RTÉ Rugby Podcast: An officiating mess, the URC's play-off picture and Ireland march on in Newport
We discuss another officiating blunder in Munster's 16-13 defeat to the Bulls (10:55), and how Ian Costello's side are now under real pressure heading into the final three games of the regular season.
We look at how Dan Sheehan is going from strength to strength as Leinster continued their march towards the top seed with a win against Ulster (29:00), while discussing Stephen Donald's comments about the quality of the URC, as well as Ulster's big clear-out this summer (37:50).
The panel also looks at Connacht's heart-breaking loss away to the Stormers, and why their big bonus-points haul means they're still very much in the play-off mix (46:30).
Later (55:05), Hannah O'Connor joins Neil to recap Ireland's comfortable Guinness Women's Six Nations win against Wales in Newport, as Scott Bemand's side look to finish their campaign off on a high this Saturday in Edinburgh.
Watch a URC double-header, Scarlets v Leinster and Ulster v Sharks, on Saturday from 4.45pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player
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Sunday World
3 hours ago
- Sunday World
Ireland rugby star wows pub-goers with Fred Flintstone accordion session
Doherty's Bar in Mulranny Mayo got some star treatment from Robbie Henshaw over the weekend Robbie Henshaw wows punters in Mayo bar with his accordion skills on stag party Irish and Lions centre Robbie Henshaw was videoed in Mayo over the weekend as part of a wacky stag party. The Leinster man was in popular pub Doherty's in Mulranny in Mayo with his pals as they broke out into song. Henshaw surprised staff and locals by being an accomplished accordion player to accompany his mates who were on guitar and tin whistle. The footage was shared widely on the pub's socials over the last 48 hours receiving over 100k views. Robbie Henshaw has shown a skill for both rugby as well as music. The popular boozer were more than happy to see the former Grand Slam winner come through their doors, posting: 'We were thrilled to welcome Irish Rugby international and Leinster star Robbie Henshaw today — and who better to treat us to a few tunes on the box!' A lot of Irish rugby fans expected the rugby legend to be Down Under this summer with the British and Irish Lions but head coach Andy Farrell opted not to pick him for the successful 2-1 winning tour. The 32 year old is still a huge part of Ireland's rugby future and may even harbour hopes of making the next Lions tour of New Zealand in 2029. The centre has shown a serious aptitude for the craic agus ceol in the past and even previously showed off his accordion skills on The Late Late Show. Last year, the rugby star was spotted at the Fleadh Cheoil in Wexford and pulled out a fine version of Galway Girl to a room full of engaged punters. The Athlone native comes from a long line of musicians and has previously opened up on how trad sessions were a big factor in his family life growing up in Westmeath. Having whetted his musical appetite with the tinwhistle, the multi-talented rugby ace then moved onto the button accordian. While Robbie is clearly enjoying his summer break, his attention will soon turn to matters on the pitch once again when Leinster kick off their new season in South Africa next month. The recently-minted URC champions will also face off with bitter rivals Munster in the iconic confines of Croke Park in October.
Extra.ie
4 hours ago
- Extra.ie
Everyone saying the same thing about Dan Sheehan's ban
The dust has fully settled on the British & Irish Lions tour of Australia. In what was expected to be an utterly dominant series win from the tourists, the Wallabies more than held their own for the majority of the series and if not for some injuries, they could've caused a huge upset. However after the dramatic Hugo Keenan try to win the second test, it meant the Lions had the series wrapped up before the third an final test in Sydney. Some would be forgiven for giving the inconsequential Aussie win a miss but the game didn't pass without incident. In the downpour in Sydney, play was interrupted because of lightning strikes and a resurgent Wallabies assured that the series didn't end in a sweep as off the back of a powerful forward pack, they beat the Lions 22-12. Dylan Pietsch of the Wallabies celebrates scoring a try. Pic:The game didn't pass without controversy however as Lions hooker and Irish international Dan Sheehan seemingly avoided on-pitch punishment for a dangerous clearout on Wallabies' 10 Tom Lynagh. Lynagh would have to leave the pitch for a Head Injury Assessment which he would fail. He may have avoided punishment from the referee or TMO but Sheehan was cited and has now been given a four-match ban, which can be reduced to three if he chooses to complete a tackle school. Dan Sheehan of British & Irish Lions is tackled by Max Jorgensen. Pic: Steve Christo/Sportsfile Sheehan is set to miss Leinster's pre-season game against Cardiff in September, followed by their trip to South Africa to face the Stormers to open the URC season, then their home season opener against the Sharks. and if he completes the tackle school he should be available for selection in the interpro derby against Munster at Croke Park on October 18. It appears that Leinster's second game of the season against the Bulls in Bloemfontein has been excluded from the ban as Sheehan would've been unlikely to feature in both of Leinster's games on the South Africa tour. However many fans have pointed out that Sheehan would've been highly unlikely to play in any of these games, making the ban redundant. Sheehan along with the rest of the Irish portion of the Lions squad are likely to received some much deserved time off after an extended season. The earliest people should expect any of the Lions to play is that weekend of the Leinster-Munster interpro on October 18 but even then not every player will feature. Dan Sheehan with Harry Wilson of Australia. Pic: INPHO/Dan Sheridan One commenter on X said; 'This is a pretty meaningless ban and makes a mockery of all the effort world rugby has made (rightly/wrongly) over the last few years. Remember that Sam Kane got a straight red card in the World Cup final for something less that what Sheehan did.' Another said; ' Won't miss any 'real' games. Got at least the next 6 weeks off. If the foul is in an international game, ban should be international, not including the domestic league games. And tackle/clear out school is a joke.' Dan Sheehan. Pic: INPHO/Billy Stickland The banning system in rugby doesn't really feel fit for purpose at the moment but it's hard to really find a fair solution. There's too many ways for players to downgrade their punishment and end up not serving an adequate punishment for the foul they commit. If he returns in time Dan Sheehan should be available for selection for the Croke Park clash against Munster and their home match against Zebre before Ireland go to Chicago to play the All Blacks on November 1.
Irish Daily Mirror
11 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Kerry hero Mark O'Shea on his piseóg ahead of All-Ireland final win over Donegal
They like their piseógs in Kerry, and Mark O'Shea was spooked by superstition ahead of the All-Ireland final. The colour clash with Donegal meant that both counties would wear their change strips for the decider as the Ulster champions donned a predominantly white jersey, with Kerry switching to blue. It became Kerry's default alternative decades ago, representing the Munster colours with the long-standing tradition being that counties would adopt their provincial strip if a clash emerged in the All-Ireland series. But while it cropped up regularly over the years given the predominance of green in county jerseys, this was the first final that they had worn it in an All-Ireland final since 1972, when they lost to Offaly after a replay. O'Shea, who only broke into the side this year at 27 years of age, had more contemporary reasons to feel restless about the blue however. 'When we were wearing the blue jersey, I was like, 'Feck sake' because I wore it when I made my debut against Mayo up in Castlebar and we were beaten,' he explained. 'And I made my starting debut against Meath in the Championship with the blue jersey. So I was like, 'Jeez, I don't know about these blue jerseys'.' That Meath game came amid a rut of injuries which threatened Kerry's All-Ireland ambitions. Their midfield hasn't been the most celebrated sector of the team in recent years and with Diarmuid O'Connor and Barry Dan O'Sullivan out through injury, manager Jack O'Connor had to go further down the trough than he would have liked. The nine-point defeat to Meath in the group stage appeared to reduce Kerry's Championship campaign to a procession, amid serious doubts around their ability to muster a serious assault on the All-Ireland with the personnel they had available at the time. At that stage O'Shea was seen as somebody who was part of the problem more than the solution. 'Jack was saying, 'You've nothing to lose', and I suppose after the Meath game I may as well have never put on boots again, and that was the first time I suppose I'd seen inter-county, if you're not at it… look, you can probably get the criticism, and rightly so, we weren't at it and I wasn't at it.' But as some key players were phased back in, O'Shea remained prominent - largely because of a lack of fit alternatives - but his graph rose with that of the team as Kerry started picking off Ulster opposition. He was left out for the Cavan game as O'Connor made his return from injury, only to last just three minutes as O'Shea was immediately pitched in. He stayed there for the remainder of the year as Armagh, Tyrone and Donegal were dismissed, all of them with remarkable comfort. Prior to this year, O'Shea's only involvement with Kerry had been in a McGrath Cup game in 2020 when the team was away on holiday. He had never even played underage football for the county but he caught O'Connor's eye during Dr Crokes run to the All-Ireland semi-final last winter. 'No, never played under-age. I got a massive growth spurt there when I was about, I'd say, 17, 18. I went from about five nothing to about 6'2' or 6'3'. So, yeah, Crokes, my parents, they always kind of taught me, 'Look, just keep at it'. 'I tried to master the skills when I was smaller. When obviously the height came, things kind of started to progress a bit fast and you're kind of thrown into playing with Crokes. 'Obviously, playing with Kerry was something I thought probably would never come around and just very, very glad that it did. 'I was like, 'The boat is probably gone here as well'. But, look, Kerry is such a good championship. You're playing against the Barry Dans, Diarmuid, David Moran and these fellas down through the years. So, it's a good kind of place to be putting yourself up and you can get a bit of confidence from it too.' His uncle Pat, Kerry's All-Ireland winning manager in 2007 and a dominant figure in the club, had a strong guiding hand too. 'Ah, he did, to be fair. I suppose, minor was when I got a bit of belief in myself. And Edmund O'Sullivan, to be fair, he was an unbelievable coach, an unbelievable mentor to me and still I can always pick up the phone and just have a chat about anything, to be fair. 'And from him to kind of Brian Mac (Mahon) in the Crokes and then to Pat, like, to be fair. I've had Pat now for two stints and the quality of what he does, he's a serious man.' Kerry manager Jack O'Connor celebrates O'Connor, fresh from delivering his fifth All-Ireland, is one of the most successful managers of all time and the simplicity with which he helped to elevate O'Shea from a decent club footballer to a county player of real substance is telling. 'The one thing Jack kind of said to me a few times, he was like, 'Look, you're, I suppose even over the last year, you've played a lot of big size games with Crokes'. 'So he was like, 'Look, it's no different to them games.' And he was right, at the end of the day it's a game of football. And once you take out the emotion, that's all it is.'
