Ronan O'Gara's La Rochelle narrowly missed out on a maiden Champions Cup win last weekend, as they were edged 22-17 by now five-time winners Toulouse at Twickenham. But, as Gerry Thornley writes in his column this morning, defeat will surely spur La Rochelle to try and go one further next time - like it did with Munster when they lost the 2000 Heineken Cup final to Northampton. "Who knows, had Munster won at the first attempt, or even the second, would they have felt sated and faded away a little?" He asks. "O'Gara and La Rochelle, you sense, will be back. They have a taste for it now, as have Clermont and Racing after losing five finals between them." And he suggests that while European success is often cyclical, French clubs look ominously well placed to keep dominating the tournament as they have done this year. He writes: "Leinster have a wonderful model, unlike any other in Europe. Yet French designs on conquering Europe are clear and with their Canal+ deal, multi-millionaire benefactors, the return of full stadia and their notional €11.5 million salary cap, they're only going to get stronger."
Stephen Kenny named his 27-man Republic of Ireland squad for next month's friendlies against Andorra and Hungary yesterday, with a number of new faces included in the travelling party. He has handed first call-ups to 18-year-old Norwich City defender Andrew Omobamidele, St Mirren's Jamie McGrath, Shamrock Rovers midfielder Danny Mandroiu and Rotherham United winger Chiedozie Ogbene. And on the announcement of his latest squad, Kenny has insisted he has a "bigger vision" for Ireland - something which hasn't been met by results in the short-term. He said: "We have radically changed things. We bought 15 new players into the international team in a six month period, before this camp, and we capped 13. Some might feel it is too much change too quickly and I understand that viewpoint but, in my opinion, that change is necessary because we have absolutely no development for about eight or nine years." Ireland will take on Andorra in Barcelona on June 3rd, before travelling to play Hungary in Budapest on June 8th.
Elsewhere the GAA has distanced itself from a war of words between Clare and Wexford, after the latter's Allianz League clash with Kilkenny was postponed on Sunday. That fixture was called off at Wexford's request due to three positive Covid-19 tests within their panel - with two players testing positive last Wednesday, days after a previous league clash with Clare. Two Clare players were then ruled out of their league game with Laois, after being identified as close contacts of the Wexford players. And yesterday the GAA reiterated that it is up to the HSE to decide what constitutes a close contact - not Croke Park. When contacted by The Irish Times, the GAA said: "the HSE are the body that decide on whether a person is a close contact or not, be it in sport or general society."
Pádraig Harrington's surprise fourth-place finish at the US PGA Championship has shown the 49-year-old can still mix it with the best when the conditions are right. And while the Ryder Cup captain has rubbished any suggestion he might pick himself later this year, the weekend has boosted Shane Lowry's hopes of selection, with the British Open champion proving an ideal playing partner for Harrington at Kiawah Island. He said: "There's a quality about him; he wouldn't stand on a tee box and fear anybody. He did a good job. He certainly did himself no harm and we'll see how the next couple of months go."
Gerry Thornley: Now that they have a taste for it, O’Gara and La Rochelle will be back
Ulster youngster Callum Reid ready to challenge the pecking order
Chelsea move ahead of Leicester with 2-1 win; Andy Friend as future Ireland head coach?
Owen Doyle: Referee Luke Pearce far from perfect in fraught final
Defending Premier Division champions Shamrock Rovers slumped to back-to-back defeats last night, as they were beaten 1-0 in Tallaght by Sligo Rovers - Romeo Parkes' second-half winner sending the visitors to the top of the table. Earlier in the evening Bohemians routed Dundalk 5-1, while Derry City drew 2-2 with St Pat's, Drogheda beat Longford 4-1 and Finn Harps were 2-1 winners at Waterford.
And England manager Gareth Southgate will name an expanded Euro 2020 squad later today, and will wait until next Tuesday before deciding on his final 26.
