The build-up to Ireland’s trip to Murrayfield on Sunday week, for that rather critical Six Nations game, starts now, and Gerry Thornley takes us through the areas were Andy Farrell’s men need to improve if they are to maintain their winning streak.
While they’ve scored more and conceded fewer tries than any of their rivals in this campaign, Ireland’s tally of missed tackles, he writes, is of no small concern – they’ve already amassed 79 in their three Six Nations games, compared to 66 for the entirety of last season’s championship.
And in his analysis of Scotland’s performance in Paris on Sunday, Johnny Watterson argues that despite their defeat to France, they showed enough in a game in which they had 60 per cent of the possession to suggest that that trip to Murrayfield could be quite a testing one.
Owen Doyle, meanwhile, analyses the quality of refereeing in the Six Nations so far, giving a special nod to Nika Amashukeli for his performance in Paris, while Johnny brings us Leo Cullen’s reaction to his signing of a new two-year extension to his contract with Leinster which will keep him at the club until 2025.
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On the GAA front, Malachy Clerkin takes a look at the league form of the counties just five weeks in advance of the start of the Championship. One particular Leinster county should look away now (“Kildare in the Tailteann Cup? It’s far from impossible”).
And in horse racing, a fortnight in advance of the Cheltenham Festival, trainer Gordon Elliott tells Brian O’Connor about his concerns over the British Horseracing Authority’s new whip rules which allow for a horse to be disqualified if its jockey over-uses the whip. “It’s one thing I would lie in bed at night thinking about,” says Elliott, “you could win a Gold Cup and lose it the next day.”
Telly choice: Roots: Shane Lowry (Sky Sports Golf, 10.30pm). The documentary series takes a trip to Clara, Co Offaly to chat with Lowry’s family and friends in an effort to find out how his background made him the fellah he is today.
There are three televised FA Cup ties tonight too – Stoke City v Brighton (ITV4 and Premier Sports 2, 7.15), Fulham v Leeds (BBC1, 7.45) and Bristol City v Manchester City (UTV and Premier 1, 8.0), Irish internationals Mark Sykes and Max O’Leary are among the Bristol City contingent who will be aiming to spring the mother of all upsets.
Keep an eye on: Events in France. After her captain Wendie Renard announced last week that she would not play in this summer’s World Cup, swiftly followed by two team-mates, controversial French coach Corinne Diacre is rumoured to be about to resign after today’s executive committee meeting of the French federation. It’s an unholy mess for the fifth ranked nation in the world, Ireland’s opponents in a World Cup warm-up in Tallaght in July.
To add to the federation’s woes, their president, Noël Le Graët, is also expected to step down – or be asked to – amid allegations of “seriously inappropriate behaviour towards women”, including his “propositioning” of a member of the national team.
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