Lionel Messi spoke for the great and the good of world soccer, not to mention millions of grassroots fans, when he acclaimed Leicester City’s extraordinary Premier League triumph by tweeting: “The reason why we all love football. Congratulations”.

Darren Stamp insists Oulart-the-Ballagh only have themselves to blame for their latest Leinster senior club hurling final collapse.

A VEC has asked Education Minister Ruairí Quinn to remove a committee member who helped to expose a number of financial problems within the group.

Champions Cork survived a stern test from Clare before emerging victorious 0-14 to 0-11 after extra-time, in yesterday’s thrilling National Camogie League Division 1 semi-final in Kilmallock.

He described it as ‘nitpicking’ afterwards, but there was no mistaking how flabbergasted John Cleary was by David Gough’s allocation of one minute of injury-time in Limerick on Saturday.

IN DUBLIN to promote my book, the taxi drops me at a Georgian house-hotel next to the Dáil.

As Limerick won a first Munster senior hurling title since 1996 at the Gaelic Grounds on Sunday, one man with a grandstand view has a unique link to Limerick past and Limerick future.

It took a teenager who emerged from the dressing room vicinity long after this All-Ireland qualifier had ended to voice what most among the home support were thinking as soon as the final whistle pierced the sky.

A system to appoint the next Cork senior football manager is yet be put in place after the issue was not discussed at last night’s county board meeting in Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

Cobh Ramblers 5 Wexford Youths 0

Ezequiel Schelotto’s second-half equaliser salvaged a point for Inter last night in the Milan derby as AC had to settle for a 1-1 draw.

I don’t often agree with Pat Spillane but he was 100% right when he said yesterday’s TV games were hard to sit through.

It ended, as expected, with a Donegal victory, but almost everything that preceded the final whistle in Cavan yesterday afternoon deprived us of our preconceptions about James McCartan’s team.

Shamrock Rovers 7 Drogheda United 1

I retired two weeks ago from Semple Stadium. Even though you’re officially the groundsman, there’s a lot to do that doesn’t involve marking out the 65s or looking after the playing surface.

A planning application to transform the State’s largest toxic waste dump into vast public parkland as part of a €40m clean-up is due to be lodged within weeks.

A packed courtroom yesterday erupted into laughter after ‘Guantanamo Granny’ — 79-year-old anti-war activist Margaretta Darcy — blew a whistle and declared: “I am a whistleblower”.

The GAA will next month embark on a six-week blitz of the 32 counties to educate Gaelic football referees on the forthcoming black card rule.

Already battered and bruised from Sunday’s exertions in Toulouse, Connacht will be without Michael Swift for the return leg on Saturday in the Galway Sportsground.

Pat McEnaney is against the introduction of the black card in hurling but does see a use in having two referees.