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Against The Head
''Against the Head'' is a weekly rugby magazine programme, broadcast on RTÉ Two and presented by Joanne Cantwell with regular panellists Shane Byrne, and Irish Times rugby correspondent Gerry Thornley with various other guests throughout the series. The programme goes out on a Monday night usually running for thirty minutes and has been broadcast since 2003. It was previously presented by Con Murphy until 2008. The programme brings viewers a mix of interviews, highlights and reviews, as well as discussion on the burning issues in Irish rugby. The series runs for the busiest period of the rugby season usually from February to May, and takes in the RBS 6 Nations Championship, Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Investec Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ... and AIB League and Cup, and brings ...
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Joanne Cantwell
Joanne Cantwell (born 30 September 1979) is an Irish sports presenter. Personal life Cantwell was raised in Dublin, one of five daughters. She studied journalism at Dublin City University. Cantwell is married with two daughters and lives in Ongar, County Dublin. Sporting career Cantwell participated in a number of competitive sports from her early teens. She played ladies' Gaelic football for the Dublin county team, and was part of the team that won Dublin's first-ever senior Leinster Ladies Senior Football Championship (Incorrect). She was named Young Dublin Player of the Year in 1997 and was an All-Star nominee in 1998. Journalism career Cantwell began her journalism career while still in university, covering weekend sport on radio station FM104. In 2001, she joined the independent Irish channel TV3, where she produced news bulletins and presented the ''Sports Tonight'' show. She then joined state broadcaster RTÉ. Cantwell is the presenter of weekly rugby magazine progr ...
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RTÉ Two
(; ; RTÉThe É in RTÉ is pronounced as an English E () and not an Irish É ()) is an Republic of Ireland, Irish Public broadcasting, public service broadcaster. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, television, RTÉ Radio, radio and RTÉ.ie, online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on 31 December 1961, making it one of the oldest continuously operating public service broadcasters in the world. It is headquartered in Donnybrook, Dublin, Donnybrook in Dublin, with offices across different parts of Ireland. RTÉ is a statutory body, overseen by a RTÉ Board, board appointed by the Government of Ireland, with general management in the hands of a committee of senior managers, currently an RTÉ Executive Board, interim leadership team, headed by the Director General. RTÉ is regulated by Coimisiún na Meán. It is financed by the Television licensing in the Republic of Ireland, television licence fee and ...
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Rugby Union
Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in England in the first half of the 19th century. Rugby is based on running with the ball in hand. In its most common form, a game is played between two teams of 15 players each, using an Rugby ball, oval-shaped ball on a rectangular field called a pitch. The field has H-shaped Goal (sports)#Structure, goalposts at both ends. Rugby union is a popular sport around the world, played by people regardless of gender, age or size. In 2023, there were more than 10 million people playing worldwide, of whom 8.4 million were registered players. World Rugby, previously called the International Rugby Football Board (IRFB) and the International Rugby Board (IRB), has been the governing body for rugby union since 1886, a ...
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Shane Byrne (rugby Union)
James Shane Byrne (born 18 July 1971) is a former Irish rugby union hooker. He is nicknamed 'Munch' or 'Mullet' (a reference to his hair style). A native of Aughrim, County Wicklow, Byrne played Gaelic football up to under-16 level with the local Aughrim club. He attended Blackrock College in Dublin. Career He plied his trade for many years at Leinster. His international career started comparatively late and did not blossom until the retirement of Keith Wood. When he eventually got his chance in a World Cup qualifier in Romania in 2001 he took it and thereafter became a fixture in the national side where he won 41 caps between 2001 and 2005, scoring three tries. In February 2003 Byrne played his 100th game for Leinster. In 2005 he was selected for the British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand and played in the first and third tests. Byrne has scored a total of three tries for his country, scoring two of those in one match against Wales during the 2004 Six Nations series. ...
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The Irish Times
''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading newspaper. It is considered a newspaper of record for Ireland. Though formed as a Protestant Irish nationalist paper, within two decades and under new owners, it became a supporter of unionism in Ireland. In the 21st century, it presents itself politically as "liberal and progressive", as well as being centre-right on economic issues. The editorship of the newspaper from 1859 until 1986 was controlled by the Anglo-Irish Protestant minority, only gaining its first nominal Irish Catholic editor 127 years into its existence. The paper's notable columnists have included writer and arts commentator Fintan O'Toole and satirist Miriam Lord. The late Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald was once a columnist. Michael O'Regan was the Leinster Ho ...
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Con Murphy (RTÉ)
Conleth 'Con' Murphy (born 30 January 1966) is an Irish freelance radio and television presenter, working mainly on sports programming. Until recently he presented '' Monday Night Soccer'' on RTÉ Two, the League of Ireland highlights show which also includes highlights of Republic of Ireland soccer matches. He also co-presented '' Crimecall'' with Anne Cassin. On radio, he co-presented ''Sunday Sport'' on RTÉ Radio 1, with Jacqui Hurley. He left RTÉ in 2012. Career Murphy worked as one of the main sports presenters with RTÉ from 1992 until 2012. In that time he anchored RTÉ Radio's coverage of the Summer Olympics Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 Beijing 2008, and London 2012. He has presented football, golf, rugby, hockey, basketball, athletics, and horse racing on RTÉ Television. He presented international football on RTÉ radio for 17 years until 2012 and reported from the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan and South Korea, plus he was part of RTÉ Radio's award-winn ...
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Six Nations Championship
The Six Nations Championship (known as the Six Nations, branded as Guinness M6N) is an annual international rugby union competition by the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. It is the oldest sports tournament contested by the Home Nations. The championship holders are France, who won the 2025 tournament. The tournament is organised by the unions of the six participating nations under the banner of Six Nations Rugby, which is responsible for the promotion and operation of the men's, women's and under-20s tournaments, and the Autumn International Series, as well as the negotiation and management of their centralised commercial rights. The Six Nations is the successor to the Home Nations Championship (1883–1909 and 1932–39), played by teams from England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, which was the first international rugby union tournament.Godwin (1984), pg 1. Though only matches involving Ireland could properly be considered international, an ...
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Heineken Cup
The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Investec Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a predominantly European league. Clubs qualify for the Champions Cup via their final positions in their respective national/regional leagues (Premiership Rugby, English Premiership, French Top 14, and United Rugby Championship) or via winning the second-tier European Rugby Challenge Cup, Challenge Cup; those that do not qualify are instead eligible to compete in the second-tier Challenge Cup. Between 1995 and 2014, the equivalent competition was known as the Heineken Cup and was run by European Rugby Cup. Following #Disagreements over structure & governance, disagreements between its shareholders over the structure and governance of the competition, it was taken over by EPCR and its name was changed to the European Rugby Champions Cup, without ...
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All-Ireland League (rugby Union)
The All-Ireland League (AIL), known for sponsorship reasons as the Energia All-Ireland League, is the national league system for the 50 senior rugby union clubs in Ireland, covering both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The league was inaugurated in the 1990–91 season. Cork Constitution F.C are the only club to have constantly retained their status in Division 1 since 1990/91. All other clubs in the league have experienced relegation. The league is the second highest level of rugby union in Ireland, as professional teams representing the four provinces of Ireland play in the United Rugby Championship. Division 1 sides may field no more than two professional players in their matchday sides, and only one may be a forward. Division 2 sides may not field professional players. Foreign professional players may not play in the League. Cork Constitution, the inaugural winners, are the only club to have retained top division status since the inception of the league. Fo ...
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Irish Sports Television Series
Irish commonly refers to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the island and the sovereign state *** Erse (other), Scots language name for the Irish language or Irish people ** Republic of Ireland, a sovereign state ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland * Irish language, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family spoken in Ireland * Irish English, set of dialects of the English language native to Ireland * Irish people, people of Irish ethnicity Irish may also refer to: Places * Irish Creek (Kansas), a stream in Kansas * Irish Creek (South Dakota), a stream in South Dakota * Irish Lake, Watonwan County, Minnesota * Irish Sea, the body of water which separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain People * Irish (surname), a list of people * William Irish, pse ...
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RTÉ Sport
RTÉ Sport is a department of Irish public broadcaster RTÉ. The department provides sporting coverage through a number of platforms including RTÉ Radio, RTÉ Television, RTÉ.ie, RTÉ Player, RTÉ Player Sport and RTÉ.ie, RTÉ Mobile. RTÉ holds the television and radio broadcasting rights in the Republic of Ireland to several sports, broadcasting the sport live or alongside flagship analysis programmes such as ''The Sunday Game'', ''Thank GAA It's Friday'', ''Soccer Republic'' and ''RTÉ Racing'' on RTÉ Television, and ''Game On'', ''Saturday Sport'', and ''Sunday Sport'' on RTÉ Radio. Traditionally RTÉ Sport faced competition from British-based broadcasters such as the BBC and ITV (TV network), ITV, which have always been present in Ireland; however, these broadcasters were primarily concerned with the British public and market. Domestically, RTÉ had no competition until the late 1990s due to lack of competition in the Irish market. In later years, however, a growth of ...
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