Ireland's cricket odyssey continued today, but sadly ended in a heavy defeat at the hands of Australia. Ireland were bowled out for 91, and Australia in reply scored 92 runs for the loss of one wicket.

It's just as well that Ireland batted first, because if Australia had gone in, they would have put, er, a cricket score on us.

Ireland's last hopes of earning a point or two in the Super Eight comes on Sunday, when they face Bangladesh. They finish up on Wednesday with their match against Sri Lanka.

Still no-one gave them a hope of getting as far as they did, and most of them are amateur club players. They have acquitted themselves well.

It looks like the Heineken Cup will be no more after this season.

Will we ever forget this day last May:

England have just bowled Ireland out for 218 to claim victory in the Super Eight match in Guyana.

We'll get our revenge! Just wait till the Hurling World Cup, then we'll show them!

Hooray! The Republic of Ireland football team win four games on the trot! Twelve points from four matches! Whenever we have done this before, qualification for the tournament in hand has followed, so we're a shoo-in for the European Championship in 2008, right?

Eh, no. Six of those points came from the home and away fixtures with San Marino, which at the end of the day, like, don't count. Whenever a group has San Marino in it, the other teams effectively start with six points and a goal difference of about +8 to +10 in the bag. It's like an international competition with Castlebar Celtic as one of the qualifying nations. San Marino is a punchbag, and you lay as many on them as possible, because you may need those goals later in the competition. We came out of our home and away encounter with the tiny republic with the six points, scored seven and conceded one. Our main rivals for qualification, Germany and Czech have already put 13 and 7 past them respectively and still have one leg to go.

So effectively, we have won two games. We won Saturday's game against Wales simply because Wales were even more awful than we were. The win over Slovakia was the first creditable performance since the draw with Czech on 11 October. There were a lot of positives to be taken from the game, and hopefully we will be able to build on it for the rest of the campaign. We still have to play Germany in Dublin and Czech in Prague, so hopefully by the time these fixtures come around, confidence and stability in the squad will have progressed.

I don't believe that we will qualify, but a third-place finish in the group would be a creditable finish, given the lack of ambition that the FAI has for the international squad.

Contrast that with Northern Ireland, who after a long period in the doldrums, are now top of their group, having beaten Sweden last night. The team is made up of Premiership journeymen and reserve players from Championship clubs, but when they play for Northern Ireland, they are transformed. This is because they have a very good manager in Lawrie Sanchez, who manages to get a lot more out of his players than should be available to him. His team adds up to a lot more than the sum of its parts. I hope they can keep up this momentum and qualify.

Holy Moly! If someone had said to me six months ago that I would post two consecutive pieces about cricket, I would never have believed them.

But anyway, Pakistan's tour-de-force of an innings has left Zimbabwe with an almost impossible task, and as I write are 94 for 9 from 18 overs. I'm glad that Pakistan have managed to redeem themselves, as they have had a horrible campaign, losing their two opening matches and then suffering the suden death of their coach, Bob Woolmer. Pakistan is a proud cricketing nation, and to have to go home whitewashed after all they have been through would have been too much.

Their expected win means that Ireland have reached the Super 8 stage for sure. Think ahead to Friday - both Ireland and the West Indies have already qualified. Neither side needs to win to stay in the tournament. They will be playing for fun. That can only mean one thing:

PARTY!!

Fair dues to the Irish cricket team, earning a draw in their opening world cup match with Zimbabwe. The Zimbabweans looked like they were in control as they settled into their innings, but the Irish came back at them and forced the draw on the very last ball of the match.

Hang on a second - an Irish team, in a World Cup pool game, finish with a draw… Hmmm, that sounds vaguely familiar, doesn't it?

Pakistan are next, on St Patrick's Day. I wonder if anything is happening in Ballyhaunis, Co Mayo to mark this occasion. Ballyhaunis has one of Ireland's longest-established Pakistani communities, dating back to the late 1970s/early 1980s, when a halal meat plant was set up there. Since 1999, the town has had a thriving cricket club, drawn mostly from the local Pakistani population. They have been very successful in their early years and have won a number of competitions against opposition from across the country.

St Patrick's Day will be a busy sports day for sure. the final round of the Six Nations, the cricket match against Pakistan, the GAA club finals and the schools rugby finals. The RTÉ sports department will be busy on Saturday.

Adds, Monday: Hmmm, it turns out that my headline could mark me out as being prescient. Well done, Irish cricket team. Sincere condolences to the family of Bob Woolmer, the late coach of the the Pakistan team.

This image from today's Sunday Tribune pretty much sums up yesterday's match.

I managed to get myself a ticket for the Ireland-France match tomorrow, and so will attend Croke Park for the first time ever for a sporting occasion. (I have been there for a coupe of wine tastings, and saw U2 there back in 1985.)

Aside from the obvious sense of sporting occasion, tomorrow's match represents a huge milestone in Ireland's development as a nation. Tomorrow, for the first time ever, a team will take to the field at Croke Park that represents all Irish people, whether Catholic or Protestant, Nationalist or Unionist, of Gaelic tradition or of British tradition. Of course, they have been doing this for years at Lansdowne Road, but it is Croke Park that makes tomorrow different.

The GAA is an impressive organisation. That an amateur sporting movement can continue to garner such a following in this era of wall-to-wall professional sports on satellite television is remarkable. That it managed to build one of the finest and biggest stadiums in Europe is quite incredible.

However, for too long, the GAA was inward looking. It represented the nationalist tradition on the island, and as far as it was concerned, anything beyond that outlook might as well have not existed. Some in the organisation would have happily seen Croke Park stay closed during the Lansdowne Road renovations, forcing the IRFU and the FAI to go abroad to play their home matches. Thankfully, sense prevailed and rugby will be played for the first time on the hallowed turf tomorrow. Credit must be given to former GAA president Seán Kelly and others for their efforts to bring this about.

I'll write more about this another time.

[Via Sinéad.]

A screen-grab of Steve Staunton's bio on Wikipedia
(as at about 9pm, 8 Feb 2007):

The Irish international football team is a disgrace. They scrambled a last-minute winner tonight against the worst team in Europe, a team that conceded 13 goals against Germany in an earlier round of the qualifiers. This lot couldn't pass water. They couldn't cross a road. They couldn't finish their dinner. Utterly, utterly hopeless.

I only saw the second half, and it was painful to watch (made even more painful by having to watch it on TV3). I switched over for the weather forecast, and as I flicked, I predicted to my wife that San Marino would equalise. When I flicked back a couple of minutes later, the ball was trickling its way into the Irish net.

When Steve Staunton was appointed national coach, my first reaction was puzzlement. Surely the FAI could have gone for someone with a bit of experience, particularly at international level. But I was prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt, and judge him by his results.

And boy, have those results been dismal. Beaten 5-2 by Cyprus, and tonight they were lucky to just beat San Marino.

Irish football is wandering in the wilderness. It's hard to believe that a little over six years ago, ten-man Ireland beat the mighty Netherlands at Lansdowne Road, 1-0.

The FAI will back Staunton until his contract runs out, after which he will be let go. That day cannot come a day too soon. He was the wrong choice and should never have been appointed.

My wife's late uncle John served some time on the Executive Council of the FAI. He was a football man to his bone marrow. This evening my wife turned to me and said: "Poor John is turning in his grave tonight."

My thoughts, predictions, etc, here

My thoughts on the fall of Fortress Thomond, here

I have finally gotten the finger out and moved Hands In The Ruck over to the gerryos.net domain.

I've decided to go the Wordpress route this time.

I'm not a cricket aficionado by any stretch of the imagination, but my wife is an avid follower. The third Ashes Test is on at the moment and England bowler Monty Panesar has been in devastating form.

I'm going to check the back page of The Sun in the morning, to see if their headline chimes with my suggestion.

Could Arsenal's captain be on his way out of the club? On the face of it, it would appear not. Thierry Henry insists he will finish his career at Arsenal, and that there is nothing in the rumours of a rift between himself and Arsene Wenger.




He missed last weekend's win over Tottenham, and could be out until the New Year with niggling injuries, which both he and Wenger have put down to fatigue. 

Henry hasn't shown the form of past seasons this year, and his performance in the World Cup during the summer were well below his own standard. 

Did he regret not signing for European Champions Barcelona last summer? He says he did not. 

"Regarding the recruitment in the summer, my confidence was not betrayed. I am at Arsenal for life. I will not go to Barcelona."

What odds on Henry in a Barcelona shirt next season? 

(I know that this isn't a particularly interesting post, but I've been waiting years, years, I tell ya, to use that headline.)

The Irish rugby team had an excellent Autumn series, winning all three matches (versus South Africa, Australia and the Pacific Islands), and enhancing their reputation in the eyes of the world. It has been said more often than once that Ireland are now the best team in Europe and probably second best in the world. It's a shame that the Pacific Islands match didn't count towards world ranking points, as the 61-17 demolition of the Islanders would have cemented Ireland's third place in the rankings, and might even have seen them come close to the second-placed French. Wins for Australia and South Africa saw them climb back above Ireland, who had overtaken them both a week ago.

Aside from the three wins, there was more to cheer. The squad came through relatively unscathed, (save Marcus Horan's leg injury, which will keep him out of the game until the new year; and Andrew Trimble's hamstring, which shouldn't cause too much worry.) We also got to see a few new players get their chance at International level, particularly in positions that have had long-term incumbents, such as half-back and prop. Some of the old guard showed that they too were willing to fight for a seat on the plane to Paris next Autumn, most notably Denis Hickie, who had an excellent game against Australia.

In the forwards, we now have options in the front row (assuming Marcus Horan can recover completely from his injury in time for the Six Nations). We still have to pray for the good health of John Hayes, who had a superb series and showed once again just how valuable he is to the Irish set-up. When it comes to line-out time, the glory goes to the lads in the air, but they get there by being lifted by someone, and "The Bull" has proven over a long time that he is one of the best in the business at hoisting. The second-row picks itself, but I would have liked to have seen another younger player get a chance during the series. Malcolm O'Kelly is a good impact player, and a great man to have on the bench who can make an impression in the last 20 minutes of a match, but we need more solid cover should anything happen (God forbid) to POC or DOC. The back row - well what can I say? Denis Leamy is making the Number 8 jersey his own, and is now Ireland's most influential forward after Paul O'Connell. David Wallace is first-choice openside now, but there are options there should we need them. Neil Best had a barnstormer of a series, and should be the first choice for the No 6 shirt for the 6 Nations.

We got to see two new half-backs, both of whom acquitted themselves well, especially Paddy Wallace at out-half against the Pacific Islands. It would be nice to see him get more time in the 10 jersey for Ulster, but it would be difficult to sideline David Humphries for his province. Isaac Boss had a good game against the Aussies, but he's still cover for Stringer, not a genuine contender for the scrum-half position just yet.

In the backs, again we're spoilt for choice. The centre partnership of D'Arcy and O'Driscoll would be feared by any opponents in the world, not just for their ability to run through the eye of a needle and turn on a 1c coin, but also for their defensive work. That said, I would have liked to have seen Munster's Barry Murphy get a run out during the series, as he is another dazzling player. On the wings, we have Shane Horgan, who can step in one channel if needs be. On the other wing, a fully-fit Trimble should be the number one choice, as he is really coming into his own this year as a superb finisher. For full-back, it's a toss-up between Dempsey and Murphy. Both of them have their unique gifts to bring to the table and no side would be weakened by having to choose between one or the other.

But the most satisfying thing of all to take from the Autumn series was the confidence with which the team played. Last year, they lost two out of three, only winning a useless match against Romania. There were times during that series when the Irish players looked like they had just met for the first time in the changing rooms before the match. This time out they were much more assured. Passes that would have been missed 12 months ago were completed efficiently. Opponents were stopped in their tracks this year, when last year they would have barged through, leaving their Irish tackler on his back like an upturned beetle. Possession was kept this time around, when last time a ball would have been dropped or a turnover conceded in the ruck or set-piece.

So the next time we see the Irish in action is against Wales in the Six Nations. Ireland must go for an emphatic win in Cardiff to set down a marker for the Championship. Too often in recent years, Ireland have come close, only to see someone else run off with the title. That must not happen in 2007. This is Ireland's year. The Six Nations Championship is theirs to lose.

The IRB world rankings have just been updated after last weekend's matches. It makes nice reading for Eddie O'Sullivan and his men, as they go up two places to third, following their superb win over Australia yesterday.

Full rankings here

I was discussing rugby with a colleague at work today, and I posited a theory of how Ireland could win next year's World Cup.

Madness, you might think. The All-Blacks will run away with it. Well, yes. They should run away with it.

So how could Ireland spoil the party? First of all, they need to go to the World Cup as Six Nations Champions. This will help fix their heads to win their group, a task that will involve beating France, as well as the Argies.

Whoever comes second in our group will almost certainly get the All-Blacks in the quarter-finals, and for whoever that is, it's Goodnight Irene. Whoever wins the group will most likely get Scotland. The winner of that quarter final will meet either England, South Africa, Australia or Wales in the semi. England and Wales are eminently beatable. On a good day, Ireland could get past the other two. (Don't be fooled into thinking that just because we stuffed the Springboks last weekend, that the same result would come as easy during the RWC. It won't.)

Whoever gets through this half of the draw will more than likely meet come up against New Zealand in the final.

"But we've never beaten New Zealand!" you cry. True, but the ABs are notorious World Cup chokers, and who knows what could happen on the day. They could freeze and we could nick a win. Or indeed they could be majestic and beat us 1497-3.

If anyone other than New Zealand hope to win the World Cup, they most likely will face them in the final. I think I'd prefer to meet them in the final than earlier.

From this season, RTÉ no longer have live coverage of the Heineken Cup, as the exclusive rights have been captured by Sky.

So, very reluctantly, we have added Sky Sports to our cable TV package. At €23 per month, it is over €100 more expensive per year than the TV licence. We'll probably watch a few Premiership matches as well, but I can't see myself getting too excited about something like Reading v. Wigan. Herself will probably watch the Ashes when it's on, as she has inherited an interest in cricket from her father.

Having the Heineken Cup on Sky is a pain for two reasons. First, having to pony up the aforementioned €23 per month for the privilege, and then having to put up with Sky's really poxy coverage. Sky, like any other British TV station, is biased in both commentary and analysis toward English teams. If I have to put up with this, I would at least prefer if the commentary and analysis were biased towards Irish teams.

Then there are the statistics. As anyone will tell you, 89% of all statistics are completely irrelevant. But on Sky, there is this overbearing obsession with stats and records. The camera focuses on a particular player, and an utterly meaningless statistic appears under his name, like the number of tackles he missed or passes he completed in the first round of matches. Who sits there and counts all of this stuff? Does it matter one jot? Of course not.

This isn't just a Sky thing by the way. British sports coverage in general is obsessed with statistics. I reckon that's why cricket is so popular in England, because there are so many numbers that can be juggled during a match. Strip all of it away, and the game itself is pretty dull.

Come to think of it, it's not even a sports thing. I remember when the National Lottery launched in the UK, the commentary during the draw on TV was all about how often certain numbers came up and when was the last time. As if it made any difference.

I really miss RTÉ's live coverage of the Heineken Cup. The triumverate of Tom McGurk, George Hook and Brent Pope are as good as any panel of experts that Sky or the BBC could put together. The commentators aren't up to much, but they're no worse than Stuart Barnes and Mark Robson. I tried once watching the match with the sound off, while listening to the great Michael Corcoran on RTÉ Radio, but it wasn't a satisfactory arrangement.

If RTÉ got the rights back, I'd cancel Sky Sports without a second thought. Bring back Hooky and Popey, I say!