The Dew Drop Inn Virtual Rugby Pub, The Patch

by **Pal Joey** Sat Sep 22, 2012 9:11 am

First topic message reminder :

Hello and welcome to the Virtual Rugby Pub, a place where you can come in for a sly beverage and discuss whatever's on your mind, or just eavesdrop on the regulars if you fancy a break from all the rugby chat.

The Pub has made its way to The Patch - a tiny rugby union* community nestled in the Dandenong Ranges east of Melbourne in the week before the AFL Grand Final.

The only rule in this pub is one of mutual respect for everyone in it, oh and no tampering with the pictures of Willie Falloon, Joel Conlon, Peter Murchie, Lewis Jetta, Lance "Buddy" Franklin and Frazier Climo.

Ale

Last Pub: https://www.606v2.com/t34889p1000-the-hillsborough-memorial-dew-drop-inn-virtual-rugby-pub-liverpool

* "Tell him he's dreaming..."

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 10:37 am

Indeed lucky, its hard to take when its true

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Sep 25, 2012 10:37 am

red_stag wrote:Asbo please calm yourself. Nobody mentioned any names

by Rava Tue Sep 25, 2012 10:45 am

red_stag wrote:Asbo please calm yourself. Nobody mentioned any names

How many English Civil Partners do you know who have ran a Gastro Pub?

by red_stag Tue Sep 25, 2012 10:46 am

Rava wrote:
red_stag wrote:Asbo please calm yourself. Nobody mentioned any names

How many English Civil Partners do you know who have ran a Gastro Pub?

That is completely irrelevant to the hypothetical situation we are discussing.

by Rava Tue Sep 25, 2012 10:50 am

red_stag wrote:
Rava wrote:
red_stag wrote:Asbo please calm yourself. Nobody mentioned any names

How many English Civil Partners do you know who have ran a Gastro Pub?

That is completely irrelevant to the hypothetical situation we are discussing.

Any more remarks like that and I'll take Asbo's side.

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 10:51 am

I know loads of people who have English kids and and English civil partner who also ran a gastro pub.

So many that I'm not even going to start naming them because I'd be here all day

by red_stag Tue Sep 25, 2012 11:35 am

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gO6GpTZlTRs&feature=player_embedded

Nice to see Munster finally using their backs.

by red_stag Tue Sep 25, 2012 11:51 am

Gonna face my fears. Always been really scared of dogs. N. has volunteered that we will mind a friends dog for 2 weeks. This will involve me having to take the fella for walks and have it sleep in our room.

Time to face fears!

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 11:52 am

How come no one has mentioned the fact the ryder cup is this weekend??

I love it its a superb competition. Any chance to beat the Septic Tanks is fine by me!!

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 11:56 am

Mother of Jasus, thats the first time I seen those tries.

Sexy

by red_stag Tue Sep 25, 2012 11:57 am

Keith Earls man of the match at #13. Looking the part at centre. Not just running blindly but setting up others.

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:03 pm

That's the first time I've seen highlights of the game, Stag. Some terrible defending there but some lovely handling from Munster too. Drawing the man should be a simple enough thing to do but it's lost on a lot of players.

by Guest Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:09 pm

red_stag wrote:Gonna face my fears. Always been really scared of dogs. N. has volunteered that we will mind a friends dog for 2 weeks. This will involve me having to take the fella for walks and have it sleep in our room.

Time to face fears!

Nice one!

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:12 pm

Hughie, I love the Ryder Cup but I'm not so excited these days because I don't get to watch it.

What breed is the dog, Stag? Or how big is it?

by red_stag Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:15 pm

Ah its not that big. Its a Schnauzer.

Lucky - I think the Dragons were unlucky - you can see in those clips that they missed out on an intercept or two. Don't forget also that they were held up twice over the line after TMO reviews so the scoreline could have been much closer.

by Gibson Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:16 pm

Hoog wrote:Morning everyone

Question for you all,

If you move somewhere and end up living there longer than you lived in your original country, can you still really claim to be a citizen of your original country??

For example. If you've lived in England longer than you ever lived in Scotland, can you really still claim to be Scottish??

I left Dublin at 19. I am now 27 years in NL. So I spose it explains a lot. Irish Soul. Dutch Influence? Dunno. But I´ll always be a Paddy.

And the answer to the 2nd one : Yeah, As is an Englisman.

My 2 lads are English. Sure ya have ta balance things out. It could have been worser. They could have been Welsh.

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:26 pm

Being Welsh is wonderful, mun. The best part about it is cringing every time someone Welsh is on TV. You can't buy shame like that.

by prop_lyd Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:39 pm

Just picked up ny new bike!! Now I want to leave work and go out on it for the day!!

I'm really looking forward to the ryder cup, just wish I didn't have to think about paying for sky sports so I can watch it. Still pondering whether to part with a further 20quid a month.

by Rava Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:44 pm

prop_lyd wrote:Just picked up ny new bike!! Now I want to leave work and go out on it for the day!!

I'm really looking forward to the ryder cup, just wish I didn't have to think about paying for sky sports so I can watch it. Still pondering whether to part with a further 20quid a month.

Prop ring them up and ask for a three month trial period. They might give you it for a tenner.

by Rava Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:48 pm

Gibson wrote:
Hoog wrote:Morning everyone

Question for you all,

If you move somewhere and end up living there longer than you lived in your original country, can you still really claim to be a citizen of your original country??

For example. If you've lived in England longer than you ever lived in Scotland, can you really still claim to be Scottish??

I left Dublin at 19. I am now 27 years in NL. So I spose it explains a lot. Irish Soul. Dutch Influence? Dunno. But I´ll always be a Paddy.

And the answer to the 2nd one : Yeah, As is an Englisman.

My 2 lads are English. Sure ya have ta balance things out. It could have been worser. They could have been Welsh.

I suppose if you were a Rugby Jersey you would be this.

Spoiler:

by Rava Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:50 pm

red_stag wrote:Ah its not that big. Its a Schnauzer.

Fecin' vicious little barstewards.

Only joking mate Hug

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:52 pm

red_stag wrote:Ah its not that big. Its a Schnauzer.

Is that like a Sausage dog, only smaller? Whistle

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:53 pm

Gibson wrote:
Hoog wrote:Morning everyone

Question for you all,

If you move somewhere and end up living there longer than you lived in your original country, can you still really claim to be a citizen of your original country??

For example. If you've lived in England longer than you ever lived in Scotland, can you really still claim to be Scottish??

I left Dublin at 19. I am now 27 years in NL. So I spose it explains a lot. Irish Soul. Dutch Influence? Dunno. But I´ll always be a Paddy.

And the answer to the 2nd one : Yeah, As is an Englisman.

My 2 lads are English. Sure ya have ta balance things out. It could have been worser. They could have been Welsh.

Jeebus, don't you start, you'll only encourage the loons!! Erm

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:57 pm

Great piece in the paper last week from The Bull

Not many players get to say their goodbyes on their own terms, but on St Stephen’s night in 2011, John Hayes did. With 20 minutes to go in a league match against Connacht, he was taken off to a tremendous reception. It was The Bull’s last game for Munster.
2348
1886
Sunday September 16 2012
Coming out of the tunnel in Thomond Park I saw they had the banner draped across it. The one that says, Go On Bull Tis Your Field. It's fairly well known at this stage, I suppose. I have no idea who came up with that nickname. Some people address me as John. Some use the full handle when they're greeting me: 'John Hayes'. The English and Welsh lads on a Lions tour would call me 'Hayesie'. But an awful lot of people call me 'Bull'. Friends, strangers, team-mates. 'Howya, Bull.'
I never minded. I actually liked it, and it became second nature a long time ago now. I didn't have the nickname when I was at Bruff or Shannon. It only started when I moved onto the Munster scene. But I can't for the life of me remember how it started or who started it. It caught on fairly quick anyway, and took on a life of its own. I presume it's farming-related in some way or other. It might have had something to do with my build too. I suppose, realistically, no one was ever going to nickname me 'Greyhound' anyway.
The week after I retired I received the regular group text that goes out to all the players from the Munster office. It would have our itinerary for the week laid out.
Monday morning, a weights session with the Limerick-based lads in UL, about 90 minutes in total. The Cork-based players would do their weights session in Cork Institute of Technology. Lunch and then off to Mitchelstown for a full meeting of the squad. Mitchelstown was more or less a halfway house between Limerick and Cork, and in recent years a local hotel there was being used as a venue for squad meetings. The Monday meeting would be a review of the match at the weekend. Forwards would look at the performance of the set-piece, backs would look at various moves and patterns. Problems would be analysed, and we'd plan to address them in training that week.
Tuesdays the Cork boys would travel up to UL for a full day's work. We'd spend the morning indoors. The upcoming match would be previewed; we'd have information on the opposition. Forwards would have a lineout meeting and a scrum meeting; backs would have a meeting on the specific parts of their game. Lunch then, and out onto the pitch in the afternoon. The heavy work would be done Tuesday afternoons, practising defence and attack against live opposition; scrums, line-outs, tackling drills, defensive drills, breakdown drills.
Wednesday was a recovery day; you'd have a swimming pool session to alleviate the usual soreness, stiffness and bruising.
Thursday mornings the Limerick lads would travel to Cork. The forwards would finalise their lineout moves for that weekend and make sure everyone was up to speed on the calls. The backs would be wrapping up their stuff at a meeting too. Then a light session on the field for an hour or so, followed by lunch, and that would be it for the day.
Friday was travelling day if we had an away game, with a chartered flight from Shannon Airport to Cork Airport to pick up the lads there, or vice versa. Then on to England, France or wherever. Otherwise Friday was a full day off. Complete rest and plenty of water. Saturday you went into match mode. On Monday morning, repeat the process.
That was your working life, more or less, as a pro rugby player. The game itself only took up one day. The rest was your daily reality and took up most of your career. People would say it was a life of leisure, and I suppose it'd be hard to argue, compared to a lot of other jobs. You couldn't but say it was a nice way to make a living. But it was a serious business too, and it got more serious as the years went on. And if you had to face into those weights sessions every week, you mightn't consider it too leisurely. They were fairly gruelling. The games themselves, you were getting a fair old hammering any time you took to the field. You were guaranteed to be hurt and sore.
But the truth is, I'd have done it all for free. We all would, or most of us anyway. When I started out I was looking at a career hopefully as a serious amateur, like the GAA players nowadays. I never dreamed I would one day make it my livelihood. But then almost overnight the game turned professional, and I happened to be around when it started. It was the luck of being in the right place at the right time. I jumped on board just as the train was pulling out of the station.
The first week I got the group text I read it, more or less out of habit. A week later I got the next one and glanced down through it. The third week I didn't even open it. I had moved on. I wasn't missing the daily grind, not even a small bit. Then they stopped sending them.
At the start of February the Ireland squad was getting ready for their first game of the 2012 Six Nations campaign. It was always a hugely exciting time of the year. I loved the buzz and the energy coming into the Six Nations. And standing in line for the national anthem was a thrill and an honour that never diminished. I got the shivers and the emotions every single time the music started.
The first match was against Wales. I watched it at home and felt a few pangs as the lads stood in line for the anthems. It was a slight feeling of loss, I suppose, and regret that I'd never get to do it again. But at the same time, a few days earlier I'd watched the sports news on television one evening and they were doing a report on the build-up to the match. They showed pictures of the lads going through their drills in training, hitting the tackle bags and rehearsing their moves. And I thought to myself, 'Oh, Jesus, no. Couldn't go through that again. Couldn't face that again.' I was gone from rugby, in body and soul.
Between the farm and the family I'm looking forward to a long and contented life. I was steeped to get out of the game without any of the injuries that could affect the quality of your life in later years. Lots of fellas who played my position ended up needing operations on their shoulders or neck or back. The worst I can complain of is a bit of stiffness. I never needed an operation, I never missed more than a couple of weeks with injury. I'm convinced it was because I came late to the game. I hadn't suffered wear and tear while I was still developing. I had physically matured before I started taking the hits and the impacts. It helped me last longer in the game, and I was better able to absorb the punishment.
I don't think I'll go coaching rugby teams. If either of us is going to be a coach, it'll more likely be Fiona. She did three years as coach to the Munster women's team before the kids came along.
But I still would like to give something back, probably on an individual basis. I could definitely see myself doing something like that. If Bruff were to come to me with a promising young prop forward, I would like to help him in his development. A lot of people helped me. He wouldn't have to be a local lad either. If a player from a non-rugby background wanted advice on the game, I'd be happy to pass on whatever I know. Because I know from personal experience that it's harder when you're coming to it from the outside. I'd like to tell him that it doesn't matter if he didn't go to the right school, or didn't grow up in the tradition. Rugby is a great game to play, and it can open up a new world for you too. You can live it and enjoy it. It doesn't matter where you come from or who you are.
* * * * *
Before that first Six Nations game in 2012 I got a text from Donncha O'Callaghan. He was checking in, seeing how I was doing. In fairness, it was very nice of Donners, I suppose, very thoughtful, quite sensitive. I texted him back: 'Sorry, don't recognise the number, who is this? When I retired I deleted a lot of numbers I wouldn't need again. Yours is obviously one of them!' I got a fair mouthful back from him.
I decided to make a clean break once I packed it in. Part of that was making a conscious decision not to wear a tracksuit. I haven't worn a tracksuit since I retired. I'm a civilian now, I suppose you could call it. I'll probably wear one around the house at some stage, because they're comfortable to relax in of an evening. But I won't be caught dead in a Munster or Ireland tracksuit in public. I never would've done it much anyway. I have a stack of them at home but they won't see the light of day. Being a Munster or an Ireland player isn't my identity anymore.
I will meet my former team-mates many times I'm sure in the years to come. I'm more likely to meet the Munster lads, but I'll steer clear of them while they're in Munster mode. I've a fair idea where they'll be most days and there's no danger of me running into them. There's a restaurant in Castletroy where we used to go for lunch most days. I like to go there myself any time I'm in Limerick, but if I know there's a chance that ten or 12 of them will be in there, I'll go somewhere else. The first thing they'd do is slag the arse off me anyway. They'll have finished a weights session that morning or a video review or an afternoon pitch session. That's their world now, not mine.
Some of those lads, I played with them through thick and thin. I'll watch their games on television and wish them well. For the moment though, I'd prefer to meet them in a different setting, just socially, without any of the rugby baggage. It's a clean break from the environment, not from the individuals.
And when we do meet up in the years to come, I suppose we'll still be taking the mick and slagging each other and having plenty of laughs. Between us all we've a fair few yarns and stories and comical moments stacked up at this stage. That should keep us going for a while.
We'll be talking about our kids and life in general, like ordinary friends do. I certainly won't be talking about the '06 Heineken final or the Grand Slam or some famous night when we did great things in Thomond Park. I won't be hanging onto that. It's done, it's over. It's up to others to assess whatever legacy we managed to leave behind us, for Munster and Ireland.
E-Paper Read the Irish Independent in print format online

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Sep 25, 2012 12:57 pm

red_stag wrote:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gO6GpTZlTRs&feature=player_embedded

Nice to see Munster finally using their backs.

Look weak up front

by red_stag Tue Sep 25, 2012 1:29 pm

AsLongAsBut100ofUs wrote:
red_stag wrote:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gO6GpTZlTRs&feature=player_embedded

Nice to see Munster finally using their backs.
Look weak up front

Scrum was made bits of for much of the match. Most props age gracefully and improve like a rich wine. Marcus Horan is more like a glass of milk that has curdled long ago.

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 1:49 pm

So our scrum was good against Munster, but didn't get much change out of the Blues, whose scrum was mullered by Edinburgh the other week.

Who do we have on the weekend? Oh that's right, Edinburgh.

by Glas a du Tue Sep 25, 2012 1:55 pm

Apples are short.

by Hound_of_Harrow Tue Sep 25, 2012 1:58 pm

Hoog wrote:How come no one has mentioned the fact the ryder cup is this weekend??

I love it its a superb competition. Any chance to beat the Septic Tanks is fine by me!!

Hoog –you, err, how can I put this…..might need to check out the golf forum.

Whistle

by Rava Tue Sep 25, 2012 1:58 pm

Glas a du wrote:Apples are short.

and round

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:00 pm

Alright Glas

Less than four weeks till me and the old man make the trip out west, all set for a good laugh?? Should be a good day out

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:01 pm

Hound_of_Harrow wrote:
Hoog wrote:How come no one has mentioned the fact the ryder cup is this weekend??

I love it its a superb competition. Any chance to beat the Septic Tanks is fine by me!!

Hoog –you, err, how can I put this…..might need to check out the golf forum.

Well played Monsieur.

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:05 pm

Rava wrote:
Glas a du wrote:Apples are short.

and round

-ish

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:18 pm

Dépends on if you've had a bite out of it

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:19 pm

Glas a du wrote:Apples are short.

It's all relative. Cherries would kill to be as tall as apples.

by prop_lyd Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:20 pm

Rava wrote:
prop_lyd wrote:Just picked up ny new bike!! Now I want to leave work and go out on it for the day!!

I'm really looking forward to the ryder cup, just wish I didn't have to think about paying for sky sports so I can watch it. Still pondering whether to part with a further 20quid a month.

Prop ring them up and ask for a three month trial period. They might give you it for a tenner.

I'm with virgin, would they do that do you reckon?

by PenfroPete Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:25 pm

Luckless Pedestrian wrote:Being Welsh is wonderful, mun. The best part about it is cringing every time someone Welsh is on TV. You can't buy shame like that.

You going to watch MTV tonight then Lucky ? Get ready to be very ashamed - THE VALLEYS Rolling Eyes

(NB - for clarification, this refers to the actual Valleys north of Cardiff and not the generic catch all, "oh if it's in Wales we'll refer to it as 'The Valleys' doesn't matter where it is")

by Hound_of_Harrow Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:27 pm

Hoog wrote:
Hound_of_Harrow wrote:
Hoog wrote:How come no one has mentioned the fact the ryder cup is this weekend??

I love it its a superb competition. Any chance to beat the Septic Tanks is fine by me!!

Hoog –you, err, how can I put this…..might need to check out the golf forum.

Well played Monsieur.

No worries mate.
Smile

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:27 pm

Do I really want to click that link, Penfro?

by Glas a du Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:33 pm

Buy apples.

by PJHolybloke Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:49 pm

Is it worth selling my bananas and putting it all into apples, or should I hedge and put some into satsumas?

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:51 pm

You should put your bananas in the hedge. You'll attract toucans.

by Rava Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:52 pm

Granny Smith

by Guest Tue Sep 25, 2012 2:59 pm

This the tractor thread now? Better than natter on Ireland, Munster or Leinster, I suppose. Wink

Had a great weekend at the festival. Only saw two bands in the end, but they were good (Kassidy would've been better if I'd known their songs and The Fratellis were unreal). Glad to be off the booze now.

I kept up with the Welsh rugby scores off that new website (Welsh one). That really is a better site than BBC or anything.

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 3:03 pm

Which new website is this, Rev?

by Guest Tue Sep 25, 2012 3:08 pm

I think it's www.allwalessport.co.uk. I bookmarked it on the rugby results on my iPhone. I think that it gets the scores pretty quickly, as I remember thinking how they do it in such a timely manner (they must phone around the clubs). Maybe I got my days muddled up though and it didn't get updated till Sunday?

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 3:18 pm

I'll have a look at that.

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Sep 25, 2012 3:20 pm

Glas a du wrote:Buy apples.

I thought you wanted us to buy milk? Rolling Eyes

by Suspicious lurker Tue Sep 25, 2012 3:27 pm

AsLongAsBut100ofUs wrote:
Glas a du wrote:Buy apples.
I thought you wanted us to buy milk?

Only from local shops and not big supermarkets. They are driving the diary industry to its knees. You should tell the doris about it, she loves causes like that no??

by Luckless Pedestrian Tue Sep 25, 2012 3:29 pm

In fairness, the diary industry usually has a mid-year lull.

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