The Front Pages
It’s a bit of a mixed-bag on the front pages this Monday morning. The most popular story is about clinical trials on a jab that is believed to halt breast cancer. It’s a world-wide story, although a number of the Irish papers have picked it up.
Here’s how some of the main headlines read:
‘One jab can prevent breast cancer, claims scientist’ – The Irish Independent.
‘Ahern rules out granting asylum seekers right to work’ – The Irish Times.
‘Stud chief claims €67k in expenses’ – The Irish Examiner
‘Mortar bid pay see PSNI bases re-fortified‘ – The Irish News
The Examiner’s main story looks at how an audit of the Irish National Stud found that former chief executive John Clarke accounted for 60% of the total staff travel expenses bill for most of 2008. It also revealed that 23% of his expenses did not have supporting receipts.
The Irish Times’ story meanwhile highlights Dermot Ahern’s surprise withdrawal of a long-awaited immigration bill and his rejection of the idea to give asylum seekers the right to work. He cited the current economic climate as the main factor in his decision.
Big news on the front cover of The Irish News is that police stations across Northern Ireland may have to be re-fortified due to fears that dissident republicans have perfected the use of mortar bombs. A number of failed attacks have taken place in recent months and a device was successfully launched at Strand Road PSNI station in Derry on Friday.
Tales from the Tabs
It appears that barely a day goes past now without rumours of another celebrity break up. First it was Cheryl and Ashley, then Ronan and his missus and now there are claims and counter claims about Keith Duffy’s private life featuring on the front pages. According to The Sun, Duffy is furious that an unnamed paper reported that he slept with a ‘top model’. Does it ever end?
Happily, the paper also carries some actual news. The main story on page 2 reads, ‘FF close in on poll position’. The latest Red C poll found that support for Fianna Fail is on the rise and that Biffo and company are catching up on Fine Gael.
The Irish Daily Mail leads with a story about how scientists are claiming they have developed a jab which can stop breast cancer in its tracks. Apparently, the drug is ready to be trialed on women during the next 12 months.
The Mirror has discovered yet more celebrity heart-break – apparently Charlotte Church and Gavin Henson have broken up. The paper has splashed it across the front page in a manner which suggests they believe somebody somewhere actually gives a flying shite.
The Sports Pages
The weekend’s hurling is cropping up on the back of most self-respecting papers today. The Sun leads with the headline ‘We’re Back!’ – Dónal delight at Rebel romp’. Rather unsurprisingly, Dónal Og Cusack is pretty happy about his county’s 10 point win over Tipp at the weekend. And fair play to Eoin Cadogan (pictured) He did his part by wearing his lucky boxers on the big day.
The paper also runs a nice big feature story about Trapattoni – apparently he has rejected offers from Celtic and a number of unnamed Premier League clubs in order to complete his job at Ireland. Fair play to him.
The Sun also has a spot of World Cup coverage going on – apparently Fabio Capello has made his decision on who to cut from his provisional England squad and that the unlucky seven will be told of their fate tomorrow.
The sport section of the Irish Daily Mail is also dominated by the Cork v Tipp game. They reckon ‘Vintage Cork’ was on show during the clash. Hard to disagree.
The paper carries a substantial amount of rugby content which unsurprisingly is centred on Leinster’s defeat at the hands of the Ospreys. They reckon that although the poor finish failed to do justice to what was a good season, it is still time for a ‘New Blue Era’. With Cheika on the way out it’s not exactly a ground-breaking revelation.
The Irish Daily Mail has also found its way to highlighting the Ireland football team’s performances on Monday and Friday. They also give a nod to the fact that Trapattoni has confirmed that he is not for moving.
The Mirror is also gearing up for World Cup and its main sports story reads, ‘Why it’s unfair to judge Walcott’s England performances based on that magic night in Zagreb’.
The Irish News sport section leads with the Ulster Senior Football Championship first round. The score line from the weekend’s action was Donegal 2-10 Down 1-15 after extra time. The paper’s reporter Eamonn O’Hara highlights the role played by the mercurial Benny Coulter during the clash.
