YEATS stands out among the 11 confirmations yesterday for Saturday’s Irish Field St Leger at the Curragh.

IT wasn’t pretty but Munster coach Declan Kidney was delighted after his side sneaked to the narrowest of Magners League wins over Border Reivers at Thomond Park on Saturday night.

THERE’S not a moment to lose. We cannot allow the college points system to die a natural death; we have to get out there and make sure we kill it stone dead. A stake through the heart, that’s what it needs.

GAA chiefs may revert to a pitch presentation of the Sam Maguire for the All-Ireland football final in two weeks after another pitch invasion by celebrating Kilkenny fans yesterday.

AS gracious in defeat as he is in victory, Cork manager John Allen had no qualms about the result of yesterday’s All-Ireland SHC final, a result that robbed his side of three in a row.

ONE word best explains it: pride. It was what made underdogs Kilkenny such a driven team going into yesterday’s excellent Guinness All-Ireland hurling final in Croke Park and ultimately inspired a memorable victory.

STEVE STAUNTON’S unwanted run of five matches without a victory finally came to an end with an expected triumph over a side with a reputation of being the worst in Europe.

SO where does the true Ireland lie after a clinical and superbly-drilled performance against an under-strength South Africa?

THE story of Munster’s march on Europe is familiar to us all. It has been captured through the medium of print, radio, television and most recently three specific books.

NEW ZEALAND coach Graham Henry expects a “beauty” of a match when his fearsome All Blacks team take on France in the first of two autumn Tests this at Stade Gerland, Lyon this evening (8pm).

CHARLTON boss Iain Dowie said it was “ridiculous” to see managers Alan Pardew and Arsene Wenger hit with an improper conduct charge following their touchline bust-up at Upton Park.

We put Michael Moynihan in a darkened room with a DVD player, two discs from the All-Ireland semi-finals and a mandate to come up with something different. Our experiment resulted in the following...

SWISSAIR is offering special fares from Dublin to a range of long-haul destinations (via Zurich). Bookings must be made before October 31, for travel to be completed by January 31.

ON a day when a born-again coalition renewed vows, it was only appropriate Bertie Ahern should spend some time in a maternity hospital.

ANY adult who ever fantasised about a magical remote control to silence unruly teenagers can now buy an ingenious device that scatters them to the winds.

ASTON VILLA manager Martin O’Neill insists it’s far too late for him to change his animated style in the dugout, despite Jose Mourinho’s quip that the former Celtic boss may be a candidate for a heart attack if he fails to calm down.

CHAMPIONSHIP strugglers Norwich have sacked manager Nigel Worthington following their humiliating 4-1 defeat at home to Burnley.

Cork City 6 Bray Wanderers 0

NEMO RANGERS advanced to the quarter-final of the Evening Echo Senior Football Championship by virtue of a 0-12 to 0-7 victory over arch rivals, St Finbarr’s, in what was at times an ill-tempered tie at Páirc Uí Rinn last evening.

HEARTS’ European hopes were hanging by a thread after losing 2-0 to Sparta Prague in their UEFA Cup first round, first-leg tie at Murrayfield.