Celtic and the Promised Land

Victor Wanyama head's the opening goal for Celtic against Barcelona

Back in 2005 the year before my leaving certificate I had quite a time comsuming obsession, basically qualifying Irish clubs like Bohemian's or Cork City FC to the Champions League Group Stages on to the knock out stages and ultimately towards winning the tournament via the famous Football Manager portal.

Irish Rugby's Latest Foreign Legion

Rugby supporters this writer included have often privately sneered at the lack of impact football at grass roots level has on the fortunes of the Irish national football team.

A Solution for European Club Rugby

English and French clubs displeasure with the current qualification format for the Heineken Cup is perfectly understandable that's my honest point of view.

Golf: What does a Ryder Cup win really mean for European golf

Martin Kaymer's nerveless putt to retain the Ryder Cup may have quietened forty odd thousand rowdy American golf fans as well as lifting the spirits of his European teammates and inspirational captain Jose Maria Olazabal but another Ryder cup victory for Europe looks unlikely to improve the lot of professional golf in Europe.

Rankins International Retirement

Boyd Rankin bowling at the recent T20 qualifiers in March

Imagine if Shane Long in order to secure a new contract with West Brom was required to retire from international football or Tommy Bowe when considering a new contract offer with the Ospreys was encouraged to concentrate solely on club rugby going forward.

Liverpools Ex-Striker Dilemma

With the release of both Andy Carroll and Nathan Ecclestone and the most disappointing start to a season in fifty years it has become apparent that Liverpool will need at least one extra forward primarily as a bench player who can offer some impact from the bench.

Donegal mall Cork

Paul Kerrigan concedes a free against Donegal

In my analysis prior to the game I felt Cork could possibly match Donegal for physical conditioning and point scoring ability and win this game by a whisker, I could not have been more wrong.

Preview :Cork vs Donegal

Both Cork and Donegal impressed me in different ways in their respective All-Ireland quarter finals making this weekend semi final a fascinating encounter for the neutrals.

Irish Sports Agents Making Positive Inroads

Conor Ridge and Ross Fisher

The word agent has from time to time been seen as a dirty word in sport. Whether that's because of the presumed greed of premiership footballer's representatives when seeking their cut from a transfer or worse still stealing money directly from their clients.

Irish Cricket: Will The Next Eoin Morgan Switch

Eoin Morgan at the crease for Ireland

6 years ago when Ed Joyce decided playing for England would serve his cricketing ambitions best I believe he was correct.

Football :Olympic Mens

The Argentinean team celebrate victory in Beijing

Olympic football while still the beautiful game is a world away from regular FIFA organised international competitions. London 2012 is no different with the teams qualified a mix of lesser lights in name at least like the United Arab Emirates, New Zealand and Belarus as well as perceived world superpowers such as Spain and Brazil.

Olympic Gymnastics :Kieran Behan

Irish gymnast Kieran Behan

The olympics despite the claims of events like the rugby and football world cup is the purest and most exciting event in world sport. I say this because of the number of countries able to compete in one event or another and the lack of a role money plays in the lives of most participants.

Football : Why Arsenal are right to offer Van Persie no more

Football is a game built on emotions at the best of times. Understandably the view of the majority of Arsenal fans is that the club should have done more and still should do more to keep hold of Robin Van Persie.

GAA: Best in the World

David Fitzgerald and John Conlon embrace after the final whistle

It frequently crosses my mind in April and May that the English Premiership is heading for the off season and that I'll be missing my regular dose of live sport for about three months. It s not something I'm proud of but for all the other sporting pursuits I enjoy the premiership still tends to be my stable diet when it comes to watching live sport.

Cricket Ireland : Could a tour of Australia and New Zealand work

Will Porterfield and Michael Clarke 'You can stand under my  Umbrella'

Being a fan of the Irish cricket team can be a tough gig at times. In saying this I'm not referring to the teams performances. As much as they suffer highs and lows like most teams its the weather in Ireland thats grinding my gear.