Some things are well worth waiting for. If outstanding moments in sports are defined by captivating drama and unbridled joy, then the first Irish Grand Slam win on home soil in 75 years will rank among the greatest of days in the country’s illustrious rugby history. Saturday’s victory over England at a pulsating Aviva Stadium rounded off a remarkable year in the annals of Irish sport. There has never been a season like it and, quite possibly, there may never be again.
After a first ever test series win in in New Zealand last July was followed by an autumn clean sweep against world champions South Africa and then Australia, an astonishing nine month period was brought to a fitting conclusion in Dublin. The world’s number one ranked team had overcome every obstacle on the road to a Six Nations Grand Slam that will be celebrated and treasured for decades to come.
A superbly coached and conditioned squad of players has elevated the reputation of Irish rugby to unprecedented heights, playing a brand of fearless and thrilling rugby that has won the admiration of all supporters and even the most hardened critics.
This success hasn’t happened by accident. For an organisation that is often justifiably called to task, the IRFU deserves to be applauded for putting in place the structures at schools, academy and coaching levels that are the envy of Ireland’s opponents and other unions.
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Few would have believed that the Joe Schmidt era in Ireland could have been surpassed in terms of achievement but Andy Farrell has proved to be a rugby maestro. A self-effacing and genial coach, he has forged a remarkable bond with his players and the Irish public. It is ironic that Irish sport owes some of its greatest memories to two plain speaking English men, Farrell and Jack Charlton.
Farrell’s team of 2023 has completed the greatest year in the history of Irish rugby and did so amid the kind of drama that only great sporting theatre can throw up. Take a bow and roll on the autumn World Cup.