Pre Weekend Musings From The Commute

It’s been a bit busy. Infact, its been unbelievably busy but I’m heading back on the train for the weekend. . Here are some thoughts on things that have been attracting my attention:

1) I got really excited about parliament’s badger vote (219/1 vote in favour of declaring it a total failure) until I realised that this vote was somehow irrelevant and all the pro badger cull people just didn’t both to show up. So, there is still every chance of another ludicrous slaughter of innocent animals. Anyone know how where I can find out how/if my MP voted? If he’s the 1 in favour then I’m not going to be sending him a badger onesie as a present.

2) Ireland are this year’s champions of northern hemisphere rugby. It was close but they gave BOD the retirement send off he deserves after a record 141 international caps. Shame on Gatland that’s not 142. No, I’m not going to let that pass.

3) Here’s a thought on replacing BOD. How about Tommy Bowe moving in to 13 as we seem to have plenty of cover on the wings. Then we could play with an interchangeable back four rather than a back three. Imagine the lines of running we could weave. Where is Joe Schmidt’s mobile number?

4) Welsh fans say they their team was shagged out after the Lions tour. It’s true the Welsh were the biggest contingent on tour but a fair few English and Irish too and even a Scot. So how come these three teams finished above Scotland, France and Italy?

5) If Scotland vote for independence in September’s referendum, do you think Putin would annexe them to Russia?

6) Perhaps, Salmond should think about that as a backup plan if he doesn’t get currency union with the UK or membership of the EU. It’s clear he’s desperate to be part of someone’s club.

7) Jo Wiley did 26hrs on a treadmill for Sports Relief. I love running but I’ve only ever done 2.5hrs on a treadmill. I’ve no idea how she did that. Text “Jo” to 70011 to contribute and show your support.

Have a good weekend, everyone.

A New Star For Irish Rugby

I promised myself my next blog would not be about badgers, just for a change. I love sports and particularly rugby and the Six Nations is a highlight of my calendar so here goes.

Sports stars come in all shapes and sizes. They flit into our consciousness during their prime and fade away again once their time is done. For the very few superstars, the special ones, their star continues to shine long after their playing days have gone. There is even a kind of sporting deification when a nickname which becomes synonymous with them is bestowed. “Beefy” will always be Botham to the cricket world. Recently the trend is to refer to them just by their initials. KP has been trending for a couple of weeks on social media and most people who follow the Premier League will know RVP or JT.

In Ireland, a special version of this exists where the initials spell a word through the inclusion of a letter O. It started with Brian O’Driscoll. Irish rugby fans delight in saying that in BOD we trust. For a while he stood alone but during a golden age for Irish rugby two more legends joined and we had ROG and POC to join BOD. in that glorious 2009 season they won the Six Nations and the first Grand Slam since 1948.

ROG has left now, gone to the afterlife in a commentary box. After a disastrous 2013 Six Nations tournament it seemed the golden age was over and Irish rugby would sink back into mediocrity. BOD is in his swansong season before a well earned retirement. His commitment never waivers but the body is injury prone now. A poor result against Australia in the autumn series did nothing to dispel the sense that a new coach could not halt our decline.

But then that stunning, unexpected and ultimately heartbreaking, gut-wrenching defeat to New Zealand kindled a faint hope. Two more matches in the Six Nations have helped flame that faint hope and expectations have grown. There is, of course, much to do still, starting with England in a fortnight, but the team is building a consistency to their performance we haven’t seen since 2009 and Joe Schmidt has brought a tactical side which is new. The foundation of this consistency, as always in rugby, is in the depths of “the breakdown”. Here the teams contest supremacy even where the all-seeing television cameras cannot see all. Here the heart of the team works together to keep the ball, to stop their opponents, to slow them down without over committing bodies and to ultimately win a turnover. Special warriors are needed to gain fractional but crucial advantage in the deepest recesses of the rucks and mauls and Ireland have found a new star.

A magical moment in any sports fan’s life has just taken place. Peter O’Mahony, I name you POM.