Ireland

When the qualifying draw was made in December, there was an understandable assumption that Germany would top the group and seal automatic qualification with Northern Ireland, Slovakia and Luxembourg fighting among themselves for the play-off spot afforded to the runner-up.

Slovakia’s victory over the four-time World Cup winners to kick things off last month has instead opened up myriad possibilities.

Friday night’s visitors to Windsor Park, who followed up their shock result against the Germans with late victory in Luxembourg, know that another three points in Belfast would be a huge step towards booking their place at next summer’s World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

While the side ranked 42nd in the world did not make the tournament in 2022, they reached the European Championships either side and were beaten by England at the last-16 stage in 2024 only after Jude Bellingham’s spectacular 96th-minute overhead kick.

Manager Francesco Calzona is the first foreign boss in the country’s history and came recommended by Slovakian legend Marek Hamsik from their time together at Napoli, where the Italian was an assistant coach.

Ties to the Serie A champions do not stop there with midfielder Stanislav Lobotka the side’s key player. The 30-year-old, however, has emerged as a major injury doubt for the game on Friday.

Another with recent Champions League experience, Atletico Madrid full back David Hancko, is another who could miss out.

While O’Neill said he would not believe their absences until the pair were missing when the anthems are played at Windsor Park, should Slovakia be without both then Middlesbrough striker David Strelec will be expected to carry a greater load.

The performances of 19-year-old Feyenoord winger Leo Sauer for the national side have sparked excitement too.

Price felt he “didn’t play well” in the 3-1 win away to Luxembourg when his early penalty was saved despite Jamie Reid tucking away the rebound.

However, he responded with a goal against Germany to bring his international tally to 10 and credits manager Michael O’Neill for giving him the confidence to bounce back against the four-time world champions.

“It’s about not getting too high when things are going well or getting too low when they aren’t,” he said.

“The Luxembourg game I missed a penalty, didn’t play well and was coming off a low point but then you play against Germany.

“The night before, Michael came over and said ‘forget about what happened the other night, you’ll go and do something tomorrow’ and it happened. Michael has been around so long he’ll have seen it with other players, so it was a great feeling to get one against Germany.”

The 22-year-old is part of the new crop of Northern Ireland players bidding to reach a major finals for the first time since Euro 2016 when O’Neill was in his first stint as manager.

However, he believes the “maturity” in the camp can help them through the upcoming games.

“The ground and the fans will be electric, but it’s about staying calm and composed because if you let the occasion get to you, it’s never the best thing.

“We’ve the right level of maturity in the group and players who have been there before, so they can help us.

“I hope they (opposition) realise we have a good young side and every team comes here fears it as they should do.”

Crusaders and Derry City will join forces to commence legal proceedings over their omission from Stage Two of the Northern Ireland Football Fund.

In September, the Department of Communities announced 20 clubs from across Northern Ireland would progress to the next round of the process with three different tiers of funding available.

Of the 41 clubs eligible to apply, 38 submitted bids, leaving those who missed out bitterly disappointed.

Both Crusaders and Derry City were two to miss out and having considered the decision, jointly confirmed on Wednesday evening they will now lodge legal proceedings against the decision to omit them.

In a statement, Crusaders said: “Following an extra-ordinary general meeting of Crusaders Football Club members on Wednesday, 8 October 2025, Crusaders FC have determined to join Derry City FC to commence legal proceedings to challenge the exclusion of both clubs from Stage 2 of the Northern Ireland Football Fund.”

The League of Ireland club expressed similar sentiments.

“Derry City FC have made the decision to join with Crusaders FC to commence legal proceedings to challenge the exclusion of both clubs from Stage 2 of the Northern Ireland Football Fund process,” they said in a statement.

“We believe we were left with no other option.”

The Stormont Executive has set £36.2m aside, but Communities Minister Gordon Lyons estimated the departmental cost of the 20 projects would come to “just over £82m”, while the “estimated total project costs” are £98m.

The big winners were NIFL Premiership clubs Glentoran and Cliftonville who progressed in the third and most expensive tier of over £6m.

The middle bracket of applications between £1.5m to £6m saw 13 successful applications, while five of of less than £1.5m also progressed.

Ultimately, despite the backing of a new contract that was to run until Euro 2024, Baraclough would lose his job after a record of six wins and eight draws from 28 games and was replaced by the same man he had succeeded in the role, Michael O’Neill.

“There were times we were going over and applauding the fans and you could see that they were frustrated because we weren’t getting the results, but I knew deep inside that this was a project that was going to last much longer than the period of a campaign,” Baraclough says.

“I’d signed a new contract that would take me up to the last Euros campaign, but things happen, Michael becomes available from Stoke, for instance, and decisions will be made that are out of your hands.

“At the time, I found it very, very disappointing that I didn’t get a World Cup and a Euros because that was what, ultimately, you were going to be judged on and I ended up being judged on a Nations League campaign where we were absolutely flooding the squad with these young players. That was the disappointment for me, but, look, there’s no bitterness.”

As such, Baraclough has enjoyed watching from afar as a number of his former players become seasoned internationals.

“Maybe the fans thought that the previous campaign should have yielded more than what it did, but there was no way it was going to just materialise that you go away to the likes of Greece and turn them over,” he adds.

“This World Cup campaign was somewhere where we looked into the distance and thought realistically this is the best time for this group to really start making an impact because players will now have 100, 150 first-team games under their belts, they’ll have 20 to 25 senior caps or beyond under their belts, and now they’re just starting to feel comfortable at this level.

“It’s now come to fruition. To see those players come through and be doing so well at a senior level, it’s fantastic.

“It’s not one person per se that can lay claim to somebody’s success but, just for me, I love looking back and saying I really enjoyed my time working with them and hopefully I helped in some way in developing them as people and as players.”

THIS is the nerve-wracking moment a Ryanair plane is forced to abort landing in Storm Amy’s 90mph winds.

The dramatic footage shows the pilot unable to land the aircraft at Dublin Airport on Friday.

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It comes as Storm Amy swept in on Friday with wind speeds of over 90mph, sparking widespread travel chaos for millions.

Video footage shows the Ryanair plane descending as it approaches the runway at Dublin Airport.

The aircraft can be seen buffeted by strong winds on its way down, knocking it of course as it nears the tarmac at speed.

Just moments before it is due to touch down, the pilot suddenly aborts the landing.

They then pull the plane back up as its forced to go around the airport before it attempts to make another landing.

A plane spotter posted the footage to social media on Friday, alongside the caption: “Ryanair plane has to do a go around because of the high winds.”

Hundreds of users flocked to the comments with some claiming they were on the flight itself.

“I was on that plane, was a very hairy land,” one posted.

Others claimed that it was the “worst flight of my life” and that this was one of two failed landing attempts before the plane diverted to Manchester.

“That plane was like being on the worst roller coaster ride ever, what you see in that video, doesn’t do justice to what went on onboard,” stated another.

According to them, other passengers were panicking and an “elderly gentleman had to be taken from Manchester Airport straight to the hospital”.

Storm Amy is expected to cause further travel disruption across the UK and Ireland on Saturday with flights, rail and ferry services cancelled.

Belfast International Airport said it was expecting delays on Saturday and advised passengers to check with their airlines.

Due to winds reaching up to 100mph in some areas, “risk to life” warnings have been issued too.

Irish Police confirmed on Friday that a man in his 40s had died following a “weather related incident”.

While over 234,000 homes were also left without power across Ireland with thousands in Scotland also facing continued power outages.

The Scottish island of Tiree has recorded the highest wind speeds at 96mph while a provisional October record for Northern Ireland was set with 92mph gusts in County Londonderry.

An amber wind warning has been issued for the north of Scotland until 9pm on Saturday with yellow warnings covering the whole of Scotland, the north of England and north Wales until the end of the day.

A yellow wind warning will run until 7pm for the rest of England and Wales.

Additionally, yellow warnings for rain are in place in north and west Scotland until midnight and in Northern Ireland until noon.

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Is there a better inkblot test for America right now than reaction to Bad Bunny being the halftime act for Super Bowl LX?

Soon after his name was announced, social media exploded into meritocracy debates as if the National Football League’s decisions are culturally motivated and not commercially. Taylor Swift is the most streamed artist in Spotify history. Bad Bunny is No. 2. For a domestic sports league trying to grow its popularity globally, the rationale seems clear.

And yet because he is a Puerto Rican who sings in Spanish, conservative talking heads must project outrage and offer listeners nonsensical objections.

“It’s so shameful they’ve decided to pick somebody who seems to hate America so much to represent them at the halftime show,” Corey Lewandowski, a longtime confidant of President Trump who currently advises the Department of Homeland Security, told conservative podcast host Benny Johnson. “We should be trying to be inclusive, not exclusive. There are plenty of great bands and entertainment people who could be playing at that show that would be bringing people together and not separating them.”

Suggesting Bad Bunny hates America is an interesting take given Puerto Ricans have been U.S. citizens since 1917. The three-time Grammy winner also has four No. 1 albums on the very American Billboard pop charts and has already performed during halftime at the Super Bowl back in 2020 with Jennifer Lopez and Shakira. The Federal Communications Commission received more than 1,300 complaints about the show that year with the vast majority being from parents complaining about the stripper pole and twerking of the women, not Bad Bunny’s alleged hate of America.

I don’t know if Lewandowski and Johnson knew any of that before they started talking, but I get the feeling it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. Once Lewandowski suggested ICE was going to be at the Super Bowl — an event that had an average resale ticket price of $8,600 in 2024 — it was clear their conversation wasn’t about solving the immigration problem.

It was clear they didn’t know much about the history of halftime acts either.

In 2006, a Super Bowl held in the heart of Detroit — the birthplace of Motown — rolled out the Rolling Stones, who are from London. In 2010, a Super Bowl in Miami — home of salsa and Afro-Cuban jazz — gave us the Who … who are also from England. In 2002, months after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, U2 — a band from Dublin, Ireland — did the show. There is a decades-long precedent for non-Americans to headline the Super Bowl. Though, again, quick geography lesson: Puerto Rico is part of the United States and Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens.

Detractors like Lewandowski and Johnson want to make English being Bad Bunny’s second language an indictment of his patriotism, as if growing up speaking English is a criterion for citizenship. It isn’t and never has been. Perhaps instead of using their platform to stir fear at a time when calm is needed, the two could see next February’s show as an opportunity to grow. Because honestly, it is so counterproductive to allow influential voices to gaslight the country into forgetting the milestones it’s already crossed. “La Bamba” by Los Lobos was sung in Spanish and hit No. 1 nearly 40 years ago. The only English in the K-pop hit “Gangnam Style” is “hey, sexy lady,” and that song made PSY an international sensation.

Instead of making people fear Spanish at the Super Bowl, maybe encourage them to spend this NFL season learning something beyond “gracias.“ Because in this world, there are people who choose to speak in English and there are people who have no other choice. Only one of those scenarios feels like freedom to me.

That was the topic of discussion in the summer of 2008 after then-Sen. Barack Obama said this at a campaign stop in Georgia: “Understand this, instead of worrying about whether immigrants can learn English — they’ll learn English — you need to make sure your child can speak Spanish. You should be thinking about how can your child become bilingual.”

At the time many conservatives — such as Tucker Carlson and Lou Dobbs — used those comments not as a prompt to debate the merits of Obama’s remarks regarding U.S. education but as a weapon to attack him. They accused him of being divisive — when years ago Nelson Mandela said when you talk to someone “in his own language, that goes to his heart.” In fact, Dobbs said “instead of diversity, he’s talking about factionalism.” Nonsense that sounds a lot like the echoes we hear from Lewandowski and Johnson today.

It’s not just a question of if our children should be bilingual; it’s also about being curious about the world we live in. This NFL season has already featured games in Ireland and Brazil. Mexico City is an annual event. The league is in it for the bag. And eventually there will be a team based overseas where Spanish is heard, visiting teams carry passports and Bad Bunny is no stranger.

YouTube: @LZGrandersonShow

TENS of thousands are without power as Storm Amy’s 90mph gusts and torrential rain lash Britain leaving one dead.

The first named storm of the season has swept into the country with yellow weather warnings covering the whole of Britain on Saturday.

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Irish Police confirmed on Friday that a man in his 40s had died following a “weather related incident”.

While 234,000 homes were also left without power across the island of Ireland as Storm Amy brings widespread disruption.

The highest wind speeds so far have been recorded in the Hebrides Islands, Scotland, at 96mph with 92mph gusts recorded in Co Londonderry in Northern Ireland, say the Met Office.

An amber wind warning has been issued for the north of Scotland until 9pm on Saturday with yellow warnings covering the whole of Scotland, the north of England and north Wales until the end of the day.

A yellow wind warning will run until 7pm for the rest of England and Wales.

Additionally, yellow warnings for rain are in place in north and west Scotland until midnight and in Northern Ireland until noon.

Travel chaos has also been sparked across the country with road closures and disruption to public transport.

Train operator, Avanti West Coast, warned of “short notice changes” on Saturday and “strongly recommended” customers making journeys north of Preston to check updates before travelling.

In Scotland, ScotRail suspended services on Friday night and anticipated the disruption would extend in Saturday and possibly Sunday.

Network Rail Scotland route director Ross Moran said more than 60 incidents of flooding, fallen trees and debris on the tracks were reported across the network in the first two hours of the storm.

“Storm Amy has hit parts of the country much harder and more quickly than expected,” he said.

National Rail is carrying out safety checks for obstructions on the line and damage to infrastructure, warning of possible disruptions throughout the UK on Saturday.

Elsewhere, CalMac Ferries also said it expect many services to be disrupted on Saturday into Sunday with many routes already cancelled.

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The iconic Severn Bridge between Gloucestershire and Wales was also forced to close overnight due to strong winds.

While parts of the A19 Tees Viaduct, the A66 in Cumbria and the A628 near Manchester were all closed to high-sided vehicles.

Traffic Scotland has also reported a long list of road closures with Forth Road Bridge closed in both directions.

The Skye Bridge, Queensferry Crossing and Clackmannshire Bridge were also closed to high-sided vehicles.

They also reported a number of road closures due to falling debris and overnight flooding including the M9 eastbound near Stirling.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency had 30 flood warnings in place on Saturday with the Environment Agency issuing six in the north of England one in north Wales from Natural Resources Wales.

Belfast International Airport said it was expecting delays on Saturday and advised passengers to check with their airlines.

All eight of London’s royal parks, including Hyde Park and Richmond Park, will also be closed on Saturday due to the strong winds.

In a statement on its website, the Royal Parks said: “Due to severe wind gusts caused by Storm Amy, all of the royal parks, plus Brompton Cemetery and Victoria Tower Gardens will be closed on Saturday October 4.

“This closure includes all park roads and cycleways, cafes and kiosks, parks sports venues, the Serpentine lido and boating lake, and the royal parks shop.”

“The safety of visitors and staff is our top priority,” the Royal Parks added.

“We’re sorry for any inconvenience that these closures may cause.”

It said opening times on Sunday will be delayed because of safety inspections.

The Met Office said wind and rain was expected to ease throughout the evening for much of the country, but severe gales are forecast to continue in north east Scotland with a yellow warning for wind in place from midnight until 9am on Sunday.

Sunday is expected to turn dry and less windy with sunny spells for most areas, but outbreaks of rain developing in the north west.

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Goalkeepers: Bailey Peacock-Farrell, Conor Hazard, Luke Southwood

Defenders: Paddy McNair, Ryan Johnson, Daniel Ballard, Ciaron Brown, Conor Bradley, Trai Hume, Brodie Spencer, Eoin Toal, Terry Devlin, Ruairi McConville

Midfielders: George Saville, Ali McCann, Shea Charles, Jamie McDonnell, Paul Smyth, Isaac Price, Ross McCausland, Ethan Gailbraith, Justin Devenny, Jamie Donely

Attackers: Josh Magennis, Dion Charles, Callum Marshall, Jamie Reid

Mary McHale was due to fly from Dublin to Brussels but her brother-in-law tragically died the day before and she now claims that she has been denied a £380 refund

A woman says she is “fuming” with Ryanair for a lack of “empathy” claiming the airline refused a £380 refund after she cancelled a booking due to a family bereavement.

Mary McHale was due to fly from Dublin to Brussels for a girls weekend away in December last year but sadly, one day before she was due to fly, her brother-in-law Alan McHale, passed away suddenly, aged 61. The 54-year-old claims she reached out to Ryanair immediately to request a cancellation and was told via online chat that she needed to provide a death certificate before the flight took off.

She claims she couldn’t get her hands on a death certificate that soon and was also busy supporting her husband, Colin, 55, in his grief, which led to Ryanair refusing her £380 refund.

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“I’m absolutely fuming,” Mary, from Dublin, told Need to Know. “There’s no empathy. It didn’t matter how sad my case was, they weren’t interested. I’ll never fly with Ryanair again. Alan passed away suddenly three days before I was due to fly.

“The funeral service would be on the morning of the holiday. There was no way I was leaving my husband. A death certificate is a very official document and we couldn’t get it in time. Even if we could, there was no way I was going to ask the family for it while they were grieving so I could get a refund.

“I tried to appeal to Ryanair and said it wasn’t physically possible to get the certificate. We didn’t get it until January.” Mary says battling Ryanair while grieving only added to her heartbreak and made an already difficult time even more stressful.

She said: “Alan had Motor Neurone Disease and ended up getting an infection and pneumonia so it was quite sudden in the end. We were trying to organise the service. I couldn’t ask my sister-in-law for it while she was grieving her husband.

“I was grieving too. This was the last thing we needed. It was so stressful and I’m so frustrated by it. I didn’t even mention it to the family because I didn’t want to make them feel any worse. I kept chasing Ryanair up but they stopped talking to me and closed the case. There needs to be a management review. There need to be some discretion.”

In a online chat message, a Ryanair worker allegedly told her: “I wish to inform you that Ryanair tickets are non- refundable. This is clearly stated in our Terms and Conditions, agreed to at the time of purchase.

“Changes to flight dates, routes, times and customer names can be made online or by contacting our Customer Services Department prior to the initial date of travel. Change fees and possible fare difference will apply.

“I sympathise with your circumstances but I am not in a position to process your refund request and recommend that you contact your travel insurer with regard to this matter.”

In a follow-up message she claims was told: “Whilst I have noted your continued dissatisfaction, I regret that the position remains unaltered. As per our previous correspondence, as the Terms and Conditions state clearly.

“You must make your claim before the date of the flight and provide a copy of the death certificate”, therefore I cannot accede to your refund request.”

A Ryanair spokesperson said: “All Ryanair air fares are non-refundable.

“This passenger was correctly advised that she is not entitled to a refund for her Dublin to Brussels return flights (18 December 2024) as per Ryanair’s T&C’s, which this passenger agreed to at the time of booking.”

BARACK Obama will be visiting London and Dublin for an evening of political discussion on current global challenges.

Here’s everything you need to know about the event dates and how you might still be able to get your hands on the tickets.

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When is An Evening with Barack Obama in UK and Ireland?

The former US leader will be hosting a speaking in the UK and Ireland in September 2025.

The 44th president will engage in a conversation with the audience at The O2 Arena, London on September 24, 2025.

The doors will open at 6pm and the event will commence at 8pm.

Obama will then travel to Dublin and hold the show on September 26, 2025 at the 3Arena.

An Evening with Barack Obama in Dublin will be moderated by Irish journalist Fintan O’Toole.

How can I still get tickets?

You can still snap up last minute tickets to An Evening with Barack Obama.

For London show, the main ticket platforms are Ticketmaster, Seat Unique, Stub Hub, and Vivid Seats.

Tickets may also be available at the O2 Box Office.

If you’re looking to nab the tickets for Dublin, then check out Ticketmaster or Seat Unique.

There is a limit of six tickets per person or per household, and any excess tickets will be cancelled.

BRITISH actor James Norton has said he “worked hard” to perfect his Dublin accent for his upcoming series House Of Guinness.

Norton, 40, plays Sean Rafferty, foreman of the Guinness brewery, in the eight-part Netflix series from Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight.

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House Of Guinness brings to life the real scandals, power struggles and generational secrets of Ireland’s most famous family.

The series reimagines the fallout from Sir Benjamin Guinness’s death, set against the backdrop of 19th-century Dublin and New York.

The Happy Valley actor said he was adamant to get the accent right.
Norton said: “I worked hard. I was aware that many actors have gotten it wrong, and the Irish are a proud bunch so if you get it wrong, you hear about it.

“I worked hard and had great guidance from my fellow cast members.”
Norton, who recently starred in and co-produced historical drama series King & Conqueror for BBC One, said he learned a lot about 19th century Irish history from the Guinness show.

He said: “It’s always a privilege, and part of our job is being given the opportunity to explore periods of history we might not otherwise encounter.

“For me, it was a massive revelation. I hadn’t realised how influential the Guinness family was on Dublin’s architecture, or the extent of their welfare and philanthropic efforts, like the pensions and support they provided, which are portrayed in the show.

“They were also pioneers as a brand, becoming one of the first multinational drinks companies and dominating North America as the biggest beer brand of their time. It was both eye-opening and an incredibly thrilling journey to delve into all of that.”

The show explores the impact of Sir Benjamin’s will on the futures of his four adult children: Arthur, played by Derry Girls actor Anthony Boyle; Edward, portrayed by Enola Holmes star Louis Partridge; Anne, played by The Responder actress Emily Fairn; and Benjamin, portrayed by Normal People actor Fionn O’Shea.

Boyle, 31, whose character is homosexual, said he drew inspiration from Irish poet and writer Oscar Wilde for his role.

He said: “I looked a lot at Oscar Wilde, particularly because of the threat of someone finding out about your sexuality at that time and you could have resulted in 20 years of hard labour, which is essentially a death sentence, which is what Oscar Wilde was sentenced to.

“And reading a lot of his work, like the Ballad Of Reading Gaol.”

Boyle, who leads the series, said he is particularly proud that the programme showcases Irish culture.

“I’m really, really proud Irish culture is having such an amazing moment right now on the global stage and I feel really, really proud of having artists like Kneecap and Fontaines DC being on the soundtrack. It’s class.”

Knight, 66, who is writing the script for the next James Bond film, said the series’ ability to showcase Irish culture is like a “Christmas present”.

He said: “It’s not an effort to force it in, it’s already there. And then there’s that whole generation of Irish music, along with this incredible generation of young Irish actors.”

Knight added that the Guinness family provided an excellent stimulus for dramatic storytelling.

He said: “I was immediately surprised no one’s done this because the story is dynamite, the characters are so interesting and the dynamic of the family. It’s all there ready for you.

“There’s the reading of the will, which is a dramatic moment. Sir Benjamin Guinness leaves millions of pounds, along with land, lakes and castles. Yet his four children are all left unhappy with the terms. They must then go on and live their lives. It’s fantastic.”

House Of Guinness premieres on Netflix on Thursday.

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Maruja’s music isn’t merely following the times; it’s a reflection of them.

The rock band, whose debut album “Pain to Power” was released Friday, has carved out a niche in today’s music scene, garnering praise and raising eyebrows for their innovative instrumentation and song composition.

But the Manchester-born quartet — Harry Wilkinson, Matt Buonaccorsi, Joe Carroll and Jacob Hayes — has already done the forming, recording, and touring trifecta.

This can largely be credited to their three EPs, “Knocknarea,” “Connla’s Well” and Tir na nÓg,” released in 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. Each project draws on elements of post-punk, jazz rock and art rock that blend in an enthusiastic musical cocktail.

“We began touring, and then it kind of hasn’t stopped since,” Carroll says with a laugh, via a Zoom call. “That was about two and a half years ago… towards the end of last year, we did about four months, 47 shows all around Europe.”

And they haven’t let up. As soon as they got home from touring, they were right back to it. Altogether, the “best ideas” of “Pain to Power” were written and recorded over the span of two months: January and February of this year, when the band made the studio its second home.

“We had to just go ‘ham’ in the studio for six days a week. It’s pretty hardcore,” he says.

Some tracks had “spawned from jams” before being shelved for a while: “Some of them took two hours, some of them took two years,” he puts it plainly.

But this wasn’t an issue for the band, as they picked up those “jams” like they’d never put them down.

“All the songs we’ve written, they feel like they’re still within the same world, but just through different filters sometimes,” Buonaccorsi says.

“Born to Die,” which existed for the better part of the last couple of years, represents the halfway point in the album and features one of its most impressive sonic shifts. It also takes on the herculean task of merging many of the ongoing tones and deepest themes of the project.

“I know what this life is worth / We are universal spirits / And our kingdom is this Earth,” Wilkinson opens, as if a light has shone down on him.

The song is soft, with a distant, wailing sax peeking in for a brief moment among drum lines. It’s almost symphonic, carrying on for almost seven minutes before descending into a lulling silence.

“Our feelings are just visitors / Competing for attention / Avoiding every trigger / While still reaching for ascension,” he continues, in a quasi-monologue.

Hayes breaks in, thrashing his drums alongside Wilkinson’s guitar and an enthralling bass line from Buanoccorsi. Naturally, Carroll’s sax follows suit. The song then recedes into serenity once again, before picking up on “Break The Tension.”

It’s an exhilarating ride that carries on over the rest of the album, ebbing and flowing between chaos and calm. A lot of “Pain to Power’s” strength is in its latter half, and particularly across the three track run that is “Trenches,” “Zaytoun” and “Reconcile,” the album’s nearly 10-minute closer.

“What you’re seeing is these notions of pain that we are getting out of us in these songs,” Wilkinson explains. “These aggressive songs like ‘Bloodsport,’ ‘Look Down On Us’… we’re turning all of that aggression and that pain and anger into something beautiful, and that’s reflected in a track like ‘Saoirse.’”

“It’s quite a dynamic album,” Buonaccorsi adds. “You’ve got quieter songs, more intimate songs, and you’ve got loud, bombastic, crazy, aggressive songs, but they all still feel like they’re part of the same sonic universe.”

“Saoirse,” the third track on the album, reflects the somber first half of “Born to Die.”

“It’s our differences that make us beautiful,” Wilkinson sings repeatedly, like he’s muttering out a mantra. Sure, it’s a bit on-the-nose, but it embodies what Maruja is all about.

“Saoirse,” which translates to “freedom” or “liberty” in Irish, has historically morphed into a term representing the country’s desire for independence from British rule and cultural autonomy. These allusions to Ireland are ever-present in the band’s creations, with titles such as “Tir na nÓg” and “Connla’s Well” specked across their discography.

But how did a British outfit become synonymous with Irish activism?

“When we were recording ‘Knockarea,’ my dad started getting really ill and that led to me connecting with his parents a lot more, and they told me about my great-granddad, who was a photographer,” Carroll remembers.

“We ended up using all of his photos for the early stages of the music… all the black and white stuff is my great granddad’s photos in Ireland… I got really into my Irish heritage, and I’m really proud of it… and feel very connected to the culture and the land,” he continues.

The group says it has a strong correlation with their avid support for Palestinian rights, which the Irish have shown for decades: “They were the first Western government to speak up in public support for the Palestinian people,” Hayes says.

In that, they’re also speaking out against their home, Britain, which they say is “entirely complicit” in the Israel-Palestine conflict.

“The colonization of Ireland from the British Empire, and then the… secret police of the Black and Tans [in Palestine] is a direct relation to the colonialist and imperialist ways of the British government today,” Hayes says.

According to the Irish Times, Winston Churchill demanded a “picked force of white gendarmerie” be deployed in Palestine after facing unrest in 1921. The force was composed of “members of both” his Auxiliaries and Black and Tans, who were “assigned to Palestine once their presence in Ireland was no longer deemed necessary.”

“In England, we just see this deranged hypocrisy continue to lord over our political landscape,” he adds. “We want to give voice to those who are voiceless… If we can help raise awareness, raise a message, and… highlight the complicity of our government, we’ve got to do it.”

On “Bloodsport,” this is clear, with Wilkinson crying out pleas to the world.

“Complicit in the narrative of pacified killings it’s a / Sore sight when you gotta choose / The lesser of two evils either one will prove / That we’re socially in apathy what’s left to lose?”

Their activism is heavily tied to their music and has undoubtedly contributed to some of the band’s recognition on a global scale. But, to them, it’s just part of their responsibility, and their music is an indication of that.

“We’re just reflecting our environment,” he explains. “Our lives are downtrodden with politics and with war and with the world suffering.”

Buonaccorsi chimes in, referencing a quote from “the great” Nina Simone: “An artist’s duty, as far as I’m concerned, is to reflect the times.”

“It’s our job… to speak about things that really matter to us, things that we feel like should not be happening in this world,” he says. “The barbarity and horror that we’ve never been able to see in our lifetimes… now, we see it before our eyes on phone screens.”

Coleraine were one of three Irish Premiership clubs to miss out on progression to the next stage of the funding process, along with Crusaders and Portadown.

League of Ireland side Derry City also missed out, while Institute and Limavady United were the other clubs from the north west of Northern Ireland not included in the list announced by Lyons on Thursday morning.

“Geographically, for me, the north west has been shafted again,” Higgins said.

“You might say it is sour grapes because of my connection to Coleranie Football Club and Derry City, but I’ll not talk about either – I’ll talk about Institute.

“If there’s one club that needed support it was them. For me, it’s an absolute disgrace.”

Higgins was referring to the loss of Institute’s home ground in Drumahoe, in 2017 after flash flooding left the stadium unusable with Japanese Knotweed.

Institute now play their home matches at Derry City’s Brandywell Stadium and Drumahoe is now being demolished.

Higgins said Stute had been “dealt the worst hand out of everybody” and felt the process was unfair.

“In 2017 they lost their ground through no fault of their own. It’s a brilliant football club run by brilliant people, and they’ve been absolutely trampled on from what I can see.

“They had a disaster eight years ago and they’ve been given no backing at all. That surprises me in one sense, but when you look geographically where they are based, it doesn’t surprise me at all.”

Speaking at the announcement of funding in Belfast on Thursday morning, before Higgins gave his reaction, Lyons said the location of clubs had not come under consideration.

“This hasn’t been done in terms of geography, it has been done in terms of need and other criteria that we set out,” Lyons said.

“Yes, you can look at the two big ones in Belfast but there are many others throughout Northern Ireland.”

O’Neill was left to lament some soft defending as a defensive mix-up allowed Amiri to pounce for Germany’s second, whilst he also questioned the awarding of the free-kick which Wirtz superbly dispatched.

“For 60 or 65 minutes we were well in the game. The second goal is a bit of a freak goal, we could have defended it better. The third goal isn’t a free-kick. It’s a fantastic finish but it’s a soft free-kick,” he explained.

“I thought the referee was a bit fussy in the second half. He refereed it well in the first.

“We were well in the game and needed to get to that final 15 minutes and we might have had a final chance, but the game drifted away from us.”

Northern Ireland sit second in Group A following a win and a defeat from their opening two games.

O’Neill believes his side are where they expected to be at this stage of qualifying, with two huge home games against Slovakia and Germany to come in October.

“It’s tough to play two games away from home,” he said. “We got what we hoped for, but we’re a bit disappointed it’s not a little bit more.

“We have to be ready to play back-to-back at home and we know two good results will put us in a good position.”

Ogbene, who has since made the switch to fellow Championship side Sheffield United, said he spent “a lot of hours getting to know my body” and “watching clips” to help him return physically and tactically sharper for pre-season this summer.

“Watching a lot of football for nine months, you learn a lot more. When you’re immersed in it it is 100 miles an hour and the stuff the manager says you don’t really understand but when you’re out of it and watching from the side it’s a really good education,” he explained.

“I spoke to John Egan and Gavin Bazunu, who had previous Achilles [injuries]. I spoke to them about their journeys so I made sure I put those things in my rehab early, and I had a very smooth and successful rehab.

“I’m so glad it has paid off I had a wonderful pre-season and my body has felt as fit and strong as it has ever been so I am excited.”

Ogbene will be hoping to add to his 24 caps for the Republic of Ireland in this international window as they begin their World Cup qualifying campaign.

They host Hungary on Saturday in Dublin before travelling to face Armenia on Tuesday and Ogbene is targeting two wins to help them get their Group F campaign off to a flying start.

“I hope everyone goes in with the mentality that we want to get six points. That’s how the manager sees it and that’s how I see it. I want us to get six, minimum four but I don’t want to sit here and say I want four points,” Ogbene added.

“I think we can beat Hungary if we do the right things and we can beat Armenia. The way the guys are training, we want six points.

“I’m very happy with what I saw [in training] and I have a really good feeling about this camp.”

Women’s Rugby World Cup – Pool C: Ireland v New Zealand

Venue: Brighton & Hove Albion Stadium Date: Sunday, 7 September Kick-off: 14:45 BST

Coverage: Live on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer from 14:30, BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra from 14:30 and BBC Radio Ulster and Foyle from 14:00; also live with text commentary on the BBC Sport website.

Ireland head coach Scott Bemand says he is “confident” Aoife Wafer will be ready for a World Cup quarter-final after resisting the urge to include her for Sunday’s final Pool C game against New Zealand in Brighton.

The back row is yet to feature in the competition because of pre-tournament knee surgery and although she was considered for Sunday’s game against the defending champions, the Irish camp has erred on the side of caution.

Bemand confirmed there was a temptation to introduce the Wexford woman for the meeting with the Black Ferns, but with either France or South Africa to come next week, having the Women’s Six Nations player of the tournament ready for then takes priority.

“All the way through there has been a bit of a plan around Aoife, from the very beginning to her joining up with the group a couple of days after we arrived, and everything is tracking and trending,” Bemand said.

“Aoife is back in training, she’s doing well, and she’s desperate to be involved.

“We considered picking her this week, but we’ve made a decision as her best opportunity and the team’s best opportunity, is to go hard in training again next week and we’ll see where that stands us for the following week.

“I’m really confident and if you look in her eyes you can see she is really confident as well.”

Northern Ireland’s Tom McKibbin says he has “no regrets” over joining LIV Golf.

McKibbin made the switch to Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII LIV team despite securing his PGA Tour card in November.

Alongside Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton and Caleb Surratt, the 22-year-old helped Legion XII win the teams’ title and had a best individual finish of joint-fourth place.

“I’m very glad, I’ve enjoyed it a lot. I’ve learnt a lot and I feel like my game has improved a lot,” McKibbin told BBC Sport NI ahead of the Irish Open at the K Club.

“I’ve no regrets. I love being there, and being able to come and play some events over here is really good as well.”

After signing up to the lucrative LIV Golf, McKibbin says he is “fortunate” to be a multi-millionaire at only 22 years of age.

However, while he says the financial aspect of the Saudi-backed golf league is a plus, his motivation when he steps out on the tee is to try and win.

“With how golf is now, there is a lot of money around it. To be part of it and be able to benefit from it is good, but I want to let my golf do the talking and that’s more important,” he said.

“I want to win more. It is life-changing and to be fortunate enough to have that is nice, but hopefully I can get a few more wins.”

McKibbin is eligible to play at the Irish Open as the conflict between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf has yet to be resolved.

That meant he has been able to retain his DP World Tour membership while playing under the LIV banner.

The Holywood golfer says he hopes there is a resolution so he can continue to play at the Irish Open and other tournaments in the coming years.

“I think everyone just wants it to work out and play together,” said McKibbin.

“We’re all hopeful it can happen, so hopefully this isn’t my last one [Irish Open] for a while.

“I’ve still got membership and status here, and I’d love to play whenever I can. It’s good to come back to events like this.

“There’s some big tournaments and national Opens to play. I want to try and win those, so there’s definitely something important for me still here.”

Wales knew that the opening game against Scotland would likely decide their World Cup fate.

A disappointing 38-8 defeat left an uphill task to qualify for the knockout stages, and a win on Saturday over the world’s number two ranked side Canada was required.

Sean Lynn, who took over as Wales head coach before this year’s Women’s Six Nations, made seven changes to his starting XV.

Wales’ front row had average age of just 20, with back rower Branwen Metcalfe, 18, also making her Test debut from the bench.

Despite falling to a 42-0 defeat by one of the World Cup favourites, Lynn’s youthful side showed plenty of green shoots to work with moving forward.

“I am glad the Wales women showed their respect for the jersey and the effort they are willing to put in,” former Wales captain Philippa Tuttiett told BBC’s Rugby Union Weekly.

“If you bring that to Sean Lynn with his coaching prowess then he will be able to move forward with that team.”

However, Wales must first keep an eye on the emerging nations behind them, with Fiji, who are ranked four places below them in 14th, likely to offer a tough final pool game on Saturday in Exeter.

Spain, ranked 13th, suffered a 43-27 defeat by Ireland on Sunday and are another side that are showing signs of progress.

“Let’s put Spain in the Six Nations,” former England captain Maggie Alphonsi told BBC Sport.

POP royalty Anastacia has revealed she’s returning to the UK and Ireland for a huge new tour.

The singer, 56, will play nine dates in September 2026 as part of her #NTK tour next year, with European dates to be announced soon.

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This marks Anastacia’s return to London’s OVO Wembley Arena after last performing at the venue 22 years ago.

The upcoming tour will see the performer descend upon Belfast, Dublin, Glasgow, Manchester and Wolverhampton.

She will conclude her tour dates with three shows in Cardiff, London and finally Brighton.

Fans will be pleased to know that tickets will go on sale at 10am on Friday, 5 September via anastacia.com/live.

The American-native, who appeared on The Masked Singer announced the exciting news today on her Instagram as she posted the official tour poster.

She penned: “We’re coming back in 2026 with the #NTK Tour starting in the UK and Ireland. Europe dates to come soon.”

Loyal fans flocked to the comments section to share their excitement as one enthused: “Wembley Arena is where I saw Anastacia for the first time in 2005.”

Another fan commented: “I’m so happy that you are coming to Cardiff next year, my hometown and of course I’ll have to go to Wembley, the place I saw you live for the very first time.”

Someone else said: “Yes!!!! The tour that keeps on giving. The best celebration for an album ever,” and a fourth added: “Time to buy my first flight for the UK.”

Speaking about the upcoming shows, Anastacia, who revealed why she not to have children, said: “This tour is such a special moment for me.

“Returning to Wembley after so many years feels like coming full circle—and I can’t wait to celebrate these songs with the fans who’ve been on this journey with me since the very beginning.”

The Strictly Come Dancing star appeared on This Morning today and spoke to Rylan Clark and Josie Gibson about her 2026 tour.

She expressed: “Three weeks from now I will have done 70 shows this tour this year. I’m super grateful for it because it’s the 25th anniversary and you know it just seemed like people were really up for celebration and every crowd, every country was super excited about being there.

“When I got to the number 25, I actually was like, wow, yeah, that’s kind of cool. I do feel there is a place, they’re still playing my music, they actually like my music still. I feel good about it.”

The tour comes as Anastacia celebrates 25 years since the release of her chart-topping debut album, Not That Kind.

She played an incredible 64 shows across the UK and Europe earlier this year as part of her sold-out, Not That Kind tour.

In September, she will head to Australia for four shows and to commemorate the milestone in her career, she has released a special anniversary edition of her debut album.

Anastacia began her career back in 1993 and has gained commercial success with huge hits over the years including I’m Outta Love, Paid My Dues and Left Outside.

 After releasing her first album in 2000, the icon has gone on to release seven further albums, with seven worldwide tours.

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