By Cathal Dervan

It's official — Stan’s Army are off to meet Uncle Sam this summer when the Ireland team return to New York and Boston.

The FAI have confirmed that Stephen Staunton’s side will undertake a two game tour of America’s East Coast in May.

Both games will feature South American opposition, with Ireland confirmed for dates against Ecuador and Bolivia on their return to the States for the first time since the 2000 U.S. Cup.

Staunton will first take his players to New York for a game against Ecuador at Giants Stadium on Wednesday, May 23.

They will then make the journey to Boston to play Bolivia at the new Gillette Stadium at Foxboro on Saturday, May 26.

“It will be an important tour for us and I am looking forward to it as the young players in the squad for the San Marino game need to play international football and these games will give them the perfect opportunity,” said Staunton.

The trip to the States will bring the curtain down on the season for Staunton’s squad after European qualifiers against Wales and Slovakia at Croke Park at the end of March.

With no game scheduled until the friendly away to Denmark in August, Staunton was anxious to arrange friendly fixtures at the end of the season to blood the youngsters who came into his squad this week.

An initial seven uncapped players were included in the squad for Wednesday’s Euro tie in San Marino but Staunton may wait until the U.S. tour to throw them in at the deep end.

Joyce Wins

Athy featherweight David Oliver Joyce won his national title and the boxer of the tournament trophy at the 2007 National Senior Championships at the National Stadium in Dublin on Friday night.

Belfast’s Ryan Lindberg claimed the vacant bantamweight crown after a see-saw four-rounder vs. Kevin Fennessey from Clonmel, while Ken Egan triumphed at light heavyweight. Middleweight Darren Sutherland claimed his second consecutive title while Athy’s Roy Sheahan retained his welterweight crown.

World ladies lightweight champion Katie Taylor received a heroine’s reception as she beat Finland’s Eva Walstrom in a special contest.

Sports Shorts

ATHLETICS: Belfast’s Gareth Turnbull claimed second place Ethiopia’s Berhanu Alemu in 3:58.88 in the mile event at the Armory Indoor Meeting in New York over the weekend . . .

GOLF: Ireland’s Rory McIlroy is top of the amateur world rankings after a very impressive display at the Dubai Desert Classic when he finished on three-under 285.

BASKETBALL: Respected Serbian coach Sasa Punosevac has been appointed to take charge of the Irish ladies basketball team.

RUGBY: Ulster have signed flanker Sam Harding from Northampton until the end of the season.

RUGBY: Aussie centre Paul Warwick will join Munster from Connacht in the summer.

Harte’s Plea

Tyrone football boss Mickey Harte has pleaded for leniency when the GAA’s disciplinarians decide on Ryan McMenamin’s fate after his red card under the Croke Park floodlights on Saturday night.

McMenamin walked after he kicked out at Dublin forward Kevin Bonner near the end of his team’s narrow one point win and could receive anything between four and eight weeks as a ban.

“It’s not for me to make judgments on how it’ll be interpreted by anyone else,” manager Harte told The Irish News.

“It’s one of these things that happen when two players become entangled. I suppose it’s a question of the degree of intent that somebody else might judge was in it. I don’t want to prejudice anybody else’s opinion on this. I don’t know what the referee put him down for.

“If, in the referee’s judgment, a player does something that merits sending off, you have to accept that. But I hope people assess what degree of malicious intent was in it, or was it an impetuous act, and come to a decision in keeping with whatever they see.”

Game Switch

Dublin may switch their NFL clash with Kerry to Croke Park in April on the back of the successful game against Tyrone last Saturday night when over 81,000 fans packed the venue for the official launch of the new floodlights.

“The Dublin vs. Kerry game obviously stands out as a huge game and we’d never say never about Croke Park,” said a GAA spokesman. “It’s probably the All-Ireland final that many neutrals wanted to see from last year. It’s fair to say there would be huge interest in seeing those teams at Croke Park. The stadium will also be free on that day.”

GAA Shorts

NEW Cork hurling boss Gerald McCarthy may continue his experiment with Diarmuid O’Sullivan at full forward in the forthcoming NHL campaign . . .

CLARE hurler Tony Griffin is to miss the Munster championship as he wants to travel when he completes his final year university exams in Canada . . .

FERMANAGH will meet Limerick in Clones on Sunday, February 18 after last weekend’s game was postponed because of heavy fog . . .

LAOIS defender Aidan Fennelly could miss most of the NFL campaign with a shoulder injury . . .

HALF-back David Collins is the new captain of the Galway hurling team . . .

LIMERICK want to erect floodlights at their Gaelic Grounds venue.