St Patrick's Athletic in desperate need of inspiration ahead of European involvement after stalemate with Bohemians
A return of just one goal in over 10 hours of football explains why St Patrick's Athletic are starting their European campaign in dire need of inspiration.
The only full-time consolation for Stephen Kenny was that his side avoided the concession of one as a late Bohs siege almost resulted in a winner with Colm Whelan squandering a glorious chance to really pile on the misery at Richmond Park.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
42 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
Adeleke well off her best at Eugene Diamond League
Rhasidat Adeleke was again well off her best when finishing fourth in the 400m at the Eugene Diamond League in Oregon on Saturday night, the 22-year-old clocking 51.33 seconds to finish well adrift of US superstar Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (49.43). Fellow Dubliners Sarah Healy and Orla Comerford both produced strong runs at the same meeting, with Healy finishing seventh over 1500m in 3:57.20 and Comerford sprinting to victory in the mixed class para 100m in 12.14. With 10 weeks until the World Championships in Tokyo, Adeleke's form remains well off where it was through the previous two summers and she was unable to replicate the 50.42 she clocked in Oslo last month and the 50.48 she ran in Stockholm. Her Irish record remains the 49.07 she ran to win the European silver medal in Rome last year. Pitched in against some of the world's best, she held her own through the opening half but was visibly lacking her usual fluidity and was unable to land any sort of blow against McLaughlin-Levrone, who coasted to victory with fellow US athletes Aaliyah Butler (49.86) and Isabella Whittaker (50.81) following her home. With swirling winds in Hayward Field, times were mediocre throughout the field, but the size of the gap to the leaders was a reminder for Adeleke of how much distance she will need to make up if she's to contend for her first individual global medal in Tokyo. Healy, meanwhile, produced another strong showing in what's been the season of her career, the 24-year-old clocking 3:57.20 to finish seventh in the 1500m, just outside her PB of 3:57.15 which she set in Paris last month. Kenya's Faith Kipyegon produced another masterclass out front, the three-time Olympic champion breaking her own world record with a superb final lap, clocking 3:48.68. There was another world record in the women's 5000m where Olympic champion Beatrice Chebet of Kenya clocked 13:58.06. Comerford, the Paralympic bronze medallist in the T13 (visually impaired) category, was a dominant winner of the mixed para 100m, clocking 12.14 to come home well clear of US sprinter Brittni Mason (12.40), but she wasn't pleased with her time which was well down on the PB of 11.87 she ran to win at the Oslo Diamond League. 'I came in feeling really good, strong, confident, and it's a real honour to be invited,' she said. 'Unfortunately the performance wasn't really there for me today, I had a really bad stumble out of the blocks but no excuses. We'll go back to the drawing board and make sure that when we're stepping out next time we're looking towards those personal bests, world records. I'm still very honoured and privileged to take the win.' Ireland was also represented in the T54 (wheelchair) 800m, with Shauna Bocquet finishing sixth in 1:55.76. Meanwhile at the National U20 and U23 Championships in Tullamore, Precious Akpe-Moses – the younger sister of former European U20 100m champion Gina Akpe-Moses – was among the stars, winning the U20 100m in 11.64 and setting a championship record of 23.66 over 200m. Sean Doggett (Athenry AC) was the standout performer in a stacked U-20 men's 400m, winning in 47.08, while rising star Nick Griggs made a triumphant return to national championship action, winning the U23 800m in 1:52.46.
The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
I'm former Bohemians star whose daughter has dreams of playing for Ireland despite being diagnosed with rare illness
THERE was a time when, such was his form in the League of Ireland, there was talk that Kevin Hunt could play for Ireland. Back then, the Englishman — who qualified through residency just over halfway through his decade-long stint with Bohemians — did not do much to fuel the speculation. 6 Kevin Long won three Premier Division titles with Bohemians Credit: Sportsfile 6 His daughter Sisi, 4, is a rising football star Credit: Chatham Town 6 She wears the same number, 4, as her dad used to Credit: Sportsfile - Subscription 6 She was called into an Ireland U19 training camp But he did observe that he had perhaps developed more of an affinity with the country than some who had pulled on the green jersey who were eligible through the ancestry rule. That connection was underlined last week when his daughter, Sisi, took part in an Whether anything comes of it remains to be seen but for the 18-year-old — who, like her dad, wears the No 4 shirt for her club — to be in the mix is a reminder of how far she has come. In July 2008, at his request, Hunt cancelled his Bohs contract as he and wife Faye decided to return home after 13 years on the road between Hong Kong, Singapore and Ireland. Read More on League of Ireland The plan had been to settle here but with Sisi and her elder sister Holly — both born in family support proved too much. Holly is now studying London , with Sisi following in her father's footsteps and brother Miller, 11, also a keen footballer. Hunt celebrated his 50th birthday last Friday with his family in Bohemians fans would probably conclude she did not lick it off the stones. Most read in Football But Hunt — who has been working as an agent for the past nine years after time spent as part of Manchester City and Liverpool's scouting teams — admitted that the thought of her also becoming a footballer never occurred to him when she was younger. He explained: 'When they were younger, girls football wasn't really seen as a thing but it's so popular now. Oasis launch shock football club partnership despite Liam and Noel Gallagher's dying love for Man City 'It was only really when they were 10 or 11 that they started playing for their local team and Holly was playing until a year or two ago.' The growth of the female game was evidenced by the fact that she was part of the first intake of girls on a two-year scholarship in 2023. That meant full-time training as well as obtaining a BTEC in sport qualification, with Chatham Town narrowly failing to win promotion back to the English third tier. There are plans for dad and daughter to establish some sort of coaching school for girls in the area, with Bohs' 2001 Double-winning captain insisting he is a reserved parent on the sidelines. He said: 'I am very quiet, I wouldn't want to embarrass her. A few dads shout and scream but I just encourage her once in a while and we can have a quiet word afterwards. That's the way to do it. 'I was not desperate for my kids to play football but you see parents who really want it for their sons and daughters — and particularly for their sons. 'But the percentage of kids who make it is so small and, in the women's game, it's almost harder because there are so few who get to make a living from it. 'I just wanted — and still want — my kids to enjoy their football and see where it takes them.' 'LARGER THAN LIFE' For Hunt, that was halfway across the world and back again, ending up at Bohs with compatriot Dean Martin after Barnet manager John Still tipped off Roddy Collins about their availability after they had initially come to him on trial. After their first month, Collins could only keep one of them, with Martin gone after three games. Hunt lasted considerably longer, featuring in three title-winning teams. Although the former Gillingham player maintained contact with many of his ex-team-mates, visits back to Dublin were relatively infrequent. But a family trip for Bohs' opening league game of the season against Aviva Stadium in February rekindled the affection for Dublin and stirred memories, prompting him to make contact with the FAI's coaches about his daughter. He said: 'Roddy was still the same, larger than life. 'When we left, it wasn't that we made a clean break but we kind of had to start from scratch in building a new life back in England . 'But we had planned on settling in Dublin after I stopped playing and only left because the girls were so ill. We had been very happy there.' 'She had an accident and spilled hot water over her foot and leg and had second-degree burns so we weren't sure if she was going to be able to make it." Life had become difficult because both girls were so unwell. He recalled: 'Looking back now, it was a different life, a nightmare. We were in hospital with them the whole time and never really sleeping because they weren't sleeping. 'They had a lot of intolerances and allergies but they were different times then and we were almost being told there was nothing wrong with them. Wheat, gluten and dairy, their bodies just reacted to them. 'It was hard to get our heads around it — what was normal food for us was like poison for them. 'But as soon as we saw a professor in Great Ormond Street and he diagnosed what was quite a rare condition, we started to manage it and they became a lot better.' 6 The Long family You never stop being a parent, though, and there was another — thankfully temporary — health scare ahead of Sisi's international assessment. He explained: 'She had an accident and spilled hot water over her foot and leg and had second-degree burns so we weren't sure if she was going to be able to make it. 'I told her to leave it for a week and she improved and she got a couple of runs in but it was tough because her season had ended in mid-April. 'But it was a great experience for her considering she was born in Ireland and to be able to come back and be a part of it. It was the first time she had been involved in anything like that. 'She had a couple of days' training and a game against Treaty United and it was great for her and the coaches were really good to her. She's a vegan but they made sure she was well looked-after on that score.' Whatever happens next , it had the feeling of a full-circle moment for someone who was born — and might have grown up — here, had the circumstances been different. Hunt said: 'The girls have always felt a connection here, even though they were only young when they lived here and don't remember it. 'Faye and I always had a great affection for Ireland almost as soon as we came here. 'It was a massive part of our lives and would be something we'd talk about a lot at home. 'The girls have Irish passports , which is great for them, particularly after Brexit if they ever want to live anywhere else in Europe .' 6 Bohemians manager Roddy Collins celebrates victory over Aberdeen in the UEFA Cup Credit: Sportsfile
Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
Diamond League round-up: Rhasidat Adeleke fourth again over 400m while Orla Comerford sprints to 100m para win
Fellow Dubliners Sarah Healy and Orla Comerford both produced strong runs at the same meeting, with Healy finishing seventh over 1500m in 3:57.20 and Comerford sprinting to victory in the mixed class para 100m in 12.14. With 10 weeks until the World Championships in Tokyo, Adeleke's form remains well off where it was through the previous two summers and she was unable to replicate the 50.42 she clocked in Oslo last month and the 50.48 she ran in Stockholm. Her Irish record remains the 49.07 she ran to win the European silver medal in Rome last year. Pitched in against some of the world's best, she held her own through the opening half but was visibly lacking her usual fluidity and was unable to land any sort of blow against McLaughlin-Levrone, who coasted to victory with fellow US athletes Aaliyah Butler (49.86) and Isabella Whittaker (50.81) following her home. With swirling winds in Hayward Field, times were mediocre throughout the field, but the size of the gap to the leaders was a reminder for Adeleke of how much distance she will need to make up if she's to contend for her first individual global medal in Tokyo. Healy, meanwhile, produced another strong showing in what's been the season of her career, the 24-year-old clocking 3:57.20 to finish seventh in the 1500m, just outside her PB of 3:57.15 which she set in Paris last month. Kenya's Faith Kipyegon produced another masterclass out front, the three-time Olympic champion breaking her own world record with a superb final lap, clocking 3:48.68. There was another world record in the women's 5000m where Olympic champion Beatrice Chebet of Kenya clocked 13:58.06. Comerford, the Paralympic bronze medallist in the T13 (visually impaired) category, was a dominant winner of the mixed para 100m, clocking 12.14 to come home well clear of US sprinter Brittni Mason (12.40), but she wasn't pleased with her time which was well down on the PB of 11.87 she ran to win at the Oslo Diamond League. 'I came in feeling really good, strong, confident, and it's a real honour to be invited,' she said. 'Unfortunately the performance wasn't really there for me today, I had a really bad stumble out of the blocks but no excuses. We'll go back to the drawing board and make sure that when we're stepping out next time we're looking towards those personal bests, world records. I'm still very honoured and privileged to take the win.' Ireland was also represented in the T54 (wheelchair) 800m, with Shauna Bocquet finishing sixth in 1:55.76. Meanwhile at the National U-20 and U-23 Championships in Tullamore, Precious Akpe-Moses – the younger sister of former European U-20 100m champion Gina Akpe-Moses – was among the stars, winning the U-20 100m in 11.64 and setting a championship record of 23.66 over 200m. Sean Doggett (Athenry AC) was the standout performer in a stacked U-20 men's 400m, winning in 47.08, while rising star Nick Griggs made a triumphant return to national championship action, winning the U-23 800m in 1:52.46.
