Georgia will be disgusted with themselves after leaving at least two tries out on the field in their opening game of the Rugby World Cup, against Australia.
The game finished 35-15, but it could have, and should have, been a lot closer.
A highlight of the broadcast on RTE was commentator Bernard Jackman recounting the inspiring rise of Georgia's sub tight-head prop, Beka Gigashvili, who was with Grenoble [but on loan with Chambery] while Jackman was head coach.
He's a great story. He basically only saw a rugby ball for the first time when he was 20 years of age. He spent three years in the Georgian army, and I saw a photograph when he came out of the army, he was about 12 stone.
After six months he decided to go play in Russia for a Russian club and then he joined a club called Chambery, which is about from Dublin to Portlaoise away from Grenoble.
He earned his stripes there. We signed him, but we signed him to loan him back to Chambery for a year as he learned the game, and he used to come in and train with us on a Tuesday to do the live scrums and he was killing our scrum and our props.
So we tried to sign him for the rest of the year but Chambery wouldn't release him.
A Great Rugby World Cup Tale From Bernard Jackman
Brilliant from @bernardjackman on the rise of Georgian prop Beka Gigashvili 🙌 pic.twitter.com/U1DXX0MScy
— Colmán Stanley (@ColmnStanley1) September 9, 2023
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"He's now at Toulon, he's on 60,000 a month, he's got a supermodel girlfriend, house on the beach, and drives a big range rover, and he was voted the top tight head prop in the Top 14 last year.
"Incredible turn around.
"He used to push himself so hard in the gym that he used to collapse, and he used to do it twice a day, and he's totally self made, and he is a fearsome scrummager."
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