ANDY FARRELL says he and his players need to do better as the Lions were tamed by Argentina.

Ahead of their departure for Australia, the Lions bounced back from conceding 10 points in the final minute of the first half with two second-half tries only to be caught by a sucker punch.

Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

And Farrell was not willing to give himself or the squad a free pass because of a lack of time together with 13 players – 10 of them from Leinster – not considered because they were in club action last weekend.

On his own performance, Farrell said:  “Obviously not good enough. I always take full responsibility, that’s my role.

“It doesn’t matter what department, I’m in charge of the job lot so it obviously wasn’t good enough and I need to do better.

“We made it a tough game, didn’t we?

“Obviously the first and appropriate thing to say is congratulations to Argentina, they thoroughly deserved to win the Test match.

“They capitalised very well on the back of quite a  few errors from us. Congratulations to them. I’m sure that’s a huge moment in Argentinean history.

“But the whole story of the game is that we compounded too many errors. We need to do better than that. 

“The Lions players, good players coming together, of course we ask a lot of them, and maybe we put too much pressure on the side because it certainly looked like we were a little bit disconnected at times.

“Look, we’ll review, and then we need to make sure that we get something positive from that because it’s all about how we move forward.

“You can single out one thing but it’s not just one thing, it’s a compounding of quite a few bits. The amount of balls that we threw blindly, either to the opposition or the floor, is probably a stand-out.

“If you combine that with the kicking game and the aerial battle and what is disappointing is those scraps on the floor from that type of battle, it always seemed to go to Argentina so there’s a bit of fight and hunger from them that we can’t accept.

“Then you combine stuff at the breakdown, the lineout or whatever, and it’s too much.

“We’re not sugar-coating anything because we need to be honest because if we’re not honest how do we gain trust with each other. We have to say it as it is.

“We expected to do better but we’re at where we’re at and we need to deal with that.”

‘HATE THAT’

Farrell bristled at the description of the first game being ‘out of the way’ ahead of their departure for Down Under. 

He said: “I hate that, ‘out of the way’. Honestly, losing hurts, especially in this jersey. So we need to find the solutions pretty quickly.

“Effectively you’ve got two sets of players that are on completely different timescales but that’s the nature of what’s ahead of us as well.

“You’ve got to deal with the jetlag first and foremost but then the games come thick and fast. It’s never going to be what we’re used to. I think the last couple of weeks sets us in good stead in terms of the rhythm, or the lack of it.”

Despite the disappointment, Farrell said some players had impressed, with props Finlay Bealham and Ellis Genge singled out, both for their work in the scrum and defensively.

He said: “I thought they had Argentina under the pump at times.

“I think some players will have done themselves proud and they will be hurting for the team because they’re all team players. Some people will be happy and some people won’t and will be dying to get another chance out there.”

Argentina coach Felipe Contepomi was chuffed with the win, particularly because his squad had limited time together, and reckoned the unusually hot Dublin weather helped them.

The former Leinster out-half said:  We had only two training sessions, and we had a lot of newcomers. I think the guys were fantastic.

“We had a really good week in training but also in believing. The weather helped a lot because the guys could drink mate on the terrace in St Helen’s, in the Radisson Blu.

“It’s an invitational game and the last time was 20 years ago and we just couldn’t beat them. We drew.

“Coming here 20 years later I think it’s incredible. We don’t know if we’ll ever again be invited or not to play a game like that but definitely for everyone who has been involved in this week it will be memorable.

“Sometimes you need to understand what motivates the other team, to understand how special it is.

“For us to play against the best of the best in these islands it’s nearly a dream, putting in that performance after two days, for me I take my hat off to the boys.”

A MONSTER who raped his victim while her son was in another room will be freed from prison this weekend.

The Irish Sun can reveal Gardai are on high alert after they were notified that John Connors, 41, from Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, is one of 14 sex offenders released this month.

Connors is being freed after completing a 10-month sentence he received for failing to notify Gardai of his address when he left prison in April 2024.

Under the terms of his release, he has to notify Gardai of his whereabouts.

But as he prepares for his release this weekend we can also reveal that he’s still classified as having ‘no fixed abode’.

It’s understood the Probation Services are working to find him a suitable place to live.

As part of his release conditions, he will also be placed on the sex offenders register for an “indefinite period”.

He’s also banned from trying to contact his innocent victim or any of her relatives.

Although he received a 14-year sentence in 2009 for a brutal rape, he’s also classified by Gardai as a ‘serial thief’.

He was released from prison in 2024 after serving a sentence for a series of thefts he committed in 2022.

A senior prison source said: “Connors is a serial offender and was behind a lot of thefts when he was released from his rape conviction.

“He’s due out in a matter of days but still hasn’t provided Gardai with any address.

“He always returns to Wexford each time he’s released from prison but it’s possible he could go somewhere else.

“Connors is a very difficult prisoner and he will probably end up in prison again because he just can’t help himself.”

Connors raped his victim in 2006 along with another man before he was caged in 2009.

They targeted the woman after calling to her house and claiming they were selling a camcorder.

BRUTAL ATTACK

At their trial in December 2008, their victim recounted how the two men forced their way into her home.

Her young child was in the living room when she was pushed into a bedroom and punched in the face.

She was pushed onto the bed and a piece of rope that was on the floor was wrapped around her neck.

The two men denied the rapes in court but were both unanimously convicted by a jury in the Central Criminal Court in 2008.

Connors was released in 2019 with residents objecting to his return to Enniscorthy in a series of protests.

CLARE hurling legend Davy Fitzgerald has said he is “proud” of his son for facing up to his gambling addiction and seeking treatment.

Colm Fitzgerald recently avoided jail after stealing €35,000 from his employer.

Ray McManus / SPORTSFILE

Brendan Gleeson

Speaking for the first time about his son’s case, Davy told how he “feels for” his 28-year-old lad who was given a suspended 12-month prison sentence earlier this month.

Colm had admitted stealing the money from his then employer, Bank of Ireland, to feed his “out-of-control gambling addiction”.

In an interview with The Irish Sun, Davy, 53, declared: “You feel for Colm. Gambling is an issue in society and I’m proud he went away and got rehab and has dealt with it.

“I don’t want to go into it too much but so far, so good. He’s ­trying very hard.

“There was a lot of stuff he had to go through but I’m proud of him. He would get a lot of stick and sometimes you have to take that. Sometimes you do things you shouldn’t do, you accept them and you move on.”

Last month a court heard how Colm, who had “no previous convictions”, was now engaged in a residential therapy programme run by the Bushypark Addiction Treatment Centre in Ennis, Co Clare, and he continues to attend regular meetings of Gamblers Anonymous.

The GAA manager and Ireland’s Fittest Family coach stressed the importance of talking through your problems with family and friends as he launched the Samaritans Away Day Games.

The Games are an outdoor pursuits-style competition for corporates and business to raise funds for the charity’s life-saving work.

Davy said: “The Samaritans do such a great job.

“I’ve spoken openly before about my own mental health struggles in the past and I truly believe in what the Samaritans do, giving people the time and a safe space to work through their problems.

“Speaking through your thoughts and having someone to listen, in confidence, is often what someone needs to see a way out.”

The GAA man admits he feels under pressure himself, being recognised on the street, but tells himself to ignore the negatives.

‘YOU’LL SNAP AT THEM’

He said: “I get both sides of it.

“You don’t mind nice people coming up to you who want to stop and chat. But you’ll meet the opposite as well. Someone who has a go and you’ll snap at them and regret it afterwards.

“That happened to me recently. Something was said. I didn’t like it and I thought there was no call for it.

“I reacted and I shouldn’t have. No matter what was said to me. I should have let it go.”

ACTION NEEDED

But the hurling manager and former player believes people have to face worse from online trolls.

Davy said: “I’ve no problem with people’s opinion but not when it gets personal. Stuff on social media can affect your family.

“I can’t believe there isn’t legislation there to stop it.

“It’s something I call on the Government to deal with. Freedom of speech is one thing but having a go at people just isn’t right. It’s tough when people online just want to attack you.”

CHARITY EFFORTS

Davy repeatedly stressed the importance of being able to talk to someone about a problem.

He has teamed up with adventurer Dane Galligan, his TV co-star from RTE series, Davy’s Toughest Team, to encourage workplaces to sign up for the Samaritans Away Day Games in which teams tackle physical and mental challenges.

The challenges include balance beams, monkey bars, and the ultimate test — the ‘Final Climb for Samaritans’ — a 12ft ramp featured on Ireland’s Fittest Family.

Michael P Ryan/Sportsfile

A police raid at a hotel in the Makkasan area of Bangkok has led to the discovery of a suspicious operation involving Chinese nationals, sparking fears of illegal activities. Acting on a search warrant, investigators from the Metropolitan Police Bureau uncovered a series of alarming findings that point to an underground phone trafficking network. The …

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OCEAN Colour Scene are working on new music which could become the band’s first album in 12 years, The Sun can exclusively reveal.

The popular British band has five top 10 albums to its name but hasn’t put out a full length release since 2013’s Painting.

That might soon change as frontman Simon Fowler has written three new tracks, one of which guitarist Steve Cradock has branded a “banger”.

In an exclusive interview with The Sun ahead of their performance at Godiva Festival, Cradock, 55, said: “Simon sent me three tunes, that’s what I’ve heard. I’ve demoed them up to a point where they sound f**king smart. There’s one banger, and there’s one interesting one.

“I mean, we haven’t done a record in like 11 years or something, we’ve been waiting for Simon to write for a long, long time.

“The Beatles wrote together for eight years. That sort of puts it into some kind of funk. From where I sit at the moment, it would be fun for us all to do it, I think.”

The group’s back catalogue includes singles The Day We Caught The Train and The Riverboat Song, both of which are currently getting play time during festival season.

Having released 10 albums to date, Cradock is content playing Ocean Colour Scene’s hits, of which there are many – 17 top 40 singles to be precise.

“I don’t think it would make a difference to gigs, if I’m honest,” he says of a new record. “Because we’ve kind of got what we are through all the albums that we did back in the day. And when we play festivals, we play the main singles that people know, obviously.

“I don’t see the point in being self-absorbed when you’re doing festivals. You’ve just got to play the songs that people hopefully will know. And leave it at that.

“It’s different for your own gigs. There’s many tunes that we can unearth. I think that those sort of fans would find it interesting.”

While he wouldn’t be drawn on a timescale for a new album, Cradock says the creative process could be very quick if material is right.

“If the songs are there, it wouldn’t take me long at all to produce it and to get it out.”

Away from Ocean Colour Scene, Cradock plays guitar for Paul Weller, a role he’s held since 1992.

Last year’s 66 featured in numerous best of 2024 lists and will be followed this July by the Modfather’s covers album, Finding El Dorado, featuring the likes of Robert Plant and Noel Gallagher.

“It’s beautiful, because you can see what a creative force Paul Weller is,” he says.

“That’s just what he does, and he’s a force of nature, and he’s a force of melody. When you’re in the studio, you see things happen just like that, in the instant, the second. And then, by the end of the day, something’s happened.

“There’s not many days that I’ve seen where people got that disappointed. To be around that creative process is great.”

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Cradock’s produced Paul Weller’s upcoming covers album[/caption]

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Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant contributed to the record[/caption]

Weller didn’t hang around, laying it down in just 10 days, and there were no egos in the studio despite the calibre of musicians involved.

Led Zeppelin frontman Plant turned up ready and willing to work like a regular session musician.

“He was prepared for it, like a working musician, not a rock god,” says Cradock.

“He was humbling and he played some beautiful harp. Then we asked if he would sing and he sang and it was just like, ‘wow’.”

Mod fan Cradock rejoiced in hearing Plant’s tales from his days before superstardom, particularly how he played a role in a notorious battle between two subcultures on the south coast.

“He told me he left the Black Country in ’64 on his hand-painted Lambretta, went down to Hastings and got involved in the mods and rockers fight and then drove back on his Lambretta.

“It blew my mind the fact that you’ve got this sort of rock icon who was originally a mod fighting the rockers.

“He was a gentleman and he’s a great singer and he’s really tuned in to what’s happening in that moment you know, a true professional, a G. He’s a f***ing G.”

Music fans can hear Plant do his thing when the record is released on July 25.

Godiva Festival takes place at Coventry’s War Memorial Park July 4-6

A HUGE TV presenter has celebrated her daughter’s graduation with a sweet post – but can you guess her famous mum?

The 56-year-old – who appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2019 – took to Instagram to share a snap of her daughter Lola Star in her gown and cap. 

Instagram

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Instagram

Michelle Visage wrote: “@lolastarvisage it’s your day. 

“You made it happen. ConGRADulations my princess. 

“Daddy and I are so proud of your strength and perseverance. Bring on the next chapter.” 

Away from her academic achievements, Lola has found huge success as a model and influencer on TikTok. 

She recently made a joke about her mother’s fame on the social media platform. 

Lola posted a video showing her staring straight at the camera as a cartoon laugh played out in the background.

In the text emblazoned across the slide, she wrote: “When people think it’s cool having Michelle Visage as a mother but they don’t realise it means your house is a shrine dedicated to her.”

Michelle was quick to reply: “As it should be!! Love you kiddo.”

RuPaul’s Drag Race star Michelle, 56, has two daughters, Lillie and Lola, with husband David Case.

The pair married in 1997 and have an open relationship.

AN ICONIC rock outfit have called time on their current line-up with a farewell London gig.

The Danish hitmakers, who formed in 1995, are famed for tracks including Satellites, She Came Home For Christmas and Special, have told how their final shows represent a “heartfelt thank you” to fans.

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An iconic rock band will play a farewell tour for fans in London[/caption]

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It comes after lead singer Jonas Bjerre announced he was quitting the band after three decades[/caption]

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Danish band Mew formed in 1995 and are known for tracks including including Satellites and She Came Home For Christmas[/caption]

Now Copenhagen-formed band Mew have told fans their show in the English capital is a chance to “experience Mew live one last time.”

It comes as original member Jonas Bjerre, 48, quit the band after 30 years, with his talent on-show at London’s Roundhouse on December 9.

The group, who have released eight studio albums, have stated: “In 2025, Mew celebrate 30 years of groundbreaking music with a special farewell tour – marking frontman Jonas Bjerre’s final performances.

“This tour is a heartfelt thank-you to the fans who have shaped their journey.

“Don’t miss this chance to experience Mew live one last time.”

He is also part of the band Apparatjik, alongside Bassist Guy Berryman from Coldplay.

ALL CHANGE

Singer Jonas formed In A Better Place band Mew alongside Silas Utke Graae Jørgensen, bassist Johan Wohlert, and guitarist Bo Madsen formed in 1995.

Johan then left the band for a period between 2006 and 2013.

The musician previously released a statement on his band exit.

He told fans: “Dearest Frengers.

“[2025] marks the 30th anniversary of Mew! It’s been quite a journey, that’s brought me and my lovely band mates on countless adventures, for which I am eternally grateful.

“And none of it could have happened if not for you Frengers and your support. This is something I’ve never taken for granted, and never will.

“For me, this journey will be coming to an end.”

He added: “I have come to the realisation that it’s time for me personally to embark on a different journey, and focus on other creative projects.

“I am so happy that we get to play these farewell shows, and that I get to go on one last trip with my dear friends and co-founders Johan and Silas, as well as the Doc and Mads Wegner.”

He finished off his message with the words “love Jonas.”

OPENING UP

Jonas recently opened up about what he missed the most from when the band first started out three decades ago.

In a candid interview he said: “I think one thing I miss about myself is when I was a kid I’d go into a record store and I’d just like put on records from whatever, if the cover was interesting to me or something, there would be room for anything inside of me like no matter what it was I would find something appealing in it almost.

“And now I think my mind’s a bit more closed off.”

He added to echoesanddust.com: “That’s something I’m working on, exposing myself to more things cause I used to do that all the time. I mean, when I was 14 myself and the guitar player went and watched Eraserhead by David Lynch.

“It’s a long and tough film to watch when you’re a kid, but we just sat through it and I think that exposing yourself to things that you might not immediately understand is something that you kind of lose a little bit with age, and I think that’s something you gotta keep working at.

“Because otherwise your mind will start just closing up.”

So that’s something which we try and do more and more, but as for the band, I think in the beginning the band was just really, everyone was so thrilled that we could make this noise together and when you get older you obviously put bigger demands on your work, it has to be more than that.

“So it gets harder and harder to satisfy yourself, musically. That can be tough sometimes, but I think it’s a necessary thing if you wanna keep growing and expanding the quality of what you do.”

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They will play at London’s Roundhouse on December 9[/caption]

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They have released eight studio albums[/caption]

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Jonas recently spoke out about what he missed the most compared to the band’s early days of fame[/caption]

Measles concerns have arisen for those returning from neighbouring countries, with young children particularly vulnerable to the disease and at higher risk of death. Measles is airborne, much like tuberculosis, and those at risk are advised to monitor symptoms closely. Doctor Jurai Wongsawat, a senior medical officer and government spokesperson for the Department of Disease …

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