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Mary Hannigan: Rugby teams like lions at home, away they are like mice

Connacht without key duo; Rory Beggan showing no signs of weariness; the GAA branding transformation

Connacht's Tiernan O'Halloran and Jake Flannery of Ulster. Photograph: Laszlo Geczo/Inpho

Mary Hannigan's face
Mary Hannigan
Tue Nov 14 2023 - 10:11

It was back in 2017 that former Italian international Sergio Parisse expressed his exasperation over his Stade Francais side’s struggle to win games on the road. “At home they are like Lions. Away they are like mice,” he said. Armed with his calculator, Gerry Thornley notes that at that time, France’s Top14 teams were winning 74 per cent of their home games – after the opening six rounds of this season’s competition, that figure is up to 86 per cent. Gerry takes a look at how home comforts have such a bearing in the wider game, partisan crowds and their effect on the officiating no small factors, of course.

Connacht head coach Peter Wilkins will hope that his charges play like lions when they take on the Sharks and the Bulls in South Africa in their upcoming URC games, but they’ll be without both Bundee Aki and Mack Hansen who are ruled out with a hamstring issue and an ankle injury, respectively.

Johnny Watterson talks to Ulster’s Rob Herring whose 230th appearance for the province against Munster last Friday put him in the history books as their most decorated player. He has a challenger for his position as hooker, though, in the form of Tom Stewart. “He has a big future and part of me sees that I need to help him on his journey,” he says. “But we’re competing. It’s friendly fire but we’ll push each other on and keep getting better.”

In Gaelic games, Malachy Clerkin hears from Rory Beggan whose last-minute free for Scotstown on Sunday decided their Ulster club semi-final against favourites Kilcoo. The Monaghan goalkeeper’s season started 10 months ago, but there’s no weariness. “You don’t feel it when you’re with the club,” he says.

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Seán Moran, meanwhile, talks to Nickey Brennan who “was intrigued watching the merger of his employers Avonmore and Waterford Foods into Glanbia at the end of the 1990s”. Influenced by the success of that process, he set about rebranding the association when he became GAA president because “we weren’t displaying our essential brand, the three big letters, GAA”.

And in golf, Philip Reid previews this week’s DP World Tour Championship which will feature a highly relaxed Rory McIlroy – because before he even has to strike a ball in anger, he already has the Race to Dubai order of merit title sewn up. Shane Lowry and Tom McKibbin are also in the field, while Leona Maguire will be in action at the LPGA Tour Championship in Florida.

TV Watch: The group stage of the women’s Champions League kicks off today, with DAZN bringing live – and free – coverage of the games on their YouTube channel. Among tonight’s fixtures is the meeting of defending champions Barcelona and Benfica (8.0). If darts is your tipple, Sky Sports Arena continue their coverage of the Grand Slam which features 32 of the world’s top arrow-chuckers (7.0-11.0).