Soccer: De Gea magic
Manchester United stretched their pre-Christmas revival with a sixth consecutive Premier League win on Sunday against Liverpool which now leaves them five points ahead of Champions League spot rivals Arsenal, and ten clear of Liverpool.
Despite the game's chances being spread evenly if not in favour of the Merseyside club over the 90 minutes of shambolic defending from both teams, United were the more ruthless of the two in front of their home crowd. While at the other end goalkeeper David De Gea once more proved the hero with a number of top draw saves which solidified a remarkable 3-0 win.
Two incomplete performances, but two contrasting results were typified by the reaction of Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal and Liverpool's disappointed Brendan Rodgers.
Elsewhere in the Premier League yesterday and Tottenham left it late once more away from home, when Christian Eriksen scored the winner after 89 minutes. Almost totally against the run of play.
Rugby: November hangover continues
There were mixed results from the Irish provinces in European Cup action over the weekend, albeit results aside they largely continued to underwhelm with below-par performances.
On Sunday Munster’s pursuit of swift revenge away to Clermont after the weekend previous’ Thomond park sacking, came up short.
A bright start was quickly dismantled by the French side, although an improved Munster team showed character in battling it out for a vital losing bonus point. Gerry Thornley was there, looking past their depleted and depowered scrum to vindicate " a monumental effort really when you consider the respective resources."
A day earlier and Leinster’s bruising encounter with a Harlequins side “so clearly rudderless in the absence of Chris Robshaw and Nick Evans,” provided them with the result if not the performance.
A step closer to European Champions Cup qualification, but as Gavin Cummiskey explains; "Leinster remain the great survivors but greatness departed with Johnny Sexton in the summer of 2013. That short-sighted error continues to haunt the Matt O'Connor era."
The loss was compiled by news of Rhys Ruddock's arm injury which looks set to curtail the 24-year-old's breakthrough season at Test level. He returned to the bench in a sling after picking up the knock.
Meanwhile, there are a number of incidents, arising from the game’s 78th-minute brawl, that will be reviewed by citing commissioner Stefano Marrama from Italy.
Ulster’s European dream dashed
Ulster, who in contrast had won their initial contest with Scarlets a week earlier with an impressive home performance, also came away disappointed after they were outdone in Wales by a Rhys Priestland orchestrated Scarlets team.
Nonetheless in the European Challenge Cup a young, experimental Connacht side pulled off a dramatic late 29-27 victory in Bayonne to keep their Challenge Cup quarter-final hopes very much on track.
Among those to impress were 20-year scrumhalf Caolin Blade who was one of five players starting his first game for Connacht and he crowned it with two glorious tries, the second of which came two minutes from the end to level the match.
Boxing: Irish World Champion
It has taken Limerick southpaw Andy Lee about 10 years and 36 professional bouts to finally become an overnight sensation. Just reward for a popular, articulate fighter who never stopped believing, when many had.
The middleweight will now arrive back to Ireland with the WBO world title that Dubliner Steve Collins once owned and with some lucrative fights ahead, explains Johnny Watterson.
He wasn’t the only Irish sports person to be honoured over the weekend though. Cross-country running is a team sport explains former European champion Fionnuala Britton, and despite failing to earn an individual medal herself in the challenging Bulgarian course, her team combined to earn a team bronze European Championships medal.
Ian O'Riordan explains how bronze can shine almost as sweetly as gold.
GAA: Vincent’s model consistency
Reigning All-Ireland club champions St Vincent’s followed up their back-to-back county titles with another Leinster title on Sunday at the expense of Offaly champions Rhode.
A Mossy Quinn inspired attack always had enough about them to keep a plucky Rhode side at arm's reach - but the tests will no doubt be much sterner for the North Dublin club come the All-Ireland Ireland series.
They'll now face Galway team Corofin in the last four, after they too progressed after a scrappy win over Tir Chonaill Gaels at Ruislip, London.
The big shock of the weekend came in the form of Gort's dethroning of reigning Galway and All-Ireland club hurling champions Portumna - bringing an eventual end to the Galway championship. Joe Canning couldn't provide fireworks for a drab encounter, with Gort winning out by six points in the end-up.
Golf: Yes Hamilton, not McIlroy
There was drama at Sunday night's BBC Sports' Personality of the Year awards as golfer Rory McIlroy, seemingly the unbackable, odds-on favourite for the award, was edged over the line by Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton.
Winning two Majors, the British Open and the US PGA, as well as dominating the money lists on the European Tour and the PGA Tour and topping the official world rankings, it would appear don’t count for too much with these voters.
Meanwhile 'Horse of the Year' Sole Power endured a lacklustre end to his campaign in Hong Kong.
The Eddie Lynam-trained gelding could finish only ninth to Aerovelocity in Sunday’s International Sprint in which the other Irish hope Gordon Lord Byron finished an honourable fourth.
