26 METROSPORT Friday, September 18, 2009 D SPORT Digest Message: McCaw All Blacks tired of poor displays RUGBY: The radical shake-up of New Zealands starting line-up for tomorrows Tri-Nations match against Australia emphasises that poor performances can no longer be tolerated, captain Richie McCaw said. Last Saturdays 32-29 defeat by South Africa in Hamilton not only assured the world champion Springboks of a first Tri-Nations title since 2004 but appeared to finally break the resolve of New Zealands coaching staff. All Blacks coach Graham Henry wielded the axe when he dropped five players and made two positional changes for the battle for the wooden spoon at the Westpac Stadium. It sends a good message that if the team doesnt perform there are consequences, McCaw said. That is what has happened this week. I guess this year injuries and stuff have made it a little bit harder to do that but it has got to the point where that has obviously changed. Birdie rush gives Benn Vienna lead GOLF: Englands Benn Barham carded a superb 63 to take a one-shot lead after the first round at the Austrian Open. The 33-year-old equalled the lowest round of his career as he holed seven birdies and a stunning eagle two on the 423-yard 13th at the Fontana Golf Club in Vienna. Barham was clear of Scotlands Scott Drummond and Australian Brett Rumford on seven-under. Ive been playing well the last four or five weeks, so this is not a freak round, Barham said. Gary Murphy, currently 153rd in the Race to Dubai and battling to retain his playing rights for 2010, was best of the Irish after a three-under 68. Damien McGrane was even par. England are left feeling the Paine ENGLANd captain Andrew Strauss bemoaned another horror show after his side slumped to their sixth successive defeat in the NatWest Series last night. The hosts went down by 111 runs at Trent Bridge after being bowled out for 185 by Australia. Opener Tim Paine earlier scored a masterful 111 as the tourists set an imposing target of 297. Strauss said: It was a bit of a horror show with the bat. We were never in the chase and it is another very disappointing day for us, no doubt. We can sit down and talk about what went wrong today but ultimately it is about people getting up there, showing some character and delivering. We havent done that in this series and we have got one more chance. GAA ALL-IRELAnD SFC FInAL Tom oSullivan has told his Kerry team-mates to produce the performance of their lives or they will lose the all-ireland final to Cork. many pundits pointed to Kerrys display in the quarter-final win over Dublin as near perfect. But experienced defender oSullivan says the truth is that Dublin were way off the mark and the easy win flattered Kerry. The Rathmore man believes the biggest test of the season was always going to be Cork at Croke Park and claims they will have to produce their best display yet. Well have to raise it or theyll beat us, simple as that, said oSullivan. We have to play above anything weve done all season and i hope every Kerry player knows that. i presume Cork will go into the final as favourites. They have thundered through the Championship whereas Kerry have only limped through it really. oSullivan said the 17-point win over Dublin was Kerrys only decent display of the campaign. Compare that to Corks excellent performances in munster and against Donegal and Tyrone at Croke Park to reach the final and his concern is understandable. a lot of people say we peaked for the Dublin game and were on the downward spiral now, said oSullivan, a four-times final winner. To be honest, were not fully sure where we stand coming in to face Cork. in fairness, its all down to the mental side of things at this stage. if the players go into the game in the right frame of mind i think were in with a good shout. OSullivan demands Kerrys best Underdogs: OSullivan Rebels have the heart for final, says GouldingBy pAUL kEAnE no nerves: Goulding and Cork wont be overawed Picture: Sportsfile History, tradition and just about every stat you can find is stacked against All-ireland finalist Cork but Daniel Goulding remains confident of sam Maguire success. Cork have never beaten Kerry at Croke Park, a record that stretches back six games to 2002. the one and only time the sides met in a final, two years ago in 2007, the rebels were hammered by ten points. Perhaps the most alarming thought is that Billy Morgan, Corks manager in 2007, admitted earlier this week that an unexpected bout of nerves un- did Cork that day. so can Cork truly leave the past in the past, overcome their performance anxiety against Kerry at Croke Park and win a first All-ireland since 1990? yes, according to corner-forward Goulding. i dont think we dread playing Kerry at Croke Park, not at all, he insisted. if youre going to win anAll-ireland youve got to beat the best teams re- gardless of if theyre from across the border or from a different province. Kerry are always a tough team to play and were under no illusions about what theyve done over the past five or six years. But were ready to have a go. reflecting on the 2007 final Morgan said that, much like this season, eve- rything was going perfect for Cork only for an undetected bout of nerves to ruin them. it raises the prospect of another Croker collapse on sunday. i think if you dont feel nervous be- fore a game theres probably some- thing wrong with you, said Goulding. you see the Kilkenny fellas talking about getting nervous before games and some of them have seven All-ire- lands so i think its only human. the big thing is not to get dragged down by it. Goulding has been one of the star performers for Cork this season with 2-16. Weve got to take whatever chances come our way, if its a point or a goal, weve got to take them all and hope its enough at the final whis- tle, said Goulding. soccer leAGue of irelAnd Shelley insists Bohs are in control BriAn sHelley insists there is no panic in the Bohemians camp as they strive to end a four-match streak without a win. Bohs, last seasons double winners, have seen their lead at the top of the table reduced to just one point after successive league defeats, while their grip on the FAi Cup ended midweek with their quarter-final replay defeat at sligo. i dont think the performances have been that bad, but we probably havent played consistently well for 90 minutes where we switched off in spots, like on tuesday, we conceded two poor enough goals, said 27-year- old defender shelley, who yesterday was named Augusts sWAi Player of the Month. i dont think there is any cause to panic. As champions, youre there to be taken down. But were there to rise to the challenge and hopefully things kick on now. With second-placed shamrock rovers not playing until tomorrow, Bohs can go four points clear if they get back to winning ways at home to Dundalk tonight. Were still in a good position, once we dont get too down about the last couple of weeks, added shelley. i think if we were offered where we are now at the start of the season, wed have taken it. its a tight league and its still in our hands were top of the league and weve got the eA sports Cup final next week. Weve got to kick on because there is still a lot of football to be played. experts view MICkEy hARTE Verdict: (Tyrone manager) CORk Having managed Tyrone in several All-Ireland finals you realise there are 100 different scenarios that could play out on the day. But you can only go on what youve seen to date and on that basis Im going for Cork, the form team, to win. Cork just need to produce one more big performance and the evidence would suggest they can do that. Kerry rediscovered their season a little bit after the qualifiers but it wasnt a high-class performance against Meath and that leaves a question mark over their ability to go the whole way. The form says Cork but because its Kerry theyre playing it narrows the odds significantly. FInIAn hAnLEy Verdict: (Galway full-back) kERRy Cork are extremely fit, the fittest team thats been seen in Championship football for a long time. I know everyone is saying that but if you watch them for 70 minutes its unbelievable how fit and strong and prepared they are. Theyll give plenty of it to Kerry but Kerry will do likewise and Im going to go for Kerry to win it. The word in Kerry is that this is the one they want to win. They certainly dont want to be beaten by Cork in an All-Ireland final. It would be the same if it was ourselves and Mayo or dublin against Meath. LEIGhTOn GLynn Verdict: (Wicklow captain) kERRy I fancy Kerry. Cork are the form team and you cant disagree with that but Kerry have the forwards to take Cork apart. Its very rare that Kerry are beaten in All-Irelands and Id be very surprised if it happens two years in a row. I think its going to be a good open game with lots of running up the field from both teams. Cork are very mobile and Kerry play good open football so Id be expecting a high scoring, exciting game. I just think that bar the dublin game Kerry have been holding back their best form all summer and I expect them to deliver against Cork. index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html24.html25.html26.html27.html