After a busy weekend of inter-county hurling and football action, here’s a look at some of the stories making the headlines for KCLR and Scoreline.ie on Monday 9 January.
Kilkenny got their Walsh Cup campaign off to a winning start yesterday in their first competitive game under new manager Derek Lyng. A good crowd at John Locke Park were treated to a tight enough game in the end with goals from Glenmore’s Ian Byrne and Conahy’s Tom Phelan helping Kilkenny to a 2-19 to 0-21 point win.
Speaking to KCLR after the game, Lyng says he’ll be looking for improvements ahead of this coming Sunday’s trip to Laois and you can hear his post-match interview on the latest Scoreline Extra podcast, available now. Meanwhile, new Offaly manager Johnny Kelly, who took over from Michael Fennelly last autumn, has been telling KCLR that he’s got some big ambitions for the county this year. He also features in this week’s edition of Scoreline Extra below.
Carlow might have something to say about that on the Joe McDonagh front as they picked up their first hurling win of the year yesterday with a 4-26 to 1-08 win over Wicklow at Netwatch Cullen Park.
Richie Coady continued his history-making ways by notching up a 166th appearance in the county colours and chipping in with a goal of his own while there were celebrations in the Burren Rangers camp with Lorcan Doyle becoming the first from the club to represent the county.
On the football front, the 2022 Carlow Under 20 championship comes to a close this Friday night with Michael Davitts and Naomh Eoin heading to Netwatch Cullen Park to decide a home for the last of 2022’s trophies. Mount Leinster Rangers collected the Under 20 A title this past Friday night with a last-gasp one-point win over Éire Óg.
Top of the heap
New Oak Boys are top of the Nationalist Premier Division in Carlow thanks to a 6-0 win over Vale Wanderers yesterday. That’s six wins from six for the defending champions who lead St. Pat’s Boys by two points. Kilree Celtic are up to fourth thanks to a 4-1 win over Hanover Harps.
In Kilkenny, it’s Evergreen who sit on top of the St. Canice’s Credit Union Premier Divison after gaols from Ethan Phelan and Andrew Wall helped them to a 2-0 win over Freebooters and top spot by virtue of goal difference.
Cross-channel, a number of Premier League clubs have it all to do again after a busy weekend of FA Cup action. Both Liverpool and Leeds had to come from behind to clinch draws and force replays ahead of the fourth round of the competition while Graham Potter finds himself under more pressure at Chelsea after a 4-0 defeat to Man City leaves them with just two wins in their last eight games and fans booing the team off the pitch at full time.
We do love a good giant-killing through, with Stevenage staging a late comeback to beat Aston Villa 2-1 with two goals in the closing minutes of the game.
Arsenal take on Oxford tonight at 8.
Kennedy out?
And in racing, while the Willie Mullins trained, Champ Kiely claimed the Grade 1 Lawlor’s Novice Hurdle at Naas yesterday, there was bad news for jockey Jack Kennedy.
According to trainer Gordon Elliot, Kennedy could be out of action for the foreseeable future, casting doubt on his involvement at Goffs Thyestes Day in Gowran this month where he was a winner two years ago with Coko Beach. The 23-year-old jockey sustained a leg injury in a fall at Naas yesterday with Top Bandit fatally injured in the incident, which happened in the Novice Chase.
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