The rest of the rugby news, compiled by JOHN O'SULLIVAN
Cheika hopes to keep Contepomi
LEINSTER coach Michael Cheika is hoping that Felipe Contepomi will turn down a lucrative offer from Toulon to stay with the Irish province.
The Argentine playmaker is also a hugely popular figure with his team-mates and supporters alike and has been largely outstanding in his six years with Leinster.
Cheika admitted: "I'd be quietly confident he is going to stay. In situations like this you are dealing with forces you can't control.
"Some of the money being offered down in France is big, big dough. He's a good man and an important man to the team.
"We'd be confident we have put a very good offer to him to finish his career at Leinster and we want it to happen," he said.
Courting trouble
IT’S NOT been a good season for Gloucester outhalf Ryan Lamb. He’s been struggling to win a starting spot recently and today is in court after being charged with assault following an incident outside a nightclub. Lamb was arrested after a 22-year-old man from Kent was assaulted outside the Subtone nightclub in Cheltenham. The victim suffered a cut and swelling to his lip. Lamb is the second Gloucester player to be cautioned by police this season.
Irish universities revive Dudley Cup
IRISH universities have agreed to revive the Dudley Cup in the form of a three-sided tournament that takes place in the UCD Bowl on Saturday. It will include Queen’s University Belfast, UCC and UCD.
The competition takes its name from the Earl of Dudley who presented the magnificent silver trophy while Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. It was first competed for by the three Queen’s colleges in Belfast, Cork and Galway in the 1903-1904 season. The decision to restore what was once a prestigious competition graced by many internationals down through the years will be welcomed by the participants.
Tribe settle case over haka
THE Ngati Toa tribe is the Maori tribe which invented the Ka Mate haka made famous by the New Zealand rugby team. A recent settlement awarded €48 million (NZ$121 million) to the tribe as well as the intellectual property rights of the Ka Mate haka. However, while the tribe officially owns the war dance, it will not be able to claim royalties or veto the use of the haka by the All Blacks. The award of property rights will protect against commercial or “inappropriate” uses.
The performance of the war dance by the All Blacks does not fall in this category.
Books that hooked George
EVER wonder what George Hook's 10 favourite books of all time are? No. Well then there is no point in looking at the list below, but for those who'd like an inkling into what makes the radio and television star tick, Hook's preferred reading matter is an eclectic mix.
This column came across the material when sent a link to his Twitter page – insert your own joke here – on the web. There isn't a book on rugby although that may change with Eddie O'Sullivan's autobiography due out this year.
10. Among the Dead Cities, AC Grayling.
9. Making of the President, Theodore White.
8. The Spanish Civil War, Hugh Thomas.
7. The Moon's a Balloon, David Niven.
6. The Complete Book of the Olympics, David Wallechinsky.
5. Picture, Lillian Ross.
4. The Day of the Jackal, Frederick Forsythe.
3. A Bridge Too Far, Cornelius Ryan.
2. The Great Crash, J K Galbraith.
1. Casino Royale, Ian Fleming.
Welsh send out mixed message
THE canny Welsh Rugby Union tried to neatly sidestep the French Loi Evan (a ruling that forbids alcohol promotion at sporting events) while at the same time remaining faithful to the most prominent name on the national jersey, beer-company SA Brain.
It's not the first time the WRU has done this, but for last Friday week's game against France at the Stade de France, the Welsh team sported the logo "Try Essai" on their jerseys. When you run the two words together using the correct pronunciation of the French word for "try" ("Essai"), you get what phonetically sounds like Try SA, as in SA Brain, the brewery and team sponsor. So the Welsh team were sending subliminal messages to their supporters to get stuck into a few cans while cheering on the team.
