Irish News in Sport Blog 

GAA 

Leinster Hurling Championship 

St Martin’s stunned favourites Ballyhale Shamrocks at Croke Park to claim a historic first Leinster club SHC title, with Ben Stafford landing the winner in the final seconds. Henry Shefflin’s side, unbeaten in the province since 2012, had raced 1-04 ahead inside nine minutes, but St Martin’s battled back through Jack and Rory O’Connor, finishing with a combined 0-17. The Wexford champions overturned the early deficit to lead at half-time and, despite Shamrocks surging again with a second-half goal from Niall Shortall, the game remained level eight times in a tense closing spell. Stafford’s late winner sealed a famous victory for Daithí Hayes’ side, who now march on to face Ballygunner in the All-Ireland semi-final. 

Leinster Football Championship 

Ballyboden St Enda’s powered to their third Leinster club SFC title with a dominant second-half display at Croke Park, overwhelming Athy 2-18 to 1-09 to extend Dublin’s provincial supremacy. Holding a three-point half-time lead after Ryan Basquel’s goal, Ballyboden blew the game open with a second half surge, outscoring Athy 1-09 to 0-01 in the third quarter. The Dublin champions now move on to the All-Ireland semi-final, extending their flawless Leinster record and the capital’s continued dominance in the province. 

Munster Football Championship 

Dingle claimed their first-ever Munster Senior Club Championship with a dramatic comeback win over St Finbarr’s at Semple Stadium, sealed by a last-ditch two-point free from Conor Geaney. Trailing by seven early in the second half and down 0-14 to 1-06 at the break despite Paul Geaney’s first-half goal, the Kerry champions saw the game slipping away from them, largely due to the personal performance from Steven Sherlock who scored 0-16 in total. Inspired by Dylan and Conor Geaney and a crucial point from Tom O’Sullivan, Dingle chipped away at the deficit before levelling in added time. With St Finbarr’s unable to find an insurance score, Conor Geaney held his nerve from distance to snatch a 1-18 to 0-20 victory, capping a remarkable year for the club and sending them into an All-Ireland semi-final against Ballyboden St Enda’s. 

NFL 

Charlie Smyth enjoyed another impressive outing in his second consecutive start for the New Orleans Saints, helping them to a 24-20 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC South. After making headlines the previous week with a successful onside kick and a 56-yard field goal against the Miami Dolphins, the Mayobridge native continued to build his case as the Saints’ long-term kicking option. Though he pushed a 48-yard attempt wide in the second quarter, Smyth responded well, converting a 30-yard field goal to level the game at 17-17 entering the final quarter and finishing a perfect three-from-three on extra points. 

Rugby  

Ireland have been drawn in Pool D for the 2027 Rugby World Cup alongside Scotland, Uruguay and Portugal, marking the third straight tournament they’ll meet the Scots. Topping the pool would give Andy Farrell’s side a more favourable knockout path, potentially facing a third-place team in the Round of 16 and avoiding South Africa and New Zealand, while finishing second would likely mean a tough early clash with France. 

Golf  

Rory McIlroy booked his place for the weekend at the Australian Open after a late surge turned his second round around. Sitting on the cut line after a bogey on the 14th, the world number two responded with three birdies over his final four holes to card a 68 and move to two under for the tournament. Now tied for 28th, McIlroy heads into the weekend seven shots behind co-leaders Daniel Rodrigues and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen. 

Motorsport

Alex Dunne has been named the Irish International Driver of the Year, receiving the Manley Memorial Trophy at the 2025 Motorsport Ireland Champions of Irish Motorsport Awards. The Offaly native has enjoyed a standout rookie season in Formula 2 with Rodin Motorsport, sitting fifth in the standings with two wins and eight podiums, alongside Formula 1 free-practice outings with McLaren in Austria and Italy. Dunne is also reportedly in talks with Alpine about joining their driver development programme and is set to remain with Rodin for a second F2 campaign. 

The Sexton Trophy for the 2025 Young Racing Driver of the Year was awarded to Derry’s Fionn McLaughlin. A Red Bull Junior driver, McLaughlin capped his season by winning the British Formula 4 Championship and now looks ahead to a potential step up to Formula 3. As part of the award, he will receive €42,500 in support funding from Motorsport Ireland and Sport Ireland. 

Swimming 

Daniel Wiffen secured gold in the men’s 1500m freestyle at the European Short Course Championships in Poland, outlasting Hungary’s Zalan Sarkany with a powerful late surge to win in 14:13.96. The Armagh swimmer admitted the race was an emotional battle, saying he nearly counted himself out at the halfway mark before finding the mental resolve to close the gap and dominate the final lengths. The victory marked his first successful title defence after losing his 400m crown earlier in the week, and he now targets retaining his remaining distance title. Ireland celebrated further success as Evan Bailey claimed joint bronze in the 200m freestyle, breaking the Irish record for the third time in as many days with a 1:41.48 finish. The Wexford swimmer shared the podium with Poland’s Kamil Sieradzki, describing his breakthrough senior medal as “an incredible feeling” after a thrilling blanket finish. 

Ellen Walshe capped a landmark week for Irish swimming at the European Short Course Championships in Poland, becoming the first Irishwoman to win a European short-course title with gold in the 200m butterfly, just a day after taking silver in the 200m individual medley. Producing a stunning late surge from fifth place, she powered past Denmark’s Helena Rosendahl Bach and Italy’s Anita Gastaldi to touch first, contributing to Ireland’s impressive seven-medal haul in Lublin. Walshe, who entered all three of her events as top seed, said her growing confidence helped her deliver on the big stage, though a packed schedule saw her fade to seventh in the 400m IM final just 45 minutes after her victory. With the LA 2028 Olympics firmly in her sights, the 24-year-old now sees this breakthrough as a crucial step on her path to even greater international success.