We learned plenty at the Curragh last Sunday.

Lisburn’s Paula Grant staged a magnificent rally and defied gale force winds at Ballybunion yesterday to defeat Lisa Maguire (Slieve Russell) and capture the Irish Ladies Close Championship for the first time.

Mayo manager James Horan will have been encouraged to hear that county captain Andy Moran took another big step on his road to recovery last Saturday evening.

James Horan has made one change to the Mayo team that lost to Dublin last weekend for this weekend's clash with Down.

Aidan O’Brien has reported Camelot to be fully recovered from his colic scare, declaring that the triple Classic winner has developed physically during the off-season and will campaign primarily from eight to ten furlongs in 2013.

On a night when apprentice Conor Hoban took the riding honours with a double, the Jim Bolger-trained three-year-old Livia Galilei landed the Connacht Oaks in Sligo last night.

Former champion Pat Smullen was seen at his brilliant and determined best when getting odds-on favourite Ceol Rua home a narrow winner of the Ladies Day At Ballinrobe Maiden in Ballinrobe last night.

THE Mayo County Board should resign en masse or else the clubs in the county should remove them.

WHILE Mayo manager James Horan spent yesterday sweating over the fitness of his players, the Mayo club championship threw up a couple of big surprises.

PAT SMULLEN, who rides the course really well, is a significant booking for Giant’s Quest in the Paddy Smyth Memorial Maiden at Ballinobe tonight and the five-year-old gets the nap.

MAYO captain Alan Dillon racked up 1-11 for Ballintubber as the reigning Mayo senior club football champions got the defence of their title off to a flying start.

Mayo 1-13 Down 3-07

ANDREW McNamara doubled-up on Equation and her former stable-companion Fearnwood Girl in last night’s maiden hurdle action in Sligo.

IAN TIMMS, a former three- time national amateur champion, will headline the card at cruiserweight when professional boxing returns to Castlebar on May 23.

JOHN O’MAHONY has given championship debuts to three players for tomorrow’s clash at Gaelic Park.

Mayo manager John O’Mahony has named three championship newcomers in his team for Sunday's clash with New York in the US.

The final of the inaugural All-Ireland AA Insurance Ladies Championships gets underway at Headfort Golf Club this Wednesday.

THREE people were helped after the family of a 25-year-old man killed in a traffic accident donated his organs for transplant operations, an inquest was told yesterday.

The following are the Munster and Connacht Junior 15s to play in Kinsale on Saturday at 3pm.

RUBY WALSH, who has spent a lot of the week on the ground, suffering several falls, left it all behind when guiding Euro Leader to success in the featured Denny Gold Medal Handicap Chase at Tralee yesterday.

August 9, 2005

The Scorecard, July 12

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND U-15 manager Vincent Butler has named his squad ahead of next week’s internationals against the Netherlands.

JOHN CROWLEY is poised for a return to the Kerry starting line-up for Sunday’s All-Ireland football final against Mayo.

AS the exciting build-up to the All-Ireland football decider continues, Mayo received a great boost yesterday when Ballinrobe accounted for Tralee in the All-Ireland final of the Bulmers-sponsored Pierce Purcell Shield at Shannon.