The Front Pages
It’s all Fine Gael on the front of this morning’s broadsheets as Leader Enda Kenny seeks to rebuild the party following a turbulent week that has to have done serious damage to the Blueshirts’ reputation.
‘Pressure on Kenny to bring back Bruton’ screams the headline on the front of today’s Irish Independent. The paper reports that Kenny has been advised by senior figures within the party that having Bruton in his new look front bench, possibly with an education portfolio, is an essential move despite the fact that the former party spokesman for finance expressed a lack of confidence in the Mayo man’s leadership qualities.
The Irish Times leads with the headline, ‘Noonan says he is willing to serve on front bench for Kenny’. The Limerick TD was leader of Fine Gael for an ill-fated twelve month period back in 2001 and 2002 and had previously served as finance spokesperson for the party for two separate periods, between 1987 and 1993 and again between 1997 and 2001.
It has been speculated that Noonan could resume as finance spokesperson but the Times reports that Noonan said, ‘he does not want to talk about any specific role other than a willingness to serve’.
The Irish Examiner’s leading story is a world away from events in Leinster House. ‘De Paper’s’ headline, ‘Sex with a Child: 2 Years. Stealing at Work: 4 Years’ refers to the fact that numerous child sex offenders in this country have been given sentences as low as 2 years, while a post office manager who stole €22,000 to feed his gambling addiction was given double that sentence.
The Examiner carries quotes from the head of Barnardos, Fergus Finlay, who suggested that these examples of inconsistent sentencing suggested that society had come to value society more than children. ‘It’s absolutely essential that the judiciary send out a message that you cannot abuse a child with impunity’, he said.
Tales from the tabs
Ireland has long been a popular location for celebrity weddings and it seems as if we’re going to have another as The Irish Daily Star reports this morning that new power couple Russell Brand and Katy Perry are keen to tie the knot on Irish soil.
The couple are keeping their wedding plans close to their chest but Brand, who will be in Ireland to promote his latest flick, Get him to the Greek this week is quoted in the paper saying, ‘I love performing there and I think Katy would love to do a big Irish wedding and a big party’.
Perry will also be in Dublin this month to fill in for Danni Minogue at the Dublin leg of the X Factor auditions. Brand claims his sex-addicted lothario days are in the past since hooking up with the American singer but frankly, we’re not convinced. Mothers, lock up your daughters!
Cracking story in today’s Irish Sun, who tell the story of four members of the North Korean World Cup squad who have returned to their World Cup base having attempted to flee South Africa following defeat to Brazil on Tuesday night. An Chol-Hyok, Kim Kyong-Il, Kim Myong-Won and Pak Sung Hyok are believed to have asked an African nation for asylum after fearing that they would face the wrath of madcap leader Kim Jong-Il for their performances.
Of course, the North Korean camp have denied any incidents ever occurred but manager Kim Jong-Hun did reveal a disturbing titbit of information. According to the Sun, Jong-Hun regularly receives tactical advice from Kim Jong-Il and he added that they plan to use ‘mobile phones not visible to the naked eye’ –  developed by the ‘Dear Leader’ himself – to learn how to beat the Portuguese.
The Sports Pages
This morning’s sports pages, both tabloid and broadsheet are united in their criticism of an England team who were woeful in a scoreless draw with African minnows last night.
‘Roobish’, shouts the Star in reference to both the shocking performance and star player Wayne Rooney’s tirade to the cameras immediately after the game during which he shouted, ‘Nice to hear your own fans booing you, that’s loyal support’.
‘Boring, Boring England are Cape Clowns’ goes the headline in the Mirror, with chief football scribe Martin Lipton claiming witheringly that at this rate, ‘England will be back home just after France’.
‘England stranded in Cape Fear’ writes Keith Duggan in the Irish Times, who claims that the abject display was far worse than the horror show against the USA and adds that there are suggestions, voiced by former England manager Graham Taylor, that camp In-ger-land is rife with dissenting players.
Ireland’s defeat to the New Zealand Maoris takes a back seat to all things World Cup on the back pages but the mood is decidedly more upbeat than it was this time last week after a stirring fight back by Declan Kidney’s men which just came up short in the end.
Kidney’s men dig deep to restore pride, writes Hugh Farrelly in the Irish Independent, while in the same paper, Tony Ward claims that after yesterday’s performance, out-half Jonathan Sexton should retain the number 10 jersey ahead of Ronan O’Gara for the clash with the Wallabies next weekend.
‘At out-half, Sexton did enough to warrant selection ahead of Ronan O’Gara in the final test before the summer break. The pivotal playmaking role has become something of a horses for courses in terms of the needs of the day (based on opposition strength) and on the most recent form of both out-halves involved and, on both criteria, Sexton shades it’, writes the former Munster and Ireland out-half.
On a cheerier note, all the papers are celebrating Graham McDowell’s race to the top of the US Open leader board at the halfway stage, after the Irishman shot a magnificent 68 on day two of the tournament to lead by two shots at the notoriously difficult Pebble Beach course.
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