Places up for grabs in Cork

ROWING: It's all about concentration this weekend in Irish rowing: the extraordinary levels of concentration needed by the athletes to produce their best performances at the make-or-break national trials in Cork - and the strange concentration of a serious domestic regatta season which stretches a little over three months and pits this important event directly opposite tomorrow's Trinity regatta at Islandbridge.

Trinity can be an attractive event for spectators and features an interesting semi-final clash in the men's senior eight of Neptune and Commercial, with the hosts awaiting the winners. But it will be Hamlet without the princes of the international scene. And the queens of Irish rowing, the UCD women's senior eight, again find themselves without opposition in their class and so the crew will hone their competitive instincts only by taking each other on in a straight final of the senior coxed four.

There will be no shortage of keen competition at the highest level at Inniscarra Lake, Cork, over the next three days. The pre-trial shoot-out today sees seven lightweight men - including former World Champion Niall O'Toole - and three heavyweights trying to prove themselves capable of being invited to the trial proper.

Assistant national coach Debbie Fox said the decision will be made on time trial results, with some likely to get through and some being cut.

The withdrawal through injury and illness of Tim Harnedy and Ger Ward leaves only six of the original invitees for the senior lightweight men now available on Saturday. Ward, who is only 19, will no longer be considered for senior ranks this season but is likely to figure in the under-23 programme, and Fox said that Harnedy may come back into the reckoning after the final World Cup regatta in Lucerne when the selection for the World Championships in Eton will be made.

One Ireland crew already chosen is the under-23 men's four of Paul Murray and James Wall of NUIG, Dan Barry of St Michael's and Paul O'Brien of Neptune. This crew is targeted at the World Under-23 Championships in Belgium in July, but will also compete at the second World Cup in Poznan, Poland, in June.

The shape of the senior four for the season ahead will emerge in the coming days - Fox says some selections will be made at the weekend, some "by Wednesday at the latest" - and much interest will focus on Sean O'Neill, the Limerickman who has three New Zealand pairs' titles to his credit.

He will team up with Sean Casey in tomorrow's small-boat session, taking on Alan Martin and Cormac Folan along with Kenny McCarthy and John Forde. Sean Jacob and Con Collis meet in the single scull. Last year the Ireland heavyweight four won a World Cup bronze medal; the lightweight four took a silver medal at the World Championships; the lightweight women's double reached their World Championship final. This weekend in Cork all the places are up for grabs again.

PRE-TRIALLISTS (at National Rowing Centre, Cork) - Today - Men, open: R Michael, E Joyce, J Wholley. Lightweight: A Coleman, E Garvey, D Heffernan, D Mac Colgain, D O'Dowd, N O'Toole, D Wallace.