Ireland's Tommy O'Brien celebrates a try with Jack Crowley during the Six Nations win over Scotland. The state of Irish rugby – and the sport itself – is on an upward curve after an enormously entertaining Six Nations. It was a risky move, to use so many untested players, but the pay-off could be seen Down Under in 2027. Arguably Ireland’s strongest area, what with Tadhg Beirne, Joe McCarthy and James Ryan impressing on last summer’s Lions tour of Australia. Darragh Murray makes his mark for Ireland by scoring a try against Scotland in the Six Nations.

John Scally: Dolores Keane was the original Galway girl and a true giant of Irish musicFolk singer, who died this week at the age of 72, had magical voice and a brilliant careerDolores Keane performing on stage. Photo: Mick Hutson/RedfernsJohn Scally Yesterday at 06:30I thought of Jeremy Irons on Monday. When the Oscar-­winning actor and Irish resident was a guest on the BBC’s Desert Island Discs, he spoke about how one of the joys of coming to live in Ireland was getting to discover Irish music.

“I was offered a job in tech here and we were trying to find somewhere to live before we moved. It was a long journey.”The front door of 2 Temple Villas, Arbour Hill, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7The couple settled here in 2018 and later bought No2 Temple Villas, a 1,270 sq ft three-bedroom semi-detached home in Dublin’s Stoneybatter, which was built in 1934. “We worked with an Italian architect to make it as light-filled as possible.”The kitchen and island unit at 2 Temple Villas, Arbour Hill, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7When designing the interior, they attempted to marry Italian and Irish culture. The modern bathroom at 2 Temple Villas, Arbour Hill, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7Fabrizio likes to garden and has planted numerous flowers in pots and shrubs. One of the bedrooms at 2 Temple Villas, Arbour Hill, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7But with two young children and a dog, they now need more space.

Arsenal and Man City fans given urgent warning over £1k Carabao Cup final finesA new law comes into force ahead of Sunday's Carabao Cup final at WembleyView 3 Images Arsenal and Manchester City fans would face heavy penalties if they breach the new law (Image: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)Supporters of Arsenal and Manchester City have been warned they face hefty fines and banning orders if they try to enter Wembley Stadium without a ticket. The Premier League's top two meet in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday. Offenders will be arrested and face a Football Banning Order of up to five years and a fine of up to £1,000. Latest news, analysis and much more on Mirror Football's Facebook pageCrime and Policing Minister, Sarah Jones, said: "Football fans should be able to enjoy the game without feeling unsafe or threatened. In response to the shame scenes at the Euro 2020 final, the Football Association commissioned Baroness Louise Casey to undertake an independent review into the carnage.

An Irish Goodbye… from Bologna: ‘Finding somewhere to live can still be competitive but compared to Ireland, the process felt more attainable financially’Ciara Walsh moved from Galway to Italy in 2019. She lives in a one-bed apartment with her Italian partner and their sonCiara Walsh in BolognaNicola Brady Today at 06:30“I moved to Bologna for the first time on an Erasmus in 2015, followed by a year in Catania, Sicily. I was back living in Ireland when I met my Italian partner in 2019 – he was travelling in Ireland for a month. So I decided to pack up and move back to Bologna, a city that had once been a home for me too.

Energy bills could rise by hundreds of euro as Government scrambles for solutions – but no return of energy creditsAlready squeezed households facing huge cost increase that will only ramp up the longer that Iran war goes onElectricity bills could rise by €800 in fall-out from Middle East gas plants attacksCharlie Weston and Senan Molony Today at 06:30A spike in the cost of domestic electricity and gas is now on the cards after huge damage was done to key energy infrastructure across the Middle East in the past two days.

For now, at least the two countries are behaving like good neighbours. The principal reason for this is not simply Starmer’s obvious affection for this country, but his determination to act on it. At one level, the annual summits are designed to compensate for the fact that since Brexit, Irish and British political leaders and their top officials no longer meet regularly at EU events. A related issue was the commitment to closer defence co-operation to deter threats in the Irish Sea and the North Atlantic. But for now, at least the two countries are behaving like good neighbours.

A judge has slammed the 'abhorrent male bravado' of two footballers as he jailed them for sex crimes against a 14-year-old girl. Judge Gerard Mullaly labelled their offending as 'disgusting' and 'degrading', as the men were much older and knew their victim was only 14. Later that evening, Fidge, then aged 22, lured the girl away from the party to the backyard and began kissing her. The two men jointly penetrated the girl, who could not speak or ask for help, before returning to the party. After being presented with 'overwhelming' DNA evidence, Fidge and Smith admitted their crimes, the judge said.

Trump reportedly considering plans to occupy or blockade Iran’s Kharg IslandAccording to a report in Axios, the Trump administration is considering occupying or blockading Iran’s Kharg Island to pressure Iran into reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The island had been largely left untouched by the US-Israeli attacks during the first two weeks of the war. Gen Ali Mohammad Naini made the comments in a report quoted by Iran’s state-run IRAN newspaper. He also confirmed that Trump had asked Israel to hold off on such attacks. “Does anyone really think that someone can tell president Trump what to do?” Netanyahu told reporters, at a press conference.

UK Foreign Office warns all tourists to 'leave country immediately' on next flightThe FCDO has changed its travel advice due to unpredictable security conditionsForeign Office warns all UK tourists to 'leave immediately' on next flightThe Foreign Office has updated its travel guidance for yet another nation, now cautioning against ALL travel to the destination. ‌The guidance for the country states: "FCDO advises against all travel to the whole of the Mali due to the unpredictable security conditions. If you're in Mali, you should leave immediately by commercial flight if you judge it safe to do so. Do not try to leave Mali by overland routes to neighbouring countries as this is too dangerous. Regarding the terrorism threat, the FCDO continued: "There is a high threat of terrorist attack across Mali.

Tenerife and Lanzarote placed on 'No List' for Scottish holidaymakersThe Canary Islands have been placed on the Fodor 'No List'. Tourists were warned about the impact of anti-tourism protests and pollution concerns (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)Scottish holidaymakers planning a summer escape to a popular Spanish destination have been issued with a travel alert. ‌The Canary Islands have been added to Fodor's 'No List' following anti-tourism demonstrations, ecological worries and contamination affecting coastal areas. The travel list, however, isn't intended as a "boycott" list but rather aims to "highlight destinations where tourism is placing unsustainable pressures on the land and local communities", according to Fodor. This follows additional travel alerts for British holidaymakers planning trips abroad.

The committee also heard from an autism campaigner who said, 'the children have needs, it’s not that they’re attention seeking'. Photograph: Getty ImagesComments on education supports by an Independent Senator have been strongly criticised by autism rights campaigners as “deeply disappointing” and “insulting”. He said that “lots of children will present in their classroom as being needy or attention seeking” while teachers were overworked. “It is neither attention seeking nor needy to expect both.” Harris said the comments were “deeply insulting and out of step with what is the lived experience of autistic children and families”. This country has a long way to go to ensure that our education system is child centred, needs based and truly inclusive.”

Cybersecurity experts have issued an urgent warning about a newly uncovered exploit that could put hundreds of millions of iPhones at risk. The Google Threat Intelligence Group says the malware, known as 'DarkSword,' enables hackers to break into devices and extract personal information. DarkSword chains together six separate flaws in iOS and Safari, allowing attackers to quietly install malware on targeted devices. The exploit affects iPhones running iOS versions 18.4 through 18.7, and can be triggered simply by visiting a malicious or compromised website, requiring no further action from the user. This allows attackers to secretly install malware on a device, another reminder of why keeping your phone updated is crucial.

Experts from the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell University have pinpointed 45 Earth–like planets that could have perfect conditions for aliens. The planets all lie within the so–called habitable zone – an area not too close to a host star that it's too hot, and not too far away that it's too cold. In their new study, the team pinpointed 45 of these planets that may support life in the habitable zone, and another 24 in a narrower 3D habitable zone. According to the researchers, the most interesting planets are TRAPPIST–1 d, e, f and g, which are just 40 light–years from Earth. The planets all lie within the so–called habitable zone – an area not too close to a host star that it's too hot, and not too far away that it's too cold.

Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi and US president Donald Trump at the Oval Office of the White House on Thursday. Photograph: Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesUnited States president Donald Trump drew a parallel on Thursday between US ‌strikes on Iran and Japan’s 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, as he defended the war he launched against ​Tehran while meeting Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi in Washington. Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?” Trump replied when a journalist asked ​why he had not told allies about his war plans. The Japanese attack ⁠on the US naval base ​in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7th, ​1941, killed 2,390 Americans. The US declared war on Japan the next day, with ‌president Franklin D Roosevelt calling it “a ​date which will live in infamy”.