John Herdman made to regret his words; Robbie Henshaw out of European action

Somebody should really have asked John Herdman to think before he speaks. The Canadian manager famously said his side were going to “F” Croatia after their narrow defeat to Belgium in the World Cup. What actually happened? A 4-1 Croatia win that sent Canada packing. “I’d like to thank the Canada manager for motivation. In the end, Croatia showed who effed whom,” so said Croatia boss Zlatko Dalic after the result. Mary Hannigan has this and more in today’s Desert Outtakes from Qatar. In terms of yesterday’s matches, you can catch up on wins for both Portugal and Brazil after their games with Uruguay and Switzerland respectively.

France are the favourites for next year’s World Cup, so says Gerry Thornley after this round of November internationals. Yet he goes on to state that the top tier of international sides is as competitive as ever as he runs the rule over every team’s performance this autumn. The big losers of the window? Wales: “It always felt that the Warren Gatland/Shaun Edwards reign papered over the cracks evident in their regions and player pathway. While there is some young talent coming through, they still rely heavily on an old guard.” Owen Doyle watched that Wales defeat to Australia and offers the following review of the officiating performance: “Side entry and sealing-off the ball were the orders of the day, with both teams being equally guilty. Occasionally, these were penalised but far too many went unpunished. Before the Six Nations, World Rugby will need to clarify what’s what, particularly around teams in possession.”

In other rugby news, Leinster received a blow ahead of the start of the European campaign as Robbie Henshaw has been ruled out until the new year after having surgery on his wrist. Charlie Ngatai has a shoulder issue too and is a doubt ahead of this weekend’s Ulster clash in the URC, meaning Leinster could well have an interesting decision to make on who wears the 12 shirt.

Last April, Pauric Mahony was supposed to pick up his medal after playing his part in Ballygunner’s All-Ireland win. Instead, any celebration was curtailed by Waterford’s clash with Cork in the league final falling on the same day. instead of a big celebratory night with the club, Mahony and the Waterford hurlers had to content themselves with a league title and park that achievement with the championship opener on the horizon. Seán Moran spoke to the Ballygunner/Waterford man in the build-up to Ballygunner’s clash with Ballyea as they start their bid to retain their All-Ireland crown.