Previous Day
Liverpool face FA rap over dismissal
SOCCER LIVERPOOL'S JAVIER Mascherano is likely to
face an English Football Association charge and an increased
suspension for his furious reaction to being sent off at Manchester
United yesterday. The midfielder was dismissed in the 43rd minute
as United won 3-0 and increased their lead in the Premier League to
five points. p
Striking uncertainty over final league standings
GAA ON A DAY that was meant to decide the final
shakes and moves of the Allianz National Hurling League, there was
instead considerable confusion over who in fact were the winners
and who the losers, at least in Division One A. p
Grant finds spectacular vindication
SOCCER EACH CHELSEA player clamped his hand into Avram Grant's as he departed the turf here, a bare-chested Didier Drogba offering his manager a wink as the Israeli savoured this victory. p
Soccer
Liverpool off pace as United race clear
Manchester Utd 3 Liverpool 0: THERE IS always one moment in every season when, for the team that are going to finish as champions, everything clicks, the worrying stops, all the hard work comes together and everyone knows it is going to be a year to remember. pDrogba keeps Chelsea in the race
Chelsea 2 Arsenal 1 HERE WAS the Premier League season in miniature for these clubs, with Chelsea doggedly clambering upwards and Arsenal taking a tumble just when it looked as if they had a secure footing with the opening goal. The departure from normality lay in the radical effect that Avram Grant had. If his substitutions had to be deplored when Chelsea slithered to a 4-4 draw at Tottenham then the changes he made yesterday must be applauded. pAnxious Everton punished by Ashton
Everton 1 West Ham Utd 1 WHILE A SENSE of potential is invigorating West Ham, it is impeding Everton. The Londoners have been given an injection of vitality by a pair of teenagers but for Everton the possibilities of a fourth-place finish have served only as a constraint. pChopra banishes away-day blues
Aston Villa 0 Sunderland 1 PSYCHOLOGICAL HELP has been on offer at the Stadium of Light in recent weeks but it is difficult to believe Roy Keane needs any advice on how to affect a footballer's mind. Having taken Michael Chopra, Kieran Richardson and Daryl Murphy out of their comfort zone seven days earlier, the Sunderland manager recalled the trio here and was rewarded with a result that was celebrated with such elation that it felt as though Premier League survival had been secured. pOwen and Viduka lift fog on the Tyne
Newcastle Utd 2 Fulham 0 ONLY TIME will tell if Newcastle United's crisis has been averted or merely postponed but at least Kevin Keegan provided those who dismiss him as a tactical illiterate with food for thought. pReal sucker punched and lead gets cut
EUROPEAN SOCCER / PRIMERA LIGA: Barcelona closed to within four points of Real Madrid at the top of the Spanish league yesterday after the leaders lost 3-2 at home to Valencia while the Catalans beat Valladolid 4-1 at Camp Nou. pCeltic close gap on Rangers
Gretna 0 Celtic 3 CELTIC MANAGER Gordon Strachan refused to get involved in a war of words with Rangers chief executive Martin Bain on the subject of an extended season - but backed up his own chief executive Peter Lawwell's view that the Ibrox club should not be given more time to complete their packed fixture list. pRobson wants Cole dropped
FRANCE V ENGLAND BOBBY ROBSON is urging new England manager Fabio Capello to drop Ashley Cole as punishment for his "unacceptable" behaviour on the pitch for Chelsea against Tottenham. pThings falling nicely into place for Ferguson
PREMIER LEAGUE: NOTHING FUELS hatred more efficiently than envy. Al Gore, or someone else who cares about these things, really should investigate whether it can be used to power planes, trains or automobiles: of all the world's resources, nothing is less likely to run out than petty, small-minded jealousy. Harnessing it could solve our energy crisis at a stroke. pPlanet soccer
Quotes of the week "Rafa Benitez is taking pity on Newcastle - he's bringing on Dirk Kuyt." - An outbreak of naughtiness from Matt Le Tissier on Sky recently. Poor Dirk. p
Young Gaels take wind out of Italians
RUGBY UNDER-19 INTERNATIONAL While the conditions ostensibly militated against expansive patterns, Ireland produced quality fare to defeat Italy 23-0 at Malahide pMunster keep Leinster in their sights
Munster 42 Ulster 6 MUNSTER KEPT the Magners League leaders, Leinster, in their sights with a six-try bonus-point romp against Ulster at Musgrave Park on Saturday night. pConstitution stay ahead
ALL-IRELAND LEAGUE FIRST DIVISION CORK CONSTITUTION maintained their primacy in the AIB League Division One with a hard-fought 18-16 victory away to Ballymena at Eaton Park on Saturday. The Ulster side are comfortably ensconced in mid-table but they made the visitors fight very hard to take the spoils back to Cork. pPlanet Rugby
All aboard for succession stakes THE SILLY SEASON is upon us. The hope is it doesn't drag on as long as the FAI search for a new football manager. Over the weekend the Sunday papers had their first go at ruling in/out a number of candidates to succeed Eddie O'Sullivan. The bookies have reacted accordingly with the odds fluctuating all over the place. p
Dublin fall foul of their commitment
Dublin 1-10 Monaghan 0-13 MONAGHAN ARE reliable. You can rely on them to come down to Dublin in late March and provide something akin to championship pace. They are guaranteed to bring a bristling intensity as well. Dublin responded in kind. The record will show they overdid it. pGalway beginning to look the part
Galway 2-24 Limerick 1-16 RARELY HAS Ger Loughnane sounded more unpretentiously confident, at least not since the good old days at Clare, than after this emphatic win over Limerick on their own turf. It's still too soon to say he is the man to lead Galway hurling back to the summit but he's clearly starting to believe it himself. pClare claim victory with late strikes
Offaly 2-13 Clare 1-18 TWO LATE points by substitutes Barry Nugent and Brendan Buglar earned Clare victory over Offaly at a sparsely attended O'Connor Park yesterday. pCork need injury-time points to seal win
Wexford 1-17 Cork 0-22 CORK NEEDED a couple of injury-time points from frees by captain John Gardiner and forward Neil Ronan to book a quarter-final place at Páirc Uí Chaoimh yesterday. Lowly Wexford looked like spoiling Cork's 100 per cent record as they showed commendable battling qualities when playing into a strong wind in the second half to almost cause a shock. pKilkenny maintain perfect record
Antrim 1-8 Kilkenny 3-22 THERE WAS nothing at stake for either side as Kilkenny had already wrapped-up a place in the semi-finals and Antrim had been relegated, but the sorting of the statistics turned into a sorry situation in this clash before a crowd of less than 700 at Nowlan Park. pFermanagh do the job well
Fermanagh 0-14 Limerick 1-7 A GOAL by Limerick sub Kieran O'Callaghan in the fifth minute of time added on in the second half took the bad look out of a result that was always going Fermanagh's way in this rearranged match at windy Lisnaskea on Saturday afternoon. pNo place like home for renewed Waterford
Waterford 3-18 Dublin 1-17 A WEEK is a long time in hurling. For Waterford, a return home brought a necessary return to some kind of form yesterday. They also enjoyed leapfrogging into the closing stages of the league. For Dublin, it was a result which, while a setback, could have been worse. pCorbett hits early hat-trick to set Tipperary on their way
Laois 1-12 Tipperary 4-17 FULL-FORWARD Lar Corbett was in splendid scoring form yesterday for Tipperary, who must content themselves with a place in the quarter-finals of the National Hurling League. Corbett scored a hat-trick of goals within 16 minutes at Cashel's Leahy Park but Galway topped Division One B and claimed the automatic semi-final place on offer. pDooley hat-trick seals Kerry win
DIVISION TWO A ROUND-UP THREE GOALS from John Mike Dooley helped Kerry see off the lively challenge of the Pete Finnerty-managed Mayo - 4-9 to 1-16 - at the Austin Park Tralee yesterday. It was a game with a thrilling finish, a poor opening and some superb goals while Mayo finished with only 13 players - dual star Keith Higgins got a second yellow with 15 minutes to go while Paul Hunt got a straight red just minutes from time. pGalway into final
CAMOGIE THE 2005 winners, Galway, are through to another National League Division One final after defeating Limerick 2-12 to 2-3 yesterday. pUNDER-21 FOOTBALL
Brown points Derry to victory A SCINTILLATING display from corner forward Eoghan Brown that yielded nine points - eight from play - helped Derry defeat Fermanagh 1-20 and 2-9 to qualify for a semi-final meeting with Donegal this Wednesday night. p
Royal County Star set to stalk then pounce
FAIRYHOUSE EASTER MEETING THERE COULD hardly be a more appropriately named winner in Co Meath than Royal County Star and while it will probably mean having to cope with at least one moment of severe stress during the course of today's Powers Whiskey Irish Grand National those backing the favourite still look set to collect in the €250,000 Easter highlight at Fairyhouse. pConna Castle makes up for lost time
FAIRYHOUSE DAY TWO REPORT CONNA CASTLE made up for lost time with a vengeance in yesterday's Powers Gold Cup as Paul Carberry's mount edged out the favourite Big Zeb by half a length in a thrilling finish to the four-runner feature yesterday. pMartin looks like the one to follow
FAIRYHOUSE PREVIEW TONY MARTIN will be a major player in today's National but he should also have a big say in the under-card at Fairyhouse with Robin Du Bois and Reisk Superman likely to keep the local trainer busy in the winner's enclosure. pCarribean Sunset looks the pick for Weld camp
CORK PREVIEW DERMOT WELD gives his high-class hurdler Bobs Pride a return to the flat at Cork today but the top trainer's best chance of a winner looks to come from Carribean Sunset in the fillies maiden. p
Storm blows hot after rain
GOLF US TOUR NEWS THERE WILL be better days to come in the golfing life of Graeme Storm, though the former cake-factory-worker-turned-tour-pro will have taken some convincing of that yesterday after shooting a nine-under-par 63 to give himself a chance to win the $1.4-million winner's cheque at the WGC CA Championship. pHogan hurries home in 29 to lead the qualifying
GOLF WEST OF IRELAND CHAMPIONSHIP EVEN IN hostile conditions, someone will always contrive to find a way. Yesterday, winds that originated on some arctic shore battered the dunes at Rosses Point to leave many egos bruised. pForsyth finally comes good
EUROPEAN TOUR SCOTLAND'S ALASTAIR Forsyth came from five behind to beat South African Hennie Otto at the first hole of a play-off for the Madeira Islands Open yesterday. p
Raikkonen's back with a bang in Sepang
MOTOR SPORT WORLD CHAMPION Kimi Raikkonen bounced back from a disastrous opening race to his 2008 campaign to score an easy victory in yesterday's Malaysian Grand Prix after chief rival Lewis Hamilton suffered the kind of setbacks that had ruined the Finn's race in Melbourne a week ago. pJohnston opts for break from internationals
CRICKET NEWS IRELAND CAPTAIN Trent Johnston has announced he will take a break from international cricket following his side's 79-run defeat to Bangladesh in Dhaka on Saturday, a result that completed a 3-0 whitewash for the home side. pLee punished for walking himself into a brawl
BOXING NEWS ANDY LEE had planned to arrive triumphantly in Shannon yesterday morning, fresh off a victory in his first nationally-televised US main event. Instead, the Limerick man found himself in New York, licking his wounds in the wake of a seventh-round TKO loss at the hands of Texan Brian Vera at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut. pBernard's progress raises eyebrows
SWIMMING ALAIN BERNARD set his third world record of the week when he broke the 50 metre freestyle time at the European Championships in Eindhoven as questions over his recent improvements continue to be voiced. pBoland triumphs in steady fashion
CIRCUIT OF IRELAND EAMONN BOLAND and Damien Morrissey in a Subaru WRC scored a 4.9-second victory over Gareth MacHale and Craig Perry in a Ford Focus WRC in the three-day Circuit of Ireland, which finished in Newcastle, Co Down, yesterday. pButler drives Glenanne to Paris final
HOCKEY SIX DAYS after his hat-trick won Glenanne the Mills Cup against Pembroke Wanderers at Grange Road, Stephen Butler went one better in the European Club Trophy final in Paris yesterday when his four goals helped the Dublin side to a thrilling, 5-4 victory over CA Montrouge. pEnormous day tells us little we didn't already know
TV VIEW THE THOUGHT occurred to us yesterday that if we'd had a €1 double on Wes Brown and Bacary Sagna scoring the first goals in Grand Slam Sunday's double-header we'd now be sipping cocktails on the terrace of our Seychelles 17 up, 19 down, with only the sound of Cedric polishing our Learjet on our private runway in our 200-acre back garden competing with the whooosh of the Indian Ocean lapping at our feet. pStand on Ceremony a win-win option
LOCKER ROOM ONE OF the little perks that go with this gig - which I nailed down after several mildly degrading afternoons on the sports editor's creaky casting couch - is the opportunity every now and then to see the International Olympic Committee strutting in full plumage. p
