Leinster show title credentials with superb win
Date published:
December 12 2020
Leinster displayed why they are one of the pre-tournament favourites following a dominant 35-14 victory over Montpellier at the GGL Stadium.
Their win erased the memory of the quarter-final defeat to Saracens at the end of last season and set them on the way for an assault on a fifth title.
The Irish province took their seven-match unbeaten record in the PRO14 into their latest European campaign and selected Irish stars Johnny Sexton and James Ryan on the bench. Sexton pulled out of the game at the last minute and was replaced by Harry Bryne, younger brother of starting number 10 Ross.
Need to isolate for COVID-19? Few know it, but Kansas has a free hotel room for you Lisa Gutierrez, The Kansas City Star
Dec. 13 The person wearing a hospital mask at the hotel s front desk could be a social worker.
To get to your room, you might have to unzip a plastic curtain blocking the hallway.
You cannot have guests, and under no circumstances can you come and go as you please.
But your room is free, courtesy of the state of Kansas and the federal government.
So is the room service, three times a day. And snacks. And laundry service. And just maybe someone might bring you that special comfort food you crave when you re sick.
2020-21 Champions Cup: The contenders, TV details, kick-off times and more Gerry Thornley explains the tournament’s new format on the eve of the first round
Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 18:00
Against the most disconcerting backdrop the sport has ever known, the Heineken Champions Cup is back with a new, one-off, complex format which is both shortened and expanded at the same time.
The first of four rounds kicks off this weekend, with the second next weekend followed by the last two in January. And that’s it for the group stages, with 24 teams whittled down to eight.
On the positive side, reverting to an expanded cast of 24, as opposed to 20 or even the oft-mooted 16, adds plenty of variety. There will be no match-ups between teams from the same leagues and two-legged, home and away quarter-finals should be very interesting as well as novel.