Brendan O'Brien
LightNews LightNews
banner
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Brendan O'Brien
@brendanobrien1.bsky.social
630 followers 120 following 110 posts
Sportswriter, digital journalist and assistant sports editor with the @irishexaminer.bsky.social

Partial to a Deportivo La Coruna game and Padrón peppers
Posts Replies Media Videos
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Rassie Erasmus never disappoints

Great quote, and it wasn't the only one...

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugby/...
Rassie Erasmus: 'We understand we are the red meat that you guys want to eat'
The Boks have their own motivations this week.
www.irishexaminer.com
November 20, 2025 at 5:07 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Category A tickets for Ireland-South Africa this Saturday cost €160.

That's basically a 78% rise since 2013.

The IRFU has defended the prices and said claims that the Aviva experience has turned into "a corporate day out" are "disingenuous"

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugby/...
'We have to maximise our revenues': IRFU defend increasing ticket prices
The cost of attending the senior national team’s games in Dublin has ballooned in modern times, from €90 for a Category A admission in 2013 to €160 for the biggest games in the current November window...
www.irishexaminer.com
November 19, 2025 at 6:12 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Zaur Antia has retired, bringing the curtain down on one of the greatest coaching careers in Irish sporting history

Maybe THE greatest

- 23 years

- 10 Olympic medals, 3 of them gold

- 154 medals across various major competitions

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/others...
Georgian genius Zaur Antia retires - what a legacy he has left in Irish boxing
There have been ten Olympic medals, 154 podium places across the major championships, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
www.irishexaminer.com
November 19, 2025 at 6:04 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Pod chat with Irish Examiner football corr John Fallon on last night's fever dream of a game at the Aviva Stadium

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
World Cup Qualifier Podcast: a night for the ages as Ireland keep dream alive
John Fallon and Brendan O'Brien react to a famous victory over Portugal in Dublin.
www.irishexaminer.com
November 14, 2025 at 12:56 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
One of the great nights on Lansdowne Road

There was something in the air from the very first counter-attack

Everyone could feel it

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
Next stop Budapest as Ireland take down Portugal and the Prince of Petulance
And those permutations now? Only the one. Win in Budapest. Suddenly, that feels doable.
www.irishexaminer.com
November 13, 2025 at 10:09 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
It was classic Genial Joe Schmidt on show ahead of Australia's meeting with his old Ireland team earlier today

Being back in his old Dublin haunt looks to be exactly what he needs after the Wallabies' disastrous defeat to Italy in Udine last week

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugby/...
Joe Schmidt recharging in old Dublin haunt ahead of closing stretch with Wallabies
Schmidt touched on the comfort of familiarity and Dublin has that in spades for him. He got out of a taxi in town earlier in the week and the first three randomers to pass him by all gave up a ‘Hello ...
www.irishexaminer.com
November 13, 2025 at 6:28 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
A pod headline with a more positive spin than the chat itself:

What needs to happen tomorrow if Ireland's slim World Cup hopes are to be still alive in Budapest come Sunday

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
World Cup Qualifier Podcast: So you're saying there's still a chance?
John Fallon joins Brendan O’Brien at the Republic of Ireland’s training camp
www.irishexaminer.com
November 12, 2025 at 8:27 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
“I was putting other people, a lot of other people who really cared for me and loved me and really supported me, through a lot as well due to my own suffering.”

Searingly honest and raw words from Ireland’s Olympic bronze medalist Aidan Walsh here

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/others...
Olympic bronze medallist Aidan Walsh 'at peace' with retirement after career of struggles outside the ring
During his boxing career, Aidan Walsh struggled with his mental health. He plans to do a Masters in sports psychology, and possibly a PhD, with the aim of helping fellow athletes.
www.irishexaminer.com
November 11, 2025 at 9:54 AM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
One of the coolest underdog success stories I’ve seen in years…

4 amateur Irish sailors bought a bought from a shed behind Lidl in Kinsale

And on Wednesday they took the multi-million dollar America’s Cup champions all the way to the finishing line

👇

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/others...
Amateur Irish sailors who gave New Zealand’s America’s Cup champions a run for their money
In the wake of events in Dun Laoghaire, eyes are already turning to a defence of their world title next year in Sandringham near Melbourne.
www.irishexaminer.com
November 7, 2025 at 2:09 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Pod reflections with Joe Callaghan from Soldier Field on the back of a strange day for Ireland

Some good, some bad, but how much of this was rustiness and how much just more of the inconsistencies Paul O'Connell spoke of last week?

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugby/...
Rugby podcast special: Ireland v All Blacks reaction from Chicago
Brendan O'Brien is joined by Joe Callaghan from Soldier Field in the moments after the sides' hard-fought test.
www.irishexaminer.com
November 2, 2025 at 12:21 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
First of the November Test pods and we start by chatting to Joe Callaghan in Chicago for @irishexaminer.bsky.social ahead of Ireland's game against the All Blacks

- Sports mad Chi-Town

- Memories of 2016

- Evolution v revolution

- RWC27 starts here

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugby/...
Rugby podcast special: previewing Ireland v the All Blacks from Chicago
Joe Callaghan joins Brendan O'Brien from the Windy City ahead of the Soldier Field showdown with New Zealand.
www.irishexaminer.com
October 30, 2025 at 7:51 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Last pod special of this World Cup window with John Fallon

How exactly do we digest last night's important but underwhelming win over Armenia?

And where exactly does that and Hungary's late draw in Lisbon leave us ahead of November's last window?

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
World Cup qualifier podcast special: what needs to happen with two games to go
Brendan O'Brien and John Fallon reflect on Ireland's hard-fought win over 10-man Armenia and look forward to the final two games of the group.
www.irishexaminer.com
October 15, 2025 at 12:01 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Latest World Cup pod special with our soccer correspondent John Fallon

Tentative backing for Ireland to get their first win of the campaign against Armenia on Tuesday night

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
World Cup qualifier podcast special: all on the line against Armenia
Brendan O'Brien and John Fallon reflect on the narrow defeat in Lisbon and look ahead to the visit of Armenia on Tuesday evening.
www.irishexaminer.com
October 13, 2025 at 2:19 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Strikingly honest stuff from the Republic of Ireland's Jayson Molumby here

"I'm not just some fella running around kicking people"

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
Jayson Molumby: 'I'm not just some fella running around kicking people'
“Angry, disappointed. Gutted. A lot of things go through your head. I'm just happy to be back."
www.irishexaminer.com
October 8, 2025 at 11:41 AM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Latest World Cup qualifier pod with Irish Examiner soccer correspondent John Fallon

- Ireland fly to Portugal on a wing and a prayer

- Some light at the end of a (very long) tunnel with the govt granting 3 million for League of Ireland academies

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
World Cup podcast: can the Boys in Green rescue the campaign?
Brendan O'Brien and soccer correspondent John Fallon discuss Ireland's upcoming double header -- starting with a trip to Portugal -- and good news for the game in today's budget.
www.irishexaminer.com
October 7, 2025 at 5:56 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
"We shoot our targets in 0.73 seconds so we really don’t have that time or freedom to step off the gas. It’s gotta be instant"

Ireland's Jack Fairclough is aiming for the LA Olympics in a sport where the margin for error is close to zero

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/others...
Ireland's William Tell: Fairclough takes dead aim at Athens, then LA
Jack Fairclough has gone from discovering skeet shooting at his birthday party to being on the brink of qualification for the Olympic Games.
www.irishexaminer.com
October 7, 2025 at 9:50 AM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Fintan McCarthy is putting it up to rowing's big boys

Hard to overstate what a leap he has made to the heavyweight class in such a short space of time

Exceptional athlete

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/others...
Fintan McCarthy fighting far above his weight with rowing's big boys
A year of joy for McCarthy as he steps into a new class.
www.irishexaminer.com
October 3, 2025 at 10:46 AM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Chat with Conor Meany, Maurice Brosnan and Eoghan O'Sullivan on why the NFL is coming to (Dublin) town, whether it will come back, and what to expect in Croke Park on Sunday

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/others...
Podcast special: What the NFL's arrival in Dublin means for America's game and Irish sport
As the Steelers and Vikings face off at GAA HQ we examine what the landmark tie represents, what Irish sport can learn from the extravaganza and ask what we can look forward to at Croke Park on Sunday...
www.irishexaminer.com
September 25, 2025 at 4:01 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Sat down with Irish Examiner soccer correspondent John Fallon to try and make sense of last night's madcap World Cup qualifier at the Aviva Stadium

Was this a 2-2 win or a 2-2 defeat?

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
Watch: Reaction to Ireland's dramatic draw in World Cup campaign opener
Brendan O’Brien and John Fallon talk through the Republic of Ireland’s comeback against Hungary at the Aviva Stadium
www.irishexaminer.com
September 7, 2025 at 11:37 AM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
This one is bubbling up nicely ahead of Sunday's World Cup Pool C decider in Brighton

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugby/...
Irish belief vs Kiwi beef: Ireland out to repeat famous win over New Zealand in Women's World Cup decider
That win fast-forwarded Ireland’s recovery and the team’s journey from a nadir of failing to make the 2022 World Cup, but the flip side this week, as the sides meet for the first time since, is that i...
www.irishexaminer.com
September 4, 2025 at 10:06 AM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Sat down with John Fallon to tee up the Republic of Ireland's huge World Cup 2026 qualifying opener against Hungary on Saturday

- Needing a fast start
- The players Ireland can't do without
- Credit union here we come!

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
Watch: World Cup qualifier special as Ireland prepare for Hungary
Brendan O’Brien and John Fallon sit down to tee up the Republic of Ireland’s World Cup 2026 qualifying campaign, starting with the visit of Hungary to Dublin on Saturday.
www.irishexaminer.com
September 2, 2025 at 6:06 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Could Bosun Lawal be the Republic of Ireland’s Beckenbauer?

Or maybe the player the team has needed in the engine room?

The Dubliner is ready to do whatever job comes his way

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
Bosun Lawal looked up to Robbie Brady more than Beckenbauer
Lawal was compared to the German Kaiser after a pre-season friendly for Stoke City and it was his club manager at The Potteries, one-time Manchester United striker Mark Robins, who delivered the kille...
www.irishexaminer.com
September 2, 2025 at 3:44 PM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Just like watching Brazil...

Lee Grace channelled Bobby Moore's tackle on Pele at one point of Shamrock Rovers' game against Santa Clara

And Ed McGinty went all Gordon Banks in denying the Portuguese late on in Tallaght

And it wasn't even his best save...

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
Ed McGinty: 'It's part of my job, I'm here to make saves'
“Ah, yeah, look it’s part of my job, I’m here to make saves,” said the 26-year old in a manner that Roy Keane would love to hear.
www.irishexaminer.com
August 29, 2025 at 9:59 AM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
“Special, special night, both as a father and as a manager”

Stephen Bradley on Shamrock Rovers’ latest European high, serenades for his son Josh, and the late “legend” that was Ollie Horgan

Some great stuff here

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer...
League of Ireland underdog days are over, vows Stephen Bradley
This is the first time that two Airtricity League clubs have made it to the group stages in the same season.
www.irishexaminer.com
August 29, 2025 at 8:28 AM
brendanobrien1.bsky.social
Niamh O'Dowd was struggling to make the Old Belvedere squad a couple of years ago

Now she's a first-choice for Ireland going into a World Cup

Some turnaround...

www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugby/...
Front row move proved to be Niamh O'Dowd's 'golden ticket' to World Cup
During the last Women's Rugby World Cup, O'Dowd was struggling for game time in the Old Belvedere back row. Now she's a fixture in the Ireland front row.
www.irishexaminer.com
August 19, 2025 at 8:58 AM