arsenal to a
1-0 victory over Chelsea, on a fractious occasion at the Emirates
Stadium, and offered him the last laugh against his former
employers. p
Benitez remains defiant despite demoralising defeat
SOCCER: Rafael Benitez went into his showdown talks with Liverpool's American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, last night insisting that Manchester United's 1-0 win at Anfield would not seriously weaken his position. p
Munster earn their turkey, Leinster's goose cooked
RUGBY: Dismal defeats for two other provinces had
left Irish Heineken European Cup hopes hanging, if not by a thread,
then entirely on Munster shoulders. Some might say the entire Irish
season hinged on the outcome of their game against Llanelli
yesterday. We needn't have worried, though being the drama kings
they are, how Thomond Park did. p
Soccer
Arsenal's title hopes get a push
English FA Premiership/Arsenal 1 Chelsea 0: A team renowned for its beauty will take a perverse pride in afternoons when they win ugly. This, relatively speaking, was an afternoon when Arsene Wenger's team gouged out a victory. There was spasmodic slickness on the counter-attack and, while Arsenal can be confident of returning to a beautifully articulated style, there are doubts about Chelsea achieving a higher standard. pTevez brings Anfield to its knees
Liverpool 0 Manchester Utd 1: Accents have changed in the corridors of power at Anfield but its anguish sounds the same. On Saturday Alex Hicks, son of the Texan millionaire and Liverpool co-chairman, Tom, proposed to his girlfriend Portia Tuma (yes, really) when he reached the centre circle during a private tour of the stadium. Twenty-four hours later Liverpool's players were also on their knees posing serious questions, none of them related to love. pEverton continue their latest surge
West Hamv 0 Everton 2: There was a time when finishing fourth would have been not so much the least of Everton's ambitions as no ambition at all. But Goodison rather got left behind in the Premier League gold rush and breaking up the elite quartet at the top for a second time in four seasons would now be a considerable feat for David Moyes and his workmanlike team. pEtuhu turns things around for Eriksson
Manchester City 4 Bolton Wanderers 2: Players wore short sleeves and gloves. Nothing ever adds up with Manchester City - except their home points at present. On a bitter day they extended their 100 per cent record to a ninth game. Last season they went eight at the end without a goal. pSpurs players do the talking for Ramos
Portsmouth 0 Tottenham Hotspur 1: Anyone who believes Fabio Capello's less than basic grasp of English will not hinder his ability to transform the national side from lost souls into relentless winners should have tried getting a comprehensive answer from Juande Ramos on Saturday evening, or rather from his translator. pKeane's bad feeling
Sunderland 1 Aston Villa 1: Some managers place their faith in science, making decisions centred on the latest ProZone stats, but others are much more instinctive. pCeltic caught cold up north
Inverness 3 Celtic 2: It will be of scant consolation to Celtic that they can now legitimately claim to have been part of the most exhilarating match of the season. The champions were two goals in front midway through the opening half in the Highlands yesterday, but what followed ranked firmly in the epic category as 10-man Inverness Caledonian Thistle recovered to record their first league victory over Celtic. pCapable Coppell a worthy candidate
On Soccer: English football is always in danger of collapsing under the weight of its own self-importance, but last week it may well have reached critical mass. pPlanet Football
Today's other stories in brief p
Dithering Leinster run out of field
European Cup Pool Six/Edinburgh 29 Leinster 10: There were several periods during the Rugby World Cup when it dawned upon Irish supporters that their pre-tournament expectations were unrealistic. That same feeling filtered through the Leinster contingent that made up about a quarter of the crowd of 3,567 at Murrayfield on Saturday. pOnly move on Cheika's mind is taking his team forward
Leinster coach Michael Cheika arrived at the post-match press conference alone. The players were described as too "gutted" to provide a reaction to the lowest point of the Australian's three-year tenure with the province. pHint of real crisis stokes Munster fire
Pool Five/Munster 22 Llanelli 13: In their rich Heineken European Cup history, Munster have been in bigger pickles perhaps, but not too many; 66 minutes gone, defending just a four-point lead into a stiff breeze and down to 14 men against a fired-up, talented team playing with freedom. pTough get going one more time
Last week in the Stradey hailstones, Munster faced their moment of truth in the last quarter and the pack responded by playing like eight brothers. Pitted into a similar searching examination of their spiritual, physical and mental resolve yesterday in the rematch when Marcus Horan was sinbinned, the remaining 14 men in red rolled up their sleeves again. pToulouse take iron grip of the pool
Toulouse 22 Leicester 11: Even the freezing fog drifting across the river Garonne could not fully obscure a depressing result for Leicester. At the very least they needed to return home with a bonus point to prevent French league leaders Toulouse taking an iron grip on Pool Six, but, ultimately, the English challenge blew itself out after a rumbustious first hour. While the maths remains complex, even bonus-point wins against Leinster and Edinburgh may now be insufficient to sneak the Tigers through. pBlack day for Wasps despite thrilling victory
Pool Five/Wasps 25 Clermont Auvergne 24: Rarely have the winners of a classic match looked so furious. Visiting Munster on the final weekend of pool matches needing a four-try victory is a bleak midwinter prospect, and Wasps must now also rely on the generosity of Clermont. pBristol chasing the Blues
Pool Three: Bristol secured their third win of the season, beating Harlequins 20-7 at the Memorial Stadium yesterday to keep the pressure on Cardiff Blues at the top of Pool Three. pLane leads way in Cork Constitution try blitz
All-Ireland League round-up: Cork Constitution have earned the right to be considered the premier team in the AIB All-Ireland League Division One as they top the table heading into the New Year. The Temple Hill side produced a superb seven-try performance to blitz UCD 46-13 in Cork. pConnacht whitewashed as Falcons take revenge
European Challenge Cup/Newcastle 39 Connacht 0: Connacht were given no early Christmas present in Newcastle last evening. In freezing weather, the Falcons avenged their narrow Sportsground loss with a thumping victory in the second of their back-to-back European Challenge Cup fixtures. pPlanet Rugby
Today's other stories in brief p
St Vincent's back in the big time
Leinster Club Football Championship final/St Vincent's 2-8 Tyrrellspass 0-7: It has taken St Vincent's 23 years to win back the Leinster club football title, their fourth since 1973, and this may be the most satisfying so far. The famous Dublin club is naturally steeped in tradition and it seemed several generations of St Vincent's supporters spilled onto Cusack Park afterwards to share in the moment of triumph. pWhelan 'delighted to be part of it'
Mickey Whelan takes a bite from a KitKat just as we approach him for a word, and if anyone deserves a break like this - ending the long wait for the Leinster club title - it's the modest and affable St Vincent's manager. p
Kingston finally breaks the tape
South Africa's James Kingston claimed his first European Tour title when he won the South African Open by one stroke at Pearl Valley Golf Estates near Stellenbosch in the Western Cape yesterday. pWoods cruising to fourth title
Tiger Woods was cruising towards his fourth Target World Challenge title from nine attempts after holding off a mid-round charge by Jim Furyk at Sherwood Country Club near Los Angeles. pSorenstam ends year's drought
WOMEN'S MASTERS : Sweden's former world number one Annika Sorenstam ended a tough season in the best possible fashion by retaining the Dubai Women's Masters yesterday at the Emirates Club. p
Doyle's gamble pays off nicely
Navan Report: Trafford Lad's victory in the Barry and Sandra Kelly Memorial Novice Hurdle proved the highlight of a fruitful afternoon for Tom Doyle at Navan. The rider initiated a 48 to 1 double aboard the Dusty Sheehy-trained gelding in the Grade One feature over two and a half miles. pOur Ben finally delivers
Cork Report: Our Ben finally landed a long-awaited Graded success over fences as he lifted the O'Connell Logistics Hilly Way Chase at Cork yesterday. Willie Mullins's eight-year-old had been highly tried since finishing third in the 2005 Royal and and SunAlliance Hurdle, but had yet to live up to those expectations. pOsana for Champion
David Pipe believes Osana's slick hurdling will make him a tough nut to crack after he posted a sensational victory in Saturday's Boylesports.com International Hurdle. p
Lee displays a bit of class
BOXING/Irish super-middleweight title fight: When Jason McKay arrived into the room above the bar at the National Stadium after his Irish super-middleweight title fight with Andy Lee late on Saturday night, the punishment he had taken was all too obvious. After a bloody six rounds where Lee kept the Irish light-heavyweight champion at bay with cutting jabs, before his corner said no more, McKay's face was a canvas of black, blue and red. Both eyes closed, stitches in his forehead from a clash, a discoloured left ear and swollen cheeks were all testament to Lee's stylish dominance. pAlone with our thoughts and deadly icebergs
SAILING: Damian Foxall is co-skipper with Jean-Pierre Dick on Paprec-Virbac in the two-handed, non-stop Barcelona World Race. Astern of them, the fleet has taken a hammering in the last week and three of the top boats are now out of the running. pKürten's good form continues
EQUESTRIAN: Jessica Kürten's successful end-of-year run continued in La Coruna where she landed the two-phase competition on the opening day of the Spanish five-star show on the Selle Francais mare Kalande des Grez. pBreen confident after record
SWIMMING/European Short Course: Andrew Bree says he will head into 2008 more confident than ever that he will make a strong showing at the Olympics in Beijing. pSunday's only grand, though Celtic are given the slam
TV View: Grand Slam Sunday! Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Glasgow Celtic! "It doesn't get any bigger than that!" as Sky Sports' main man Richard Keys would put it. pNew chairman elected in Meath
DIGEST/GAELIC GAMES: Meath county chairman Brendan Dempsey failed to be re-elected at the county convention in Navan when Barney Allen, who had stepped down as secretary because of the five-year rule, defeated him 107 votes to 70. pWise cracks becoming almost tolerable
Locker Room: Bah humbug and so on! Into your cup, brimful of punchy festive cheer no doubt, let me add a wee drop of laudanum, a tincture to be taken in the form of a column about Leeds United. p
