the judge said: "This drug culture relies on people like you to carry out certain roles. Without people like you it does not work."

Fiann Ó Nualláin reflects on the customs and celebrations associated with Saint Brigid's Day.

Never-say-die Dromid Pearses ended St Mary’s dominance of the South Kerry senior football championship with victory, after extra-time, in Saturday's replayed final.

The Limerick man has been hailed as one of the outstanding referees of his generation.

Ultimately, it was St Michael’s more polished forward division that earned the Blackrock club its first Cork U21 ‘A’ football title since 1976 in Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

St Senan’s retained their North Kerry SFC title, thanks to two final quarter goals. Brosna were attempting to win their first North Kerry senior title but the more experienced side won after a well contested final at a packed Ballylongford on Sunday.

It took hot favourites Templenoe a while to get to grips with St Breckan’s in the Munster club IFC final at Mallow but they survived the test, making a strong push for the finish line.

Playing Santa carries with it a responsibility like no other. Get it right, and you become an icon. Get it wrong, and you run the risk of ruining Christmas says Chris Wasser.

St Michael’s progressed to a third straight Cork Premier IFC final, and a fourth in five years as a one-sided first half put them firmly in control of this semi-final replay against Kanturk at Páirc Uí Rinn yesterday.

St Brendan’s, backboned by Kerry stars Jack Barry and Diarmuid O’Connor, hammered Shannon Rangers in this Kerry SFC R3 mismatch in Tralee on Saturday night.

Last weekend St James’ collected the Carbery junior football championship title, edging out Ballinascarthy in a closely-fought final at Timoleague.

Jermain Defoe capped an impressive second-half performance from Rangers with two late goals as Steven Gerrard’s side coasted to a 4-0 victory over St Johnstone at McDiarmid Park.

Borna Barisic's second-half free-kick gave Rangers a 1-0 Ladbrokes Premiership win over St Mirren in Paisley.

With a quiet and lofty setting, you can truly hit the heights at Marianville, writes Tommy Barker.

Teenager Glen McAuley was sprung from the bench to score his first goal for St Patrick’s Athletic, who had to come behind to put First Division Bray Wanderers out of the FAI Cup at Richmond Park last night.

Kerry minor manager James Costello has made one change to his team for tomorrow's Munster MFC Phase 2 round-robin game against Clare at Austin Stack Park (7pm).

St Patrick's Athletic have breathed new life into their European ambitions.

St Finbarr’s held out for a hard-earned win over Douglas in a drab first round IHC clash at Páirc Uí Rinn today.

Éamonn Fitzmaurice said the parents of a boy who suffered alleged racist chants in a football match were "quite unsettled" by it and that his school wants to take a "strong stand" against it.

Ballyhale Shamrocks are AIB All-Ireland club SHC winners for a record seventh time after a power-packed Croke Park display proved far too much for an overwhelmed St Thomas'.

Pope Francis has said fear of migration is "making us crazy" as he began a trip to Central America amid a standoff over President Donald Trump's promised wall at the US-Mexico border and a new caravan of migrants heading north.

Sixty minutes plus injury-time, 20 minutes of extra-time, another 10 minutes of "extra" extra-time, and still these brave teams couldn't be separated as they put everything they had into trying to earn a place in this year's Harty Cup semi-final.

Now that the knockout phase of the 2018/19 edition of the Harty Cup has arrived, a familiar question is again posed: Is this the year a Cork school ends the county’s longest-running Harty famine?

St Colman’s College finished top of Group A in the Dr Harty Cup at Kilmallock yesterday completing three wins out of three and qualification for the quarter-final stage. However, it brought an end to the reign of champions Ardscoil Rís, with Nenagh CBS taking second place.

Alys Tomlinson’s pictures of local devotion to St Gobnait in Baile Mhúirne, Co Cork, helped her win the World Photographer of the Year prize, writes Pet O’Connell

The 98-year-old, who’s been living in Chicago for 70 years, was at Croke Park in 1936 when his beloved home county beat Kilkenny in the All-Ireland SHC final.

In a society where the idea of the sacredness of life, even in its earliest moments, is such a red-button issue, it should not be necessary to wonder why so many groups of vulnerable people are treated as if their life is of less value than others.

We love to anthropomorphise the landscape — that is, to give human definition to an inanimate object.

St Ronan’s history-making season continued at Abbottstown when they upset the odds against Pobalscoil Chorca Dhuibhne to reach a first-ever Hogan Cup Final.

St Ronan’s, Lurgan 1-9 St Mary’s, Magherafelt 1-7

Take the test and see

St Munchins 15, CBC 10: A magnificent try after a dazzling 45 metre run by out-half Alexander Wood, a son of former Ireland captain Keith, proved the match winner for St Munchins when they defeated the holders CBC in an outstanding final at Thomond Park this afternoon.

Christian Brothers College are through to the semi-finals of the Clayton Hotels Munster Schools Senior Cup after victory over a brave St Clement’s side at Temple Hill yesterday.

When farmer Joe O’Connell first saw a piece of land in Kilkenny 12 years ago, he knew it was special.

Jen Hogan looks at how we can help our children engage in the true meaning of Christmas by helping others and focusing on presence, not presents.

Knocknagree advanced to a Munster Club JFC final with Dromid Pearses yesterday after defeating Waterford’s Sliabh gCua St Mary’s in impressive fashion at Mallow.

A woman fled from her home with her young daughter when her Slovakian housemate came home and threatened to kill them and burn down the house.

Mallow hurlers suffered heartbreak in the Cork Premier IHC final, but there was joy for their supporters yesterday as their footballers showed tremendous character to be crowned Premier IFC champions at the newly revamped Páirc Uí Chaoimh. 

It would have been a “travesty” had Alan O’Connor finished his Cork football career without an All-Ireland medal, according to former manager Conor Counihan.

Curragh-based Japanese trainer Takashi Kodama described the outcome as “unbelievable” after saddling 25/1 shot Elusive Time to win the €100,000 Tote Irish Cambridgeshire at the Curragh yesterday.

Junior jobs minister John Halligan wants tax breaks for middle-income workers on salaries up to €80,000, writes Juno McEnroe.

Gardaí are hunting for three suspected arsonists after fire gutted a derelict listed former asylum in Cork city.

John the Baptist CS, Hospital (Limerick) 2-6