Fíanna Fail has been back in power for less than a month and it's like the good old days never ended. Infighting, scandal, rancour: how exactly did Irish political life function during the last decade without Fíanna Fail's involvement in government?
Barry Cowen's resignation as Minster for Agriculture last night has had a knock-on for Irish sport fans. After Mayo's Dara Calleary was today promoted to take Cowen's job, Dublin West TD Jack Chambers was in turn promoted to the role of Government chief whip with the twin responsibilities of State Minister for Sport and the Gaeltacht.
Jack Chambers is best known for his outburst on the Claire Byrne show, but what are the sporting credentials of the new junior minister for Sport?
Jack Chambers sporting background
A profile from the Irish Independent in 2016 tersely outlines the deputy's interest in sport. Wrap your head around this one:
A massive sports fan, he follows the Dublin and Mayo GAA teams and Liverpool.
Both of his parents are from Mayo and according to wikipedia, Chambers moved to Dublin as a child. That explains an interest in Mayo things and Dublin things, but surely it's impossible, as a 'massive sports fan' to 'follow' Mayo and Dublin at the same time? It's gaelic football's equivalent of supporting Liverpool and Manchester United. We've seen Irish politicians attempt all kinds of gobsmacking feats of logic over the years, but we've never seen someone try to be both a Dublin fan and a Mayo fan at the same time.
In the Independent feature, journalist Fiona Dillon mentions that Chambers is a keen five-a-side player and a quick scour of his Facebook page shows that Jack Chambers is an avid road-runner. His interest in sport seems obvious. That's probably a good thing. We just wish he would step off the fence.
