Tuarimí Éagsula Bainisteorachta agus an Séú Geansaí is Fiche

Tá an ionchoinse ar cad a tharla foireann rugbaí na hÉireann i gCorn Domhanda na Rugbaí, agus conas a d'fhágadar na h-oilean mar an bhfoireann is fearr in Éirinn riamh, agus a d'fhilleadar ar ais mar caoirigh ina gclampar féin (maith thú, a Bhabs!), faoi lánsheoil arís. Agus mise féin i mo mhac leinn síceolaíochta an duine, tá spéis mór ag bhur Spailpín faoin mbearna mór a d'éirigh idir na h-imreoirí ar an gcéad XV agus na h-imreoirí ar an ndara XV - na realtaí agus na maoir uisce, más maith libh.

Dar le Eamon Ó Súilleabháin, oiliúnóir foirne na hÉireann, sin mar a bhfuil an saol - tá Drico níos fearr leatsa agus mar sin caithfidh tú fanacht ar an mbinse agus do ghobsa a dúnadh, agus a ndúnadh go daingean. Ach tá tuairimí eile ag bainisteoirí eile, agus tá Seán Ó Mathúna, TD, taobh thiar céann de na scéalta is ansa liomsa maidir le foirne, imreoirí ar imeall na foirne, agus síceolaíocht an duine féin.

Bhí Seán Ó Mathúna ceapta mar bhainisteoir na Gaillimhe le cúpla bhlian, agus meas mór air ar fud na tíre tar éis rugadh na Gaillimhí ar a gcéad Craobh le dhá bhlian is triocha i 1998. Ag an am seo, bhí geansaithe nua ag Gaillimh agus bhí na h-imreoirí go leir cruinnithe le cheile ag Johnno chun phictiúr nua na foirne a thógail agus iadsan gleasta go leor ina ngeansaithe bhreá nua. Ach nuair a tháinig na geansaithe nua, ní raibh ach cúig gheansaí is fiche ann - bhí ceann amháin dul amú.

Duirt an t-imreoir gan geansaí gan bhac leis, go mbeidh sé ceart go leor, gurbh fhéidir leis an griangrafadóir an geansaí nua a chur isteach leis an bhFótóshiopa, ach ní ghlacfadh Johnno le seo. Amach leis a ghuthán phoca, chuir sé glaoch ar an bhfear taobh thiar na ngeansaithe nua, agus thóg Johnno an cluas uaidh go dtí go mbeadh an séú geansaí is fiche aige. Choinneáil Johnno an painéal le cheile, gan le déanamh acu ach féachaint ar a mbrógaí agus a dtóna a scríob, go dtí gur tháinig an séú geansaí seo. Ach nuair a tháinig an gheansaí ar dheireadh agus a thógadh an phictiúr agus a sciop na h-imreoirí abhaile, bhí fios maith acu nach raibh duine acu níos tabhactaí ná duine eile i súile Sheáin Uí Mathúna.

Beidh sé suimiúl go leor, nuair a dtiocfaidh na dirbheatháisneisí amach, cad a tharla don nglúin órga - agus an glúin gheal a bhí acu chun deochanna a thabhairt don nglúin órga agus tart acu.

FOCAL SCÓR: Insíodh dúinn leis na miosa gurbh iad seo an fhoireann is réidhe riamh. Má bhíodh siad réidh, cé ar thug cead dóibh dul amach le brogaí donna ar a gcosa agus culaithe dubha ar a ndroma? Ní ghlacfeadh Glenda leo dá mbeadh sí ann fós, bail ó Dhia uirthi!





Technorati Tags: Gaeilge, rugbaí, Eddie O'Sullivan, John O'Mahony

Reddan, Steady - D'oh!

This bleary-eyed blogger is surprised that neither the traditional media, nor our new friends over at the marvellous Fear of God blog, has noted that in selecting his team to play France on Friday, Ireland head coach Eddie O’Sullivan has reverted to one of the most sacrosanct traditions of the old amateur era. This is the tradition of picking a man for the game against France in Paris for his very first cap, and then somehow expecting him to escape alive. For a time it was as much a part of the Parc des Princes experience as the cockerels, the band behind the goal and the adidas ball with the black spots that meant damnation for the Irish placekicker, who could no more kick the thing than a bag of potatoes.

Remember Ken O’Connell, the openside flanker of Sunday’s Well and Ireland? His career started and finished on the edge of the Bois de Boulonge, God love him. An Spailpín would have long forgotten the poor devil except that the Sunday Times, almost certainly when Tom English was still their rugby correspondent, interviewed O’Connell years later and asked him what it was like to make his debut in the Parc des Princes. Hell on Earth was his answer. Equally, Moss Keane reminisces in his recent autobiography about being raked in the face during a ruck in his international debut in Paris in 1974, when his aggressor drew so much blood that the dazed Moss realised that if only they had a bucket to collect the blood Ireland could have made black pudding.

Welcome to the big time, Eoin Reddan.

Eddie O’Sullivan’s relentless CV padding of recent years means that Eoin Reddan, with half-an-hour’s international rugby under his belt, is now expected to turn around the tanking Irish, and to do so while the likes of Serge Betsen or Chabal is trying to turn him into a melodeon. When Ireland played the might of the Pacific Islands in Ireland’s last game at Lansdowne Road, Reddan wasn’t even on the bench. Issac Boss started at scrum-half, and Peter Alexander Stringer was on the bench. Stringer had seventy caps and won the Heineken Cup for Munster the preceding May. What could he show from the bench that hadn’t been seen already?

And the cost of that is that Eoin Reddan is now being asked to do the impossible, to turn Ireland out of the nosedive they’re in currently. An Spailpín Fánach hopes it works out for him, but my goodness gracious, it’s certainly a lot to ask.

The bizarre thing is, of course, that scrum-half isn’t the position most in need of change. There is no point in dropping the Piper Hickie either; as Donal Lenihan pointed out on Newstalk’s Off the Ball last night, dropping Hickie is like dropping a corner forward in football if you’re getting a hiding. Generally, you’ll find the problems are nearer the action.

What An Spailpín Fánach would do – presuming that he can’t turn back the clock two years and see those autumn internationals as they are – is start Alan Quinlan. Whether it’s in the second row or the back row I don’t care; I would give himself and Leamy 00 licenses and tell them to just take their chances with the cards. Besides, if they do a good enough job, the ref will be too scared to bin either of them. This would have the beneficial effect of putting the French on the back foot, and let’s not forget that Freddy Michalak (did you see the state of him on Sunday night? Good God) isn’t going to fancy being on the back foot much – least of all with Leamy or Quinlan trying to rip it off.

But out from that, there’s no hope. The campaign is already a disaster, and the only thing the team can do now, realistically, is try to stave off humiliation. As a fellow Mayoman and Ballinaman I wish Gavin Duffy all the best, and it’s my dearest wish that he can be the toast of Paris come Friday night, but anybody who has any appreciation of the impossible thrill of seeing a man running with ball in hand has to have his or her heart broken by the shameful current treatment of Geordan Murphy. These are grim days for Irish rugby.







Technorati Tags: rugby, Rugby World Cup, Ireland, France, Eoin Reddan, Geordan Murphy, Eddie O'Sullivan

IRFU Adopt Soviet Five Year Plan Strategy, Apparently

An Spailpín Fánach is utterly stunned at the announcement today that Eddie O’Sullivan has been appointed Ireland coach until 2012. 2012! And this before a ball is kicked in the World Cup!

The Union points out in the release that they did the same thing in 2003, giving Eddie a vote of confidence before the World Cup. But they do not point out that the reason for that was because it was still less than two years since they hung Warren Gatland out to dry. The IRFU had made their bed and they then had to lie in it.

But this is four years on, when people are gradually beginning to see the hype of the past year or eighteen months for what it was, and will be watching the World Cup with a much more critical eye than heretofore. So for the IRFU to batten down the hatches like this smacks of nothing so much as the deal that the FAI made with Mick McCarthy before the soccer World Cup in Japan. And we all know how well that worked out.

It’s tempting to wonder if this new contract includes a get-out clause should O’Sullivan be offered the Lions job in 2009 when they tour South Africa. O’Sullivan is the long-time front runner (clever Eddie having skilfully disassociated himself from the 2005 debacle by by leaving Sir Clive to swing slowly in the wind), and we have confirmation of this favoritism in O’Sullivan’s appointment as coach to the Barbarians in December (whose brand has no proved as lasting in the professional era as the Lions’, more’s the pity). Your correspondent will bet good money that get-out clause exists, but An Spailpín doesn’t think it will come to that – it’s hard not to get the sinking feeling that there won’t be too much Emerald Green in the Lions’ squad by the time 2009 comes around. How very depressing.

FOCAL SCOIR: Anybody know how Gatland got on since he got the bullet here for being no good? What’s that? Three English Rugby Premiership titles in a row with London Wasps, a Heineken Cup with Wasps as well and an inaugural Air New Zealand Cup with Waikato last year? Clearly a bum – we’re well shot of him.





Technorati Tags: sport, rugby, Eddie O'Sullivan, Warren Gatland