These days only come around once every four years – Andy Farrell’s World Cup squad was announced in the Shelbourne Hotel yesterday and the 33 men who will carry Ireland’s hopes in France are now known. Gerry Thornley writes that it was all pretty much cast in stone before the weekend – with the exception of the desperately unlucky Cian Healy. “And, on balance, that is probably a good sign,” notes our rugby correspondent.
John O’Sullivan was also on-site for the announcement yesterday, which also doubled as the first chance for the press corps to access Johnny Sexton since his suspension in the wake of the Champions Cup final. And unlike Edith Piaf, Sexton has regrets. “Yeah, of course,” Sexton says. “In that split second, I went on [the pitch] to console my team-mates, I made a remark, and I regretted it instantly. You make mistakes, you say sorry, and hold your hands up.”
Elsewhere, Saturday night’s game against Samoa gets the full treatment. Gerry’s report is here, while John focuses on Jimmy O’Brien’s performance at full-back. Meanwhile, Johnny Watterson’s Five Things We Learned covers the whole weekend across all the warm-up games and finds that Ireland’s pool now looks even harder than was already the case.
In soccer, Ken Early’s column deals with Newcastle United and, in particular, their manager Eddie Howe. Yesterday’s defeat to Liverpool was a match of chaos and fervour and Ken wonders if Howe is the right man for the moment they find themselves in. “Against Liverpool, Howe misread the mood and in a bigger sense, misread his club. With the fans baying for shock and awe, he gave them a cautious percentage game.”
As the curtain comes down on an astonishing World Athletics Championships, Ian O’Riordan assesses Ireland’s place in the firmament. “There are no medals for finishing fourth, no fanfare or anthems, no homecoming at the airport either. Only for Ciara Mageean and Rhasidat Adeleke, there will always be that lasting sense of being the very best they could be in the here and now, at the very top of the world stage. Two Irish relay finalists, the mixed 4x400m and the women’s quartet, can feel that way too.”
Ian also has his report from the last night of action in Budapest, which included a couple of incredible finishes in the men’s 5,000m and the women’s 4x400m relay.
On Telly: The US Open tennis starts today in New York so ready yourself for some very late nights. Iga Swiatek is due on court around 5pm, Novac Djokovic should be closer to midnight (Sky Sports Main Event, from 3.00pm).
