Summary

  • North West 200 set to be cancelled

  • Ireland tour to Zimbabwe called off

  • Belfast Marathon postponed to September

  • Coronavirus could end O'Neill's tenure as NI boss early

  • NI and Republic play-offs move closer to being postponed

  • All sport in Republic of Ireland called off

  1. Irish cricket Zimbabwe tour in doubtpublished at 15:38 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Cricket Ireland have postponed all training sessions until 29 March.

    They have also said an immediate assessment of Ireland's white ball tour of Zimbabwe will be made.

    Ireland are currently scheduled to face Zimbabwe in three T20s and three ODIs next month.

  2. Slovakia request postponement of Republic play-offpublished at 14:57 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Slovakia have made a request to Uefa to postpone the Euro 2020 play-off semi-final on 26 March because of the coronavirus oubreak.

    It mirrors the request made by Bosnia-Herzegovina earlier on Thursday to postpone their play-off against Northern Ireland on the same date.

    Northern Ireland will host the Republic in the play-off final if they both progress.

    Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthyImage source, Inpho
    Image caption,

    Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy

  3. GUI and ILGU issue advice to all golf clubspublished at 14:40 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Ireland's two largest golfing bodies have issued a joint statement, noting that: "golf is a great sport for people generally to get out and about, exercise and enjoy fresh air. It is played in an outdoor setting where the risk of contracting COVID-19 is low."

    However they have issued guidelines to all clubs as to how they should aim to keep their members and staff safe:

    -The older age profile of golf club memberships than of the general population must be borne in mind

    -Groups having close and prolonged contact should be avoided

    -The social aspect of golf clubs should be curtailed, including limiting the potential for the following types of social interaction in accordance with the guidelines as issued today.

    -Siren starts with people congregating before and after are discouraged for the time being.

    -Prolonged near contact as may happen during Bridge nights, Choir practices and other clubhouse-based activities is to be avoided.

    -Visitors either require some form of screening or should be discouraged for the time being.

    -Society bookings where food and social interaction is involved afterwards should be limited in accordance with the latest guidance issued by

    -Common courtesies – handshakes and other embraces associated with the etiquette of the game – should be avoided and participants may bump elbows or fists as an alternative.

    -Social meals for groups in the clubhouse, including at inter-club matches, should be avoided.

    The following events have been cancelled:

    All GUI Inter-Club Matches scheduled on or before 29th March

    Ulster Regional Series 22nd March at Ballyliffin

    Ireland Boys v Wales at Cardigan (Wales), from 20-21 March

    General view of golf shoesImage source, BBC Sport
    Image caption,

    General view of golf shoes

  4. GAA suspends all activitypublished at 14:20 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    The GAA has suspended all activity at club, county and educational levels until 29 March (inclusive).

    The blanket ban will come into effect at midnight on Thursday and is in response to government advice designed to combat the coronavirus outbreak.

    Taoiseach Leo Varadkar advised that outdoor gatherings of over 500 people, and indoor gatherings of over 100, should be cancelled until 29 March.

    "This is to include all games, training and team gatherings at all ages and all grades," the GAA said in a statement.

    "We will continue to liaise with Government officials and review the situation between now and the end of the month, assessing the impact of these measures on our competitions.

    "In the meantime, the Association is encouraging all members to continue to follow the guidelines which have been provided by the health authorities."

    GAA suspends all activityImage source, BBC Sport
    Image caption,

    GAA suspends all activity

  5. Motorsport Ireland suspends eventspublished at 14:19 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Motorsport Ireland is calling off all events for 12-29 March.

    The West Cork Rally, which was set to take place this weekend, is among the events to be postponed.

    The event was to incorporate the Irish Tarmac Championship and British Rally Championship, and organisers will work with Motorsport Ireland to try and rearrange the rally for later in the year.

    "The West Cork Rally and Cork Motor Club will always put safety and the well being of the public first and while it is unfortunate that we have had to make this decision at such a late stage, the CMC team believe it the right thing to do" said clerk of the course Steve Davis.

    Rally carImage source, Inpho
    Image caption,

    Rally car

  6. Derry boss against playing behind closed doorspublished at 13:35 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Derry City manager Declan Devine says playing League of Ireland matches is not the answer.

    Media caption,

    'Football is less important than the health of our people' - Devine

  7. Down Royal St Patrick's Day meeting to be held behind closed doorspublished at 13:31 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Down Royal Racecourse management team has announced its intention to run the St Patrick’s Day race meeting, scheduled for Tuesday 17th March, behind closed doors.

    The decision has been made following today’s announcement’s regarding the spread of the Coronavirus.

    Emma Meehan, Chief Executive of Down Royal Racecourse said: “We apologise for any inconvenience caused; however the health and safety of racegoers is our priority. Only runners, riders and trainers will be in attendance, with turnstiles closed to racegoers.

    Ticketholders will automatically receive a full refund within 14 working days.”

    General view of Down Royal RacecourseImage source, BBC Sport
    Image caption,

    General view of Down Royal Racecourse

  8. Derry City v Sligo Rovers is OFFpublished at 12:15 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Friday night's League of Ireland fixture between Derry City and Sligo Rovers at the Brandywell has been postponed.

    It follows advice from the Irish government that outdoor gatherings of over 500 people should be cancelled until 29 March.

    Derry City v Sligo RoversImage source, BBC Sport
    Image caption,

    Derry City v Sligo Rovers

  9. Sporting events in the Republic of Ireland to be hit by government measurespublished at 11:52 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Sporting events in the Republic of Ireland are to be hit by new restrictions imposed by government in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

    Taoiseach Leo Varadkar advised that outdoor gatherings of over 500 people, and indoor gatherings of over 100, should be cancelled until 29 March.

    Breaking news
    Image caption,

    Breaking news

  10. Bosnia ask Uefa to postpone game with Northern Irelandpublished at 11:24 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Bosnia-Herzegovina have made a request to Uefa to postpone the home Euro 2020 play-off semi-final against Northern Ireland on 26 March.

    It was expected that the game in Zenica would be played behind closed doors because of coronavirus but the Bosnian FA now want the game to be called off.

    Ticket sales for the game have been postponed but hundreds of NI fans have made travel plans to attend the match.

    Read more here

    Northern Ireland manager Michael O'NeillImage source, inpho
    Image caption,

    Northern Ireland manager Michael O'Neill

  11. WEC round cancelled after Trump banpublished at 10:22 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    Following the announcement made by President Trump of a wide suspension of travel by non US citizens from Europe to the USA, the Sebring 1000 endurance race has been cancelled.

    Northern Ireland's Charlie Eastwood and Andrew Watson were due to compete in the World Endurance Championship round for Aston Martin and Porsche on 20 March.

    "Given the large number of drivers, team staff and officials who are still in Europe and who were scheduled to travel to the USA in the coming days, it would not be possible or appropriate to stage the race in their absence," said a WEC statement.

    Eastwood sits second in the GTE Am standings with two rounds remaining of the 2019/20 season, which concludes at Le Mans in June.

    Action at Sebring International RacewayImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Action at Sebring International Raceway

  12. First GAA fixtures called offpublished at 10:21 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    This weekend's Giles Cup, a third-level ladies football competition, has been suspended because of coronavirus.

    They are the first GAA fixtures to be postponed because of the outbreak.

    "Due to the higher than average cases confirmed from the regions of the competing colleges, and the need to limit the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19), the Ladies Gaelic Football Higher Education Committee has had to suspend the 2020 Gourmet Food Parlour Giles Cup, scheduled for Kerry this weekend, until further notice," said the Ladies HEC.

    "This has not been an easy decision and we have taken every possible advice from official authorities but our inability to be able to facilitate these Giles Cup games in a controlled manner is just a risk too great for us to take."

    All other GAA matches scheduled for the weekend are going ahead at present.

    GAA flagImage source, Inpho
    Image caption,

    GAA flag

  13. European Rally Championship postpones openerpublished at 08:35 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2020

    The opening round of the European Rally Championship has been postponed due to fears over the spread of coronavirus.

    Northern Irish duo Callum Devine and Brian Hoy were set to compete at Rally Azores from 26-28 March, however local government has postponed all events before 31 March.

    A new date has been submitted to the FIA for approval.

    Claudy's Devine and co-driver Hoy claimed a podium on their ERC R5 debut last season and will compete in a full campaign this year.

    Callum Devine will have to wait for the start of the European Rally ChampionshipImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Callum Devine will have to wait for the start of the European Rally Championship

  14. Spanish World Superbike round postponedpublished at 23:01 Greenwich Mean Time 11 March 2020

    World Superbike organisers have revealed that the Spanish round of the series, scheduled for Jerez from 27-29 March, has been postponed until 23-25 October.

    Fears over the spread of the coronavirus had already led to the postponement of the Qatar round scheduled for this weekend.

    Meanwhile the French round of the championship, which was to be staged in late September, will now take place on the first weekend in October.

    Read the story here.

    Phillip Island actionImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Action from the first round of the WSB series at Phillip Island in Australia

  15. Basketball Ireland suspends matchespublished at 22:00 Greenwich Mean Time 11 March 2020

    Basketball Ireland announce that they are instructing all affiliates to suspend all basketball competitions and events with immediate effect.

    "The health and safety of the Basketball Ireland community is our priority and we are determined to be proactive regarding precautions to limit the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19)," read their statement.

    General view of BasketballImage source, Inpho
    Image caption,

    General view of Basketball

  16. FAI establish 'steering group' to monitor Covid-19 developmentspublished at 17:13 Greenwich Mean Time 11 March 2020

    The Football Association of Ireland have set up a group to help monitor the potential impact of the coronavirus on the League of Ireland.

    The FAI met with the National League Executive Committee and the Professional Footballer’s Association of Ireland in Dublin on Wednesday to discuss the impact of a possible shutdown on domestic football.

    An FAI spokesman said: “Today’s meeting was a productive one and allowed us all to focus on the situation facing our National League clubs and players.

    "We discussed at length our serious concerns around Covid-19 and began to develop a contingency plan to help our clubs during this potentially difficult time.

    “We are currently gathering all financial data and working with the clubs and the players on the financial implications they face. Once we have a true understanding of this, we will be approaching Government and UEFA on behalf of the clubs to seek their support.”

    FAI Headquarters in AbbotstownImage source, Inpho
    Image caption,

    FAI Headquarters in Abbotstown

  17. GAA fixtures as yet unaffectedpublished at 16:05 Greenwich Mean Time 11 March 2020

    The GAA has confirmed to RTÉ Sport , externalthat it is "continually monitoring" the situation with regards to coronavirus.

    As of now, all of this weekend's GAA fixtures will go ahead as scheduled.

    Gaelic footballImage source, Inpho
    Image caption,

    Gaelic football

  18. League of Ireland clubs meeting on Wednesday afternoonpublished at 14:55 Greenwich Mean Time 11 March 2020

    League of Ireland clubs are meeting in Dublin this afternoon to discuss the potential impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the current season, according to the Irish Examiner, external.

    At the time of writing, no League of Ireland fixtures have been postponed.

    However, clubs are set to discuss the impact of potential restrictions on public events, which would have major financial implications on clubs who rely on gate receipts to generate income.

    It is believed that the idea of playing games behind closed doors and postponing the League of Ireland season will be discussed at the meeting.

    Derry City, who will be represented in Dublin, are at home to Sligo Rovers on Friday night.

    Derry City's Brandywell Stadium is set to host Friday night's League of Ireland clash between the Candystripes and Sligo RoversImage source, Inpho
    Image caption,

    Derry City's Brandywell Stadium is set to host Friday's match between the Candystripes and Sligo Rovers

  19. Bonner would be 'surprised' if GAA Championship isn't impactedpublished at 14:34 Greenwich Mean Time 11 March 2020

    Speaking ahead of Saturday's Division One clash with Tyrone, Donegal boss Declan Bonner admits he would be surprised if the coronavirus situation didn't impact this summer's Championship schedule.

    “You just don’t know [if the Championship will be impacted], but it looks like it’s going to get worse before it gets better, that’s for sure," said Bonner.

    "You’d be surprised if it didn’t have some impact on it to be quite honest, but it’s out of our control, we just have to get on with it and that means the match against Tyrone.

    “Just like everything else, you take it day-by-day. I think as far as this weekend’s games are concerned, they’re OK, but it’s very difficult to know.

    "There are a lot of sporting events cancelled, and the St Patrick’s Day parade has been cancelled, so there is a lot of stuff going on at the minute. I’m sure the GAA is in constant talks and I’m sure they’re looking at it on a daily basis."

    Donegal manager Declan BonnerImage source, Inpho
    Image caption,

    Donegal manager Declan Bonner

  20. NW200 monitoring developments 'on a daily basis'published at 14:26 Greenwich Mean Time 11 March 2020

    North West 200 Race Director Mervyn Whyte says he is monitoring developments and receiving advice from health experts "on a daily basis".

    Whyte says as it stands the event remains on but he is in regular contact with the Public Health Authorities and the Chief Medical Officer.

    Read more here

    Media caption,

    North West 200: Race will go ahead until "we're told opposite" - Whyte