THE World Cup isn’t just about winning – especially not for Ireland supporters who yesterday witnessed a just end to France’s tour de farce.

A SLIGO collapse or a Galway revival? Those are the two theories competing to explain the remarkable turnaround in Pearse Stadium last Sunday afternoon, when a 1-8 to 0-2 interval advantage for Sligo morphed into a 1-10 apiece draw at the final whistle.

IRISH fans of a bitter disposition may be pleased to learn Thierry Henry’s relationship with Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola looks to be disintegrating.

THE final whistle has been blown on one of the country’s best known travel agencies, Ray Treacy Travel, following the decision of its owner to retire from business.

DUBLIN referee Richie Winters was at the centre of controversy yesterday as the Turkey team walked off the pitch in protest for half an hour just a minute before the interval in yesterday’s Under-19 Four Nations tournament game against Holland at Bray’s Carlisle Grounds.

NATIONAL Referees Chairman, Mick Curley, has declared himself pleased with the opening round of National Football League fixtures, revealing “no adverse reaction” from the game’s top whistlers.

CHEATING. Disgusting. A tragedy.

AIB’s outgoing chief executive Eugene Sheehy has denied accusations that the bank had acted illegally in allowing its subsidiary, Goodbody Stockbrokers, to trade in its shares overseas before legislation was changed to formally allow it to do so.

THOUSANDS of Georgians took their campaign to oust Georgia’s President Mikheil Saakashvili to his office yesterday, the fifth day of protests against his rule.

THERE was no shortage of sympathy for American Dustin Johnson after he was penalised for grounding his club in a bunker to lose a spot in a play-off at the USPGA Championship.

FÁS has missed the opportunity to make a fresh start, according to Fine Gael, which claimed the new board of the troubled state training agency is “dominated by insiders”.

MONAGHAN had to settle for a draw at home to Laois in the top flight of the Bord Gáis Energy Ladies National Football League but a point was still good enough to send the Farney county to the top of the table.

NOEL MCGRATH ponders the first question, a query that’s not aired too often.

CROKE PARK stadium chief Peter McKenna is confident there will be no pitch invasion after tomorrow’s All-Ireland SHC final.

EYEWITNESSES yesterday spoke of their horror when an express train sliced through a double-decker tour bus in Hungary, killing at least 33 German tourists.

PEOPLE living in the villages and townlands where the five dead teenagers lived were yesterday praised for their “extraordinary community spirit”.

Rangers 1 CSKA Moscow 1 (CSKA Moscow win 3-2 on aggregate

CELTIC captain Neil Lennon will hope the Scottish Football Association’s disciplinary committee will take his previous good conduct into account when they examine his behaviour at Ibrox on Saturday.

A DOWNTURN in the economy will result in an increase in incidents of fraudulent activity, which could cost Irish businesses millions of euro.

SHE’S only 12 but already this young virtuoso has won her third national fiddle title.