The Dew Drop Inn Virtual Rugby Pub, Amaile

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 Amaile on the eastern-most tip of Upolu Island in Samoa - the first place on Earth to usher in the New Year.

So hop on a hammock and let one of the locals pour a kava down your throat as you are trying to read Tusiata Avia's famous poem: "Wild Dogs Under My Skirt" to the sounds of the Yandell Sister's "Sweet Inspiration" blaring in the background.

The only rule in this pub is one of mutual respect for everyone in it, oh and no tampering with the pictures of George Pisi, Census Johnston, Paul Williams, Tony Greig, Christopher Martin Jenkins, Mike Nicholls, Babsy and Jeremy Su'a above the bar.




Previous Pub: https://www.606v2.com/t38437p950-the-dew-drop-inn-virtual-rugby-pub-edinburgh

Hound_of_Harrow wrote:Cari's a gem

And great to hear that a good meet up took place in Belfast. I must get over there at some point.

Me too Hound.

There's been a lot of Belfast on the news lately but I'm always looking beyond into the distance.
I'm always wondering if that's Notch? ...or Rodders? or where Ravenhill is in relation to the camera view.

Or where MrsP's famous wall might be? (probably up in them there hills...)
Although I don't believe in borders between countries; private ones are OK though.

Hound_of_Harrow wrote:Cari's a gem

And great to hear that a good meet up took place in Belfast. I must get over there at some point.

Absolutely! If Wasps can get back into the Heineken Cup where they belong hopefully we can get drawn together. Was this the last time the two sides met in competitive rugby?

http://www.ulsterrugby.com/rugby/match_centre.php?section=overview&fixid=997

One of David Humphreys best ever performances in Europe that night- talismanic. From that team he, Gary Longwell, Jonny Bell and Neil Doak are still involved with Ulster as Director of Rugby, Academy Coach, Defence Coach and Attack/Skills Coach respectively. Also from that team Jeremy Davidson is a former Forwards Coach at Ulster.

5 guys going onto management or coaching roles with Ulster is quite a lot from one team.

Gibson wrote:

WillyGilly wrote:When theres rugby on? Gosh prop lad :under the thumb:?

Says the man, lookin for a thumb to be under. Or whatever.

Women are complicated. Thought I was making progress, but suspected this week that I'm still in the ' friends' zone.

Jeez, Notch. That was a long time ago, but we would have had a decent enough team at the time. I think we edged the return fixture at Loftus Road if memory serves me right.

That was the last time our teams met.

A season or two before that, a very good Wasps team inflicted Toulouse's worst ever European defeat.

Hound_of_Harrow wrote:Jeez, Notch. That was a long time ago, but we would have had a decent enough team at the time. I think we edged the return fixture at Loftus Road if memory serves me right.

Humphreys in that game- six penalties, four drop goals and a try. Ulster Legend!

Btw - I don't need rugby as a reason to go anywhere; but it helps.

Go for it Gibbo! And enjoy it!!

Hound_of_Harrow wrote:Btw - I don't need rugby as a reason to go anywhere; but it helps.

No, hope you do get over to Belfast and take in a game while you're here. The restaurant/bistro we went to tonight with Cari, MrsP, rodders et al. has a deal with the Hilden Brewery over in Lisburn so they have some good stuff on tap- very good food too, think you would enjoy it.

Northampton have done us a massive favour and I hope they can get a best runners-up spot.

Special Delivery! OBN for Mr Noatch...

Still damp from last night.

But happy!

Was it that exciting!

Ah so many jokes so little time...

Awk bollix glas you wee mucker ya go there first!

It's the rep, Gilliam, it's the rep.

Observe how she graciously rises above the infantile nonsense...

Morning all

Chucking it down here today which is a tad annoying, as I want to go and watch Harlequins vs. London Irish in the Premiership Academy League this afternoon, but the kids will get soaked and I can do without them getting colds again.

Morning all!! Playing UWIC/Cardiff Met 2nds with fringe 1sts included. Looking to batter a few pretty boy students!!

Good luck prop.

Morning all. En route to chilly Wycombe.

Glas a du wrote:

Northampton have done us a massive favour and I hope they can get a best runners-up spot.

Special Delivery! OBN for Mr Noatch...

Maybe I'm being stupid but I don't follow?

If you don't read Private Eye you won't get it.

Afternoon people of the good life

Wasps 40-0 up, and Ealing win 25+22 at Tynedale!!

Hey all, fantastic evening last night. Great to meet Cari and see Notch and the P's again. Thanks all for a great evening...

Go pack go!! Anyone watching the american football then or just me?! Good to see a Lyd win!!

Nah just you prop, haven't watched in a while...is Troy Aikman still QB for the Cowboys....

From that whistle I'm guessing he's not!

Very good game with Bronco's losing out to Ravens

29 PSNI Officers injured last night. That's a big jump from previous clashes and highlights the rampant escalation in the current situation. The flag cannot go back up. This violence cannot be given into for any reason. The scumbags on both sides need to see that it simply won't wash anymore. Ultimately I fear there's only one way this is going to end; with a member of the PSNI or a protester being killed. The sheer escalation of violence over the last month and in particular the last few days points to this. Should it happen (and I pray it doesn't) the people of Northern Ireland will really reach an impasse; to stop this nonsense or continue down a road we've travelled already before many of us where born. Surely we should learn the lessons from our chequered history.

Awful state of affairs willser.

I don't think it's anything to do with the flag at all anymore. This is more like a social uprising, akin to the London riots. There's no political aim here other than causing chaos... it's anarchy wrapped up in deep sectarian hatred.

I'm really now worried about how and when this will end.

The thing is, the rest of the country resolutely refuses to go along with it. I'm yet to meet a single person who feels anything other than contempt for their actions.

But thats the problem; why would I meet people who agree with the riots? I meet a large number of people from NI from every kind of background and they are all disgusted by this. The only people who aren't are a very, very small minority of the population who I won't meet; because they have no employment prospects or education and rarely leave the loyalist estates and inner city enclaves they've spent their whole life in.

For these people, who's lives are fairly grim, loyalism and the attendant sectarian hatred that comes with it is something to latch onto and define themselves by in a society which doesn't give much of a Poopie about them. And the growing disconnect between Loyalism and Unionism means this situation has been coming down the tracks for a while now.

Unionism as a movement before and during the Troubles was both cultural and political. It's goals were to uphold the Protestant Ascendancy in Northern Ireland and ensure Northern Ireland remained part of the United Kingdom. Political Unionism is in rude health; the issue of a border poll with Ireland has been settled for a generation. Gerry Adams is grasping at straws if he thinks NI will vote itself out of the Union. It simply won't.

So political support for the Union is high, but the Union is not safeguarded by Unionists. It's increasingly liberalised and moderate middle-class Protestants and Catholics who aren't buying Sinn Feins hard sell- but they are not necessarily Unionist voters. The growth and growth of the Alliance Party is testament to that, making it no coincidence they've become a lightning rod for loyalist hatred. They hold the Westminster seat for East Belfast where loyalism is strongest right now, and they enjoy much more support in East Belfast as a whole than these fringe loyalists.

So what we have is tacit support for political Unionism (if not Unionist parties) but cultural Unionism becoming less relevant. The Protestant Ascendancy is gone and never coming back. Equality legislation and nationalist representation in government are evidence of the eventual success of the civil rights movement and changing demographics ensure that that process simply can't be reversed. The Orange Orders numbers are in decline, as are Protestants across NI in general. The Flag issue has been so massive for Unionists and Loyalists because it is a sign post issue in that it shows the way NI is going as a country; a minority of angry Unionists democratically outvoted and forced to compromise over symbols of national identity. The cultural unionism these loyalist communities cling to is a dying ideology.

It's often been said that Loyalists are too stupid to know they've won, but I'm beginning to doubt if its true. I think by their own standards, they haven't really won. Because the success of political Unionism doesn't mean as much to them as they think. Being part of the UK IS important to them but the identity they cling to- all that No Surrender, right-wing, Orangeism, hyper-British, anti-Catholic and pro-Protestant rhetoric that fills a void in their otherwise empty lives- was a defining feature of Northern Ireland in the 20th century, but doesn't look to be relevant at all in the 21st century. And on mainland Britain its completely alien and alienating- just 'stupid Irish' arguing amongst themselves. The 'victory' of Unionism in ensuring we remain part of the UK doesn't bring much material benefit to people on Loyalist estates. The welfare state is being attacked in London, they still have no job prospects to speak of and all of the problems with education, drugs, sectarian conflict and poverty that define the areas they come from are still there. So staying in the UK is a very hollow victory because as a community they are being left behind.

Meanwhile, Northern Ireland is moving towards a shared future. A future where the vast majority of people don't care about flags and symbols and a future where the vast majority of people don't care about the problems that exist in the poor communities where those flags and symbols resonate the most.

So they are angry. Angry that a British government are capable of treating them as poorly as any Irish government (in many ways they'd be better off on welfare across the border). Angry that flags and symbols they thought meant something no longer mean anything and will increasingly disappear from public life in Northern Ireland. Angry that the promised land of a Protestant country for a Protestant people is nothing but a lie- Protestants are now a minority in Northern Ireland (48% of NI last census) and increasing numbers of liberalised, middle-class protestants don't buy into any kind of cultural unionist narrative anyway. Angry that mainstream Unionism can't deliver the kind of country they thought they'd be living in once the IRA downed arms. To paraphrase a blog on Slugger O'Toole, welcome to a Northern Ireland that won't vote itself out of the Union but will increasingly marginalise Unionist symbols. I've never, ever considered myself a Unionist or considered voting for a Unionist party so I'm either ambivalent about that process or pleased that we're moving towards neutral symbolism. It's a sign of progress. But as I've outlined above, there are those who know that once identity politics is off the agenda so are they.

All their anger is coming out. I agree with rodders, there is no coherent political aim. Politically the defeat has been inflicted, unless they are allowed to intimidate politicians with violence and terrorism- which they will not be- they are on the minority, losing side of this argument. It's a cultural, social uprising. And its showing us- and the rest of the world- the ugliest face of loyalism.

We can, as rugby fans at least, be proud that our side is showing people outside Northern Ireland the good face of folk from NI and Ulster as a whole.

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/letters/ulster-rugby-a-credit-to-belfast-16259612.html

Our fans have been great ambassadors for Northern Ireland and hopefully that will continue into the Heineken Cup quarter-finals and beyond. Unfortunately that letter was buried deep in the paper whilst loyalist rioters- whose numbers are considerably less than your average attendance at Ravenhill- got the front pages.

Great post Notch

WillyGilly wrote:29 PSNI Officers injured last night. That's a big jump from previous clashes and highlights the rampant escalation in the current situation. The flag cannot go back up. This violence cannot be given into for any reason. The scumbags on both sides need to see that it simply won't wash anymore. Ultimately I fear there's only one way this is going to end; with a member of the PSNI or a protester being killed. The sheer escalation of violence over the last month and in particular the last few days points to this. Should it happen (and I pray it doesn't) the people of Northern Ireland will really reach an impasse; to stop this nonsense or continue down a road we've travelled already before many of us where born. Surely we should learn the lessons from our chequered history.

Its time for the Silent Majority, on both sides,to stand up, march together and isolate these morons. I pray no one gets killed. A flag is not worth a life. Its just a flag.

I hope the Ospreys game is as entertaining as the bit of the Edinburgh match I saw.

ROG's goose may be cooked.

Cari should be just heading back now. It was so lovely to get to spend some time with her.

She enjoyed it greatly MrsP. Sure how could she not? I heard ye all turned out to see her. Go Ulster!


Now for O´s to beat Tigers and even better - deny them a LBP.

That would set it up beautifully for next weekend.

MON Ospreys!

Glad she had a good time.

And I whole heartedly agree.

C'Mon the Os!!!!!!

Just had a panic there. I was checking to see if Cari's flight was on time and it was listed as leaving an hour early!



Was worried we had drunk coffee for too long and made her miss the flight. (We haven't got the best reputation on getting folks dispatched)

They've fixed it now. It left nearly on schedule!

Phew!

The Benevenuti try over in Treviso was a beaut.

Very rare you'd see Biggar miss three kicks in a row.

I don't know why I'm here, I should be finishing my score

A draw is good news for the Irish provinces all round IF Ulster can win in Castres and Leinster and Munster get the bonus point wins they need. Can't see Munster getting a BP, expect Leinster to outscore them anyway.

If Montpellier beat Toulon it will really out the cat amongst the pigeons!

WELSH RUGBY UNION NOTE FOR INFORMATION

The following statement was published on page one of The Rugby Paper today (January 13) in an agreed WRU response to a report the newspaper printed in their edition of Sunday December 30 headlined: WRU ‘were in talks to kill off the Ospreys.’

The WRU is alerting media stakeholders of today’s publication in acknowledgement of the public response generated by the original article on December 30.

Today’s statement was published below the headline: Rugby Paper, WRU and Ospreys.

It reads as follows:

The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) is surprised and disappointed that The Rugby Paper chose to publish allegations that it had conspired with the Scarlets to ‘kill off’ and ‘destroy’ the Ospreys, on the front page of its 30 December 2012 edition (‘WRU ‘were in talks to kill off the Ospreys’)

Before the publication of the article, the WRU informed the newspaper’s correspondent, Peter Jackson, that the claims were totally false and the WRU regarded publication of the unsubstantiated allegations as defamatory. The WRU informed the newspaper that suggestions that the WRU had colluded with one Region to destroy a successful Region which supplies a substantial number of Welsh squad players and establish a new and untried Region elsewhere, was untrue and bizarre.

It is important to emphasise that neither before nor since the publication of these allegations has the WRU received any complaint or approach from the Ospreys about the so-called claims.

The WRU has no desire to stifle or suppress legitimate debate regarding Rugby Union in Wales. Given the fact that Rugby Union is the national sport of Wales, the WRU expects media criticism and the WRU appreciates that there is a right for people to hold and express their own differing opinions. However, this cannot extend to making or publishing false, incorrect and damaging allegations and the WRU should not be subjected to or forced to deny damaging claims it knows to be incorrect when the media organisations involved cannot provide evidence in support.

The WRU has contacted the Scarlets and they have informed the WRU that they are unaware of any evidence to support the claims and were not involved in any discussions with the WRU regarding the demise of the Ospreys or the taking of any players from the Ospreys. In addition, ERC has confirmed to the WRU that there have been no discussions or contact between the WRU and ERC regarding the Ospreys not participating in the Heineken Cup.

David Emery, The Rugby Paper’s editor in chief, said: “We are happy to give the WRU their right of reply to set the record straight.. We published in good faith the allegations of Ospreys’ investor Rob Davies that his club were under threat from the WRU. We accept the WRU’s assertion that this is not the case and regret suggesting otherwise and the damage caused to the WRU by the publication of the article.”

ENDS




This press release was produced by Sotic Ltd.

© Copyright Welsh Rugby Union. All rights reserved.

OK, so you didn't conspire with the Scarlets, it was a frolic of your own...

Notch wrote:The Benevenuti try over in Treviso was a beaut.

Very rare you'd see Biggar miss three kicks in a row.

What about missing five in a match?

Glas a du wrote:

Notch wrote:The Benevenuti try over in Treviso was a beaut.

Very rare you'd see Biggar miss three kicks in a row.

What about missing five in a match?

Very unusual. Very costly.

Good evening Pubblies

Just popping in for a

I had an epic weekend in Ireland - Belfast and Dublin doing it proud as per. From watching the news now, it's almost like I was in a different city. I felt completely safe wandering about by myself, met some lovely locals and saw some interesting things. I had heard about potential bother when I was doing the open top bus tour on Friday morning because the security chap at Stormont told our tour guide that the city centre was closing down from about 2:30. That was no bother for me though cause it just meant meeting MrsP and Rava sooner than anticipated The Belfast-Dublin train which ran after the one I was on was also disrupted due to a bomb scare, but that was all over by the time I'd got back too, and I'd missed the protest happening at City Hall on Saturday.

Anyhoo, it was great to visit somewhere new and meet the friends I've known for four years and never met

Just for the record...I didn't see Tommy. Only on that blydi awful Subway advert which is being shown quite a lot. Makes me cringe it does. Oh and his picture on the Subway windows...I know they only do sarnies, but they really could've sexed up those ads a bit and saved embarrassment...

Leicester are an impressive outfit fair play. I don't know what sport they played for 75 minutes, but it wasn't rugby. Youngs bought a penalty with some sharp thinking and in the 5 minutes of rugby they did play they looked irresistible in scoring their two tries.

Osprey effort 8/10
Osprey tactics 5/10
Osprey game management 3/10.

I'm still giggling at the MOTM...

I missed the O's match as I was en route. Mrsp kept me updated with the score. Who was MOTM? Disappointed that it turned out to be a draw in the end. We could've done with a win.

Kahn Fotolaui.

He practically handed Leicester a draw with poorly advised and badly executed high kicks