Chris Donnelly

The violence surrounding the Northern Ireland- Poland match has taken on an added dimension with the news that up to a dozen homes (reputedly occupied by ethnic minorities) were targetted in the aftermath of the game. The earlier violence has been partially blamed by the PSNI on ‘Polish Nationals’ intent on causing trouble. As this article prior to the visit of Poland to Dublin for a friendly international last year illustrates, Polish supporters have earned an unenviable reputation for football …

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“I thought the game needed a little more excitement at that stage.”- Paddy Wallace on UTV Live tonight about ‘that’ last-minute penalty (highlights here for those wanting to continue basking in the glory of the moment.) Meanwhile, if you missed the second half of one of the greatest Irish sporting days in recent (and not so recent) days, follow the RTE link here to view the Bernard Dunne title fight. Chris Donnelly

An interesting historical document has just been released by the Bobby Sands Trust which reveals the mindset of the British government, particularly at the time of the intervention of the Irish Commission for Justice and Peace before the death of hunger striker Joe McDonnell in July 1981. It is an unpublished interview from 1986 with senior British official Sir John Blelloch who is quite dismissive of the ICJP and says, “I think they’d become in a sense drawn into a …

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Given that it’s St Patrick’s Day, MSNBC have clearly decided to lead with a story about the oul’ Sod- and it doesn’t paint a pretty picture. Under the banner headline ‘For many young Irish, first taste of hard times,‘ the most visited news website in the United States leads with a story which outlines the bleak economic vista facing the once roaring Celtic Tiger. Scroll further down the story and you’ll see a prominent link to a story about the …

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One of the features of the past week has been how the reaction to the killings in Lurgan and Antrim by Sinn Fein leaders has unnerved many of the party’s detractors- not least on Slugger. One thread in particular was notable for the strength of reaction from unionists to Turgon’s ‘traditional unionist’ take on the killings and the political response to them. Jim Allister, who possibly should have expected a higher profile throughout the past week to challenge the political …

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Before you sit down to watch Homer and Bart’s Irish episode exclusive tonight, don’t forget the Paddy’s Day sporting feast that is on offer today. With both Schools’ Cup Finals being screened on BBC (Gaelic football and rugby) and Crossmaglen Rangers’ latest All-Ireland final appearance going out on TG4, there is plenty for sporting aficionados to enjoy. Former Instonian Stephen Nolan is currently goading rival supporters of Methody on the biggest show…..), though he has begrudgingly just permitted the playing …

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Brian Feeney’s opening observation in his Irish News column yesterday regarding those seemingly fixated with Sinn Fein’s response to events is, unsurprisingly, nowhere more relevant than here on Slugger. But he correctly identifies that the response of the British government is perhaps more important at this juncture, not least given how forceful republican leaders have been in positioning the party after the dreadful killings of the past few days: “The correct response to the shock and dismay of Saturday’s murders …

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One of the most tedious cliches to emerge from the conflict in the north of Ireland has been the suggestion flippantly made in jokes, books or films about this place that you can tell somebody’s religion by the distance between their eyes. The appearance of Stacey Bridgett before the Robert Hamill Inquiry was noteworthy this week for an unnerving assertion made by Mr Bridgett, who was one of five men initially charged with the murder of the Portadown catholic before …

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The trial into the sectarian murder of Michael McIlveen has concluded with three men, Aaron Wallace, Christopher Kerr and Jeff Lewis, being found guilty of murdering the 15 year old catholic schoolboy in the town. One man, Mervyn Moon, had already pleaded guilty to the murder and two others were convicted of different charges. Michael McIlveen had died after being targeted in a sectarian attack in Ballymena in May 2006. In the aftermath of the killing, Ballymena’s post-primary schools formed …

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The Sinn Fein Ard Fheis is over for another year and the pundits have had their say on the state of the party, north and south. Some would appear to suggest the party is down and out whilst others detect indications that the party has made strategic shifts in its southern approach which could yield returns in the forthcoming Euro and local elections. There are significant issues which the Sinn Fein leadership have to face up to as a matter …

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Martin McGuiness’ assertion at this weekend’s Sinn Fein Ard Fheis that the northern state was no longer an Orange state but an ‘Orange and Green’ one is no doubt based on a recognition that the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent developments have cemented power-sharing in the state as well as that of the Irish nationalist identity alongside that of British unionism. However, the latest episode of judicial leniency with regard to the sentencing of loyalists (and here) suggests that reforming …

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Today is Super Bowl Sunday, an annual sporting spectacle in the US which is probably unique for being a sporting event watched by many people across the globe in spite of the fact that no other nation- apart from Canada- has anything resembling a credible league based on the sport, never mind much of a clue about the intricate rules, plays and strategies that define the game. It is, of course, more than just a game, with a half-time show …

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Perhaps the most striking feature about the reaction to the Eames-Bradley Report was the speed with which the DUP returned to the pre-St Andrews mode of outright rejection of proposals/ initiatives on behalf of unionism, in spite of more mature responses from that very quarter- including some interesting individuals. The truth, of course, is that the ‘£12,000 proposal’ that so enraged certain elements within political Unionism did so primarily because it challenged the narrative that there exists ‘real’ victims of …

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Whilst the DUP DCAL Minister couldn’t wait to finally bury the shiny new shared stadium proposal in the north yesterday, UEFA were just about preparing to announce that the new home of Irish rugby and soccer (yes OWC fans, I know there are ‘two’ of the latter…) will host the 2011 Europa League Final (the new name for the UEFA Cup.) London will host that year’s Champions League final as well. As these images from the Lansdowne Road Stadium Development …

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Eleven years after his sectarian murder, the Robert Hamill Inquiry has begun public hearings in Belfast. The Portadown catholic was beaten to death by loyalists in Portadown only a matter of yards from an RUC land rover, which contained four armed RUC officers. One of those officers, Robert Atkinson, has been accused of colluding with one of the suspects, telling him about the progress of the investigation and advising him to get rid of his clothes. The Inquiry also heard …

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Following on from Eoin O’Broin and Brian Feeney’s comments some weeks ago- carried on Slugger here– I feel compelled to add my own tuppence worth regarding the current position facing Sinn Fein and would welcome comments- critical, supportive or otherwise- from across the political spectrum. Let me preface my comments by acknowledging that the party, as the largest nationalist electoral force in the North and even at 8% in the South, remains in the strongest electoral position since partition to …

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The future King Billy’s younger brother, Prince Harry, has been forced to issue a public apology after using the term ‘our little Paki friend’ to refer to a military colleague in an incident captured on video and carried in the News of the World today. The incident follows on from the young prince’s earlier ‘gaffe’ in 2005, when he had to apologise after being captured on camera dressed in a Nazi outfit at a Hallowe’en party. As they say round …

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Both John Coulter and Brian Feeney have been looking back at ’08 and dishing out unwanted awards in the process. Feeney has picked out the Paisleys as the big losers of the year on the local scene, as well as Mark Durkan. Contrastingly, Feeney has Peter Robinson and Sinn Fein as the main winners; the former for finally succeeding Ian Paisley as leader and the latter for forcefully making the point to Robinson that “the Good Friday Agreement requires equality …

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The Antrim Guardian leads this week with news that an ‘enraged’ Christian parent pulled his child off stage during a Christmas Carol Service in Antrim Forum when he learned that a Catholic priest would be jointly leading the assembled audience in prayers. The unnamed parent, a Free Presbyterian, told the paper that he was “literally shaking with anger” when he discovered from the programme of the priest’s attendance and role at the cross-community service. Whilst other political parties- including UUP …

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Susan McKay has been following the Rosemary Nelson Inquiry and she raises some disturbing questions about the attitude of the RUC Special Branch to the solicitor, whom many believe to have been implicated in the killing. In the light of ‘evidence’ provided to the Inquiry by an unnamed RUC Special Branch figure regarding claims Nelson was an ‘immoral woman,’ McKay repeats some of her own evidence provided to the Inquiry, which cast a light on the attitude prevalent within the …

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