Kiss takes the positives out of defeat to ScotlandRUGBY: THERE WEREN’T too many collective plusses to Ireland’s opening offering in Murrayfield, but the defence was by some distance…Tue Aug 09 2011 - 01:00
Ireland lose their grip on grim encounterRUGBY: Scotland 10 Ireland 6: THE KEY to seasonal openers is not to expect much, or even anything, and in that respect at least…Mon Aug 08 2011 - 01:00
Kidney says taking ball at pace a step-by-step processRUGBY: AS EXPECTED, Declan Kidney strongly indicated there will be a significant number of changes to the Ireland team for next…Mon Aug 08 2011 - 01:00
Kidney keen for some fringe benefits in EdinburghRUGBY: THE EDINBURGH fringe festival began yesterday, in advance of the full international festival next week, and the mix of…Sat Aug 06 2011 - 01:00
Patient McCarthy finally reaps his rewardWORLD CUP WARM-UP : EVER SINCE Dan Tuohy was first picked, and capped, on the summer tour to New Zealand and Australia two years…Fri Aug 05 2011 - 01:00
Kidney offers hope to fringe contendersRUGBY: World Cup warm-up Ireland v Scotland, tomorrow, Murrayfield, 2Fri Aug 05 2011 - 01:00
Awkward clashes for league at firstRABODIRECT PRO12: NO RESPITE for the wicked or, more pertinently, the successfulThu Aug 04 2011 - 01:00
Working way up ladder to show who's BossWORLD CUP WARM-UP SCOTLAND v IRELAND, SATURDAY, MURRAYFIELD, 2Thu Aug 04 2011 - 01:00
Scotland changes: new-look backrowRUGBY: ROSS RENNIE, the 25-year-old Edinburgh openside, will make his first Test start after winning six caps off the bench …Wed Aug 03 2011 - 01:00
Flannery, Kearney looking good, D'Arcy, Ferris . . .RUGBY: ALTHOUGH THE doubts persist concerning the prospects of Gordon D’Arcy and Stephen Ferris partaking in any of Ireland’…Tue Aug 02 2011 - 01:00
Trick is to get balance rightTHE DEBATE will rage until the World Cup kicks off and probably won’t conclude until the completion of the tournament.Tue Aug 02 2011 - 01:00
Final could be worth more than €25mRUGBY HEINEKEN CUP: THE DECISION by the ERC to bridge a 10-year gap by staging the 2013 Heineken Cup final in the Aviva Stadium…Fri Jun 10 2011 - 01:00
Schmidt welcomes less daunting draw for holdersRUGBY: EVEN FIVE months out the draw whets the appetiteWed Jun 08 2011 - 01:00
Elwood delighted with Toulouse challengeRUGBY : IN THE days leading up to yesterday’s Heineken Cup draw, interest in the west of Ireland would have been more acute …Wed Jun 08 2011 - 01:00
Ireland in a good place ahead of World CupON RUGBY: AS WORLD Cup cycles go, the 2010-11 season took to three the number of Heineken Cups and Magners Leagues won by Leinster…Tue May 31 2011 - 01:00
Munster earn fitting reward for consistent seasonRUGBY/MAGNERS LEAGUE FINAL: LEINSTER’S MEMORABLE season didn’t deserve to end in defeat, but then again, Munster’s season-long…Mon May 30 2011 - 01:00
Pride the simple spur for rivalsRUGBY: AND SO, the last two standing are Munster and LeinsterSat May 28 2011 - 01:00
Munster v Leinster how they match upTHIS WILL be the 21st competitive meeting in European and League combat between these old provincial rivals, beginning with the…Sat May 28 2011 - 01:00
Cullen happier in the role of 'underdogs'RUGBY: MAGNERS LEAGUE FINAL: PRIOR TO the Heineken Cup final, Leo Cullen spoke about being more nervous with the passing years…Fri May 27 2011 - 01:00
No guarantees, but Leinster look here to stayON RUGBY: “Were it not for Leinster and Munster being drawn away in last season’s semis, who knows, we could now be talking …Tue May 24 2011 - 01:00
Draw to take place on June 7thHEINEKEN CUP: THE DRAW for the pool stages of the 2011-12 Heineken Cup will take place on Tuesday, June 7th, at Twickenham Stadium…Tue May 24 2011 - 01:00
Leinster's epic continental shiftRUGBY: AS THE ecstatic Leinster players began cavorting and celebrating, and their fans simply went nuts, Seán O’Brien threw…Mon May 23 2011 - 01:00
IRFU are the big winners in cashRUGBY: FOR LEINSTER, the spin-offs of their second Heineken Cup triumph in three years are unquantifiable, both for the brand…Mon May 23 2011 - 01:00
Schmidt expects centre to take stageRUGBY HEINEKEN CUP FINAL: NO MAN is irreplaceable but some are more replaceable than othersFri May 20 2011 - 01:00
Nacewa, Heaslip and O'Brien up for top awardRUGBY: THREE LEINSTER players have been nominated as part of the five-man shortlist from which the inaugural ERC: European Player…Mon May 16 2011 - 01:00
McGahan juggles resources for Ospreys gameRUGBY: ASIDE from being two teams who don’t particularly like each other these are also two teams in transition – though given…Sat May 14 2011 - 01:00
McGahan has a nice selection headacheRUGBY: MUNSTER v OSPREYS SUCH HAS been the manner in which the tyros have stated their case in recent months that Tony McGahan…Thu May 12 2011 - 01:00
McGahan job not on the line at MunsterREGARDLESS OF the outcome to Munster’s Magners League semi-final against the Ospreys on Saturday, or a potential final at home…Wed May 11 2011 - 01:00
Leinster and Munster remain as top seedsRUGBY: LEINSTER AND Munster will again be top seeds in the draw for next season’s Heineken Cup, and Ulster will also remain …Tue May 10 2011 - 01:00
Nacewa is first overseas player for top honourIRUPA AWARDS: ISA NACEWA joined a select group of just seven players to win the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Rugby Union Players Association…Thu May 05 2011 - 01:00
Rugby provides an exercise on how to play the gameON RUGBY: The contrast between the recent antics in the Santiago Bernabéu with the behaviour in Limerick and Dublin was telling…Tue May 03 2011 - 01:00
Blues take a heavyweight boutLeinster 32 Toulouse 23: GAME OF the season duly deliveredMon May 02 2011 - 01:00
Now just one more - big - hurdleRUGBY HEINEKEN CUP FINAL Leinster v Northampton: ONE TO go. Almost thereMon May 02 2011 - 01:00
A year on, prospects good for a Blue DayRUGBY: REACHING THE Holy Grail once is all fine and dandy, but to become a genuine European superpower Leinster desperately …Sat Apr 30 2011 - 01:00
Familiarity breeds respect for SchmidtRUGBY: MINDFUL THAT 20 other teams would envy Leinster’s position, the excitement, good humour and fear in Joe Schmidt’s voice…Fri Apr 29 2011 - 01:00
Nacewa, Earls and O'Brien on listIRUPA AWARDS: KEITH EARLS, Seán O’Brien and Isa Nacewa have been short-listed for the Bord Gáis Energy Irupa Players’ Player…Thu Apr 21 2011 - 01:00
Cardiff can put cat among pigeonsMAGNERS LEAGUE: LEINSTER, ULSTER and the Ospreys will await with keen interest the outcome of Cardiff’s final home game in the…Thu Apr 21 2011 - 01:00
Stade Toulousain ready to hit their strideON RUGBY: AS LEINSTER discovered in their 14-year quest for the mountain top, which was reached with back-to-back wins over …Tue Apr 19 2011 - 01:00
Schmidt has mind on home semi-finalRUGBY: COMING A week before their Heineken Cup semi-final against Toulouse at the Aviva, next Saturday’s penultimate Magners…Mon Apr 18 2011 - 01:00
Refreshed Leinster trample flat UlsterMAGNERS LEAGUE: Leinster 34 Ulster 26: THE FEELING lurked that Leinster would be revived and refreshed by seven changes to their…Mon Apr 18 2011 - 01:00
Much-changed Leinster still have edge in this encounterRUGBY: Leinster v Ulster NO REST for the victors or the vanquishedSat Apr 16 2011 - 01:00
Schmidt concedes Leinster are vulnerableRUGBY: IDEALLY, LEINSTER want to be playing four knock-out games in the last five weeks of their season, culminating in the …Fri Apr 15 2011 - 01:00
Leinster welcome Toulouse to DublinRUGBY: THE CREAM invariably comes to the top at the business end of the Heineken Cup and, after overcoming the two-time European…Mon Apr 11 2011 - 01:00
If Leinster get motoring, front and back, they'll be awayRUGBY: QUARTER-FINAL weekend in the Heineken Cup, the best competition in Europe: no better weekend in the calendarSat Apr 09 2011 - 01:00
Leicester are not without their flaws defensivelyON RUGBY: THE SIX Nations had better be carefulTue Apr 05 2011 - 01:00
O'Connell now faces anxious waitRUGBY : PAUL O’CONNELL and Munster received mildly encouraging news yesterday when an X-ray at Limerick Regional Hospital established…Mon Apr 04 2011 - 01:00
Avenging Munster may just shade itLIGHTS, CAMERAS and the action part is guaranteedSat Apr 02 2011 - 01:00
When they're good, they really are the bestON RUGBY: England will regroup, France are stuck with Lièvremont, Wales aren’t as good as they think, Scotland and Italy still…Tue Mar 22 2011 - 00:00
