A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Uefa voices Euro 2011 concerns
UEFA still have significant misgivings over the transport network in host countries Poland and Ukraine ahead of next summer’s European Championship.
With the tournament starting on June 8th in Warsaw, Uefa’s operations director for the tournament, Martin Kallen, has voiced concerns over the amount of work still to do.
He said: “There is still major work to be done in the next three to four months, especially in transport, from the airports to the stadiums and to the city centres.
Poland’s motorway network remains a problem, with Kallen noting: “They are still building north-south and west-east motorways, and some projects will not be finished.
Ukraine provides a different challenge due to the length of the journeys involved and Kallen said: “The worst situation is in Donetsk. We are working with Ukraine’s deputy prime minister and the mayor of Donetsk to arrange charter flights from Kiev to those matches.”
Brennan to stay as Galway boss
GALWAY United have confirmed John Brennan is to stay on as manager permanently. The former United player took temporary charge of the side towards the end of the campaign as it was rooted to the foot of the Premier Division in the hope he could inspire them to a play-off success.
In the end, they lost both legs to Monaghan United and are relegated as a result but the club’s management committee has made it clear they want Brennan to oversee the rebuilding of United’s first team structures and the development of a squad that will be more rooted in the local community.
BOHEMIANS will hold an EGM at St Peter’s School, just beside Dalymount Park, this evening where the board will update members on the club’s financial position and, it hopes, be authorised to progress with moves to sell the ground.
King adds Kearns to Under-21 squad
REPUBLIC of Ireland under-21 head coach Noel King has named his squad for the forthcoming Uefa Championships qualifier against Liechtenstein at The Showgrounds, Sligo (Monday, 7.30pm).
The Ireland boss has stuck with the majority of the squad that featured in the 4-1 win over the same opponents in Eschen last month. Shrewsbury Town striker James Collins hit a hat-trick in that tie, with Shane Duffy also on target.
Peterborough United winger Daniel Kearns has been added to the squad that will be bidding to secure their third victory in four games in Group Seven. Turkey currently top the table with 12 points from five games.
Tickets (€5 for adults and €2) for children are available from today at The Showgrounds.
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND ( v Liechtenstein): McLoughlin (MK Dons), McCarey (Wolves), Oyebanjo (York) , Duffy (Scunthorpe), Kiernan (Wigan), Cunningham (Notts Forest), Connolly (Bolton), Gunning (Dundee Utd), Towell (Hibs), White (Leeds), Barton (Preston), Clifford (Yeovil), Hendrick (Derby), Brady (Hull), Greene (Sligo), Kearns ( Peterborough), Collins (Shrewsbury), Sheppard (Shamrock Rovers)
Neymar signs three-year deal at Santos
BRAZIL striker Neymar will stay at Santos until 2014, the year his country stages the World Cup finals, the teenager said yesterday.
The gifted 19-year-old has rejected offers from big European clubs, notably Barcelona and Real Madrid, to stay at home and become one of the world’s richest footballers.
“I’m very happy, it’s another decision I’m taking in my life, a family decision, Neymar told a news conference where he was handed a Santos shirt with the number 2014 on it.
Local media said Neymar would earn around €15.2 million a year.
Neymar, who helped Santos win the elite South American Copa Libertadores this year, said his form and that of his club helped with his decision to stay in Brazil.
Cork's Dunne agrees new deal
TOMMY Dunne has signed a new three-year contract as manager with first division champions Cork City “To be asked to stay with the club as we go into the Premier Division is something I really wanted,” he said last night, “and I’m really looking forward to it.
“It is important that we enjoy what we have achieved, we worked hard for it; but we have to know now that we will have to work even harder to give ourselves an opportunity to compete in the Premier Division.”
He added: “I know that everyone involved in the club is ambitious and wants our club to be competing at the top end of Irish football, so we need everyone to be doing their job to best of their ability to get us there.”
Newcastle to change stadium's name
NEWCASTLE have announced St James’ Park is to be renamed the Sports Direct Arena as part of a plan to sell the naming rights to their famous stadium.
The club hope to follow fellow Premier League sides Arsenal and Manchester City by licensing the naming rights to the ground which has been their home since 1886.
St James’ Park, which has a capacity of over 52,000, could join the Emirates Stadium and the Etihad Stadium in adopting the name of an external backer if the plans announced yesterday come to fruition.
Until the club can find a sponsor to buy the naming rights the ground will be named after owner Mike Ashley’s sports retail company.
Newcastle originally planned to allow sponsors to link their brand to St James’ Park but that idea, put forward in 2009, is now replaced by the offer to purchase full naming rights.
Aa shirt sponsorship deal might also be available to any company taking on the naming rights.
