The IRISH RUGBY thread

[Milltown Row2]

France should get to the Final without Dupont, some depth of squad to pick from but he's so good in those tight situations and can pick a pass or create something from nothing.

Hopefully he's fit and ready for the final as that would be a huge loss for the neutrals

[bennydorano]

Looking forward to Saturday night's game, but with lots of reservations. It's not a WC Final nor anything like it but the hype will be huge, defeat will not be terminal, victory while sweet could ultimately be phyric if the cost is too great. A hard game to get the balance right for with the ultimate goal still a long way off. A week off after gives us some wiggle toom I suppose.

[thewobbler]

34.5 points is the average gap between the teams so far in this WC.

Personally I'd just be happy to watch a close game.

[johnnycool]

France should get to the Final without Dupont, some depth of squad to pick from but he's so good in those tight situations and can pick a pass or create something from nothing.

Hopefully he's fit and ready for the final as that would be a huge loss for the neutrals

France will face Ireland (hopefully get over the Scots irrespective of this weekends game) or SA in a quarter final, both would fancy a real cut at a full strength French team so Dupont might be a big blow to them for that game.

[NAG1]

Early prognosis for Dupont is 4-6 weeks to the semi-final if they can get there.
So I would imagine they will be exploring every avenue to get him back on the pitch.

[Capt Pat]

Bit mad that the French brought out the A Team in the second half. Dupont looked like he had a fractured cheekbone.

Yea looked exactly like the injury that broke my cheekbone in the past. He looked visibly upset coming off and France may rue playing their full squad tonight as they essentially have the group win in the bag

Could he come back after 4 weeks in a protective mask for the semis?

I see soccer players wearing those masks but I don't know how effective one of those masks would be in a game of rugby   
where there is more physical contact.

[NormPeterson]

Many of the people watching the rugby world cup are the same types who complain about GAA bandwagoners watching the All Ireland football championship. So tell me, are all you Irish rugby fans involved in local grassroots rugby? Sure you shouldn't be watching the Ireland international team if you don't go out and coach your local u-10s by your own logic.

[OgraAnDun]

Many of the people watching the rugby world cup are the same types who complain about GAA bandwagoners watching the All Ireland football championship. So tell me, are all you Irish rugby fans involved in local grassroots rugby? Sure you shouldn't be watching the Ireland international team if you don't go out and coach your local u-10s by your own logic.

As long as the U10 rugby coaches get tickets ahead of the bandwagonners, then what's the issue?

[Milltown Row2]

Many of the people watching the rugby world cup are the same types who complain about GAA bandwagoners watching the All Ireland football championship. So tell me, are all you Irish rugby fans involved in local grassroots rugby? Sure you shouldn't be watching the Ireland international team if you don't go out and coach your local u-10s by your own logic.

Watching it on tv? Or heading to the Aviva to watch your country play? So only soccer coaches should watch the Irish soccer team... sure only actual boxers and boxing coaches should watch Katie Taylor... f**k me!

[seafoid]

I was watching some analysis on TV3 that included Andrew Trimble who studied theology at Belfast Bible college and is a devout whatever class of Prosedant he is  and it's so weird the difference between how comfortable people like him are in the South compared to the bullshit that the DUP spout-- I know rugby is a class thing but still. The closer the connections between the North and South the easier the transition will be. I think rugby could teach the rest of the country a lot about this.

[Tony Baloney]

I was watching some analysis on TV3 that included Andrew Trimble who studied theology at Belfast Bible college and is a devout whatever class of Prosedant he is  and it's so weird the difference between how comfortable people like him are in the South compared to the bullshit that the DUP spout-- I know rugby is a class thing but still. The closer the connections between the North and South the easier the transition will be. I think rugby could teach the rest of the country a lot about this.

Middle-class "small U" Prod so I'm sure he'd be more at home with middle-class Catholics playing rugby than someone from a loyalist housing estate. In Ireland we like to pretend that class isn't "a thing".

[Tony Baloney]

Many of the people watching the rugby world cup are the same types who complain about GAA bandwagoners watching the All Ireland football championship. So tell me, are all you Irish rugby fans involved in local grassroots rugby? Sure you shouldn't be watching the Ireland international team if you don't go out and coach your local u-10s by your own logic.

It's hardly unreasonable for sports fans to watch the best in a given sport. Loads watch the Olympics but wouldn't go to the Mary Peters track in Belfast, the football World Cup without watching their local team. It's not that odd.

[johnnycool]

Interesting conversation on class within rugby.
I was told that in Cork city that hurling was the upper class sport, not rugby and Limerick is something similar.
Dublin is very different though, much like Belfast.

[imtommygunn]

There's class and religion in it in Belfast though. (Religion less so than their used to be mind you.)

[seafoid]

I was watching some analysis on TV3 that included Andrew Trimble who studied theology at Belfast Bible college and is a devout whatever class of Prosedant he is  and it's so weird the difference between how comfortable people like him are in the South compared to the bullshit that the DUP spout-- I know rugby is a class thing but still. The closer the connections between the North and South the easier the transition will be. I think rugby could teach the rest of the country a lot about this.

Middle-class "small U" Prod so I'm sure he'd be more at home with middle-class Catholics playing rugby than someone from a loyalist housing estate. In Ireland we like to pretend that class isn't "a thing".

It's more than class. Trimble knows he is safe in dublin and that nobody cares where he is from. He isn't treated like that because he is middle class.
It's not inherent that working class Prods in the North of Ireland despise the South. We are not a threat to anybody in the North and nobody cares what religion loyalists  have. They have a category error. 
N

 It wasn't inherent in 1910 that the Dublin merchant class were Unionist. The DUP needs a political base. If that model collapses anything could happen . At the end of the day it's all the same country. I cannot imagine the all Ireland without the Derry or Tyrone wans.

My wife is a blow in from the continent . She had heard about the North  from the news growing up and it was all about violence and whatever. One time we were driving up to a B&B in Co Down.She had never been further north than Sligo.  We crossed the border near Newry and there was a sign that said "welcome to Northern Ireland" and after a few minutes she said said that the landscape  and he houses looked very like Ireland. Just fancy that.