The Southeastern part of our country is known as the ‘‘sunny Southeast,’’ but right now there is nothing sunny about the job of inter-county hurling managers in the region. Kilkenny’s Derek Lyng was the first to quit after the Cats failed to get out of Leinster. Lyng was quickly followed by Peter Queally, who was frustrated that he wasn’t offered another year in Waterford, and last week Keith Rossiter walked away after three years in charge of Wexford.
MEATH VENUE
SET TO OPEN
Good news for Meath supporters. The redeveloped Páirc Tailteann in Navan is set to be handed over to Meath GAA on April 12, 2027, according to an update provided to delegates at a recent County Committee meeting .The projected completion date was among a number of significant developments outlined by Noel Dempsey during his report on the progress of the county’s flagship redevelopment project. The Páirc Tailteann redevelopment, which includes a new stand and floodlight infrastructure, represents one of the most ambitious capital projects ever undertaken by Meath GAA.
FARRELL PICKS
CONNACHT MEN
Irish rugby head coach Andy Farrell last week named three uncapped players in his 36-man Ireland squad for the upcoming Nations Championship. Meanwhile fans learned at the weekend that skipper Caelan Doris and winger Tommy O’Brien had joined the long injury list.
The three newcomers are all from Connacht, Billy Bohan, Sim Illo and New Zealand- born Sean Janson, who qualifies through his Irish grandparents who were born in Belfast and Monasterevin. As expected, there is no place for Leinster’s James Lowe ahead of the winger’s imminent departure to Japan, while Farrell is also without several players due to injury. The injured players include out-half Jack Crowley and prop forward Andrew Porter, who will miss the games against Australia on July 11, Japan on July 11 and New Zealand on July 18. Porter, who missed the Six Nations with a calf injury, has been ruled out with a similar problem, suffered in Leinster’s semi-final win over Stormers, which ended his season prematurely. Crowley continues to be sidelined with a blood vessel injury in his leg. The out-half hasn’t played since mid-April due to a puzzling injury, which Munster head coach Clayton McMillan last week said was finally diagnosed. Ryan Baird, Shayne Bolton, Jack Boyle, Edwin Edogbo, Tom Farrell, Mack Hansen, Paddy McCarthy and Calvin Nash were not considered due to injury.
With Porter ruled out, Bohan joins Munster’s Jeremy Loughman and Ulster’s Tom O’Toole as the loosehead prop options, while Tadhg Furlong and Thomas Clarkson have been selected alongside Illo at tighthead. Jansen, who has previously featured for Emerging Ireland and Ireland A, is named in the senior squad after scoring 12 tries in 21 games, which led to him being named Connacht’s player of the year. Munster skipper Tadhg Beirne, in-form Ulster centre Stuart McCloskey and his provincial colleague Jacob Stockdale have been deemed fit enough for inclusion.
STORM CLOUDS IN
NO EURO PUSHOVERS
FOR ROVERS IN DRAW
The draws were made last week for the 2026-27 European club competitions. Shamrock Rover were drawn against Floriana FC the champions of Malta, with the first leg to be played away from home. It’s a favorable draw for the Hoops on paper, as they avoided the likes of Sabah of Azerbaijan and FC Ararat of Armenia, but the 27-time Maltese champions, who were once managed by Dubliner Roddy Collins, will not be a push-over. The first leg is due to be played on July 7/8 with the return in Tallaght Stadium on July 14/15. If Rovers do not progress past Floriana, they will play FK Kauno Zalgiris (Lithuania) or FC Drita (Kosovo) in the UEFA Conference League Second Qualifying Round. Derry City will play Qarabag (Azerbaijan) or Vestri (Iceland) if they progress past CSKA Sofia in the UEFA Europa League. And it will be Rijeka for Derry if they do not advance past CSKA. Bohemians have been drawn against St Joseph’s of Gibraltar in the Conference League and if Bohs progress they will play Connah’s Quay Nomads FC from Wales or FC or Ballkani from Kosovo. Shelbourne got a bye to the second round of the Conference League where they will play Nomme Kalju FC from Estonia or Linfield from the Irish League, whom they beat in the Champions League qualifying round last season.
IRISH CONTRIBUTION
TO WORLD CUP PITCHES
Irish company SIS Pitches is contributing to high-performance playing surfaces across nine of the 16 host stadiums at the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico including the venue for the final. SIS Grass Hybrid is in use at stadiums in San Francisco, Miami, Kansas City, Toronto, Monterrey and host for the final, the New York New Jersey Stadium. SIS Pitches was set up in 2001 by Sligo man George Mullan who is now chairman of the global company. The hybrid system sees synthetic fibres stitched into the surface across the entire field to provide increased durability enhanced root growth. This will help each hybrid pitch recover and perform consistently across different climates and grass types, from bluegrass to Bermuda grass. Meanwhile, its DrainTalent system is being used in Guadalajara, Seattle and Vancouver. This system provides vacuum drainage to quickly extract excess water from the pitch in storm conditions to avoid delays or disruption to play. The company has been involved in projects at some of Ireland’s most high-profile grounds including Leinster Rugby at Donnybrook Stadium in Dublin and Munster Rugby at Thomond Park in Limerick as well as a full-pitch construction of Páirc Uí Chaoimh in Cork. George Mullan said: ‘‘Having been heavily involved in the previous two tournaments in Russia and Qatar, and also involved in Germany, we understand how important it is that our technology works alongside that of other partners to ensure each pitch system performs as intended.’’
UNITED OPENS
DOORS TO DOC
Manchester United's 2026-27 campaign will be the subject of a new fly-on-the-wall documentary series for Amazon Prime, it has been announced. Cameras will follow Michael Carrick’s team throughout the season for the latest instalLment of the “All or Nothing” program to be produced for the global streaming platform. Producers promise the series, which will be released next summer, “will give viewers unprecedented access to the club, taking them inside the Old Trafford dressing room, the inner sanctum of United’s all-new Carrington Training Complex and much more.’’ Other EPL clubs to have featured in the series in previous years include Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester City. United chief communications officer Toby Craig said: ‘‘Now is the right time to open our doors, so that for the first time our fans around the world can see behind the scenes of a club which means so much to so many people.’’
