Aryna Sabalenka is backing herself to come out on top in her 'Battle of the Sexes' exhibition match against Nick Kyrgios by embracing the unknown in Dubai. When asked who is going to win, the 27-year-old four-time grand slam winner immediately replied: "Me. I don't know what to expect and that's what I love because this is the feeling that you chase when you play sport. "I haven't won a grand slam but I've walked out in a grand slam final. This is something completely different, I don't know how my body or my mind will react.

Billy Kelleher says he would have won presidencyJames CoxCork MEP Billy Kelleher has said he would have won the presidency if he had been selected ahead of Jim Gavin for the Fianna Fáil nomination. Taoiseach Micheál Martin and deputy leader Jack Chambers had heavily backed Mr Gavin, but he withdrew three weeks before the vote after it emerged he owed €3,300 to a former tenant in overpaid rent. Mr Kelleher also sought the nomination, and had the backing of a number of senior party figures, however, Mr Martin's backing of Mr Gavin helped push the Dublin football manager over the line. In an interview with the Irish Examiner, Mr Kelleher said he is confident he could have beaten both President Catherine Connolly and Fine Gael candidate Heather Humphreys. Mr Kelleher also referred to the debate around a United Ireland.

From CMAT's third studio album Euro-Country to Kingfishr's Killeagh dominating Ireland's airwaves, 2025 has been an amazing year for Irish music. Eddie Keogh of Kingfishr on the third day of the Electric Picnic festival at Stradbally in Co Laois. Their debut album Halcyon was released in August and reached Number 1st on the Irish Albums Chart. They will soon played two sold-out gigs in Dublin's 3Arena, and are surely still on a high from their appearance on RTÉ's Late Late Toy Show! Photo: PATheir debut album Reverie was released in May 2025, and peaked at Number 1 on the Irish Albums Chart.

Former justice minister Pádraig Flynn (Cathal McNaughton/PA)However, that assessment was challenged when Mr Flynn and Mr Mayhew joined the leaders. Mr Major told him not to worry about being discordant and assured him matters would be looked at. On the checkpoints and closure of roads, Mr Mayhew said the official advice was that they were all necessary for security purposes. This sentiment was shared by Mr Major who told Mr Flynn that he may feel the UK Government has “more control over the Unionists than we have”. Mr Major reiterated his government’s sincerity and attempted the resolve the row amicably: “I don’t mind being shouted at – it is quite like the House of Commons.

Plenty who are in good nick just want to get more flexible and mobile and stay that way into later life. On one of my first visits, big Damien Delaney, the former soccer international, is on his way out, suitably stretched. “Exercise for its own sake doesn’t do you any good,” John says. You are conditioning yourself.”First exercise John does every time is a simple lunge, repeated over and over, with bands. The wife, Suzanne, will admit to being a studious avoider of exercise regimes beyond the fundamentals of a good walk.

Police have made a public appeal to a man to contact them in relation to an attack in Co Down earlier this week. The appeal was made as part of investigations into a stabbing attack in the Chippendale Avenue area of Bangor on Christmas Eve. Jonathan Baker, 54, was last pictured in the Coniston Road area of Bangor at around 3.55pm on Christmas Eve, police said. The PSNI released a photo as part of an appeal for him to make contact with police amid concerns for his welfare. She said: “We now believe that Jonathan was wearing a navy blue jacket with the brand name ‘Helly Hansen’ written on the back in white.

Explosions sounded in Kyiv as Ukraine’s air defence units went into action, and the military said on the Telegram messaging app that missiles were being deployed. The air force said Russian drones were ‌targeting the capital and regions in the northeast and south. “A lot can be decided before the New ⁠Year,” Mr Zelenskiy posted on social media. Mr Trump said the United States was ⁠the driving force behind the process. Mr Trump said he believed Sunday’s meeting would go well.

Photograph: Alan Betson2) Our second most read also comes courtesy of the WRC, registering a healthy 137,141 readers. Former minister for finance Paschal Donohoe: our live blog on Budget 2026 attracted many readers. She says that “some time later I was given something left over from the business class breakfast being served. Photograph: Sam Boal/Collins7) Another Aer Lingus story had 85,626 readers and concerned a family’s travails on returning home from spending Christmas in the US with family. Photograph: iStock10) With 80,917 views was our Budget 2026 Main Points story, which outlined the details of the steady-as-she-goes budget.

Scientists have found eating one burger a week - rather than cutting meat out of people's diets altogether - could be 'environmentally good' for the planet. Academics at the University of Edinburgh found that cutting meat consumption down by a whopping 90 per cent in the UK would dramatically reduce harmful greenhouse gases produced by raising cattle. Researchers found for example that the manure produced by a single 700kg cow can nurture enough insects to feed 30 swallows. Mr Gathorne-Hardy admitted the finding that 'some meat is environmentally good' would be 'annoying' to vegans. The University of Edinburgh's findings add to a body of research that supports the argument consuming smaller quantities of meat could have environmental benefits.

Sean Dunne has filed a fresh objection to the distribution of $3.8m of the remaining assets in his US bankruptcy case. Mr Dunne built a sprawling property during Ireland’s Celtic Tiger boom, only to see it collapse in a massive pile of debt after the 2008 financial crisis. Owing hundreds of millions of euros, Mr Dunne and his then wife Ms Killilea moved to the US in an attempt to start over. Shortly after the trial, it emerged that Mr Dunne and Ms Killilea had divorced. Mr Dunne has fought ever since to overturn the verdict and block distribution of the money the jury ordered him to pay.

A United Nations observation post in southern Lebanon. A secret study by the Irish attorney general's office during the Troubles examined making the North a UN trusteeship policed by peacekeeping soldiersA secret study carried out by the attorney general’s office in Dublin at the height of the Troubles in the 1970s explored asking the United Nations to make Northern Ireland a trusteeship, policed by UN soldiers. However, the report cautioned that UN involvement could only take place under limited circumstances, such as a British withdrawal, a threat by loyalists to take over Northern Ireland, or where sectarian killings exploded in number. Or in the context of a British decision to withdraw from Northern Ireland,” Mr Hayes went on. The Hayes report led to the writing of a draft trusteeship agreement for Northern Ireland that could have been tabled to the UN in New York if both Dublin and London agreed on a temporary UN administration.

The Garda’s most senior drug squad investigator said cocaine seized on the MV Matthew ship in 2023 increased the price of the drug on the wholesale market in IrelandLarge cocaine seizures in recent years have led to a surge in the wholesale price of the drug, resulting in some dealers reducing the potency of street cocaine in Ireland to try to protect their profits. Gardaí have seized quantities of cocaine offered for sale in pubs that was below 2 per cent purity, meaning the drug was heavily diluted and composed almost entirely of substances other than cocaine. The seizure resulted in a reduced supply of cocaine as drug traffickers decided to “pull back” on smuggling runs amid a loss of confidence in Irish drug dealers who encouraged them to route 2.2 tonnes of cocaine through Irish waters. More recently, however, cocaine seized by gardaí that had been offered for sale in pubs was below 2 per cent purity and the substance was mixed with other products, usually medicinal substances to bulk it up. Det Chief Supt Boland said people who bought the drug often did not notice because they were already drunk.

With the third day of the Boxing Day match in Melbourne another 90,000-plus sell out, England’s four-wicket win inside six sessions of play has cost Cricket Australia the five-million figure in ticket sales. The early finish, hastened when 19 wickets fell on the opening day, meant Cricket Australia took a $5m (£2.5m) hit and the local economy was denied its own portion of the financial pie. Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg yesterday hinted that the governing body could step in to ensure pitches are prepared to the expected standard. ‘It was an amazing day of Test cricket, so for that record number of people who were here, boy, they've had an experience. But your point is a good one, there are traditionalists in Test match cricket who like the ebbs and flows and the slow build.

Photograph: Henry Wills / Western PeopleFianna Fáil’s Pádraig Flynn “shouted at” British prime minister John Major during a testy meeting in 1992 when he objected to British government calls for Dublin to drop Ireland’s constitutional claim to Northern Ireland. “It is not helpful when Her Majesty’s government says that the Irish Constitution must be changed,” Flynn – who accompanied taoiseach Albert Reynolds – told Major at the London meeting. “I sit opposite Patrick at the talks and every time he speaks, they linger on his words,” he said. Flynn said the talks were going nowhere, adding: “We hope to go somewhere but every week the unionist position is clearly stated . Objecting to what he characterised as ceaseless demands from the unionists for constitutional change in the Republic, Flynn said: “I have sat there at the talks and been insulted.

If we are making new year’s resolutions, understanding our behavioural biases can help us correct for them and make resolutions that we might actually keep. Optimism bias can perpetuate irrational behaviours and explain, for example, why people engage in risky health behaviours such as smoking. To correct for these biases and increase our chances of success, rather than shooting for the stars, we need a cold dose of reality when making resolutions. We therefore need incentives to change our behaviours in the form of rewards for successes and/or costs to failures. Adjusting for behavioural biases when making resolutions can increase our chances of success.