It’s mid Sunday morning and I’m sitting in front of the computer screen willing myself to write. My mind is a blank page, an empty vessel, devoid of rhyme and reason. A bit like Declan Kidney’s head at the minute … perhaps … after Saturday’s no-show by some of Ireland’s ‘star’ names.
It’s the phony war period before the battles begin a few weeks from now, when the business end of the season flares into action at both international and domestic level.
Messageboard Muggles
Already the pundits and messageboard writers have written themselves into the ground in paragraphs of paroxysm, great schisms of soulless comment filling acres of computer screen and screaming headlines searching for a listener.
The Irish rugby team hasn’t even boarded the plane.
The Munsterfans messageboard is incestuous, posters post as though they were members of the Irish priesthood, abusive of their own, dismissive of outsiders and ignorant of informed comment.
They are not alone, the UAFC messageboard dribbles along as though caught in the middle of gang warfare. Posters retort with posts that are designed to provoke. Metaphorically they appear to wield a mallet with every comment, rational debate tries to grow like grass in a garden of weeds.
Consensus not in my dictionary!
Consensus is a foreign word for some of these posters, they are there for the self-gratification of their own egos, other posters are objects which they must strike to have any enjoyment in life.
Consensus for Irish media rugby pundits remains a tantalising prospect, like a yet to be discovered star in the solar system. How can so many informed punters analyse so radically different views on Irish rugby players.
Take Liam Toland, a pundit I respect, yet he comments that Trimble is unlucky and doesn’t have the sparkle of the other contenders. Consensus is by and large unique in respect of Trimble. Most agree he is one of the stand out performers in the last three matches.
Toland would appear to be isolated on this one, mind he advocated taking James Downey in place of D’Arcy, so perhaps he is not altogether mad, just bored silly waiting for the real action to start.
Consensus on other players is harder to find, with Fitzgerald, O’Leary, McFadden and Earls, (now there’s a solicitors practice!), all being written about as though they were republican nominees in the US presidential race. Each have their detractors and apologists in equal measure.
After yesterdays performance though O’Leary has mainly detractors, bar possibly his mum. He will still travel to New Zealand though, his boarding pass stamped, ‘form is temporary, class is permanent’, as will Keith Earls.
Padraig O’Wallace
Where all of this leaves the much maligned Padraig O’Wallace is anyone’s guess, though I’d wager a Scoop bar pass he is at this moment sorting out his clothes for New Zealand.
Every action by Paddy is qualified by the pundits as being ‘surprisingly’, ‘unfortunately’, ‘but’ or ‘perhaps’. Consensus is easily reached on someone, maligned as he is by almost all but the Irish management. Yet on Saturdays evidence he offers more at the moment than the combined ‘might’ of Ireland’s perennial midfielders, one of whom was rusty and the other had holes in him.
There is unlikely to be many surprises on the plane to New Zealand for the Irish, bar a growing ground swell of pessimism for their prospects from all but the most green tinted, glasses wearing, Irish supporters. Their glasses one imagines would have been half full when the Titanic hit an iceberg.
*Footnote – since writing the above I have discovered that Tomas O’Leary didn’t get his passport stamped nor did Luke Fitzgerald so it seems some hardheadedness entered the Irish rugby management thinking. They are behaving like bankers, no loans were dished out to personnel perceived as risks.
Ulster Trundle On
On the domestic side, things are a little less mist shrouded. Ulster I feel missed a bullet by not sending their strongest team to Neath.
For sure the hard men of the region would have relished a chance to mix it with the Ulster Pro 12 select in the most unaccomplished way imaginable.
Instead, sending an academy select with a few pros was the best means of defusing a Neath time bomb and lulling them into a false sense of security. As it was, the youngsters did us proud and came home with a resounding victory.
Now its up to the more senior pros this Friday evening to put in a performance against Quins ahead of the PRO12 start against Glasgow.
Unseasonal Ticket
I’m somewhat irked by UR’s promotion of season ticket holders at the expense of what could be termed the ordinary fan who may not be in a position to buy a season ticket Like me they are a regular Ravenhill attendee and find themselves in a position of the unwanted guest at dinner.
UR give the impression that if you don’t have a season ticket then you’re not worth considering and folk may well heed the underlying message. You are not required since you don’t have a ST.
Twitter Witter Woo
Ryan Caldwell has joined twitter. If his playing form follows him into cyber space then he’s likely to be banned within a short period of entering the great wittering race.
Richardson’s Deja Vu
Disappointing to learn of the injuries to Simon Richardson in a cycling hit and run accident last week. Richardson was a double gold medal Paralympics athlete.
What makes his story all the more poignant is that he became a Paralympic cyclist after being injured in a road accident 10 years ago whilst out cycling with friends.
Agony then that lightning should strike twice and he is once again in a critical condition following a hit and run accident which left him in intensive care.
Not So Glory Days
I’m out on the roads on my push bike these days, trying to regain fitness which is like some El Dorado, unattainable and giving rise to fevered imaginings that give me a false sense of well being..
I have a hybrid bike, a cross between a mountain bike and a road racer, all 18 gears, cycling shorts, shirt and helmet.
There I was furiously pedalling top gear across a relatively flat section of road when I was overtaken by a big bloke of similar age but pedalling a huge gear on a road racing bike.
Vainly I tried to slipstream him in an effort to keep up but he just pulled inexorably away as though powered by an invisible force, his pedals rotating at half the speed of mine. (I was in top gear by the way!!)
What a terrible turn of events, I am resolutely humiliated.
Should I charge out and buy a drop down handlebar 27 speed gear racer, train twice as hard and go looking for revenge!! The look he gave me when he passed made me want to curl up and die!
It has spurred me on and depressed me in equal measure. For now I’m blaming my machinery, as you do. Deep down though I really need to catch myself on.
…and a blog I’m writing’s left undone…
Corrections, comments or questions?