2015 WAS YET another riveting year of sport but it is time to consign the last 12 months to the memory bank and start anew for 2016. What does this calendar year have in store of all of us passionate sports fans?
The42 decided to read the tea leaves and throw a few strands of grass into the wind in order to come up with eight sporting predictions that we feel certain will turn out to be true in the year ahead.
Ireland will make the last 16 of Euro 2016
The new 24-team format for the European Championships means that four of the six third place teams in each group will advance to the last 16 along with the 12 teams who finish in the top two.
Four points would give Ireland a good chance of getting out of the group and the defensive doggedness and ruthless taking of chances shown towards the end of the qualifying campaign bodes well for a knockout tournament.
Granted, the group of Belgium, Italy and Sweden is very tough but a win in our opening game against Zlatan’s boys would give Ireland a great chance.
We have to believe!
England to win the Six Nations Grand Slam
England have upgraded at head coach by bringing in Eddie Jones, have a good young core of players and the fixtures favour them (Ireland and Wales at home).
If Jones can get back to the attacking style that served England so well during last year’s tournament, there is no reason why they can’t complete their first clean sweep since 2003. A backline built around the Bath contingent of George Ford, Kyle Eastmond, Jonathan Joseph and Anthony Watson will give any team trouble.
Barcelona to win their second straight treble
This Barcelona team might not be their best ever side but strangely, they might be the hardest to beat. How is any defence possibly meant to contain the most potent three-headed attacking monster in club football history?
Messi, Suarez and Neymar made Pep Guardiola’s Rolls Royce of a Bayern Munich side look like a Sunday League team and worryingly for the rest of Europe, the Bavarians look to be the only obstacle in the way of Luis Enrique’s men completing ANOTHER treble.
Shane Lowry to do an Ian Poulter at the Ryder Cup
Doesn’t the Offalyman seem like the perfect character to thrive at a Ryder Cup? He has that perfect mix of golfing ability, bullishness and personality that seems to lend itself to the matchplay tournament. If you can put money down on a player to make the winning putt, why wouldn’t you back Lowry?
Jim McGuinness to be given a manager’s job in professional football
In the process of getting all the necessary coaching badges, it is surely only a matter of time before a football club turns their team over to the Donegal mastermind. Would he really do any worse than the job Ronny Delia is doing at the moment? ‘The System’ will be coming to a football ground near you* in 2016.
*You may need to watch on TV.
Ireland to have their most successful ever Olympics*
The most medals Ireland have ever won at a single games is five (a gold, a silver and three bronzes at Melbourne 1956 and London 2012) but the record is going to be broken in Rio. Boxers Katie Taylor, Michael Conlon, Paddy Barnes and Joe Ward could all step onto the podium while race walker Rob Heffernan could also come home with a medal. That would give Ireland a quintet of medals once more, so someone else will need to step up to ensure the nation enjoys its finest ever Olympics.
*Not counting Michelle Smith’s 1996 performance in Atlanta
Connacht to win the Pro12
What a story this would be. Pat Lam has gotten the westerners playing an exciting brand of rugby and the manner that they raided Thomond Park at the end of November showed that Connacht is the coming province in Ireland. If they ever want to win the league, this is their best chance with most of their rivals going through a season of transition.
Mayo will finally end their drought
The Mayo footballers got their wish with the ousting of Pat Holmes and Noel Connelly and new manager Stephen Rochford has surrounded himself with a very capable management team that should give Mayo a real edge this year.
Just like 2013, the draw is good for Mayo and were they to win their sixth Connacht title in-a-row they could potentially avoid Kerry and Dublin until an All-Ireland final. They were agonisingly close to claiming the Sam Maguire under similar circumstances in 2013 and this could be the year where Mayo finally banish their demons and collect the ultimate prize.
How’s Ian nagle getting on in Newcastle and is Tony Buckley still playing for sale, anyone no?
Hi Eamonn, Nagle hasn’t played for Newcastle’s senior team since joining. Not sure if he is carrying an injury, but there is some strong competition at lock there. Buckley is struggling to get into the Sale squad this season when fit, has played only four times off the bench in the Premiership, as well as a handful of appearances in the Amlin CC and LV= Cup.
Yeah hes injured.
Murray any chance you can start doing a roundup of ‘foreign Irish project players playing in Ireland’, it’s getting more and more difficult to keep up with them. Maybe you could include a countdown as to when their eligible.
Bring back Gareth Steenson to Connacht.He could really do a job for them and add cover for the World Cup squad.
What about Danny Barnes? How’s he getting on?
Charlie Mulchrone has signed for Worcester for next season.
Nice one Rory. I have added that into the piece now.
Why has Gareth Steenson not been called up to the Irish squad? He is far better than paddy Jackson and seems to be our second best 10 from a poor pool. He is also in the mould of ROG which would be a great asset off the bench to close out a game (I’m thinking of you NZ).
Steenson is a rubbish defender
“Matt Jarvis, the Irish-qualified former Connacht player, was at out-half for Nottingham, from where he kicked three penalties and three conversions. The 23-year-old spent two seasons with the western province, having previously represented Wales at U20 level.”
Wales’s second team is their U20s, meaning that because Matt Jarvis has played for them, he is not Irish qualified. Which is part of the reason why he didn’t stay in Connacht.
Was there not an appeal to the IRB about that which IRFU won?
Hi BallHandling, my understanding is that the IRB cleared Jarvis to play for Ireland following an appeal by the IRFU. Part of the issue was that he played for Wales U20 without having been informed that it could tie him down to them in the long-term.
Furthermore, his cap for Wales U20 came against France, who fielded an ‘A’ team in the Churchill Cup later that year. That meant that the U20 fixture hadn’t taken place between two sides who were designated as being their country’s second national team.
I may have that wrong, but that is my reasoning for tagging him as “Irish-qualified”, as you have quoted from the piece above.
You’re spot on Murray. …
I think you are correct Murray! Read that before a whole back.