JOE Redmond knows how important European football is to the St Pat’s supporters.
He remarked: “We always get great travelling fans. They sell out nearly every section we’ve got. However they get there, they get there.”
And this season is no different. The Saints had to request additional tickets for fans travelling to Lithuania for next week’s away leg with Hegelmann.
And how those who got the extra tickets will get there will be a magical mystery tour.
The direct flight to Kaunas that cost €700 last week is fully booked.
But the 210 fans who got the tickets will be at Richmond Park for tonight’s first leg more in hope than expectation given the Saints’ woes.
Sixth in the league, they have scored just one goal in their last six matches and have one win in their last nine.
It is a long way from the end of last term when Stephen Kenny’s men won nine in a row as they went from third from the bottom to third from the top to qualify for Europe.
But captain Redmond insisted that their performances are better than the results, so confidence is not affected too badly.
The defender, 25, said: “There is not a concern, we’ve got a lot of quality.
“We’re creating chances but we haven’t got the ball in the net. We know the ability we have.”
Boss Kenny has a similar view and believes their recent run is just a reminder that the club he took charge of 14 months ago is still a work in progress.
He added: “If everything was perfect I would not have been brought in in the first place.
“It didn’t look like much was wrong — we were flying — and we still had a lot to iron out. There is a level of frustration and it is unacceptable.
“I am hugely disappointed with that but I understand that everyone is giving everything. I know we have the capacity to score goals and we will do so.”
And he hopes Europe can be the catalyst for a strong finish to the year, just as it was last season when the Saints flew up the table by winning those final nine games.
He added: “The players worked so hard last year to come up from third bottom.
“It looked so unlikely at that stage. The reason we worked so hard to qualify for Europe is when you get there you want to make an impact.
“There’s no point in doing it and just getting knocked out. You have to show a level of ambition and we will have to fight hard over two legs to get through.”
But he insisted that Hegelmann — named after the German freight company who founded the club 16 years ago — are a team not to be underestimated.
They do not have much history having climbed the Lithuanian divisions and have one previous European appearance — a 5-0 loss to Macedonians Shkupi two years ago.
But they are second in their domestic league, are coached by Lithuanian legend Andrius Skerla and have a side with plenty of experience.
Kenny added: “Traditionally, Lithuanian teams would have been mainly Lithuanian players.
“But they obviously have good investment because they have two African forwards. The main one is from Cameroon. One starts and the other comes on.
“They’ve a Brazilian No 10, a Japanese left-back, a Serbian midfielder and a Ukrainian winger. So they’re a multi- national team.
“It’s a fairly new club overall and they’re going well in the league. They’re quite an attacking team. I don’t think this is going to be us getting on the ball and having waves of attack.
“I think this will be . . . they are quite an attacking team. They’ll try to control a lot. We’ll have to fight to earn the right to do that. We have worked so hard to get there. When you are in there, you have to make it count.”
A GOOD Morning Britain anchor has bid farewell to the show for WEEKS.
The much-loved ITV anchor made her announcement as Thursday’s episode wrapped.
Susanna Reid told viewers she is going on her “holidays” and would be back “for term time,” suggesting her comeback chimes with the September school term.
Her Good Morning Britain co-host Richard Madeley, 69, then waved in her face to which she replied: “I am still here!”
The mum of three’s final words to ITV viewers saw her announce: “I am off on my holidays but I will see you at the star of the new term.”
It is unclear who will replace her alongside Richard, and her regular co-anchor Ed Balls, yet Kate Garraway, Ranvir Singh and Charlotte Hawkins often step in.
Previously, Susanna has opened up on her “wild” summer getaways with her sons.
Opening up on her sun-soaked break in 2024, Susanna said: “This summer I took my boys to Ibiza.
“I have been going for ten years and it was amazing to really enjoy it with my boys now they are old enough to go clubbing.
“We go to the day clubs together and then I go back to the hotel and they go to the nightclubs!”
Susanna shares Sam, 21, Finn, 20, and Jack, 19 with her ex-husband Dominic Cotton.
Earlier this summer, commercial network ITV announced that it would make savage cuts to its daytime schedule from January 2026.
Yet it has come to light that GMB’s longstanding entertainment reporter Richard Arnold will retain his role.
It comes as some 220 workers on the flagship breakfast show, Lorraine, Loose Women and This Morning face redundancies as the channel streamlines operations.
The changes are part of ITV’s efforts to save money and reinvest in other programming areas.
Current presenters:
Former presenters:
As part of the restructure, Lorraine will be reduced to a 30-minute show whilst Good Morning Britain will be extended by 30 minutes.
Lorraine and Loose Women will air for only 30 weeks a year and GMB will be extended by another half an hour in the weeks where Lorraine is off.
As part of the changes, ITV announced that the production of the flagship breakfast show will be transferred to ITV News within the ITN base at London’s Gray’s Inn Road.
The Sun also exclusively reported how Susanna’s regular co-presenter Richard Madeley was also facing the axe before his crunch talks with show bosses.
LOVE Island fans think they’ve worked out one girl’s ‘game plan’ after she swerved villain status in last night’s Casa Amor recoupling.
During Wednesday night’s tense episode the Love Island villas were reunited following the iconic show twist.
And Emily Moran appeared to be stunned when Tommy Bradley returned from Casa Amor with Lucy Quinn.
But fans think the reason Emily was so upset was because her ‘plan’ backfired.
Tommy is a firm fan favourite this series and viewers were thrilled when Megan Forte Clarke was axed from the villa after dumping him for Conor Phillips.
Writing on social media, fans insisted Emily didn’t want to make the same mistake.
One said: “She knows Tommy’s a favourite and thought he’d be as loyal to her as he was to Megan.
“I think she thought if she recoupled she’d be the villain and she cares so much about being seen as a nice girl.
“IDK I thought her reaction was more frustration that her plan failed than heartbreak because she liked him so much.”
Agreeing, another replied: “Yeah I thought that.
“She saw what happened when Megan did Tommy dirty so if she had done the same and Tommy came back single, she knew she’d be done for.”
But Tommy could also be in for more heartbreak, if another fan theory is to be believed.
They’ve insisted Lucy was keen to crack on with him because she knew about his popularity with viewers and not because she fancies him.
One said: “Lucy gives big scammer energy, very keen to get to the main villa at all costs.”
And another added: “Lucy is just using Tommy as a ticket to the villa.”
A MUM left doctors shocked and confused after delivering a giant baby that was almost as big as her toddler.
Toni Lincoln, 33, delivered son Brayden by C-section at Broomfield Hospital on January 14, nearly two weeks before her due date.
The new born, Toni’s second child, was so large that doctors said he was the biggest baby ever delivered at the hospital, and the largest one the surgeon had ever seen.
Brayden, now six months old, is already in nine to 12-month-old clothing, soon to go into 12-18, and weighs 7.6kg.
She said the size difference between him and her first-born, Ellah, nearly three, who weighed 8lbs 8oz, is “crazy” – as the pair are two-and-a-half years apart but almost the same size.
Mum-of-two Toni, a cleaner, from Braintree, Essex, who weighed 7lbs 11oz herself as a new born, said: “We made history.
“We didn’t know he was going to be that big, it was such a shock.”
Doctors had estimated Brayden would weigh between 8lbs and 9lbs – so Toni and partner Alex, a factory worker, were stunned when he came out at almost 13lbs.
She said: “When they gave him to me I was like ‘I don’t know if it’s all the drugs I’m on or if I’m seeing things or is he huge?’.
“The doctors were like ‘yeah, he’s a little bit bigger than we anticipated.
Maybe a lot bigger, maybe 12lbs 9oz,’ and I said ‘sorry? What did you say?’.
“I couldn’t believe it.”
Although the couple had no idea just how big Brayden would be, Toni said she “knew something wasn’t quite right.”
She said: “I couldn’t walk at the end of my pregnancy, I couldn’t get out of bed and now I know why.
“I was carrying around an extra five stone. He was nearly a stone himself and then obviously the placenta and the fluid.
“I dropped 30 kilos when he came out.
“I felt like a different person.”
The couple had to buy all new clothes and nappies after Brayden arrived, and gave away everything they’d prepared – as he was so big he completely skipped new born sizing.
Toni said: “We had to go out and buy all new clothes for him, nappies, we had nothing.
He was literally a new born in 0-3 months clothes.
“My partner had to run out to Primark. He went straight into size one nappies and then into two a couple of days later.
“I gave all the clothes from friends and family to the hospital for other patients.
“I thought I was prepared. We bought 0-1 month and thought we don’t need 0-3 but little did I know.”
Toni was diagnosed with gestational diabetes, but doctors were confused as to the cause of his size.
She said: “They said it could be gestational diabetes but my sugars were actually better this time.
“My sugars were awful last time with my daughter and she was normal size.”
Doctors believe Brayden would have grown to 14lbs if he had gone full-term. He had to be pulled out by his hips and was born with talipes, where one foot was bent inward, a result of his position in the womb.
“They said if I had a natural birth he would have died because he was upside down,” Toni said.
Brayden was taken straight to neonatal intensive care, where he spent a week on oxygen due to low blood sugar.
Brayden was so big he couldn’t be seen clearly on a 36-week scan, and Toni said “every consultant from Broomfield” was in the delivery room for the six-and-a-half hour C-section.
“I had to have a very unusual scar,” she said.
“I’ve got a vertical scar instead of a horizontal one again, because of my problems last time. It all went a bit wrong so they wanted to be prepared.
“The surgeon said it was the biggest scar they had ever done. It comes all the way up to the top of my stomach. It’s massive – 32 centimetres.”
Toni says Brayden is now known as “the big baby” by hospital staff.
She said: “The surgeon said he was the biggest baby she has ever delivered herself in 20 years. And the consultant was like ‘he just walked out’.”
Even family didn’t believe it at first.
Toni said: “When I told my family how big he was they were like ‘don’t be silly’.
“I rang my mum, Sally, 59 and said ‘I’ve got something to tell you’. I showed her
and she said ‘oh my god!’.
“People keep joking he’s going to college soon.
“When him and my toddler lie down together, they look the same age.
“You wouldn’t think they were two years and four months apart.”
Meanwhile, she’s not the fist mum shocked by her baby’s unusual weight.
Chloe Sutton, 24, a fitness fan from Australia, said strangers call her baby a “Viking” – and even her stunned doctor hailed him a “unit”.
The mum revealed that her seven-month-old baby son is already half her size.
Elsewhere, a woman claims her baby is only four months old, but he’s ‘giant’.
Devon Nimon, who is from the US and gave birth earlier this year, explained that her son wears clothes for a one-year-old.
At Birth:
One month:
Three months:
Six months:
Nine months:
12 months:
These values represent averages and individual babies may vary. Always consult with a paediatrician for personalised information regarding a baby’s growth and development.
A BRITISH couple have been left furious at their hotel’s ‘unfair’ sunlounger rules – after being told off for being away for half an hour.
Jo and Martin were left shocked after they left their sunlounger for 30 minutes at their hotel and returned to find a warning card left on their towels.
Whilst staying at the four-star, £140-a-night H10 Salauris Palace in the resort town of Salou near Barcelona, in Spain, the couple noted how other guests had not received a warning despite leaving their sunbeds for several hours.
Jo said: “When you leave your sunbed for 30 minutes, yet others leave theirs for two plus hours and nothing gets done to them.
“Two-tier sunbed policing at the H10 Salauris Palace, Salou.”
A clip of the event, shared by the couple on TikTok, quickly went viral, wracking up over 235,000 views according to What’s The Jam.
One user commented on the video: “Thirty minutes? Hardly time to go for lunch before you need to come back.”
Another added: “At least somewhere with rules with sunbeds though, but probably should be after one hour.”
“I would place it on someone else’s,” another user then joked.
The couple, who had travelled from Belfast, also shared a video of the hotel’s sunbeds appearing to be fully ‘reserved’ in the morning.
Jo added: “Unless you get down to the pool at 6am, you won’t get a good location for your lounger.”
Someone then commented on the video: “We are in a five-star in Lanzarote and despite rules saying no allocating sun loungers, most have towels on by 8am.”
Known as ‘Grump’ online, Jo also complained about tourists using large pegs to keep their towels in place, especially on windy days.
She said: “What is it with these giant pegs on sunbeds that annoyed me so much?
“We survived without these for years before!”
However, many users disagreed with her in the comments noting how they are useful and even make a “sunbed look quite pretty”.
One user even confessed they were the “best fiver I ever spent”.
The H10 Salauris Palace has been approached for comment.
MORE than 1,700 sun loungers were recently removed from top beaches around Palma, as part of an anti-tourist backlash on the island of Majorca.
Palma’s government announced the plans, after locals complained they weren’t able to find a sunbathing spot.
Residents said they struggled to find space for their beach towels due to the large number of pay-per-use loungers and umbrellas.
The matter has not been helped by the fact that the island’s beaches are eroding, following poor weather over the last year.
Storms, rising sea levels and erosion have taken a toll on the six-kilometre-long Playa de Palma.
The number of sunbeds has already been reduced for 2025 and in 2026, the numbers will be even lower.
According to Bild, Playa de Palma is set to lose the most sunbeds – reducing 6,000 to 4,436.
Out of 2,503 parasols, 2,218 will remain.
In Cala Major, the number of sunbeds will decrease from 300 to 250.
Elsewhere in Palma’s coastal suburb of Ciutat Jardi, 12 of the 300 sun loungers will go and so will six parasols.
The at Cala Estància, in Can Pastilla, there will be only 132 sun loungers instead of 150 and 66 parasols instead of 75.
Other beaches are also looking to reduce sunbed and parasol numbers.
Holidaymakers have also been ridiculed for a ‘miserable’ new trick to secure coveted sun lounger spots in Spain.
Plus, a mum reveals her desperate sunlounger hogging attempt after getting up in the dark hours before pool opens.
WATCH: Yohan Agoncillo Stuns with Her Emotional Rendition of Tamia’s Hit Song YOHAN AGONCILLO – The eldest daughter of Judy Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo, Yohan, has left netizens in awe with her latest vocal performance. Yohan Agoncillo is beginning to make waves in the music scene. She recently impressed online viewers with her heartfelt ... Read more
The post Yohan Agoncillo Wows Netizens W/ Soulful ‘Officially Missing You’ Cover appeared first on PhilNews.
A MAJOR Irish motorway has shut due to an incident as drivers are urged to use a “different route” for their journey.
The crash occurred on the M7/N7 westbound between Junction 22 (N62) and Junction 23 Moneygall this morning.
All lanes have been affected.
And traffic bosses posted an update on social media warning that the “road remains closed” following the incident.
Posting on X, they said: “Incident Update: M7 Westbound, between J22 Roscrea and J23 Moneygall.
“Road remains closed. Diversion in place via Old Roscrea Road.”
Drivers were told that “significant delays” to their journey will likely occur and that they should consider a different route.
Elsewhere in the country, road users have been warned of delays on a busy motorway.
The M1 is a continuation of the busy M50 motorway and connects parts of Dublin city centre to areas further afield.
This morning, the thousands of commuters who use the road ever day have been urged caution following a multi-vehicle collision.
Traffic bosses reported the crash between Junction 5 Balbriggan (South) and Junction4 Donabate (8 kilometres south of the Stamullen area).
They said: “Delays to your journey will occur. Consider a different journey route or start time.
“When approaching the collision location, drive with caution, reduce your speed and obey instructions from emergency services.”
And on the M50 southbound is facing major delays this morning following an incident between Junction 4 Ballymun and Junction 6 M50/N3, Dublin.
But the incident has now been cleared, but drivers may still see some delays.
Traffic bosses also posted a congestion report on social media warning of some major delays on Irish roads.
Posting on X, they said: “Congestion Report: M50 Northbound: J7 – J6. M50 Southbound: J9 – J13.
“Delays on routes around Dublin: M1 (S) J7 – J4, N3 (E) J3 – J2 N4 (E) J2 – J1, N7 (E) J2 – J1a.
“Delay on routes around Cork: N40 (E) Jack Lynch Tunnel N28 Carrs Hill.”
And Irish Rail passengers are also facing disruptions this morning.
The issue arose following a temporary speed limit which is in place due to “engineering works” between Portarlington and Monasterevin.
Posting on X, they said: “Delays are expected on services arriving in Heuston this morning.
“6/8 minutes delays currently between Portarlington and Monasterevin.
“A temporary speed limit is in place due to engineering works in the area. Update to follow.”
In another update on social media, Irish Rail bosses said that a temporary limit is in place near Athy.
As a result of this, delays are expected on some routes heading to Heuston this morning.
They added: Update: 05:25am Galway to Heuston +8 minutes delayed.
“05:25am Limerick to Heuston +4 delayed. 5:55am Waterford to Heuston +6 delayed. 06:30 Carlow to Heuston +7 delayed.
“A temporary speed limit is in place near Athy. Earlier, a vehicle struck a bridge in the area. Services are moving on all routes.”
AXED Love Island contestant Megan Forte Clarke has revealed that show bosses refuse to tell them very basic information during filming.
Megan was dumped from the Island shortly after she found herself in a couple with Conor.
The pair realised they had a budding spark despite the fact she had grown very close to Tommy.
However, their romance in the villa was short-lived as she was soon dumped after being voted one of the least popular girls.
But since leaving Majorca, Megan has been spilling all on the many things that fans don’t see of what goes on behind the scenes.
In a new interview with Joe Baggs on his Not My Bagg podcast, she even revealed that Islanders are restricted from knowing certain basic information.
Bizarrely, Megan claims that the contestants are unable to know the temperature during their time on the show and are never informed by producers about how hot it is.
Speaking to Joe about filming in the heat, Megan said: “Well, we weren’t allowed to know the actual degrees.
“We knew nothing!”
In shock, Joe reacted: “What a strange bit of information to with hold!”
Megan said back: “But I can tell you that I was dripping in sweat.
“It was really un-sexy when we were trying to flirt with everyone.”
Megan’s admission came after she addressed rumours of a divide between the girls on this year’s show.
Many fans of Love Island have taken to social media as they claimed there may have been a clique within the Majorca villa.
On a thread titled ‘The Mean Girls trio – Meg, Megan and Helena’ on social media fan forum site Reddit, fans fumed that Meg, Megan and Helena were being respectful to the rest of the girls.
One viewer claimed: “I’m really not liking the bully-ish vibes coming from the cliquey trio of Meg, Megan, and Helena.
“They tried it with Shakira at the start, but she knew how to handle them.”
Addressing the claims with ITV’s The Rundown, Megan, insisted that the divide on-screen was not the same in real life.
Podcast host Daniel Ajose suggested that it seemed that “friendship groups were constantly beating each other.
Megan admitted: “Do you know what? Being in there, it doesn’t feel like that whatsoever.
“Of course, like, the girls have the ones they’d naturally gravitate towards, like, you’re just naturally close to people.
“It’s like school, everyone’s not like sisters holding hands. But that being said, in there doesn’t feel like that whatsoever.”
