Connacht Rugby’s all-time record points scorer Jack Carty will retire from professional rugby at the end of the season after 15 years with the club. The out half, who won 11 Irish caps including three appearances at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan, will be 34 in August.
Carty considers himself fortunate to have been part of Connacht’s transformation, saying, “From the excitement of the old Clan Stand opening, getting stranded in Siberia, the ecstasy of winning the Pro12, playing for my country, and the Dexcom Stadium grand opening, it has been filled with so many highs. There have been times for reflection, regret and disappointment. Each one enabling me to grow and learn who I am as a person.”
Paying tribute Connacht head coach Stuart Lancaster said: ‘‘Jack is an excellent rugby player and just as good a person, who leads by example, and commands the respect of all who work with him, given his vast experience and achievements with the club. I have been fortunate enough to work with Jack for the last season of his career, and the impact he has had on his team-mates, the club and the wider province was clear from an early stage.”
GAA + PACKAGE
BEGINS APRIL 11
The GAA streaming service GAA+ has unveiled its 2026 package, offering 40 exclusive live matches from the All-Ireland Championships. The season pass has risen to €95, but midweek programming has been expanded, with enhanced production and multi-camera setups for more than 30 games. Notably, 83 cents of every euro generated will be re-invested into Gaelic games, supporting coaching, local clubs, county development, and player welfare initiatives. The action kicks off with the Connacht Championship quarter-finals on the weekend of April 11/12, featuring London against Mayo on Saturday and New York taking on Roscommon the following day.
All-Ireland winners Patrick McBrearty and Stefan Campbell will join household names including Marc Ó Sé, Paddy Andrews, Pádraig O'Hora, Aaron Kernan, Michael Meehan, Bríd Stack, Kevin Cassidy and John Heslin. Hurling coverage will feature expert analysis from: Richie Hogan, 'Bubbles' O’Dwyer, Noel Connors, Eoin Cadogan, Séamus Hickey, and Tommy Walsh, with Galway's All-Ireland winning captain David Burke, Podge Collins, and Niamh Rockett providing live match-day insight.
NEW NAME FOR
MUNSTER CUP
Last week, the Munster GAA Council announced that the cup for the winners of their provincial senior football championship is to be named after former Kerry star Páidi O Sé. The eight-time All-Ireland winner and later All-Ireland winning manager, passed away in 2012 at the age of 57. He also won 11 Munster senior football titles as a player and six as manager of Kerry. In the old days there was no name for the Munster hurling or football cups, but in May 2022 the Munster Council decided to call the hurling trophy after former Limerick great Mick Mackey.
OPTIONS FOR O’BRIEN
IN GRAND NATIONAL
Irish trainer Joseph O’Brien could be double-handed in the Randox Grand National at Aintree on Saturday week with Banbridge and Jordans. The Ronnie Bartlett-owned Banbridge has winning form at the Merseyside track after winning the Grade One Manifesto Novices’ Chase in 2023 but he is without a win since the King George in 2024. O’Brien, son of the phenomenally successful Aidan O’Brien, said: ‘‘Banbridge came out of Cheltenham where he was third in the Ryanair Chase. I’d say he could go to Aintree for the National, We will keep his options open and a decision will be made late. We will discuss it with Ronnie and see what he would like to do. We are leaning towards that at the moment. He loves the track and if it was three miles I’d fancy him.’’ Jordans has been somewhat out of sorts this season but O’Brien feels the better ground on Merseyside can bring out the best in the seven-year-old.
EXTRA TIME
FOR FAI
The Government are giving the FAI extra time to repay a portion of a loan that was a central part of the 2020 bailout in order to relax financial pressure on the football association between now and Euro 2028. A €7.6 million interest-free loan to cover Aviva Stadium license fees was a central aspect of the rescue package that was required to keep the FAI afloat in the post-John Delaney era. Under the terms of the deal, the FAI were due to pay €1m back in both 2026 and 2027 but they wrote to Minister of State for Sport Charlie McConalogue last November to seek a short-term restructuring and were met with a positive response.
SNOOKER STICKS
WITH CRUCIBLE
The World Snooker Championship will stay at the Crucible after a landmark deal was struck between World Snooker Tour and Sheffield City Council. The agreement secures the future of the sport's flagship competition at its current venue until at least 2045, with an option to extend for another five years to 2050. A planned £45m redevelopment of the theatre could add 500 seats, but it will mean the event must temporarily relocate in 2029 and possibly 2030 while that work is in progress. The news will come as a relief to traditionalists who feared the global showpiece could vacate the Crucible, which has staged every championship since 1977, and possibly even the UK itself once its current lease expires in 2027.
