Scotland's Brown to join Lions squad in Melbourne
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BBC News
15 minutes ago
- BBC News
St Mirren boss has 'no idea' about Dijksteel's Cork absence
St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson has insisted he had "no idea" of the circumstances that led to pre-contract signing Malik Dijksteel sitting out Cork City's match against Sligo Rovers on Scottish Premiership club announced on Tuesday they had agreed a deal to sign the 24-year-old Dutch winger when his contract with the League of Ireland club expires in manager Gerard Nash then claimed after Friday's 3-2 League of Ireland Premier Division defeat that Dijksteel had asked not to play against Sligo."St Mirren made a bid to take him in this window, but that was rejected by the club," Nash said. "Unfortunately, since then, Malik's agent made it clear that he was unavailable for this match for personal reasons." Robinson was asked about the latest developments with Dijksteel after his side defeated Ayr United 2-1 on Sunday to book a home encounter with Heart of Midlothian in the second round of the Premier Sports Cup."I'm not so sure he did make himself unavailable, I have no idea," the Northern Irishman said. "I'm sure, if he's under contract, he's available to play. I've not had any contact in that area, that's not my role."Malik's a Cork player until the end of their season, so that'll be other people that need to speak about that. It's certainly not my remit to be taking players before their time. "We'd love to have him, of course, but there has to be an agreement between the two football clubs."Robinson, who handed a debut to goalkeeper Shamal George against Ayr, is hoping to add more new faces to his squad but said: "Maybe we have to move one, maybe two, on before that happens."He was pleased to see Killian Phillips score his second double in two games but is wary of the recently-capped Republic of Ireland midfielder's form attracting suitors."If he keeps scoring goals, it's a real concern for us, but a good concern," Robinson said of the 23-year-old who signed permanently this summer after impressing on loan from Crystal Palace."He's continued on where he left off last season with his form and his energy. He's a driving force in the team."
The Independent
44 minutes ago
- The Independent
Jack Conan reveals video from Katie Taylor inspired Lions before second Test win
Jack Conan has revealed that an inspiring video from Irish boxing great Katie Taylor helped the British and Irish Lions find the resilience needed to close out their series against Australia. Taylor, an Olympic gold medal winner and current undisputed world super lightweight champion, sent the good luck message to Andy Farrell's squad in the build-up to Saturday's second Test at Melbourne Cricket Club. The 39-year-old's words on the ability to dig deep turned out to be prophetic as the Lions emerged 29-26 winners after fighting back from an 18-point deficit. 'The video was unbelievably poignant and powerful. It spoke about being prepared to win with skill, but also being ready to win by will,' said Ireland number eight Conan, who like Taylor hails from Bray in County Wicklow. 'That was something that was massively summed up in the game because we were not at our best at all. 'It's huge because she comes from the town I'm from. I'm incredibly proud of where I come from and I know Katie is as well. 'She's gone on to achieve incredible feats in the boxing world. To be such a superstar, incredibly humble and driven is something that we leant on as well because we knew that Australia are a hugely proud nation and they showed it in spades. 'Everyone loved it, even the English and the Scottish boys and the Welsh boy – it resonated with everyone. It was unbelievably poignant, it was class. It really hit home for us.' It took a beautifully-taken try by Hugo Keenan with 51 seconds remaining to separate the rivals in one of the greatest Lions matches ever played. Remarkably, Keenan's touchdown was the first time they led in the match. Conan admits that victory tastes all the sweeter for having been taken to the wire as Australia raised their game to a whole new level a week after starting the series with a whimper in Brisbane. 'We were not at our best by any measure, but physically the lads dug in unbelievably well,' he said. 'It was disappointing how we played, but we played for 80 minutes. Hugo getting over the line in the last minute was just unbelievable. 'It wasn't my best game. A lot of us weren't at the races at all, but we stuck in there. You can't fault the effort. I thought the defensive sets we put in, just whacking people and just staying in there, was unbelievable. 'It's something that will go down in history. They won't be writing the history books about how s*** we were, but they'll say that we won and that's all that matters. 'Everyone's over the moon. To be part of a Lions winning series team is incredibly special. The celebrations in the changing room wouldn't have been the same if we'd won by 20.'
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Robinson hails 'maverick' Idowu and goalscorer Phillips
Stephen Robinson hailed "maverick" Roland Idowu and two-goal Killian Phillips as their St Mirren side secured top place in Premier Sports Cup Group D and a place in the last the Irishman who joined the Buddies permanently this summer after last season's loan from Shrewsbury Town, set up both goals for his fellow 23-year-old midfielder in their 2-1 win over Ayr United."Roland, we played him just off [striker] Mikael [Mandron] and told him to float into those wider areas where the goal came from because it's very congested in the middle of the pitch," manager Robinson told BBC Radio Scotland's Sportsound."He was excellent. He was involved in both goals. He's a maverick, he's someone who can change the game for us and he's someone we're trying to bring into the game."Him and Conor McMenamin, Jalmaro [Calvin] when he gets up to speed, are boys that can do things we haven't had previously."As for Phillips, who has signed permanently after his loan from Crystal Palace, Robinson said: "We have worked constantly on cutting balls back and making runs and Killian is getting his just rewards and he's adding goals to the other good attributes he's got."The visiting Championship side pulled a goal back in the second half, but Robinson added: "The way we played in the first half, I thought we were outstanding. We got a little bit casual in the second half and didn't do the simple things well."We lose a goal from a set-play and the momentum swings and puts us on the back foot, but we showed the character and quality and we should have gone and finished the game off with three or four more goals."
