Welsh club close in on signing of international powerhouse as they target moreThe Dragons are looking to strengthen in the back-threeView Image Anzelo Tuitavuki (Image: Getty Images)The Dragons are closing in on the signing of Tongan wing Anzelo Tuitavuki from Colomiers, WalesOnline has learnt. The 27-year-old previously played for Moana Pasifika in Super Rugby Pacific and Hawke's Bay in New Zealand's National Provincial Championship. ‌He has also won nine caps for Tonga and WalesOnline understands he is on the verge of signing for the Dragons. Get the latest Wales Rugby merch at Fanatics This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. It is understood the Dragons are in the market for an international class backrower and an outside-half, among other positions.

Certainly, he couldn’t have foreseen that he’d be here, a decade later, leading Bandon Grammar School into their fourth Munster Schools Senior Cup semi-final — which will be streamed live on the Irish Examiner. I'm very happy with what's happening.”Bandon Grammar team huddle. Pic: ©INPHO/Tom O’HanlonLast March, Bandon Grammar lifted their first major trophy when defeating CBC to be crowned Munster Schools Junior Cup champions. The next generation is very good too, so the Grammar School has a good future, short-term and long-term. It's powerful for rugby here.”The perfect au revoir would be a first Senior Cup final appearance for Bandon Grammar, who meet St Munchin’s at Virgin Media Park on Wednesday afternoon (12.45pm kick-off).

This is the terrifying moment an avalanche swept skiers away as it crashed over a piste at a top French ski resort. Harrowing footage showed the massive wall of snow crashing into three skiers at breakneck speed. The region has seen significant snowfall in recent days, with local media reporting that snowstorm hit the area last week. Meanwhile, in France, 28 people have been killed this winter in the popular Valloire area – including two British skiers. Skiers are facing snow with a soft, crumbly layer trapped beneath a heavy slab known as a 'persistent weak layer', experts explain.

The teens were away without us, which meant my husband and I were alone in the house rehearsing for the empty nest phase. The empty nest phase will mean far fewer incidents of tripping over crocs and uggs in the hall. My husband went up North for Valentine’s Day to see his mother Queenie. I know there are people in the world who have never spent a day in bed unless they are ill. But trust me, spending a whole day in bed not answering your phone and reading is uniquely restorative.

Al Green holds up a sign as Donald Trump arrives to deliver his address. Photograph: Kenny Holston/The New York TimesDonald Trump shakes hands with members of congress as he departs following his state of the union address. Democratic representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota shouts at president Donald Trump as he delivers his state of the union address. US first lady Melania Trump presents the Medal of Honor to Royce Williams, a 100-year-old Korean War veteran, during Donald Trump's state of the union address. You would sense that Royce Williams has faith that the republic will be fine long after Donald Trump has departed and the crowd finished shouting, and this night forgotten.

The prognosticators who 15 years ago predicted we’d all be driving Chinese cars are being proved right. Across Europe, Chinese brand sales accelerated by 80 per cent as the rest of the European car market fell by 3.6 per cent. Awareness of Chinese brands is now widespread, with just 3 per cent of respondents saying they are unaware of any Chinese car brand. Six in 10 respondents (61 per cent) describe their view of Chinese car brands as positive, while 31 per cent remain neutral. In this, Ireland seems a petri dish for how Chinese brands aim to steamroll all of Europe.

Lt Commander Martin Tarrant and Petty Officer Cillian Iver of the Irish Naval Service on board the patrol vessel Fionnghuala at Valentia Island in Co Kerry. Photograph: Valerie O'SullivanIreland is to deepen naval co-operation with France and Britain, including allowing their vessels to patrol Irish-controlled waters and offer protection during the EU presidency. One goal will be to forge links with the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), a UK-led alliance focused on maritime security. This will include appointing liaison officers to maritime security agencies in those countries. While it is not mentioned in the strategy, security sources said this increased co-operation will facilitate the stationing of French and UK vessels in Irish economic waters to assist with maritime security.

The International Protection Bill is described as the most radical reform of immigration law in the State’s history. However, Opposition TDs are critical of plans to guillotine the Bill on Wednesday without what they say is proper scrutiny of a number of provisions. Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan said, however, the Justice Committee dealt with the general scheme of the Bill in pre-legislative scrutiny. If the committee dealt with committee stage on an “orthodox basis” then the debate “would have taken an inordinate period of time”. Opposition TDs argue this is not defined in the legislation with no guarantee on who provides it or what standards apply.

A new survey has put a value of €60,112 on the work of a stay-at-home parent. Yet while the value of their work may equate to a full-time salary, the role of a stay-at-home parent is without pay, pension or financial protection. So how can you provide for the financial security of the stay-at-home parent and, if they get sick or die, enable your household to still function? The estimated annual cost of “employing” a stay-at-home parent has risen nearly 50 per cent since the survey began 10 years ago, says the insurer. Families with young children are arguably the most vulnerable if the stay-at-home parent gets sick.

Diageo Plc cut its guidance for the second time this fiscal year as the British distiller struggles to revive demand in the US and China, in an early challenge for new Chief Executive Officer Dave Lewis. The maker of Guinness and Johnnie Walker whisky now expects full-year organic net sales to drop 2-3%, according to a statement on Wednesday. It had previously expected full-year sales to be flat to slightly down. Diageo will also reduce its dividend, and Lewis said he is working on an updated strategy for the group that it will reveal during the third quarter.

A shed and parcel of land in Cornwall owned and previously lived in by author Catrina Davies is going under the hammer at auction on 25 March. Across Cornwall, property prices have surged over the years and the number of second-home owners remains high, pushing many locals out of the market. The shed was once owned by Davies' father, who used it as his architect's office before his business collapsed on Black Wednesday in 1992. Under the hammer: A shed and parcel of land in Cornwall once owned and lived in by author Catrina Davies is going under the hammer'I fell in love with living half outside close to the rain and the moon and the stars', Davies said on Instagram this week. However, properties sold in this way often - though not always - come with added complexities for the buyer.

Bridget Phillipson has sparked anger by suggesting that boys should be allowed to wear dresses to school. However she added that primary schools needed to 'tread with a lot of care', after she was asked if five-year-olds should be allowed to identify as the opposite sex. She was put on the spot after her department published long-awaited trans guidance for schools which waters down rules proposed by the Tories that would have banned primary schools from changing pupils' pronouns. Bridget Phillipson appeared on LBC radio's Call the Cabinet show on Tuesday morning'So if a boy wants to wear dresses, we should just… if we allow that to work. She added: 'I think it would be exceptionally rare for primary schools to be operating that.

If it is to effectively carry out its role, the Department of Education must undergo significant transformation. Photograph: Stephen Collins/Collins PhotosThe upcoming Convention on Education provides a welcome opportunity to reflect on the current education system, what it has achieved and the extent to which it is fit for purpose in a rapidly changing society. Ireland’s education system has, by many conventional measures, performed well over recent decades. Rethinking education policyConvinced of the need for significant reform of the education system, we explored the trajectory of education policy formulation in Ireland over recent decades. Perhaps most importantly, the education system continues to reflect enduring patterns of inequality, at the same time maintaining dominant power interests.

Photograph: Alan Betson/The Irish TimesA judge has ordered a landlord to address urgent safety issues at a protected building in Dublin previously taken over by dozens of squatters. The case was before Judge Anthony Halpin at Dublin District Court on Tuesday for the 20th time. He applied the Probation of Offenders Act, but ordered Kilraine to pay €5,950 in prosecution costs and set a nine-month deadline for completing the building work in line with best practice. Solicitor Michael Quinlan for Dublin City Council told the court that the landlord had to carry out a list of refurbishments to the protected structure. Barrister Joe Jackson, for Kilraine, told the judge his client’s difficulties with the building were well-known.

It was to be held in La Scala Theatre, off O’Connell Street, on May 16th. “Join Fianna Fáil,” it exhorted. A poster for the first meeting of Fianna Fáil 100 years ago. The venue was symbolic because in the absence of La Scala, this was the next best thing. It was in this room that the party held its first ard fheis in late 1926.