Club - Country - Lions priorites

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What's your preference?

Portnoy wrote:As you know I'm from a different generation and carry a lot of baggage regarding the game's spirit and traditions. A living dinosaur.

I like to hear that Portnoy.

Portnoy wrote:

red_stag wrote:I see I am the only person out of 35 people who voted who has my preferences.

Before you got interested in rugby, was there any tradition of interest in your family and close peers with rugby?

I've always sort of understood that you were one of the new tradition of enthusiasts. Post-amateur and on the cusp of a rising tide of success.

As you know I'm from a different generation and carry a lot of baggage regarding the game's spirit and traditions. A living dinosaur. I know it and really I don't care. I'll just plod on.

Portnoy if you think about it logically it makes senese that a new age post-amatuer person such as myself would be drawn to the Lions and the Heineken Cup.

Both promote themselves a hell of a lot better than the 6 Nations. My family never had any interest in rugby I and later my brother started playing it so I didnt grow up listening to tales of Fergus Slattery and Mike Gibson.

A blank canvas with no preconceived ideas about what was "good" and "bad".

red_stag wrote:

Portnoy wrote:

red_stag wrote:I see I am the only person out of 35 people who voted who has my preferences.

Before you got interested in rugby, was there any tradition of interest in your family and close peers with rugby?

I've always sort of understood that you were one of the new tradition of enthusiasts. Post-amateur and on the cusp of a rising tide of success.

As you know I'm from a different generation and carry a lot of baggage regarding the game's spirit and traditions. A living dinosaur. I know it and really I don't care. I'll just plod on.

Portnoy if you think about it logically it makes senese that a new age post-amatuer person such as myself would be drawn to the Lions and the Heineken Cup.

Both promote themselves a hell of a lot better than the 6 Nations. My family never had any interest in rugby I and later my brother started playing it so I didnt grow up listening to tales of Fergus Slattery and Mike Gibson.

A blank canvas with no preconceived ideas about what was "good" and "bad".

It's your early influences in interested in Stagggy.

I know that you are unencumbered by the past and that you bring a fresh, new attitude to the sport. Which for good or ill, better represents the present and future of the game.

I'm the same actually but my first standout memories of rugby were the 1995 RWC and then the 1997 Lions tour, which coincided with some of the best periods of my schoolboy and junior rugby days.

The 5N was like watching paint dry for me in those days and I much preferred watching the SH teams, particularly the AB's or even RL for the skill and athleticism.

The 1997 Lions were like a breath of fresh air and the 1st time I'd seen a NH team play with the skill and physicality of a SH side and its left a lasting impact on me.

I think perhaps if my 1st memory of the Lions was the 2005 tour I'd probably think it was a load of bollix.

Portnoy wrote:
It's your early influences in interested in Stagggy.

I know that you are unencumbered by the past and that you bring a fresh, new attitude to the sport. Which for good or ill, better represents the present and future of the game.

My earliest influence is seeing the reaction of Limerick to the Munster team who lost the HEC final in May 2000. It was amazing. That September I joined a rugby playing school and most lads I was friends with played the sport. I loved it. That summer (2001) the Lions was on and I remember a gang of us pestered our dads to take us to the pub for the first test at about 8am. BOD got his wonder try in that match (I was unaware of his hattrick in Paris as it was before I took an interest in the game). Back in school I was still playing rugby and for my 13th birthday my Dad got us tickets for Ireland v New Zealand in Nov 2001. Loved every second of it. I took a mild interest in the 6 Nations after that but really Munster met Tigers in the HEC final a few months after so I forgot about Ireland. The 6 Nations was also distrupted due to foot and mouth disease so it all kinda passed me by and I got really interested in the 2003 RWC. The 2003 HEC campaign sealed my love affair with the competition. I watched us beat (eventual runner up) Perpignan and Gloucester in the Miracle Match before sacking Welford Road and taking on Toulouse. A group of us were able to get tickets for the HEC final in Dublin and our parents let us off on their own on the train to watch it.

2000-2003 were my early years of rugby and as you can see the 6 Nations paled in contrast to what else was on offer.

So you are a 1st generation rugby fan in your family Staggy?

Yup I am.

red_stag wrote:

Portnoy wrote:
It's your early influences in interested in Stagggy.

I know that you are unencumbered by the past and that you bring a fresh, new attitude to the sport. Which for good or ill, better represents the present and future of the game.

My earliest influence is seeing the reaction of Limerick to the Munster team who lost the HEC final in May 2000. It was amazing. That September I joined a rugby playing school and most lads I was friends with played the sport. I loved it. That summer (2001) the Lions was on and I remember a gang of us pestered our dads to take us to the pub for the first test at about 8am. BOD got his wonder try in that match (I was unaware of his hattrick in Paris as it was before I took an interest in the game). Back in school I was still playing rugby and for my 13th birthday my Dad got us tickets for Ireland v New Zealand in Nov 2001. Loved every second of it. I took a mild interest in the 6 Nations after that but really Munster met Tigers in the HEC final a few months after so I forgot about Ireland. The 6 Nations was also distrupted due to foot and mouth disease so it all kinda passed me by and I got really interested in the 2003 RWC. The 2003 HEC campaign sealed my love affair with the competition. I watched us beat (eventual runner up) Perpignan and Gloucester in the Miracle Match before sacking Welford Road and taking on Toulouse. A group of us were able to get tickets for the HEC final in Dublin and our parents let us off on their own on the train to watch it.

2000-2003 were my early years of rugby and as you can see the 6 Nations paled in contrast to what else was on offer.

I now realise that you are one of the bandwagon brigade for munster..I should have realised with your lack of knowledge of the history of the province....

Having said that I suppose you have the excuse of youth on your side...

Straw poll analysis:

First past the post (first preference)

Club(League) 8
Club(Europe) 1
Country 21
Lions 8
Other 2

I voted Country, Lions, Club (Europe), Club (League), as that is the closest option that maps my preferences. I don't have a top flight club team (a few that I prefer, but none that I support), but I prefer Heineken Cup rugby to Premiership rugby.

My earliest rugby memory (not including me playing as a kid) was Guscott's drop goal in the second test of the 1997 Lions tour, so I'll always have a bit of a spot for the Lions, but honestly I'd rather England beat South Africa in our series this year than the Lions beat Australia next year. I'd probably even prefer England to win in Argentina in 2013 than the Lions in Australia at the same time (although I'd obviously prefer both).

However, I find more and more that I am not as bothered about England results, especially if the club I play for wins on the same day. Maybe it's something to do with some of the dross we've been served up over the last 8 years (the Rugby World Cup last year being a particular disappointment) but now an England loss isn't the complete weekend-ruiner that it once was. Saying that the last two England losses (Wales and France in the World Cup) my club has lost as well, so they've been particularly rubbish days!

Listen its Leinster or nothing. I could not care by a large amount how the Lions or even Ireland get on. If thier not in blue and have 2 shiny stars above the crest, then they can jog on. It's all about Leinster.

im definitely leinster both europe and league before country and then lions

'Country, Club(League), Club(Europe), Lions'

Country - Obviously. The honour of flying your nations colours proudly shoud be absolute top priority on the world stage; if it isn't, you shouldn't be wearing the shirt. Ever.

Club - Let's face it, the club pay your meal ticket. It's also the place to have a laugh with friends, set the world to rights, argue who should be in the national team, etc, etc, forget the woes of your daily grind!

Lions - I guess this should be higher on my bill as a 'rare' event, but i am getting a touch tired of the bickering and tetchness of it all. I don't know whether this has constantly gone on before, or if media accessibility and communication revolution has just bought it out of the shadows a bit.

As one of those who put the Lions at the bottom of my prefs - with country, club (Europe) and Club (league) my first three, I have always found it hard to get excited about the Lions. And less I'm seen as some sort of rugby arriviste, I'm old enough to remember that famous 1971 tour when the Lions beat NZ 2-1 with 1 drawn.

Maybe I'm missing something, but the pinnacle for any player must be to be on the best international team in the world and that means being a world cup winner your country, especially as in Ireland's case that's never likely to happen. After that comes the European rugby competitions and especially the HC.

OK, maybe I'm saying that because Leinster have done well in the past three years and my views might be different if we were the same old sh1te we were before Cheika came and instilled some steel in our spines and Schmidt built on that to make us arguably the most attractive team in Europe. Last year's HC semifinal between Leinster and Toulouse in Lansdowne was arguably as high a standard as any international played in Europe in the past few years - and that's the view of the losing coach that day, Guy Noves,

The Lions is a periodic distraction. Yes, I get up early in the mornings when Lions tests are coming from Oz or NZ, but am I particularly arsed if the Lions get beaten - not particularly. For those who put the Lions at the pinnacle, fair dues - but country and team will always come first for me.

As a supporter I put club above all else - HKC wrote a good piece on it, but my club are there for me week in week out, they let me go and see them when I want. My Country refuses to grant access rights.

Club (domestic) Local bragging rights are important
Club (Europe) I would love to be the best NH club side
Country
Lions - Sadly the Lions are in danger of becoming an anachronism. For too many tours now there have been whispers of discord and people refusing to share rooms etc.


Only thing i would say is that I would have sacrificed the LV cup and the League trophy this season (if we win it) for England to win the RWC.

I can identify more with my club than country, but would still like to see England do well in the major comps - so went for Club(Europe), Country, Club (league), Lions. That isn't to say I dislike the Lions, probably my favourite series to watch, I'm just less disappointed if they lose.