Rugby now more popular than football AND GAA?!

[Stuttgart88]

I re-started this thread because I think Matt Williams is a bitter, twisted individual who needs therapy!

[Diggs246]

Have you ever been on a rugby away trip?

Irish people are Irish people, if we are away in the Curling championship. We will still get ****ed

[IsMiseSean]

The difference is the mentality of teams and supporters. For Ireland away soccer fans the attitude is “win or lose we’re on the booze” aren’t we great craic and everybody loves us.

For Ireland rugby fans traveling away they except the team to win and aren’t just hoping for the best

I had four friends who were in Australia at the time and travelled to NZ for the RWC in 2011. Two of them had never been to a rugby game in their lives before the tournament (and I doubt they've been since).

I'm sure the night Ireland bottled it against Wales in the quarter finals they were inconsolable and probably went back to their campervan early after the game in tears. :rolleyes:

[DeLorean]

I've only been to one Rugby international ever - the game against France in Cardiff in the last RWC. Win or lose, I was definitely on the booze, and I make no apologies.

[Stuttgart88]

For Ireland rugby fans traveling away they except the team to win and aren’t just hoping for the bestWell, when we're one of the best teams in the world it's reasonable to expect to win. I've been at surprise defeats though (IRL v FRA at Croker for example, 2007?) and quite frankly the lack of disappointment among the corporate invitees I was with really annoyed me. It'd be beyond delusional to have the same expectations of the football team today that we have of our rugby team. Even in the early 90s footy team heyday there was a fair degree of hope added to the high expectations.

But that's neither here nor there really, I just don't see the relevance of your point.

[Stuttgart88]

Irish people are Irish people, if we are away in the Curling championship. We will still get ****edWhere's that on? Anywhere good for a lads' weekend away?!

[NeverFeltBetter]

Well, when we're one of the best teams in the world it's reasonable to expect to win. I've been at surprise defeats though (IRL v FRA at Croker for example, 2007?) and quite frankly the lack of disappointment among the corporate invitees I was with really annoyed me. It'd be beyond delusional to have the same expectations of the football team today that we have of our rugby team. Even in the early 90s footy team heyday there was a fair degree of hope added to the high expectations.

But that's neither here nor there really, I just don't see the relevance of your point.

I remember that game. There was a general sense of deflation where I watched it as people realised playing in Croke Park didn't automatically make Ireland five times better, as the England came had fooled people into thinking.

[DeLorean]

I remember that game. There was a general sense of deflation where I watched it as people realised playing in Croke Park didn't automatically make Ireland five times better, as the England came had fooled people into thinking.

The France game was before the England one. The sense of deflation was probably due to France scoring a winning try in the last minute to be fair. :)

[Stuttgart88]

My point was that the people I was with weren't even deflated. And yes, France was first. Game 1 in a great Grand Slam opportunity.

[DeLorean]

Were you deflated?

[Razors left peg]

My point was that the people I was with weren't even deflated. And yes, France was first. Game 1 in a great Grand Slam opportunity.

I remember that game well. I did a air kick in frustration when France score the last minute try and forgot that I had left a pint of coke on the ground which was launched across the room to smash against the wall. Not my favorite Irish Sporting memory!

[NeverFeltBetter]

I clearly need to do better at this whole thing rugby thing.

[paul_oshea]

The feeble qualification rules don’t help smaller nations either.
I cheered on Japan when they beat South Africa in the World Cup only to realise about half of their players weren’t Japanese at all.
Players don’t need passports to represent a nation. I’m not sure they even need citizenship.
Bigger nations can poach good players, especially from Pacific islands.

I'm intrigued by this. I mean at what point did you realise that half their players were not Japenese :D

[Stuttgart88]

They had a Labuschagne in their team today. I'd never even heard that surname before until a cricketer of the same name came on as a concussion sub for Steve Smith in the Ashes cricket recently and excelled.

[IsMiseSean]

They had a Labuschagne in their team today. I'd never even heard that surname before until a cricketer of the same name came on as a concussion sub for Steve Smith in the Ashes cricket recently and excelled.

They're brothers and they're really South African. Shows how ridiculous eligibility has become in sport nowadays.

[Charlie Darwin]

Matt Williams is at it again (http://https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/international/matt-williams-new-zealand-s-cynical-play-must-be-punished-at-world-cup-1.4017590). He’s virtually deranged in his hatred of football.

Ultimately the first month of every RWC reminds us that Rugby is blind to religion, skin colour, nationality or sexual preference, and is a community game that bridges cultures played in over two hundred countries. Very few in the rugby community are professional. Globally rugby remains predominantly an amateur sport.

Wonderfully, you will see no physical barriers between supporters at the matches. There will be no police on horses keeping the opposition supporters apart.

After the matches in the local bars and on the trains from the stadiums there will be no hooligans rioting. The most opposing supporters will throw at each other will be some very off key singing, in voices that should never be heard outside the family shower. The players will refer to the referees as “Sir” or “Mame.” It’s old school, but it’s good school. There will be no players faking injury, rolling around on the ground clutching an untroubled knee in an attempt to get an imaginary penalty. But you will see many players acting. Many will pretend they are not hurt, when in fact their entire body is stinging after the joy of physical contact.
You missed a character in your link - this is the correct one: https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/international/matt-williams-new-zealand-s-cynical-play-must-be-punished-at-world-cup-1.4017590

Big statement looking down on soccer though from a guy who thinks "Borises" is the possessive form of Boris.

[Charlie Darwin]

I remember that game well. I did a air kick in frustration when France score the last minute try and forgot that I had left a pint of coke on the ground which was launched across the room to smash against the wall. Not my favorite Irish Sporting memory!
Left peg or right peg?

[Razors left peg]

Left peg or right peg?
;) right foot straight off the instep

[Stuttgart88]

It takes some nerve and frankly amnesia for anyone here to criticism rugby on how they run things. But I suppose it makes a change from seeing the latest revelation about FAI board/John Delaney in the papers.

As far as I can Irish football fans only seem interested in the senior teams desperate attempts to qualify for the Euros so they can go a **** up abroad. Everything else including all the humiliation and embarrassing incidents can be forgotten if we can sneak into a tournament that is harder to miss out on than it is to qualifyDid anyone see the youtube interviews doing the rounds yesterday with lots of the rugby fans after the game? Absolutely incoherently out of their faces (as they are perfectly entitled to be, without any criticism imho). But they looked like they were there for the drink and the craic just as much as any of their footy counterparts.

[DeLorean]

Half of them probably are their footy counterparts!

[NeverFeltBetter]

The rugby love-in will take a big hit off this. Ireland are as bad as I've ever seen them. This crowd aren't winning a quarter-final, let alone a World Cup.

[Closed Account 2]

A real risk of finishing 3rd now, Samoa play Scotland on Monday, the ideal (if unlikely) result there is a draw. A win for Samoa will put them in contention, a win for Scotland brings them back from the brink of elimination.

[NeverFeltBetter]

They'll need two bonus point wins against Samoa and Russia and they should be OK for second with 16 points. So, should still get through, but then what? New Zealand will make mincemeat of this Ireland team, and so would South Africa.

[liamoo11]

I was listening to the radio commentary and they said an Irish supporter ran on to pitch towards the end. Hopefully the Japanese jail him for 3 months awful thuggish thing to do

[Kyle_Katarn]

Be interesting to see what the media make of the loss, if it was the football team they wouldn't hold back!

[NeverFeltBetter]

Panelists after the game were in full "Don't panic" mode anyway, which is fair enough. Seems very much like 2007 to me though.

[seanfhear]

In fairness . Well played Japan .

[DeLorean]

Be interesting to see what the media make of the loss, if it was the football team they wouldn't hold back!

Neil Francis accused them of an unforgivable dereliction of duty. Harsh enough? :)

[gastric]

Neil Francis accused them of an unforgivable dereliction of duty. Harsh enough? :)

Most condescending, smug and self righteous individual around. Is genetically similar to a certain recently resigned FAI official!

[geysir]

Panelists after the game were in full "Don't panic" mode anyway, which is fair enough. Seems very much like 2007 to me though.

Some people were reminded of 1999 the supposed nadir, or could have been the ignominious collapse to France in 2003? or the golden generation falling well short to that beatable Wales team of 2011.

Who knows, this team might yet be the first Irish rugby team ever to reach the last 4 in what's effectively an 8 team tournament.

[NeverFeltBetter]

Have the Japanese not made it a nine team tournament?

How does one get Tier One status anyway?

[geysir]

Have the Japanese not made it a nine team tournament?

How does one get Tier One status anyway?
Perhaps you are counting Scotland as a top 8 team?

[NeverFeltBetter]

They're in contention for a Quarter Final spot aren't they?

[liamoo11]

https://m.independent.ie/world-news/asia-pacific/two-irish-rugby-fans-questioned-by-police-in-japan-after-arrests-in-suspected-heroinmixing-scam-38547916.html disappointing behaviour from Irish rugby fans

[geysir]

They're in contention for a Quarter Final spot aren't they?
You can't take a bit of humour?

but have a gander
https://www.world.rugby/rankings/mru?lang=en

[DeLorean]

Only spotted this now. Pretty much sums up my own feelings on the matter (and the utter nonsense of 'sports wars' generally) - https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/sport/columnists/its-time-to-call-a-truce-on-rugby-countrys-culture-war-954546.html

[The Fly]

Only spotted this now. Pretty much sums up my own feelings on the matter (and the utter nonsense of 'sports wars' generally) - https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/sport/columnists/its-time-to-call-a-truce-on-rugby-countrys-culture-war-954546.html

My favourite part -

We laughed, but I was taken aback. It had been a while since I’d heard that kind of talk. I thought it had gone away, another of the old prejudices swept aside by Ireland’s gradual transformation into one great, liberal, middle-class suburban monoculture.

[Stuttgart88]

Only spotted this now. Pretty much sums up my own feelings on the matter (and the utter nonsense of 'sports wars' generally) - https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/sport/columnists/its-time-to-call-a-truce-on-rugby-countrys-culture-war-954546.htmlThat's a brilliant read. Thanks for posting.





But, as for "sports wars",THEY started it! :)

[geysir]

That 'team of us' referred to in that McKenna article was inverted, originally the (disturbing) term was popularised by some ex rugby players, now pundits, dressing up aspects of snobbish bigotry with a sheen of respectability, was about CJ Stander not being 'one of us', therefore has no moral right to take the place of a bona fide Irish born player (one of us). All that , despite the highly dedicated iinvolvement that CJ has developed over the years with rugby at all levels in munster.

[The Fly]

1178778691356282880

[geysir]

I listened to the RTE sports bulletin after the 11am news, eager to hear some serious sports news, I got one minute on the do or die game in Georgia followed by 15 minutes about the Irish rugby teams efforts to emerge from the qualifying group, including an in depth analysis of the state of the pitch, sod by feckin’ sod. Naturally I support Irish rugby and wish them well in their endeavours to reach the Finals, the last 8 teams out of a tough qualifying process which involves 9 teams - i.e. when the Scots do turn up.

[Stuttgart88]

I know Twitter is an echo chamber but I'm surprised that there has been so much mainstream media cynicism about Team of Us, Rugby Country etc.

I got invited to a UCD Alumni London Chapter thing where the keynote speaker is CEO of a global giant corporation. I thought I might go along until I saw the date: 18th November. I'd bet any money there was just no knowledge that it might clash with IRL v DEN. In fairness, it's from 5-7pm, so maybe I'm being too harsh.

[jbyrne]

matt williams at it again on saturday:

https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/international/matt-williams-rugby-falls-foul-of-poor-lawmaking-to-the-delight-of-jealous-hordes-1.4047581

I found this to be quite telling:

"The number of people watching rugby has grown beyond the wildest imaginings of any administrator. Rugby is now the nation’s winter sport. Television ratings, match attendances and media space all back up that statement."

so we now measure a particular sports success by off field barometers like TV viewing figures rather than participation Matt??
there are 10 times more football clubs and 10 times more GAA clubs than rugby in this country.

id say the GAA national league attendances are for higher than rugbys are during the winter.

[Stuttgart88]

And the sheer brazen hypocrisy of "I never really understood the tribalism that creates jealousy between sporting communities" from the guy who at every single opportunity tries to put down other sports, especially football and promotes the superiority of his own. Honest to Jaysus...

[NeverFeltBetter]

matt williams at it again on saturday:

https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/international/matt-williams-rugby-falls-foul-of-poor-lawmaking-to-the-delight-of-jealous-hordes-1.4047581

I found this to be quite telling:

"The number of people watching rugby has grown beyond the wildest imaginings of any administrator. Rugby is now the nation’s winter sport. Television ratings, match attendances and media space all back up that statement."

so we now measure a particular sports success by off field barometers like TV viewing figures rather than participation Matt??
there are 10 times more football clubs and 10 times more GAA clubs than rugby in this country.

id say the GAA national league attendances are for higher than rugbys are during the winter.

By his own metrics I'd say the English Premier League is the nation's winter sport.

[Fixer82]

I remember being away for an Ireland match with a group of soccer heads, mostly former players, some of whom had played underage for Ireland.
They spent so much time bitching about the GAA it was ridiculous.
Hadn’t grasped the concept that it was possible to like more than one sport.
I love all our main sports of rugby, soccer, hurling and football.
They all involve getting a ball past the opponent’s defence. And we’re good at them all...well except maybe soccer at the moment 😔

So who care if one is bigger than the other at any given time ?!

[Fizzer]

Maybe we could lend James McLean to the goys, he’s well able to find touch.

[seanfhear]

Schmidt stayed to loyal to an old guard . We took one hell of a beating .

[IsMiseSean]

I reckon only Ewan MacKenna enjoyed that more than me this morning.

[tetsujin1979]

MacKenna isn't a journalist. At best he's a contrarian, at worst he's a hateclick merchant.