Being Ryder Cup captain means showing faith in your big gun and both 2014 skipper Paul McGinley and 2016 European boss Darren Clarke had sympathy for a struggling Rory McIlroy.

IT’S like picking your best GAA 15 – or your top football formation – it’s more a case of who to leave out rather than who to choose. So Charlie Mulqueen knew he was entering dangerous waters when it came to selecting the country’s 10 top links.

Norwegian Rune Naeri is back in Northern Ireland today to defend his title as the world’s oyster-eating champion.

The Belfast Coastguard has rescued two army canoeists from Murlough Bay in Co Down.

The skipper of a small fishing boat which sank off the Northern Ireland coast calmly swam ashore -then had a good hot bath before calling the emergency services and telling them what had happened, it emerged today.