AUCKLAND DIARY/Gerry Thornley: There's no escaping it. Even the rugby squad's tour of New Zealand is being consumed by football and Ireland's heart-breaking exit from the World Cup. Their brethren's rollercoaster ride in the Far East has affected the rugby squad's sleep patterns and training times.
However, by yesterday afternoon in Auckland, they simply said to hell with it and played a game of footie instead.
One of the vagaries of night matches is that the after-effects aren't felt until the second day after the match. Thus, after Sunday's transfer from Dunedin up to Auckland, Yesterday's light training run was deferred to the afternoon, all the more so as Ireland's second round game against Spain didn't kick off until 11.30 p.m. local time on Sunday night.
In the event, it didn't finish until after 2.0 a.m., and invariably most of the squad stayed rooted to the screens. Throughout yesterday the football team's exit was the primary topic of conversation among the squad and, like the players, manager Brian O'Brien, despite harbouring hopes of nodding off early, was compelled to sit it out.
"Like everybody else I was enthralled by it. I was also saddened by the outcome and I would feel their disappointment. But the other side of that disappointment is that you've got to take the positives out of it when you play as well as you possibly can. Certainly they're an inspiration to our fellas.
"Considering the Roy Keane affair, you can write all you like about it but it's like a marriage: 'come live with me to know me'. The bottom line is that it is a team game. No manager would wish that situation on any other manager but the team has responded well to the adverse exposure it got and I wouldn't fault anybody.
"But we must admit we're very proud of them. All the lads stayed up and watched it to the end. We've actually put back our following morning training sessions after every game and I think in a strange way it has helped our mentality to take on an opponent (the All Blacks) who are seemingly invincible in other people's eyes. It just goes to prove they're human, the same as ourselves."
Goodwill messages, signed by all the players, have been heading back and forth between the football and rugby sides this past few weeks, as was the case again before what might easily have been one of the greatest weekends ever for Irish sport. The rugby squad individually signed a good luck message with the words: "Tusear maith, leath na h'oidre" (a good start is half the battle) and "best wishes and total support".
Even yesterday's light, 40-minute run-out culminated with a short game of about 15-a-side football in which all bar Eric Miller, whose bruised bicep and damaged nerve hasn't responded to treatment as he had hoped, took part. Aside from the obvious footballers (O'Gara, Humphreys, O'Driscoll, etc) this featured a particularly eye-catching performance from the twinkle-toed Malcolm O'Kelly, thus invoking memories of his footballing cameo against Samoa five summers ago.
After a deft bit of dribbling, at the ensuing scrum he was heard to comment with self-satisfaction: "Check out the football skills man."
In any case, a scoreless draw precipitated a penalty shoot-out. Anthony Foley went in goal for one team, Alan Quinlan the other, with opposing teams choosing the respective penalty takers. Quinlan was beaten by the fitness director Mike McGurn and Paul Wallace, then palmed John Hayes' spot-kick onto the bar before Gary Longwell scored.
However, Foley emulated his father Brendan, whose expanding girth made him near unbeatable as a goalkeeper for many years with Derg Rovers, by ensuring bragging rights when saving from Peter Stringer, Paul Wallace and, on his 26th birthday, Keith Gleeson, after initially being beaten by Reggie Corrigan (who celebrated with a Robbie Keane cartwheel). There was even a linking of arms along the sideline. It isn't just the country back home that's gone slightly zany.
While the buzz about the football team's exploits is contagious, the management have done a remarkable job in revitalising a squad whose Munster contingent set off to Greystones a fortnight ago with heavy hearts. That there have been no midweek games has helped by reducing the travel load.
On a more serious note, Paul O'Connell's bruised shoulder seems to be causing the management some mild concern, though he took some part in yesterday's exercise. It's been that kind of season for O'Connell.
By comparison to Ireland's session, the All Blacks trained in front of a crowd of 7,000 in Otahuhu in south Auckland, Jonah Lomu territory. Reaction to the home side's performance has been as critical in the media as it was among sections of the Carisbrook crowd who booed their team from the pitch last Saturday. "Shabby", "a dud", "spotty", were some of the adjectives used.
Having named a largely unchanged squad, John Mitchell commented: "If we are going to get the delivery of performance that we are after, we need to be consistent with our selection. We were not entirely satisfied with the performance at Carisbrook, but we are giving the players another chance."
A blacklash is expected. Nay, demanded.
