Paddy Keenan was central to Louth winning this low-key Division 2 tie at Haggardstown yesterday.

Louth 0-12 Westmeath 1-6

It was freezing in Belfield last night and this Sigerson Cup first-round match did little to raise the mercury.

IAN SLOAN gets another chance to continue his remarkable development into a top-class international hockey star after he was named in the Irish squad for next week’s INSEP Five Nations in Paris.

IRELAND turned on the style to blitz Russia 4-0 and top their pool on goal difference from hosts France at the Champions Challenge II in Lille yesterday.

IRELAND’S tournament hoodoo against France almost resurfaced before Eugene Magee saved the day with the last touch of the match in a 2-2 Champions Challenge II draw in Lille yesterday.

Westmeath stumbled in the second half as Kildare overturned a half-time deficit to qualify for next Sunday's O'Byrne Cup final, while last year's runners-up Louth beat UCD in the other semi-final.

JOHN JERMYN has returned to the international fold ahead of Ireland’s series of friendlies against the Netherlands in Seville, but there is still no sign of his Cork C of I club-mate David Hobbs in the squad.

EIMEAR CREGAN admits she has had plenty of lucky breaks along the way as she stands on the cusp of becoming the most capped Irish hockey player of all time.

IRELAND senior men’s coach Paul Revington is hoping consistency of selection will help his side spring a major surprise when they get their World Cup qualification campaign underway in Argentina next month.

PEMBROKE WANDERERS captain Alan Giles has earned a surprise call-up to the Irish senior men’s squad for next month’s EuroHockey Nations Trophy in Wrexham.

THERE are dozens of intriguing sub-plots to be dissected as the Irish Hockey League’s (IHL) showpiece weekend gets underway tomorrow, but the question of who can stop the Pembroke Wanderers juggernaut is dominating the agenda.

MUNSTER stole an early march at the senior women’s hockey interprovincials, defeating Connacht 3-1 at Garryduff in Cork last night after Leinster and Ulster had blinked first earlier in the day.

AFTER a season which promised so much for Cork Harlequins, the club finished up with nothing to show from a year’s strenuous endeavour.

Music store and bookshop owner HMV today said price cuts and internet sales had helped it to improve performance.

Embattled music retailer HMV appointed a new chief executive today after securing the services of a former boss at retail chain Comet.

Music store and bookshop owner HMV became the latest retailer to count the cost of the World Cup as it reported plummeting sales today.

Music store and bookshop owner HMV reported plummeting sales today as it continued to struggle to compete with supermarkets and the internet.

UK book shop chain Ottakar’s agreed to a takeover by HMV today after conceding it faced a losing battle against supermarkets and online retailers.

Music and books retailer HMV was today reported to be an £800m (€1.2bn) takeover target of private equity firm Permira.

IT may not have been a merry Christmas for HMV but Argos and the Carphone Warehouse remained steady.

Soaring internet sales took their toll on Waterstone’s owner HMV today as more shoppers in the UK opted to buy Christmas presents online rather than on the high street.

HMV chief executive Alan Giles today said he was stepping down as the music and books store reported disappointing sales over Christmas.

Music and books retailer HMV was today looking to band Coldplay and schoolboy wizard Harry Potter to turn around a fall in like-for-like sales.

Music and books retailer HMV maintained a cautious outlook for UK consumer spending today despite a 6.4% hike in underlying sales at Christmas.

HMV tuned in to the craze for digital music today by rolling out plans for a new downloading service.

Music retailer HMV proved to be one of the high street’s best performing companies over Christmas after figures today showed a healthy rise in sales.

Music retailer HMV today praised the “excellent performance” of 21 new stores as its first year as a listed company resulted in a 20.6% leap in profits.

Music group HMV today said it saw strong trading over Christmas, with sales rises in both its music shops and its Waterstone’s bookshop chain.

HMV says it's planning to expand into Japan following its floatation on the stock market in July.

Tim Waterstone is in talks to buy back the bookshop chain he founded nearly 20 years ago