Previous Day
Wenger gives Gallas full backing
SOCCER/ ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE : IT'S NOT every
week Arsene Wenger precedes his press briefing with a spot of lunch
rustled up by Raymond Blanc, his favourite Michelin-starred chef,
and a little chewing of the fat with the British prime minister and
the French president. p
Capello sees role for Beckham
INTERNATIONAL NEWS : FABIO CAPELLO is intent on extending David Beckham's international career beyond 100 caps but retains serious doubts as to what role Michael Owen will play under his regime. p
Soccer
Kenny gets the right tonic
NATIONAL LEAGUE : INJURIES AND a suspension may deprive him of six players at the moment, but Derry City manager Stephen Kenny has been pleased with the depth of his squad that has seen them make a positive start to the season. pSOCCER SHORTS
A roundup of today's other soccer stories in brief: p
Kidney's men head European rankings
NEWS : MUNSTER HAVE been officially named the top-ranked rugby team in Europe. With the inaugural ERC European Rankings released yesterday, Declan Kidney's side have, based on performance over the past four seasons, come out ahead of second-placed Toulouse, third-placed Biarritz Olympique and fourth-placed Leicester. pMunster load heavy artillery
MAGNERS LEAGUE PREVIEW : CONNACHT v MUNSTER Sportsground, 7.30 On TV: Setanta Sports 1. pOspreys set to punch full weight
MAGNERS LEAGUE PREVIEW: OSPREYS v ULSTER Liberty Stadium, 7.10 On TV: Setanta Ireland. pEngland to offer Johnson carte blanche
INTERNATIONAL NEWS : ROB ANDREW will sit down with Martin Johnson on Monday and ask the World Cup-winning captain to write his own job description as England manager. If Johnson then does not accept the role, England will turn to the South African Jake White. p
Dublin apologise to Freeman
NEWS: THE DUBLIN County Board have admitted responsibility for an alleged incident in the closing stages of last Sunday's football league match against Monaghan at Parnell Park. pSigerson given green light as Cork IT drop objection
THE ELIGIBILITY crisis that has dogged this year's Sigerson Cup has drawn to a close following Cork IT's 11th-hour decision to withdraw their objection to three Garda College players. p
Topham Trophy the likely target for Hi Cloy
NEWS ROUND-UP : A SPIN over the famous Aintree fences looks the favourite option for the four-time Grade One winner Hi Cloy at Liverpool next week but it is the Topham Trophy rather than the Grand National itself that trainer Michael Hourigan appears to be targeting. p
Westwood opens his defence in some style
EUROPEAN TOUR : LEE WESTWOOD has high hopes of going into the US Masters with another win under his belt after starting his defence of the Andalucian Open with a seven-under-par 65 at Aloha yesterday. pHarrington recovers after slow start
ROUND-UP: PGA TOUR : Helped by a eagle two at the sixth, where he holed out his 208 yards second shot, Briny Baird claimed the early lead after an opening five-under-par 67 at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in Avondale, Louisiana, yesterday. p
Diminutive Britton not fazed by the challenge
ATHLETICS : FIONNUALA BRITTON appears the most unlikely candidate to take on the mighty African dominance at the World Cross Country. pGlenanne wait on injured Shaw for Corinthians clash
MEN'S HOCKEY : GLENANNE COULD be without Graham Shaw this weekend following their heroics in Paris last week in the European Trophy tournament. pBallymoney face difficult assignment
WOMEN'S HOCKEY : THEY'VE ALREADY finished runners-up to Pegasus twice this season, in the Ulster Shield and League, so Ballymoney are under no illusions about the size of their task when they meet the holders in Sunday's ESB Irish Senior Cup final at Belfield (RTÉ 2, 3.40). pUCD and Commercial eights match-up intrigues
ROWING COLUMN : TOMORROW'S DUBLIN Head of the River offers an intriguing match-up of the young eights of UCD and Commercial, while the Sligo Head of the River and the Boat Race in London ensure that only the rowing fan blessed with the gift of trilocation would be fully sated come evening. pYouth gets its fling in Schull outing
SAILING COLUMN : TODAY, WEATHER permitting of course, the latest batch of top young Irish talent should be confirmed ahead of the summer season as the annual Youth and Junior Championships are decided in west Cork. pO'Loughlin must wait on formal Beijing qualification
CYCLING COLUMN : FOLLOWING HIS excellent sixth-place finish in the individual pursuit at the Manchester World Track championships, David O'Loughlin must wait several days before getting official confirmation of whether he has qualified for the Olympic Games. pSPORTS DIGEST
A roundup of today's other sports stories in brief: p
