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Barry Gilheany ⚽ After a penalty shoot out at the London Stadium, Leeds United went through to their first FA Cup semi-final for 39 years after a 2-2 draw with West Ham United. 

However that bland statistic can never tell the whole story of yet another mad cap Leeds venture in which we oh so nearly grabbed defeat from the jaws of victory in Eleven nauseating minutes of stoppage time when a comfortable 2-0 lead evaporated within the space of three minutes to send the tie into extra time when only a linesman’s flag prevented the Hammers from completing the comeback. 

Yet on this occasion, we showed real resilience and fortitude to come through 4-2 in that excruciating round robin event – the penalty shootout. It is an avenue of escape that will not be available to Leeds if they persist in failing to see away games out from winning positions. But let us forget such recriminations at least until the resumption of our Premier League survival campaign and savour a moment that almost two generations of Leeds fans will never have experienced – participation in the penultimate round of the greatest Cup competition in the world.

And the events of last weekend fully support this sobriquet. The last eight of the tournament saw the classic Cup upset as Championship side Southampton knocked out Premier League leaders Arsenal 2-1 with a winner from Shea Charles who hopefully has a great future with Northern Ireland ahead of him; the 4-0 evisceration by Manchester City of Liverpool for whom Mo Salah, the best forward to have graced the top flight in my lifetime, looked a sad, tragic shadow of his former self and the ending of League One bottom side Port Vale’s remarkable Cup run by a 7-0 defeat at Chelsea which does not close the book on the concerns about the performances and personalities of Liam Rosenior’s charges. But the piece de resistance was the encounter between two sides batting against relegation from the Premiership, though in truth demotion would be a much greater calamity for the Hammers because of their welter of debts.

The match took place on a very poignant date in Leeds United history; April 5th, 2000, was the day on which two Leeds fans, Kevin Speight and Christopher Loftus, were murdered in a mass stabbing in Taksim Square, Istanbul before a UEFA Cup semi-final with the Turkish side Galatasaray. Before kick-off, the Leeds team acknowledged the anniversary by laying wreaths at the away end where 9,000 Leeds fans were congregated. Respects duly paid, proceedings then got underway. I went into the match with my friend in the pub in a relaxed mood as vital Premier League points were not at stake and regarded it as a bit of R&R from the relegation struggle. Despite those who have sought to devalue the Cup by not fielding full strength sides, a Cup run is not just a welcome distraction of the relegation battle but can aid it as winning football matches always boosts morale and confidence if that does not sound too tautologous.

Leeds started the best and a fine effort by Noah Okafor (a serial Cup winner in Italy and Switzerland) almost put us ahead in the second minute. However, the hosts soon got into gear and only two brilliant saves by recalled Brazilian keeper Lucas Perri kept them at bay. But breakthrough in the 26th minute as Japanese midfielder Ao Tanaka began and completed a move with a swerving shot that put us in the lead. For the remainder of the season, Tanaka must be at the centre of our midfield. We should have been further ahead but were thwarted by yet another example of inconsistent officiating when a tackle by Maximilian Kilman on our German midfielder Anton Stach in the penalty area after he has shot for goal I (saved by Hammer keeper Areola) forced him out of the game. No spot kick was awarded despite the clear and obvious nature of the foul. At the end of the day, the injury sustained by Stach who has been such a vital cog in the midfield engine room has been this season matters much more than the decision not to award the penalty. Let us hope he recovers in time for the visit to Old Trafford next Monday evening.

So we went in a goal to the good at half time. We contained wave after wave of West Ham attacks powered by a triple substitution. And then what should have been the clincher when on this occasion Maximilian Kilman was correctly adjudged to have fouled Brenden Aaronson in the box, we were awarded a penalty. Up stepped Dominic Calvert-Klein who had come on in place of Nmencha and coolly converted it to make it 2-0. DCL showed real cojones in steeping up to the plate in this manner after his calamitous miss at Crystal Palace and his miss for England in the friendly against Uruguay which put paid to any chance of him boarding the plane for the World Cup this summer as Harry Kane’s understudy. 

Cue an exodus of home fans and the wiping of all signs of exuberance from the visage of celebrity Hammer Danny Dyer who kept appearing with irritating regularity on our TV screens. It was all going so swimmingly and Wilfried Gnonto should really have put everything to bed but missed when yards from goal. But this is Leeds, remember, and another double calamity, perhaps engendered by the 11-minute stoppage time announcement, beckoned as West Ham rediscovered hope and familiar anxieties stirred in the minds of Leeds fans. Sure enough in the 93rd minute Mattheus Fernandes poked home a rebound from a volley from Jarred Bowen to reduce the deficit and three minutes later a panic stricken Leeds defence relinquished their advantage when after a cross by Adana Traore into the six yard box was met by Disasi whose overhead karate kick hit the net and was allowed to stand despite protestations from Leeds that Disasi’s high boot prevented Paschal Struijk from clearing the ball. Cue pandemonium and joy and frustration in equal measure by those Hammers fans who had deserted their team and who on learning of its resurrection tried to re-enter the ground but were prevented from doing so by stewards. They deserve no sympathy as games are never over at 2-0 as so many fans will attest.

While not on the scale of that of our relegations and Play Off Final defeats, the devastation felt by me and my friend whose life ambition was to see Leeds win a Cup Final at Wembley was raw and visceral at the snatching away of our dreams. I held out little hope of retrieving the situation in extra time and a minute into it the blade appeared to have dropped when after a rush of blood to the head on the part of Perri, Castellanos poked the ball into an empty net only for it to be almost instantaneously ruled offside. We could have regained the lead only for a last ditch clearance by Tomas Soucek and Gnonto blazing another effort over the bar. Perri again put his body, or more accurately his face, on the line by keeping out a shot from Castellanos. Bowen again rattled the woodwork, and Pablo was offside when he put the rebound into the net.

So it ended 2-2 and into the penalty or as I would put it the penance shoot out. The particular set piece drama was provided by the debut for the Hammers of 20-year-old goalkeeper Finlay Herrick who replaced regular keeper Alphonse Areaola injured in the dying minutes of extra time. By saving our first effort from Joel Piroe, he looked set to write himself into Cup and West Ham folklore. However Perri responded in kind by denying efforts from Bowen and Pablo Felipo. It was left to Pascal Struijk to send us through to the semis where we will meet Chelsea at Wembley; the historical resonance of this meeting is lost on no one of a certain generation.
 
⏩Barry Gilheany is a freelance writer, qualified counsellor and aspirant artist resident in Colchester where he took his PhD at the University of Essex. He is also a lifelong Leeds United supporter. 

That Was The Weekend That Was ⚽ Leeds United Advance To The Semis In The Easter Passion Story Of The Fa Cup Quarter Finals

Lynx By Ten To The Power Of One Thousand Nine Hundred And Thirty Four

 

A Morning Thought @ 3109

People And Nature ☭ Written by Simon Pirani.

19-March-2026
London is missing its own targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions from road transport by ever-greater margins, Simon Pirani writes.

The relentless rise in the volume of traffic is the cause. It has increased in each of the four years since the Mayor, Sadiq Khan, announced the aim of cutting the total amount of traffic by 27% by 2030.

Far from heading for “net zero”, the city’s road transport is still pumping around 7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the air each year.

Traffic on the M25 near London. Photo: N. Chadwick / Creative Commons
And Labour’s transport policy, focused on sinking billions into building roads and airports, makes matters worse.

It’s not only that the targets are being missed. They were set at far too modest levels in the first place – far short of what climate scientists say needs to be done, for London to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the necessary pace.

Campaign groups are fighting for much more ambitious plans to cut road traffic, and expand public transport, walking and cycling in London, which are not only socially just and healthier, but are also essential to tackling the climate emergency.

The undermining of decarbonisation targets is not confined to London or its roads. It is part of the dangerous political trend, at national and international level, to mask continued fossil-fuelled economic expansion with “green” rhetoric.

How London politicians undermined climate action

Sadiq Khan set the target, of reducing vehicle-kilometres driven in London by 27% by 2030, in January 2022. It was a centre-piece of his declaration that the city would aim to be “carbon neutral” at the end of this decade, rather than 2050.

The announcement was welcomed by climate policy campaigners, because cutting the number of cars on the road is the single most effective way to cut greenhouse gas emissions from transport.

But in the four years since then, City Hall, which turns out prodigous quantities of documents and consultations on many aspects of policy, has not issued a single sheet of paper explaining how this target might be met.

The volume of traffic increased in London, as it did across the country, in 2022, 2023 and 2024. Government estimates suggest that in 2025 it rose again. See Graph no. 1.

Consequently, carbon dioxide emissions from road transport in London are falling, but way, way behind the pace targeted by City Hall, let alone the speed urged by climate scientists. See Graph no. 2.

“Further action will be required to meet the accelerated 2030 ambition”, Transport for London bosses admit in their annual review (a stupendous understatement) – but do not say a word about what those actions might be.

In practice, the “net zero by 2030” target has been declared, and cynically dropped.

Drew Pearce, senior transport consultant at City Science, told the Ecologist: “There was a small window in which the climate crisis was considered an appropriately high priority across different levels of governance and during this period many necessarily ambitious targets were set. However, since then competing issues such as the cost of living crisis has understandably reduced the focus on the delivery against these targets.”

In transport, he said, the priority is to “place greater focus on practical mechanisms that enable change—particularly behavioural measures that can simultaneously reduce emissions while delivering economic, health and wellbeing benefits”.

In London, as at national level, Labour’s transport policy remains stubbornly car-centred. Electric vehicles are presented as the main route to decarbonising transport, despite researchers debunking that fantasy.

A team at Imperial College led by Lisa Winkler showed, in a paper published back in 2023, in the leading scientific journal Nature Communications, that policies need to focus not on electrification but on “mitigating emissions from cars that exist today” – either by reducing the distance they are driven, or retrofitting them with electric engines.

The team studied the potential effect, in a range of scenarios, of electrification, retrofitting, “lightweighting” cars, and reducing their use. Only a “rapid and large-scale reduction in car use” could achieve short-term emissions targets, meet stringent carbon budgets and avoid creating excessive demand for additional technology, material and minerals.

Limiting the global temperature rise to 2 degrees C depends on actions such as these, Winkler and her colleagues concluded.

To reach decarbonisation targets proposed by climate scientists at the Tyndall centre, the UK’s premier climate research centre, would need “a 72% reduction in car travel activity” and a phase-out of fossil fuelled cars – by 2025.

This target, like many targets based on climate science rather than politicians’ whims, has been missed by a very long way.

Other researchers have shown that electrifying car fleets not only takes time, but is also materials-intensive, and potentially carbon-intensive, depending on where the cars are made. (For example, if electric cars are built in coal-fuelled Indian or Chinese factories, the life-cycle carbon emissions are much higher. The batteries are a big part of the problem.)

All these realities are brushed aside by politicians at both London and national level. Their biggest transport spending decisions have been aimed at expanding the road network.

🔴In London, the £2.2 billion Silvertown tunnel, built by the private Riverlinx consortium, opened in April last year. In its first three months of operation, there were fewer journeys through it than expected, as drivers sought to avoid paying tolls. But, as opponents of the project warned for years, it will help produce more traffic. No wonder London’s traffic reduction target is being swept under the carpet.

🔴 At national level, the government is ploughing ahead with the monstrous 14-kilometre, six-lane Lower Thames Crossing. As the Transport Action Network has shouted from the rooftops, this will divert billions of pounds of state funding from balanced transport system development, undermine rail freight and “cement inequality”. Together with the disastrous decision to build a new runway at Gatwick airport, it will drive up UK transport sector carbon emissions.

The obsessive concentration on road-building goes hand in hand with lukewarm gestures in support of public transport and active travel. In London, tube and overground rail fares are rising faster than inflation, under an agreement between City Hall and the government, and the cap on bus fares could well be raised or removed in July.

Nationally, a restriction on local authorities owning bus companies has been removed, but this falls far short of a wholesale roll-back of the privatisation drive that has ruined bus services in many parts of the country. The gouging of rail services by private operators continues.

Labour’s dogged commitment to roads and cars is also reflected in transport policy documents. The latest draft road investment strategy justifies road building with claims that it supports economic growth and meets “the needs of road users” and “the specific needs of the freight and logistics sector”. It suggests, falsely, that decarbonisation mainly means electrifying the fleet.

Transport secretary Heidi Alexander claims, in her introduction to the strategy, that the road sector will “play its part” on climate by implementing the transport decarbonisation plan published by the Tory government in 2024, a collection of worthless platitudes and vague promises.

Meanwhile, transport department statisticians envisage that total road traffic volume in 2060 will be between 8% and 54% higher than in 2025 – and the politicians have no plans to bring those ruinous numbers down.

The bonfire of climate targets

London’s abandonment in practice of its commitments is part of a larger bonfire of climate targets. The changes that scientists have shown are necessary, to safeguard humanity from the worst effects of climate change, are systematically obscured and undermined by political processes.

The global position is illustrated by the Climate Action Tracker thermometer, which shows that IF all current emissions reduction commitments were kept to, the world would likely face heating of 2.6 degrees above pre-industrial temperatures.

But anyone who follows the news knows that even those commitments will not be kept to. The junking of London’s transport targets is a microcosm of this bigger danger.

At the National Emergency Briefing on climate in November last year, Kevin Anderson of the Tyndall Centre warned of “a very real possibility” of 4 degrees of global heating by 2100. Heating levels between 3 and 4 degrees would result in “the widespread breakdown of society, geopolitical instability and the loss of any meaningful economy”, so fossil fuels must be “eliminated – or warming, and risk, simply accelerates”.

Anderson said that UK “climate leadership” is a myth. “Once we rightly include aviation, shipping and imports, UK emissions have fallen by only around 20% since 1990.” And UK government targets claim “three times our fair share of the remaining global carbon budget”.

The solutions had to start not with “delay technologies” such as carbon capture, but with “timely technologies” such as public transport, electric vehicle charging for rural areas, retrofitting homes and a big programme of electrification.

Anderson’s statements reflects years of tension between political greenwash and research by the Tyndall centre and many others.

In 2018, as a cohort of young people in groups such as Fridays for Future and Extinction Rebellion expressed their fury at political inaction on climate, the Tyndall centre published “carbon budgets”, sharply-reducing amounts of carbon that national economies could put into the atmosphere if dangerous climate change was to be averted.

The Tyndall budgets were much smaller than the government’s, since they took into account the need for rich nations to cut emissions faster, and left out speculative amounts of “carbon removal” by carbon capture technology that does not work.

In London, campaigners (including the author of this article) pleaded in vain with City Hall to consider the Tyndall centre’s research before going ahead with the Silvertown Tunnel. We highlighted the gap between the emissions City Hall was planning for and the Tyndall centre’s carbon budgets. See Graph no. 3. Now, it has turned out that City Hall was not even planning to hit its insufficient targets.

In 2022, when the Mayor announced his commitment to “net zero by 2030”, he commissioned research from Element Energy about how to achieve it.

Element Energy offered three scenarios: the Mayor selected as optimal the medium one (“accelerated green”), that the consultants claimed could result in London’s greenhouse gas emissions being 78% lower in 2030 than in 1990.

This highly optimistic forecast would have brought London roughly in line with the government’s inadequate targets. But no attempt was made to consider science-based targets – and nothing was done to reduce traffic volumes.

A proposal for road user charging was put out for consultation, but even before that was completed the Mayor announced he would not go down that path.

In any case, transport campaigners argued, reducing traffic would require a much bolder set of measures, including substantial investment in, and expansion of, public transport and active travel, on top of cutting the numerous subsidies for cars (e.g. investment in roads and parking spaces, fuel duty freeze, and so on).

While City Hall, like national government, was retreating from its own inadequate targets, the scientists’ research-based targets were being further marginalised.

In 2020, Kevin Anderson and his colleagues John Broderick and Isak Stoddard had published an article showing that emissions reduction targets set by the UK and Sweden – often held up as shining examples of the necessary level of action – understated what needed to be done by “a factor of two”. Politicians took no notice.

Where there was a little backbone in local government, and/or active campaign groups, the Tyndall centre carbon budgets, downloadable from the University of Manchester’s web site, were a useful guide. They have now been taken down: in a retrospective summary, Tyndall scientists Carly McLachlan and Chris Jones observed that local authorities “often find they do not have the levers, funds or political will to reduce emissions rapidly”.

They recommend that, above all, local politicians need to be straight with the public: “have a clear narrative that acknowledges previously set milestones might be missed”, they suggest, “but retain science and fairness-based targets to guide policy ambition”.

Authorities that are missing their targets “might be tempted to incorporate carbon offset or negative emissions credits into their strategy”: don’t do that, McLachlan and Jones advise.

Approaches to decarbonisation that work

This grim story of London’s transport sector targets could be told many times over, about other cities and national governments, and about housing, electricity supply, industry and the other systems that consume fossil fuels.

The point of telling it is not to demoralise, but to illustrate how political machinery frustrates action.

The most effective response is to build a movement that brings together the decarbonisation imperative with the battle against social injustice and for wider public provision – a movement that offers a vision of cities that are good to live in.

Izzy Romilly of Possible told the Ecologist: “Action on the climate crisis is a no-brainer: it’s action for warmer homes, lower bills, good jobs, energy security, better health and more.” Priorities should include “targeted investment to get electric vehicles and e-cycles to those who need them the most, like taxi drivers, care workers and delivery riders, while supporting modal shift so we’re not just relying on electric vehicles to solve our problems”.

Possible’s recent briefing on Turning the tide against rising traffic calls for a road user charge, and shows that there is wide public support for reallocating road space away from cars, and shifting investment from road building to walking, cycling and public transport.

The expansion of public transport provision is also a central issue for trade unions, including those representing rail workers, who recently called for the tube to be brought under public ownership, and bus drivers.

Fare Free London, a grass-roots campaign group, headlines the demand for free public transport, which has proved a powerful lever for social justice in the dozens of cities globally that have introduce it, and, as part of an integrated approach, could be a key element in the shift away from cars.

The group has launched a pledge, signed by more than 100 councillors and candidates in the May elections, to use their platforms to support the principle of free provision.

This month’s increase in tube and rail fares in London was a political choice that “is going in completely the wrong direction”, Pearl Ahrens of Fare Free London said. “Increasing the proportion of income coming from fares has real costs for people who live in London, and it’s not necessary.

“The transport systems in most of the world’s big cities rely far less on fare income than London’s does – more sustainable sources of funding can be drawn from elsewhere.”

Linking transport and housing issues is also essential, and a coalition of researchers last year set out in detail the potential of “vision-led planning” that offers alternatives to road building and car-dependent development.

These efforts will hopefully be brought together in social movements strong enough to challenge politicians’ inaction and deception.

🔴 Thanks to the Ecologist, who first published this article.

Sources of information in the graphs

Graph 1: government road traffic statistics, showing actual road traffic up to 2024, and a projection of reductions required to reach the proposed 27% reduction by 2030

Graph 2: the “accelerated green pathway” projected in the Mayor of London’s Zero Carbon Pathway, and actual carbon dioxide emissions from road transport in London, as estimated by the government (DESNZ) and London (LEGGI) statistical services. (The London figure is the sum of the rows “road transport, non-electric” and “road transport, electric” from the 2023 LEGGI statistics.)

Graph 3: five-year carbon budgets proposed by researchers at the Tyndall centre (no longer on line), and reflecting the Mayor of London’s Zero Carbon strategy.

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London’s Car-Centred Transport Policies Turbocharge Climate Danger

Davy Clinton ✒ Another Easter Sunday. 

110 years from the Rising and no closer to the Republic.

Today as on many other days my thoughts are with our dead Volunteers from every era who fought for freedom. 

Those who confronted Strongbow in 1169 right through the centuries including the United Irishmen and the Fenians, the men of ‘16 and the War of Independence, and those betrayed after that war. 

To all those who kept the flame alive in the 30’s 40’s 50’s and 60’s. To men and women of our own generation who confronted the Unionist state and their paymasters in London. 

Our Volunteers never acted in a vacuum and I pay tribute to all those who supported them through every generation . . . those whose names will rarely be heard but without whom resistance wouldn’t have been possible. 

Those civilians were the backbone of our struggle. I remember too the families of our dead Volunteers, those left to grieve for decades and many in wonder as to what their soldier sons and daughters died for. 

Thinking too of Republican prisoners across the country who are no less political prisoners than we were. 

Today I remember comrades who did not die in action but are getting old and sick and whose numbers lessen each year. They were the bravest of the brave. The best, most decent people I met in my life were met through Republicanism.

I try never at Easter time to single out individual Volunteers from our generation for their sacrifice but I’m sure you will allow me to mention my dear sister-in-law Theresa murdered by Loyalists on 14th April 1994. Her memory is with me always.

Onward to the Republic

Up the Rebels.

⏩Davy Clinton is a life long Glasgow Celtic supporter. 

No Closer To The Republic

Dr John Coulter ✍ Today is Easter Monday and the official start of this year’s traditional marching season. 

The various republican factions use this Easter period to commemorate the failed Dublin Rising in 1916.

But one element of the republican commemorations makes me cringe every year - the poor standard of marching by the various colour parties.

As someone who has grown up with the Christian movement, the Boys’ Brigade (BB), squad drill and marching were key elements of our activities. The highlight of the annual BB calendar was the company display when parents, relatives and friends would gather in the church hall to see a range of items - including drill.

One of the toughest BB badges I completed in the Seventies was known as the Second Stage Drill. It comprised 12 weeks of BB battalion classes, followed by an exam on squad drill.

We were taught how to march, both quick and slow, right and left wheel, attention and stand at ease. So any time I see a parade of any kind involving marching, especially if it contains a colour party carrying flags, I’m always interested in how they conduct themselves.

This year, God Willing, I clock up 48 years in journalism - most of it in Northern Ireland - and I’ve reported on my fair share of parades, both loyalist and republican.

But there have been times when I’ve had to bite my tongue when reporting on republican parades when I see the quality - or lack of it - in the marching techniques of the colour parties.

Maybe its because many in republican colour parties like to wear sunglasses and cannot see how they are marching. Firstly, there needs to be consistency in the dress codes of the colour parties.

Everyone in a colour party should be dressed in the same attire - so make up your minds, are you wearing sunglasses, a beret, a jacket, or shirt and tie, shoes or black boots? You can’t mix and match when on parade, otherwise you’ll just look like a punk rock band.

Now, when it comes to your flags, decide whether the colours will be held straight up or at half mast. If you insist on carrying an Irish tricolour, make your mind up that its place is in the front of the colour party. It should only be dipped when passing a memorial.

But it’s the marching that really irks me. Why do republican colour parties insist on stamping their feet as they supposedly march? You are marching, not trying to squash a bug on the ground.

March properly, taking clear steps - and stop that silly habit of slamming your left foot on the ground; it makes you look totally amateurish. And tell the members of the colour party to all keep in step, and hold the flags with the same hand, with the other hand swinging as your march.

Journalism has taken me around many unusual corners over the years. Perhaps one of the most amusing was when I was covering a republican parade and a republican councillor, who knew about my BB experience, politely asked me to judge the bands!

It brought back memories of BB battalion drill competitions in the Seventies when, as companies, we would march in step to see which one of us was the best. There was also stiff competition to see who would also be the best drill sergeant giving orders to the boys on parade.

There have been times when reporting on republican parades that I’ve been tempted to say to the colour party - hold on lads, this is how it should be done! Obviously, common sense would tell me to keep my mouth shut, and quietly tut-tut to myself.

Then again, are republican colour parties trying to make a political point by not marching like the British military or loyalist band colour parties. Maybe the left foot stamp as they ‘march’ is really a republican two-fingers up to the concept of proper drilling.

Perhaps I should donate a trophy for the best republican colour party on parade which can actually march in step, look professional, and especially hold their flags at the proper angle?

Before BB competitions, we would practice our squad drill in the church hall for weeks on end. Perhaps the republican colour party members could take a leaf out of the BB drill book and take time to practice their marching.

As a BB traditionalist who still believes in the role of drill in the movement, I’m available for any republican colour party who needs a drill sergeant. In the meantime, a happy Easter to all and I live in hope that I will witness a good, precise and professional example of republican colour party marching this year.
 
Follow Dr John Coulter on Twitter @JohnAHCoulter
John is a Director for Belfast’s Christian radio station, Sunshine 1049 FM. 

Republicans Need To Put Their Best Foot Forward This Easter

Lynx By Ten To The Power Of One Thousand Nine Hundred And Thirty Three

 

A Morning Thought @ 3108

Anthony McIntyre ⚽I wan't sure if I would turn up for this one. 


Annoyed at the treatment of Joanna Byrne by the owners my instinct was to flip the bird in their direction. In the end I returned to watch the Drogs while still sharing the middle finger with Trivela, and remaining steadfastly in favour of Ms Byrne being reinstated as Joint Chairperson. I already have a season ticket so the owners don't get a cent more by my going or a cent less by my staying away. 

Those fellow Drogs supporters that I have spoken with and who are resolutely opposed to Israeli genocide, believe that there are options open to fans unhappy with the Trivela cancel culture which don't necessitate missing games. Joanna Byrne herself is refusing to walk away and has committed to returning to the terraces to cheer on her team. Little point in going it alone and becoming the Enoch Burke of Drogheda United, standing outside home fixtures with my badge strewn beanie like some sandwich board Jeremiah in Dublin's Henry Street entreating the sinners to repent, the end is nigh! When I told Paddy about my Enoch disinclination, he burst out laughing, reinforcing my view that aversion not conversion is the better option.  More collective deliberation will undoubtedly take place, and and we shall see what the future brings. 

With the clocks having jumped forward an hour, it was pleasant to drive across town on a bright sunny evening. As we took our seats the glare from the sun made us long for baseball caps with their peaks  rather than the Drogs beanies we were wearing. Just on cue, as kickoff was about to commence, the sun disappeared behind the stand across the pitch from us. Vision perfect, we settled in for the game against the league leaders, Bohemians. 

My beanie was slightly heavier this week, increasingly weighing more like a helmet than a hat. My neighbour and his son had just returned from Anfield having watched the 2-2 draw between the Legends and Dortmund, and had thoughtfully picked up a badge for me on Merseyside, which I squeezed in beside one of Diego Jota at the front of the beanie.  

Just prior to disembarking from the car, I had asked Jay for his prediction. When he said 0-0, I reminded him that he had predicted a draw in the previous game and was on the money. This time he not only forecast the outcome but called it right on the scoreless draw that was eventually served up. Maybe he was going on form, the last two clashes between these sides also ending in draws.

On a nippy but not bitterly cold evening the Drogs were determined not to roll over in the face of the league leaders. Bohemians came to the game on an unbeaten run of nine games in which they had only conceded three goals. They would be very difficult to break down so it was important for the Drogs to prevent them scoring. From the outset the Claret and Blue were combative, almost taking the lead in the opening minutes only for Mark Doyle to do a Mo Salah in front of goal after being put through with a beautiful pass from Warren Davis that left the Bohs defence floundering and short of pace. The home fans gasped in disbelief but applauded the pass that almost made it happen.

Edwin Agbaje made one of the finest blocks the Premier Division is likely to see this season but almost ruined it minutes later when a careless back pass nearly handed victory to the Bohs. Dennison, last man standing, did just that, stood his ground and parried what looked a certain goal. 

When Shane Farrell, not long on the pitch as a sub, went to ground in the 87th minute few predicted the drama about to unfold as Good Friday turned bad very quickly. When the Bohs medical team raced to his side to assist their Drogs counterparts, a feeling of uneasiness set in. That type of intervention is normally not called for. When Coach Kevin Doherty was allowed onto the field by the referee, it was clear this was no ordinary injury. After around ten minutes Shane Farrell was stretchered off, oxygen mask covering his face, to a standing ovation. Fortunately, he was released from hospital the following day after an overnight stay. 

Once the injured player was safely off, the game resumed, the stoppage causing about ten minutes to be added on. Despite the setback and trauma at losing Shane Farrell, the Drogs steeled themselves. Agbaje's earlier heroics were repeated as the game drew to a close, this time with Warren Davis, I think, shutting down Zane Myers as he looked certain to find the net. The Drogs held on to secure a point. It was a better point for the home side than the visitors because as a result the Bohs have been overtaken on the outside lane by Pat's. Bohs sensing the threat to their poll position forced the referee to play poker with the amount of cards he handed out. Nine games in, ten points notched up, the Drogs now sit in seventh place. 

Tomorrow, night the Drogs host Galway. Neither Paddy nor I will be there. He is for Galway to celebrate his birthday while I have a long standing boozing arrangement in Dundalk with an old friend from the H-Blocks where we were part of the blanket protest for years although in separate blocks. Whiskey is much more pleasing to the palate than the H-Block dishwater which was served up as tea. Jay will fill in as the onsite cub match reporter. 

While the Shane Farrell incident was the most dispiriting aspect of the evening it was disappointing to once again see a flare ignite amongst the Ultras. It had been hoped that after a child sustained a facial injury as a result of a flare at Oriel Park a few weeks back, that never again would they make an appearance as part of fan culture. Despite enhanced security measures, flares somehow still get through. That being so, it is essentially down to the to the Ultras to manage their own turf and ensure safety for all. 

Most important of all, Shane Farrell is out of hospital and on the mend. That was the evening's real victory . . . for both sides.

⏩Follow on Bluesky.

Drogs ⚽ Bohs ⚽ Good Friday


Azar Majedi  & Yassamine Mather🎤 take the political temperature in Iran as it resists assault from US imperialism and Nazi Israel. 

The interview took place one day before military attacks on Iran, and explores the situation in Iran, the January protests and possible outcomes: war, regime change, Balkanisation of Iran. 

The interview was carried out by Dorna, an Iranian/German leftist.


⏩ Asar Majed is the Chairperson of Organisation for Women’s Liberation.

The Bloody January Uprising, The War And What Does Future Hold For Iran?

The Guardian ★ Written by . Recommended by Tony Roche.


The brutalisation of global norms by figures like Pete Hegseth must be seen as an ethical issue. It’s a fight against chaos, and all major religions must play a role.

That combative old hymn, Onward Christian Soldiers, is not much heard these days, though it was once a favourite with church congregations and school assemblies. Written in 1865 by Sabine Baring-Gould, an English clergyman and religious scholar, its belligerent refrain urges the faithful on to battle, victory and conquest: “Onward, Christian soldiers / Marching as to war / With the cross of Jesus / Going on before!” 

Its martial tone suited the Victorian zeitgeist but it made succeeding generations uneasy (though it was still sung in my primary school in the early 1960s). Nowadays, this sort of triumphalism gives religion a bad name.

Pete Hegseth, US defence secretary, and a leading Christian soldier, would certainly disagree. He probably hums it on his way to work. 

At a recent Christian worship service in the Pentagon – an irregular event, given the constitution’s dislike of anything smacking of state religion – Hegseth, referencing Iran, prayed for “overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy”. 

Continue @ Guardian.

As Team Trump Wage Unceasing War On Iran, Evangelical Nationalists Are Destroying Any Moral World Order We Once Had

Independent ★ Written by Brendan Rascius.


This week, Hegseth prayed that ‘wicked souls’ be ‘delivered to the eternal damnation’ in the fight against Iran

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has upended long‑standing norms by repeatedly invoking his religious faith, blurring the line between church and state in a way that has become particularly pronounced amid the Iran war, according to a new report.

Hegseth — who has a large Jerusalem cross tattooed across his chest — has long worn his Evangelical faith on his sleeve in a manner that has unsettled some military officials.

The former Fox News host has said that the U.S. was “founded as a Christian nation” and that it “remains a Christian nation in our DNA, if we keep it.” He’s also hosted Pentagon worship services that legal experts have branded “unprecedented,” The Washington Post reports. One faith leader invited to preach to servicemembers has said women shouldn’t be allowed to vote.

Hegseth’s proselytizing has drawn heightened scrutiny in connection with the U.S.–Israeli war against Iran, which has now stretched into its second month and shows no signs of abating, according to the Post.

During a press briefing on March 19, he encouraged viewers to pray for the success of U.S. troops in the Middle East.

Continue @ Independent.

Pete Hegseth Is Changing The Way The Pentagon Handles Faith 🪶 Some In The Military Are Finding It ‘Terrifying,’ Report Says

Right Wing Watch 👀Written By Peter Montgomery.


Anti-abortion leaders are cheering legislation introduced by Sen. Josh Hawley to ban the distribution and use of mifepristone, a medication used in most abortions in the U.S.

Anti-abortion groups have been frustrated that women living in states that banned abortion after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade have been able to access abortion medication by mail. They have been urging the Trump administration to withdraw a more than 20-year-old FDA approval for the drug’s use. Anti-abortion activists were outraged when in October 2025 the FDA approved a second generic version of the drug. Under pressure, HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy, Jr., announced a review of the drug’s safety.

Hawley apparently got tired of waiting for the administration to act. And he wants Congress to take the decision out of the FDA’s hands. After his press conference announcing the legislation on Wednesday, Hawley spoke with the Family Research Council’s Tony Perkins. “If Congress says we’re gonna take mifepristone off the market for abortion, that’s how it’s gonna be,” Hawley said. “No future liberal administration will be able to roll that back. It will be in the law.”

Continue @ RWW.

Religious Right Cheers Josh Hawley Bill To Criminalize Abortion Medication

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