A day to remember at Twickenham as Ireland notched up a record score there against England
WHAT a difference a week makes in sport.
One minute everyone was writing off the Ireland rugby team and seven days later the team blew England away in their own back yard, Twickenham.
And this wasn’t just any win, this was a record victory as it was the most points any Irish side has ever scored at the home of English rugby.
And this was an England team who had gone 12 games unbeaten (until their Calcutta Cup defeat to bogey team Scotland the week before), an England team who had 14 British and Irish Lions from last summer in their squad (including Lions and England captain Maro Itoje who was winning his 100th cap) and an England team who’s Head Coach Steve Borthwick, at the Guinness Six Nations launch in January, was encouraging fans to make the trip to Paris on the final day of the Championship (inferring their match with France on March 14th would be the decider).
On the other side was an Ireland team who had failed to show intent on the opening night of the Championship in Paris (according to their Head Coach Andy Farrell in a damning post match interview), an Ireland side who had showed signs of unravelling through the Autumn Series (remember the red card and four yellows they picked up within 20 minutes during their defeat to South Africa?), and an Ireland side who had almost let Italy win in Dublin in round two of this year’s 6 Nations (was it really a forward pass for Italy’s disallowed try?).
Of all the Irish sports reporters I know, only two had predicted an Irish win against England, to my knowledge.
But the masterclass that Andy Farrell and his men put on for the 20 thousand Ireland fans inside England HQ was a sight to behold.
Players who had been dropped the week before played like their careers depended on it. Others who are haven’t much experience with the squad shone.
Special mention must go to Ulster’s Stuart McCloskey here because he has fast become Ireland’s MVP (most valuable player) of this year’s 6 Nations.
Everyone, apart from those who watch him deliver week in week out for Ulster, has suddenly sat up and realised how good a ball carrier, offloader, defender, forward thinker, smart rugby player he is.
Never mind his sheer power and fight (you’ve probably seen the viral clip by now of McCloskey chased down England’s Marcus Smith to prevent him scoring a try when Ireland had already won game the game at Twickenham because they were so far ahead.
It was moment after moment of brilliance and the green jerseys in the crowd celebrated like the prodigal son’s father when he returned home. Their team were back. The side they thought was past their peak – too old, too scripted, too slow – produced one of the all time great Irish rugby performances which will never be forgotten.
Isn’t that why we love sport? The unpredictable, the unexpected, the unknowable – that’s what keeps us coming back for more.
Josh Rock showing me how it’s done! He hit a nine-darter in his first Premier League outing in Belfast
Take Josh Rock as another example. The Broughshane man is the world number nine darts player.
Selected for the darts Premier League for the first time, he has been struggling to hit the form that saw him win the World Cup for Northern Ireland with Daryl Gurney last summer, But ahead of round four in Belfast at the end of February, he was hoping the crowd would help spur him on,
While he didn’t get the win he so desperately wanted on the night, he hit a nine-darter during his quarter-final game against Gian van Veen. He said afterwards that he felt like he’d just won the World Championship even though he lost his match.
He hadn’t been in good form and even the commentators had no trust in how he was playing until he threw the perfect leg to win a £30,000 set of gold darts!
The home crowd went bananas; I’m pretty sure some were dressed up as those too in the crazy crowd.
Josh unleashed all his emotions on the stage, the commentators were ecstatic and the bunch of bananas (*other fruit costumes are available) and their fellow fancy dressers partied like it was 1999.
Rock wasn’t even born in 1999, he came into the world two years later and from he was a two-year-old he’s been throwing darts. To reach the heights of playing in the Premier League by the age of 24 is one thing, but to throw a perfect nine-darter infront of your home fans and pick up a set of 18ct gold darts worth £30,000 for doing so is the stuff of dreams.
This month there will be more dreaming as the Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland football teams try to qualify for this summer’s FIFA World Cup in America, Canada and Mexico.
Both teams have play off semi finals to look forward to and if they win those they’ll go through to a one off play off final. How special would it be for both teams to be there?
It would be reminiscent of Euro 2016 in France when both sets of fans won awards for being the best fans at the tournament. I have a feeling there’s going to be plenty of twists and turns in those games also – strap in sports fans, we’re in for a rollercoaster ride this March!
Welcome to Twickenham
Ireland defeated Italy at the Aviva Stadium in February and will welcome Wales next and Scotland on St Patrick’s weekend for their final two games
Reporting from Paris on Ireland’s opening 6 Nations match against France
