Both Ireland and Slovakia qualified for the final after finishing in the top two places of a group that also had Finland and Hungary. The winner of this final would qualify for the European Champions in Italy this year.

Frank Andrews needed to lift his team back up after a demoralizing defeat to Slovakia yesterday.

Privileged to be a part of the @baseballireland roster for the European Qualifiers in Bratislava.

Representing with pride and honour the country of my father and family.

Erin go bragh pic.twitter.com/HCyWQJyGzO

— Brendan Power (@BrendanPower22) June 30, 2021

Ireland (2) v Slovakia (12), Bratislava

Smithers was reinstated at pitcher, he brought back the form he had in the Finland game, claiming three strikeouts in the first round.

Ireland started brightly this time but couldn’t find a good bat after filling the bases. After the first inning, the game remained scoreless.

Jakub Izold caught a sweet single for Slovakia which was enough for them to get their first man home. Smithers’ game had a low point as he let the bases fill before they got another run from an error.

Another misunderstanding between Smithers and Tim Shea led to a third point for the Slovaks. Defensive woes continued as Slovakia managed the fourth point before the end of the second.

Ireland had no response with three outs leaving the score at 4-0 to Slovakia going in the top of the third.

Smithers and the defense steadied the ship holding their opponents out for the third inning.

In the fourth inning, Slovakia wanted more points on the board and a brilliant home run by Mario Brunograf (that may have smashed a neighbor’s window) added three more to the scoreboard. Slovakia finished with two more men home giving them a nine-point lead.

The Slovakians showed their defensive class to get a double knockout leaving Ireland scoreless again after the fourth inning.

The score was 9-0 to Slovakia after the fourth

The classy defending continued with six outs in a row between the teams in the fifth.

David Gallagher got the games first single in two innings when Mike McGee finally brought some Irish magic with a home run to get Ireland two points.

In the seventh inning, Ireland swapped in Brendan Scott at pitcher, but he couldn’t stop Slovakia getting a score on his first pitch. The Slovakian attack became relentless with them next grabbing a double for two more scores. Defensive mistakes re-emerged in the Irish with McGee now at pitcher and Slovakia finished the inning with a ten-point lead.

The score now 12-2 to Slovakia

Ireland would need scores in this eighth inning to keep this game alive. JP Dolan started with a single but that is all the Irish could muster.

With the deficit too much for Ireland to climb the game was called at the top of the eighth inning. Slovakia left as deserved winners with a score of 12-2, qualifying for the European Championships in Piemonte.

It was a sad end to a good tournament for Irish baseball

As Slovakia lifted the trophy, Ireland could only wonder what could’ve been after their two comfortable wins in the opening games.

To finish on happy note, Ireland’s Smithers won the award for best pitcher at the competition. Hopefully, Ireland can build on these performances to go one step further in the next tournament.

The post European Baseball: Irish hearts broken in final appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

Republic of Ireland captain Seamus Coleman will miss the pivotal play-off game against Slovakia on Thursday after picking up an injury in Everton’s win over the weekend. This is a blow for Stephen Kenny as Coleman has been in fine form since the season began. It is anticipated that Matt Doherty, who didn’t feature in Spurs’ memorable 6-1 win over Manchester United, will retain his spot in the team.

Despite Sheffield United losing their fourth game of the season, David McGoldrick scored a terrific consolation goal against Arsenal. It was the Blades’ first goal of the new campaign. Enda Stevens and John Egan also featured in the game.

A fine finish from David McGoldrick. pic.twitter.com/e7qiiXy0n1

— Sheffield United (@SheffieldUnited) October 4, 2020

Jeff Hendrick, Aaron Connolly, James McCarthy and Callum Robinson all started for their respective clubs. All four players will be eager to play their part on Thursday evening.

Championship

In the Championship Sean Maguire scored his first of the season as he netted Preston North End’s fourth goal in a comfortable win. Alan Browne captained the side. Maguire, who has yet to feature under Stephen Kenny, will be hoping to continue this form in front of goal if he wants to be a part of Kenny’s plans.

Adam Idah is finding it hard to push Teemu Pukki out of the side at Norwich City. He came on with a half an hour left on the clock but struggled to make an impact against Derby County. In contrast, Jason Knight enjoyed his afternoon as his Derby team ran out one nil winners.

The Irish youngster has continued his impressive form this season after his emergence onto the scene last year. Although he will have to settle for a place in the in the U21 squad for now, his eyes will be firmly fixed on the senior team. Derby boss Phillip Cocu was over the moon with Knight’s performance: “How Jason Knight played today, especially for his age, was excellent.”

Blackburn Rovers’ Darragh Lenihan has also been forced to withdraw from the squad due to injury. Kevin Long and Cyrus Christie have been called in to replace both Lenihan and Coleman.

Scottish Premier League

Shane Duffy grabbed an assist and a clean sheet for Celtic as they beat St. Jonhstone with two late goals. The Scottish champions have not conceded a goal in five out of their last seven games since Duffy arrived in Glasgow. They play Rangers after the International break.

The post Greenwatch – Injury Blow for Seamus Coleman appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

Slovakia & Newcastle United goalkeeper Martin Dubravka has been ruled out action for at least a month. He sustained a knee injury in last Saturday’s 1-0 win away to Southampton. The Slovak FA also confirmed last week that the upcoming playoff against Ireland on Thursday 26th March will now be played behind closed doors as part of attempts to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

Dubravka sustained the injury in a clash with Southampton striker Danny Ings. The game was halted in the 59th minute as the keeper received treatment. However, he played on for the full 90. An assessment after the game showed the knock was more serious than first thought.

The 31-year-old Newcastle United keeper has nailed down the no.1 spot at St.James Park since his move from Sparta Prague in January 2018.

Italian problem

Head coach Pavel Hapal also has concerns about the availability of his Italian based players. Seven of his squad play with Italian clubs. Two of his squad were due to face each other last week. Stanislav Lobotka’s Napoli side were due to play Milan Skriniar’s Inter in the Coppa Italia semi-final on Thursday last. That fixture was postponed. Last weekend’s Serie A fixtures were played behind closed doors. All fixtures have since been cancelled in Italy.

Hapal will await further developments in Italy with interest. The availability of his Italian based players has been cast into further doubt today. Roma were not permitted to travel to Spain for their Europa League clash with Sevilla. Inter Milan’s tie at home to Getafe is also off.

There are currently 10,000 confirmed cases in Italy. The country has entered a strict lockdown. In Slovakia, there have only been  10 confirmed cases to date. The European Championship play-off against Ireland in the National Football Stadium in Bratislava will now be played behind closed doors. The decision was made by the Slovak Football Association in conjunction with Governmental advice.

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