Galopin Des Champs is odds on for the Cheltenham Gold Cup after registering back-to-back success in the Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown.
Leading from flag-fall, Paul Townend was content to set a sedate pace on Willie Mullins’ 1-3 favourite, with his old rival Fastorslow never letting him get too far in front.
The pair had met three times in the past, with the score heading into this contest in favour of Martin Brassil’s chaser by two victories to one.
Team Closutton were determined to level the scores before heading to Cheltenham and Townend – who had picked the wrong Mullins-trained representative in the first three Grade Ones of the afternoon – was always in control.
J J Slevin attempted to make his move after the second-last and aimed to get the rail, but Townend was alive to it and made sure it was not straightforward, while Conflated was not completely out of it on the far side.
Galopin Des Champs jinked to his left approaching the last which just put Fastorslow off for a stride or two, while Conflated unseated Jack Kennedy, but just like at Christmas the winner’s most impressive part was the final 100 yards and he pulled four and a half lengths clear.
The winner is now 4-6 (from evens) to repeat his Cheltenham success in March with Betfair and Coral.
Maxxum produced a fine weight-carrying performance to give young jockey Carl Millar by far the biggest success of his fledgling career in the Race And Stay At Leopardstown Handicap Hurdle.
Millar only had eight previous winners to his name but proved great value for his 7lb claim on Gordon Elliott’s top weight.
Maxxum had won at Leopardstown last Christmas and went off 7-4 favourite for this very race 12 months ago, only to disappoint.
Having looked in the grip of the handicapper, Elliott sent him chasing.
He had been back over hurdles for his last two outings but was sent off at 28-1, having been pulled up on the most recent of those.
Millar was positive from the outset, though, and while Gaoth Chuil travelled much better, Maxxum stuck to his task to win by three-quarters of a length.
“Carl is a good lad. He’s well able to ride and just needs to tidy himself up a little bit now, get on the simulator. He’s a good lad and works hard,” said Elliott.
“Maxxum is a bit hot and cold and I thought the ground might have gone a bit soft for him. When you are in these handicaps, you never know.
“We said we’d keep it simple, pop him out handy and see what happens.”
Nickle Back galloped to a memorable Grade One victory in the Virgin Bet Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase at Sandown following a bold front-running ride from James Best.
It was a fairytale first success at elite level for the jockey and West Wratting trainer Sarah Humphrey, although the race was marred by a fatal fall for Hermes Allen at the second-last.
Best and 10-1 shot Nickle Back established a healthy lead in the early stages, with 8-13 favourite Hermes Allen heading the chasing pack.
Some exuberant leaps allowed the pacesetter to extend his advantage to fully 20 lengths with three to jump and he was again foot-perfect at the Pond Fence.
After Nickle Back bounded clear from two out, Djelo clawed back some of his lead up the stiff home stretch but Best’s mount was not for catching, prevailing by seven lengths,
“I just cannot believe it,” Best told ITV Racing. “As a small child growing up, you watch these races on the television on a Saturday and you dream of becoming a jockey and winning races like this.
“A massive thank you to Sarah and all the team, I’m just gobsmacked, as I was when winning on him in his first chase at Warwick.
“For them to put their faith in me on this wonderful horse, it means so much and I just can’t believe it.
“He was a bit brave early on and that kind of twisted my arm second time down the back – for goodness sake, just go with him!
“He loves galloping and he loves jumping, so just get a breather when I could.
“Congratulations to Sarah, as she has done a wonderful job with this horse, who is quite fragile and not easy to train.”
Oleksandr Usyk could still fight in Saudi Arabia on February 17 despite his showdown with Tyson Fury being shelved, his promoter has confirmed.
This month’s proposed undisputed world heavyweight fight between Usyk and Fury in Riyadh was postponed on Friday after the British boxer suffered a “freak cut” above his right eye in sparring.
It was the latest twist in a long-awaited saga to have all the belts on the line in boxing’s blue-ribbon division, but Usyk could still ensure the card goes ahead.
Usyk’s promoter Alex Krassyuk confirmed on Saturday morning during an Instagram live that he is working on finding the Ukrainian a new opponent, with Filip Hrgovic being lined up due to the Croatian boxer being the mandatory challenger for Usyk’s IBF belt.
“Will Usyk be fighting on the 17th? We are working on that and in the next couple of days a final decision will be taken,” Krassyuk said.
“There is only one option because the IBF has sanctioned the undisputed fight on the condition that after this fight the champion has to fight the mandatory, which is Hrgovic. That means if the champion fights someone else, he will be stripped of his belt by the IBF.
“With Hrgovic, there is a slight chance.”
Fury apologised on Friday night after confirmation that his highly anticipated bout for all four major world heavyweight titles with Usyk had to be postponed.
The facial cut suffered by the ‘Gypsy King’ required medical attention and “significant stitching”, which rules out the possibility of a new date being quickly found.
Krassyuk added: “If we speak about undisputed, it is still a question whether it will happen some day at all?
“We have tried so many times to make it and the more people doubt it will ever take place.
“Let’s hope, let’s pray. Of course we wish Tyson a soonest recovery and hopefully next time nothing will stop him taking punishment from Usyk.”
It Etait Temps completed a dream hour for Danny Mullins when winning the Goffs Irish Arkle at Leopardstown, where Marine Nationale was a huge disappointment back in fifth place.
Having already won the opening two Grade Ones on Dancing City and Kargese, Mullins was riding full of confidence, but faced huge opposition in the shape of Barry Connell’s unbeaten Marine Nationale – not to mention Facile Vega, a stablemate of the Willie Mullins-trained winner.
It was Gordon Elliott’s Found A Fifty who ensured there was to be no hanging about and with Facile Vega on his heels, there was no letting up in the pace.
Sent off the 4-7 favourite, Marine Nationale had been settled in third, but his jumping was not as assured as on his debut and Il Etait Temps moved passed him down the back straight.
As the field turned in Marine Nationale briefly threatened to take a hand, but a bad mistake at the last sealed his fate.
Found A Fifty looked like he had done enough to hold on, but Il Etait Temps gamely dug in to win by a neck at 6-1.
The winner is now 5-1 from 14s for the Arkle at Cheltenham.
Ireland lock Joe McCarthy admitted he battled nerves and fears of being over-hyped ahead of his eye-catching Guinness Six Nations debut in Friday evening’s crushing demolition of France.
The towering 22-year-old was selected ahead of James Ryan and Iain Henderson in Marseille and justified the faith of Andy Farrell with a man-of-the-match display in a record-breaking 38-17 win.
His powerful performance alongside second-row partner Tadhg Beirne helped silence a stunned Stade Velodrome crowd en route to Ireland’s biggest victory away to the pre-tournament favourites.
“There was obviously a lot of distraction, the atmosphere is crazy, it’s hard to hear yourself think in these games,” said McCarthy, who won his sixth Test cap.
“I was quite nervous in the week because it was a big opportunity, playing my first Six Nations game.
“I just kept going back to the process and (had) loads of great second rows giving me help in the camp.
“The place was rocking. Again, you’re trying not to get over-hyped, because I’ve definitely had games before where you’re too fired up and you might start off a bit off.
“I was trying to chill as much as I could and keep the heart rate down.
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“I kind of like playing aggressively and flying around the place. I just need to keep looking forward, there’s plenty more to do.”
McCarthy’s only previous international starts came in a Rugby World Cup warm-up victory against Italy and a routine success over minnows Romania at last autumn’s tournament in France.
The youngest member of Farrell’s 34-man Six Nations squad gained further attention following his impressive outing against Les Bleus after presenting his man-of-the-match medal to his elder brother Andrew.
“It was hard to miss him there, he was looking like a leprechaun in the crowd – a big Irish blazer,” he said.
“It was good to see the family after the game, it was special.”
El Fabiolo is out to confirm his position as the leading two-mile chaser in training when he lines up in the Ladbrokes Dublin Chase at Leopardstown on Sunday.
Winner of the Irish Arkle at this meeting 12 months ago when he was overlooked by Paul Townend in favour of Appreciate It, he went on to confirm the big impression he made that day at Cheltenham.
Up against Nicky Henderson’s Jonbon, the only horse to beat him since joining Willie Mullins, he came out well on top.
The pair were due to clash again in the Clarence House Chase at Ascot two weeks ago but the meeting was abandoned due to frost and Mullins swerved the rearranged race at Cheltenham last week, leaving Jonbon seemingly with a penalty kick, only for him to fluff his lines.
Mullins will be hoping the same fate does not befall his seven-year-old this weekend when he faces stiff opposition from within his own camp, three runners all owned by JP McManus – the improving mare Dinoblue, Gentleman De Mee and Saint Roi.
“El Fabiolo was supposed to go to England and then the Clarence House was rerouted to Cheltenham and we said we’d skip that and come to the Dublin Racing Festival,” said Mullins.
“He’s in great form. Dinoblue is a mare that’s improving all the time and then Gentleman De Mee’s there, he will also give a good account of himself and he likes this track. It’s shaping up to be a hot race, it’s not a foregone conclusion.”
El Fabiolo is the star among owners Simon Munir and Isaac Souede’s ‘double green’ team but their racing manager Anthony Bromley is also taking nothing for granted.
“Dinoblue and Gentleman De Mee are really strong opposition and it is certainly not going to be easy,” said Bromley.
“The ground should be fine, he’s a course and distance winner and rated to win it, but I was hugely impressed by Dinoblue at Christmas in proper soft ground and there could be a big danger there.
“Let’s hope we can just get through it and then plan for Cheltenham. He is our big hope for Sunday and the weekend really.”
The only non-Mullins runner in the race is Henry de Bromhead’s Captain Guinness, who was desperately disappointing behind Dinoblue at Christmas and has frequently come up just short in Grade Ones in the past.
Lewis Hamilton says he will fulfil a “childhood dream” by racing for Ferrari in 2025 but is determined to finish his time Mercedes on a high.
The seven-time Formula One world champion sent shock waves through the sport on Thursday when it was announced that he would join Ferrari next year.
Hamilton had signed a new two-year deal with Mercedes worth £100million in August but the 39-year-old has activated a break clause in that deal after conceding the prospect of “driving in Ferrari red” was too hard to turn down.
“It’s been a crazy few days which have been filled with a whole range of emotions,” Hamilton said in a statement posted on his social media channels.
“But as you all now know, after an incredible 11 years at Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team, the time has come for me to start a new chapter in my life and I will be joining Scuderia Ferrari in 2025.
“I feel incredibly fortunate, after achieving things with Mercedes that I could only have dreamed of as a kid, that I now have the chance to fulfil another childhood dream. Driving in Ferrari red.
“Mercedes has been a huge part of my life since I was 13 years old, so this decision has been the hardest I’ve ever had to make.”
Hamilton won six of his world titles during a seven-year period between 2014 and 2020, but has struggled to match Red Bull rival Max Verstappen since he missed out on what would have been a record world championship in 2021 in controversial fashion.
The British driver is determined to sign off in style at Mercedes and their team principal Toto Wolff stated on Friday he had no concerns over Hamilton’s integrity.
Hamilton continued: “I’m incredibly proud of all that we’ve achieved together and I’m very grateful for the hard work and dedication of everyone I have worked with over the years and of course Toto, for his friendship, guidance and leadership.
“Together we have won titles, broken records and become the most successful Driver-Team partnership in F1 history.
“And of course I cannot forget Niki (Lauda) who was a huge supporter and who I still miss everyday.
“I must also share my huge appreciation to the whole of the Mercedes-Benz board and everyone at the company in Germany and around the world for supporting me over these 26 years.
“But the time is right to make a change and take on a new challenge. I still remember the feeling of taking a leap of faith into the unknown when I first joined Mercedes in 2013.
“I know some people didn’t understand it at the time but I was right to make the move then and it’s the feeling I have again now. I’m excited to see what I can bring to this new opportunity and what we can do together.
“However, right now, I’m not thinking about 2025. My focus is on the upcoming season and getting back out on track with Mercedes.
“I am more driven than ever, I am fitter and more focussed than than ever and I want to help Mercedes win once again. I am 100 per cent committed to the job I need to do and determined to end my partnership with the team on a high.”
The Dublin Racing Festival began as many expected with a Willie Mullins-trained winner, but not with the one most predicted, as complete outsider Dancing City beat favourite Predators Gold in the Nathaniel Lacy & Partners Solicitors Novice Hurdle.
With Paul Townend plumping for Predators Gold from the four Mullins runners, punters took that as a clear hint he was seen as the number one contender, despite stepping up six furlongs in trip from his Christmas outing.
Townend settled the market leader at the rear, as Danny Mullins on Dancing City (16-1) set out to make the running at a sedate tempo, but Rachael Blackmore was having none of it and after half a mile Jetara was allowed to stride on.
Blackmore had a scary moment approaching the second last when she lost her left stirrup but was soon back on an even keel, although the Mullins pair loomed up on the turn for home.
Predators Gold had every chance on the outside but Dancing City kept on finding for pressure and went on to win by a length and a quarter. To Jetara’s credit, she stuck on gamely for third.
Former Irish Derby fourth Peking Opera made a successful start to his jumping career with a solid win at Sandown.
The son of Galileo was bought for 100,000 guineas after also scoring in Listed company for Aidan O’Brien and was sent off the 13-8 joint-favourite for the Virgin Bet Daily Extra Places Novices’ Hurdle.
Niall Houlihan had his mount tucked in behind front-runner Glengolly for much of the way and his jumping was smooth.
Peking Opera was almost forced to push on when a big gap opened up on the inside entering the home straight and quickly took control of proceedings.
Fellow market leader The Good Doctor threw down a challenge between the final two flights but was giving his rival 22lb in weight and was readily seen off on the run-in, going down by a length and three-quarters.
Winning trainer Gary Moore told Racing TV: “I expected him to run very, very well, but I’ve had two good horses beaten in this race over the last two years, so that did worry me.
“He’s a very lazy work horse at home and I couldn’t believe he was a different horse on the track. You could work him with a donkey at home and he’d just work with it.
“He’s always loved his jumping though, the more we’ve schooled him, the better he’s enjoyed it, so I think it’s turned him round.
“Niall was told not to hit the front until the last and he had to hit the front early, so it’s a good result.
“I brought him to a stiff track because I thought that would suit him on his Flat form, but I’m just going to change things now and I think he’s got the pace to go for the Adonis (Kempton, February 24).”
The JCB Triumph Hurdle would then be the ultimate target, but Peking Opera was pushed out to 33-1 from 20-1 by Betfair for Cheltenham Festival glory.
Michael Malone was left to ponder what life was like for the Denver Nuggets prior to Nikola Jokic's presence after another star turn from the two-time NBA MVP.
Having sat out Wednesday's game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Jokic returned to action in style in a 120-108 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Jokic finished with 27 points, 22 rebounds and 12 assists for his 15th triple-double of the season.
"What life was like before Nikola got here," Denver coach Malone asked afterwards.
"I think people don't do that. They're like 'It's always been like this.' No it wasn’t. No it wasn't. Don't do that. Don't lie to yourself.
“We have been spoilt and I'm sure some of us do find ourselves maybe taking it for granted.
"But just remind yourself that not many guys like Nikola Jokic walk through those doors. Appreciate every opportunity that you have to watch him play."
Friday's game was the Nuggets' 50th of the season, with the reigning NBA champions recording a 34-16 record, exactly the same as they had at the same stage last season.
"I like that we are still playing with the same effort," said Jokic, who is averaging 26.3 points per game.
"It's not like we won a championship and now we're going to go easy. I like that we still want to compete and we still want to be better."
LeBron James' immediate future with the Los Angeles Lakers is in no doubt, so says the superstar's agent.
There had been speculation that James, 39, could leave the Lakers ahead of next week's trade deadline.
But his agent Rich Paul insisted that those rumours are wide of the mark.
"LeBron won't be traded, and we aren't asking to be," Paul told ESPN.
James missed the Lakers' win over the Boston Celtics on Thursday due to injury. He posted an hourglass emoji on social media following a loss to the Atlanta Hawks, which only increased the speculation over his future.
The four-time NBA champion has a $51.4 million player option in his Lakers contract for next season.
Russell Westbrook is "so grateful" to be on the Los Angeles Clippers team after he tallied up 25,000 NBA points.
Westbrook became the fourth active player in the NBA, and the 25th player overall, to hit the 25,000 milestone when he nailed a running layup with 2:44 left during Friday's 136-125 win over the Detroit Pistons.
LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Clippers teammate Harden are the other active players to have passed the landmark.
Westbrook, meanwhile, is just the second player in NBA history with 25,000 points, 8,000 rebounds and 8,000 assists, after James.
"I'm so grateful to be on this team," said Westbrook, who finished with 23 points. "I don't take any of this for granted."
"Thanks to God man, for allowing me to play the game I love, and be grateful for that. It's a blessing.
"Grateful to be able to play the game of basketball and use my platform to be able to share, impact and inspire people."
Westbrook's basket sparked jubilant celebrations on the Clippers' bench.
"It's a fun group," he added. "We've got good guys, we all hang out, all have fun.
"To see the love and support here from the coaches and my teammates, I'm super grateful for that."
Jaden led the Pistons with 28 points, and he had nothing but praise for Westbrook.
"I actually got to work out with Russ before the start of my rookie year," Ivey said.
"He gave me a lot of advice. He's just a great, humble dude. He took me under his wing a little bit."
The Clippers trailed by 14 points in the first quarter, but clicked through the gears as the game wore on, with Kawhi Leonard (33 points) leading the way.
They’re a tough young team, especially at home," said Westbrook. "We had to figure out how to play the right way, using our effort and energy to close out the game."
Pistons coach Monty Williams was frustrated with his team's sloppiness, however.
"You can't have turnovers and some of the undisciplined errors we had against a team like that," said Williams.
"It's something that has hurt us all season long. When we take care of [the ball], we have a better chance of success."
The Clippers are third in the Western Conference with a 32-15 record, while the Pistons remain rooted to the bottom of the East with the league's worst record (6-42).
Willie Mullins’ ever reliable State Man looks to retain his crown in the Chanelle Pharma Irish Champion Hurdle against a familiar rival in Impaire Et Passe.
Since falling on his Irish debut, the seven-year-old has met with defeat just once in his last 10 outings for the Closutton maestro, when beaten by Constitution Hill in last year’s Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham.
His record includes seven Grade One wins and he was a four-and-three-quarter-length victor in this event 12 months ago when defeating the great Honeysuckle.
State Man’s two runs this season have both been convincing wins, as he took the Morgiana Hurdle and the Matheson Hurdle, the latter over stablemate Impaire Et Passe.
However, Mullins said of his runners: “State Man will have to turn up in the health he was in at Christmas, even better really, because Impaire Et Passe is improving all the time.
“I think conditions might suit Impaire Et Passe as well – and then you have Bob Olinger, who was very impressive in Cheltenham.
“He takes his chance here as well and he’s a good horse. Echoes In Rain we run as well, she’ll have her chance. It’s going to be a tip-top race, I think.”
Impaire Et Passe is owned by Simon Munir and Isaac Souede and has made a good start to life in the open division after winning the Ballymore at Cheltenham and the Champion Novice at Punchestown last season.
Anthony Bromley, racing manager to the owners, said of his chances: “Impaire Et Passe will run against State Man and will have his work cut out.
“I have huge respect for Bob Olinger in that race also and coming back in trip, he could be a big danger for us in terms of getting second place. It’s a small field but an exciting race.
“Daryl will ride him again and we will then make decisions on what we will do next, as he is entered in the Champion Hurdle and the Stayers’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. We will see how we get on this Sunday.”
Bob Olinger looked back to his best last time out with a seven-length win in the Relkeel Hurdle, a run that came after a winning debut this term in the Lismullen Hurdle at Navan.
Henry de Bromhead said of the nine-year-old: “It’s great to see him coming back to himself, we’re delighted with him, he seems in good form.
“We’re in the Irish Champion Hurdle, it’s going to be a very good race and we’ll all learn something.”
There is a sole entrant from Gordon Elliott’s yard in Fils D’oudairies, who completes the field.
Ballyburn bids to continue the recent domination of Willie Mullins in the Tattersalls Ireland 50th Derby Sale Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown.
The champion trainer has saddled 10 of the last 11 winners of this Grade One event, with Gordon Elliott’s Samcro the only outlier on a roll of honour that features four other subsequent Cheltenham heroes in Vautour (2014), Klassical Dream (2019), Appreciate It (2021) and Sir Gerhard (2022).
Dual bumper winner Ballyburn was beaten by Firefox on his hurdling debut at Fairyhouse but was hugely impressive at the second attempt when scoring by 25 lengths at this venue over the Christmas period.
The six-year-old is prominent in ante-posts lists for both the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and the Baring Bingham Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March and his target is likely to become clearer after he drops back in trip from two-and-a-half to two miles this weekend.
Ballyburn might not have things all his own way, with Elliott’s Farren Glory and the Henry de Bromhead-trained Slade Steel among his rivals.
Farren Glory is already a Grade One winner having landed the Royal Bond at Fairyhouse, and he may well have doubled his top-level tally in the inaugural running of the Formby Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree on Boxing Day but for suffering a crashing fall two flights from home.
Slade Steel has so far won a maiden hurdle at Naas and the Grade Two Navan Novice Hurdle and steps up in class for the hat-trick bid in the hands of Rachael Blackmore.
“Slade Steel hasn’t put a foot wrong this season. He won his maiden hurdle over two miles at Naas in November, and he stepped up in trip last time and won the Grade Two Navan Novice Hurdle over two and a half miles,” said the jockey,
“This is back over two miles again, it’s another step up in grade into a Grade One race, and it looks like a high-quality race. Ballyburn looked very good in winning at Leopardstown at Christmas and Farren Glory won the Royal Bond Hurdle and was travelling like a winner at Aintree when he fell.
“But we’re very happy with Slade Steel. He came out of the Navan race really well, and we’re hoping he can run another big race here.”
Mullins allows three of his star novices to do battle in the Ladbrokes Novice Chase, with Gaelic Warrior, Fact To File and Grangeclare West all declared.
The Closutton handler raised the possibility of Gaelic Warrior dropping back in trip for a mouthwatering clash with Marine Nationale in Saturday’s Irish Arkle earlier in the week, but he instead goes over the longer distance of two miles and five and half furlongs 24 hours later.
That is not to say he has taken the easy option, however, with his stablemates Fact To File and Grangeclare West both having impressed at Leopardstown on their most recent starts.
It promises to be an informative contest with the Cheltenham Festival in mind, as Gaelic Warrior is a hot favourite for the Turners Novices’ Chase, while Fact To File and Grangeclare West are the top two in the betting for the Brown Advisory.
The Coolmore N.H. Sires “Hurricane Lane” Irish EBF Mares I.N.H. Flat Race brings the Dublin Racing Festival to a close and once again Mullins possesses a strong hand, with Aurora Vega leading a four-strong assault.
Out of the brilliant racemare Quevega and a full-sister to Facile Vega, the daughter of Walk In The Park is three from three in the bumper sphere and will be a warm order to extend her unbeaten record in the hands of record-breaking amateur Patrick Mullins.
Tadhg Beirne says Ireland are brimming with “massive belief” after launching their Guinness Six Nations title defence with a landmark demolition of pre-tournament favourites France.
Andy Farrell’s reigning Grand Slam champions made a statement of intent in Marseille with a stunning 38-17 bonus-point win to propel themselves into pole position for further championship glory.
Ireland were a class above at Stade Velodrome, albeit their cause was aided by a first-half red card for France second-row Paul Willemse.
Munster lock Beirne, who claimed the second of five Irish tries en route to his country’s biggest victory away to Les Bleus, said the performance was a “special feeling”.
“You can’t really expect to beat France by a score like that,” he said.
“You always think it’s going to be a tight game and maybe if there wasn’t a red card it might have been a bit tighter but who knows?
“We also knew that with our ability and the way we play that we were going to be able to take it to this French team.
“Within this group, there’s a massive belief. It’s such an enjoyable group to be with and such an enjoyable group to play with; the way we play we all love it.
“Everyone’s involved and I felt from the get-go that we were just on it.
“It’s a special feeling when you’re in a game and everyone is doing their job right and everything is flowing.”
Both sides went into a mouth-watering tournament curtain-raiser on the back of agonising World Cup quarter-finals exits.
Jamison Gibson-Park, Six Nations debutant Calvin Nash, Dan Sheehan and Ronan Kelleher were also on the scoresheet on Friday evening to ensure Farrell’s men bounced back from their last-eight World Cup exit to New Zealand.
Man of the match went to 22-year-old Leinster lock Joe McCarthy, who more than justified his selection ahead of James Ryan and Iain Henderson by producing a colossal display on his first appearance in the championship.
Beirne believes there is plenty more to come from his second-row partner, affectionately dubbed ‘Big Joe’.
“Well, he certainly was Big Joe out there,” said Beirne.
“He was physical, he did exactly what everyone was hoping that he would do and everything that we expected him to do. He does it in training, he’s so athletic and credit to him.
“What a first start in the Six Nations for Joe. There’s a lot more to come from him for sure.”
Ireland move on to a second-round clash at home to Italy after beginning the post Johnny Sexton era with a bang.
Fly-half Jack Crowley filled the void left by Sexton’s retirement, overcoming some errors to nail each of his five conversions and add a penalty.
Back-row forward Caelan Doris praised the impact of Test rookies Crowley, Nash and McCarthy.
“Momentum’s big in the Six Nations, we know that from previous years and it’s a pretty tough start coming over here,” he said.
“It’s a bit of a cauldron here, the French supporters are like no others in terms of volume – apart from the Irish, of course.
“We were aware of what we were coming into and it was just about playing our game.
“Obviously we’ve lost key figures, like Johnny, over the last number of months but other guys stepped up and it was a great night.
“It was class to see the likes of Joe and Jack step up massively and put in great performances.”
Tom Brady won a record sixth Super Bowl as he led the New England Patriots to a 13-3 victory over the Los Angeles Rams on this day in 2019.
Veteran quarterback Brady, playing in his ninth championship game, and Patriots head coach Bill Belichick masterminded victory in the 53rd edition of the NFL showdown at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta to add another Vince Lombardi Trophy to their successes in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2014 and 2016.
The 41-year-old threw for 262 yards and engineered the game’s only touchdown drive as Sony Michel punched the ball in to give New England the lead midway through the fourth quarter.
Starting at their own 31, Brady found Rob Gronkowski with a short pass for 19 yards, then out of the gun, hit MVP Julian Edelman for a 13-yard completion.
Now at the Rams’ 38-yard line, Brady found Rex Burkhead with a short seven-yard pass before picking out Gronkowski again and watching him beat two defenders to finish two yards shy.
From the only redzone visit of the night, Michel took advantage of good blocking to score his sixth post-season touchdown.
Speaking afterwards, Brady had no intention of calling it a day after helping the Patriots tie the Pittsburgh Steelers’ record for the most championships.
He told CBS: “It doesn’t change anything. It’s been a great year. I’m so happy for my team-mates. This is a dream come true for all of us.”
Brady’s 20-year stay in New England came to a close when he announced his departure in March 2020, but his love affair with the Super Bowl did not.
In February 2021, he steered the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a 31-9 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs at the age of 43, throwing three touchdown passes in the process.
Two years later, Brady announced his retirement and insisted he would not change his mind as he had done 12 months earlier.
His sporting career took an unexpected and sideways turn in August of the same year when he became a minority owner at Sky Bet Championship club Birmingham.
Nikola Jokic recorded his league-leading 15th triple-double this season and Jamal Murray fell a rebound shy of one as the Denver Nuggets took down the Portland Trail Blazers, 120-108 on Friday.
Jokic had 27 points, a season-high 22 rebounds and 12 assists for his 120th career triple-double, a total bettered only by Russell Westbrook (198), Oscar Robertson (181) and Magic Johnson (138) in NBA history.
Murray finished with 13 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, while Aaron Gordon scored 18 points and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 16 points. The Nuggets have won five straight and 12 of 13 against the Blazers.
Scoot Henderson scored 30 points and Anfernee Simons had 29 for Portland, which played without Jerami Grant, who was a late scratch due to lower back tightness.
Clippers’ Westbrook hits milestone in win
Russell Westbrook scored 23 points to become the 25th player in NBA history to reach 25,000 in the Los Angeles Clippers’ 136-125 win over the Detroit Pistons.
Westbrook, who shot 10 of 13 from the field and handed out nine assists, joined teammate James Harden on the list of players to score 25,000 points. Harden reached the milestone in December.
Kawhi Leonard scored 21 of his 33 points in the first half and Paul George added 18 as the Clippers won for the seventh time in eight games.
Jalen Ivey scored 28 points and Bojan Bogdanovic had 26 for the Pistons, who dropped to 4-41 after a 2-1 start to the season.
Sabonis breaks Robertson’s record in Kings’ win
Domantas Sabonis tallied 26 points and 12 rebounds to break Oscar Robertson’s single-season franchise record with his 30th straight double-double to lead the Sacramento Kings to a 133-122 win over the Indiana Pacers.
Sabonis, who added seven assists, surpassed Robertson’s mark set from Dec. 6, 1961-Jan. 30, 1962.
De’Aaron Fox had 25 points and six assists and Malik Monk added 23 points, six assists and five rebounds to help Sacramento win for the fifth time in six games.
Bennedict Mathurin scored 31 points for the Pacers, who shot 54.1 percent from the field but were hurt by 21 turnovers to fall to 4-8 in their last 12 games.
American Scottie Scheffler shot an eight-under-par 64 to join Belgian Thomas Detry and Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg in the halfway lead at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Scheffler hit eight birdies without a blemish on his card to sit at 11-under-par while battling a course wet from overnight rain.
The world number one said aside from the weather, it was “just another day”.
“Like on a lot of these back-to-front greens, it’s a big adjustment going from hitting a pitching wedge to hitting an eight iron to try to take off spin,” he said. “It’s little stuff like that you have to adjust to on the course.”
Detry failed to repeat his first day’s efforts of 63 at Spyglass Hill, shooting a two-under-par 70 at Pebble Beach while Aberg hit a seven-under 65 to join the leading trio.
Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy’s woes continued as he shot a 74 to finish one-over-par, while England’s Matt Fitzpatrick is four strokes off the pace after a 68.
Fellow Englishman Justin Rose is five-under-par after a 71 while Tommy Fleetwood hit a 72 to be two strokes further back in tied 44th.
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