Whittling an original longlist of around 75 players down to 38 was no easy task for Andy Farrell, but as he said himself at the announcement of his Lions touring party for the trip to Australia, “if it was easy we’ve not got a good squad”. Gerry Thornley runs his eye over Farrell’s selection, which includes 15 Irish players. Deservedly so, Gerry argues, even if there might be some grumbling in English quarters.
Gerry also picks out the winners and losers in the whole process, Caelan Doris falling into the latter category after missing out through injury. “You can imagine he’s devastated,” said Farrell after speaking to the Irish captain who was due to undergo surgery on his shoulder this week.
Nathan Johns was in the O2 arena for the rather lengthy event, “dragging the arse out of it would be an understatement,” he says. “We’re beginning to see who this is all really for,” he writes, “fans with deep pockets, sponsors and rights holders. They weren’t lying when they said the Lions was a corporate beast.”
Far from the glitz of that affair, Munster and Ulster meet in the URC at Thomond Park this evening, Johnny Watterson previewing what it is a critical game for both provinces as they attempt to qualify for this season’s play-offs and next season’s Champions Cup.
Gerry Thornley: Ireland deserve top billing in Lions touring party to Australia
Sonia O’Sullivan: Sometimes you need to go off the beaten track to find that timeless run of your life
Skorts v shorts: ‘They’re awkward, and if it’s your time of the month it’s just not comfortable’
Dave Hannigan: Why Bill Belichick’s relationship with woman 49 years younger has America rapt
The hurling championship won’t be without its share of do-or-die games this weekend either, among them the meeting of Clare and Tipperary in Ennis. For the losers, summer will be over before it even gets going, Joe Canning believing that it will all hinge on Tony Kelly’s involvement. “If he plays, Clare will win. Without him, they’re vulnerable,” he says. He’s in the starting line-up that was announced this morning, but you know yourself – they can oft be a work of fiction.
In light of the skorts controversy, Johnny Watterson looks at the history of sportswomen being told what they can and cannot wear, among the more comical examples is the time Katie Taylor was told she had to wear a skirt for her bouts. ‘You’re grand, thanks,’ was the gist of her reply.
In athletics, Sonia O’Sullivan recounts a magical recent visit to Inis Meáin, the middle of three Aran Islands off the west coast of Galway, where she ran in a 12k fundraising race, and Ian O’Riordan talks to Chris O’Donnell ahead of this weekend’s World Athletics Relays.
And in racing, Brian O’Connor looks at the latest “gimmick” aimed at making the sport “more relevant to a younger audience” – a new jockeys’ league, which is planned for next year. It is, he says, another “silver-bullet attempt to renew the old game’s popular appeal, almost all of which fail to hit the board never mind any bullseye”. He’s not impressed, then.
TV Watch: Cycling’s 2025 Giro d’Italia gets under way today in, well, Albania (TNT Sports 3, 12pm), Ireland’s Sam Bennett hoping to rediscover his best form. From 4pm this afternoon, Sky Sports Golf has live coverage from the Truist Championship where Shane Lowry and Rory McIlroy had solid starts on Thursday. Munster and Ulster square up in the URC this evening (RTÉ 2 and Premier Sports, 7.35pm), as do the top two in the Premier Division, Shamrock Rovers and leaders Drogheda (Virgin Media Two, 8pm).
