Pat Spillane's column in today's Sunday World amounts to a giant moan about the sports landscape.
The GPA and the salaries of its employees, last weekend's shakedown of gullible Americans at Fenway Park for the Super 11s, the International Rules series and Ireland's failed bid to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup are all addressed by Spillane.
In a paragraph which may have caused some to spit out their coffee this morning, Spillane suggested that the IRFU had utilised the wrong Kingdom politician as chairman of the 2023 bid team. It should have been the Healy-Raes, Michael and Danny, rather than Dick Spring believes, the eight-time All-Ireland winner - "they would have delivered the World Cup to Ireland."
Spillane also has a few words regarding the November Internationals.
"Rugby gets extensive TV coverage for what are essentially friendly games against tired teams from the southern hemisphere," writes the Kerryman.
He also feels that Ireland's style of play - which he likens to Tyrone under Mickey Harte - will not win them a World Cup in two years time.
Granted, Ireland keep winning, but every time I look at Joe Schmidt's team I can't help but think his game plan is borrowed from the Mickey Harte coaching template.
Ireland play a safety-first, percentage game. Though it makes them very competitive, there isn't a snowball's chance in hell of them winning a World Cup playing that brand of rugby.
Picture credit: Sportsfile
