Monday morning smile

It is not always easy being a rugby fan from Wales.
And being a Cardiff supporter has heaped plenty more misery on top in recent years.
But on Saturday something happened to put a smile on my face that is still here on Monday and might well last all week.
It was this try from Leigh Halfpenny, the [...]

Greenwash for 6N’09

So the Six Nations rugby championship is over for another year and Ireland take all the honours.
There was a great atmosphere in Cardiff as Wales took on the Irish for the title and in the fine tradition of sporting encounters it went down to the wire.
Wales missed what would have been the championship winning penalty [...]

If at first you don’t succeed, essai, essai, essai again

So what did we learn from the two Friday night experiments after France defeated Wales in the third round of Six Nations matches?
Firstly, once the anthems are played it doesn’t really matter whether it is Friday night at 8pm or Saturday afternoon at 3pm. If you are treated to an enthralling game of rugby – even one [...]

Friday night’s alright for…rugby/TV/fans*

(* delete as appropriate)
History will made in Paris on Friday night (8pm our time, 9pm locally) when Wales take on their French hosts in the Six Nations rugby championship.
It is the first 6N match to be played on a Friday night and needless to say it has not been universally welcomed, with some of the [...]

Brief, pithy and to the point

As ever, I’m not surprised (but still slightly miffed) at the English-centric coverage of the Wales-England Six Nations match in most of the national media.
Wales won, but the lion’s share of the coverage and analysis is of England’s performance.
Even where there are articles purporting to focus on the Welsh achievements, there’s a large dose of [...]

The brains in the marketing department

For the last few years Welsh rugby’s main shirt sponsors has been Brains, Cardiff-based brewers of some damn fine beer.
It continues to be a happy marriage, good business for both the Welsh Rugby Union and Brains.

After all, it taps into two of the great Welsh love affairs – rugby union and beer.
Admittedly, as with most [...]

Feeling a little hoarse

So, we did it.
The match and the result were a lot closer than many had predicted, but Wales ultimately deserved victory over England in the 6N on Saturday.
My pre-match anxiety kept building up to kick-off.
I had never shared the confidence of some of my fellow fans, or media pundits who were predicting a 20 or [...]

Fear and loathing in Las Iguanas

This year I have lined up a special Valentine’s Day treat for Rachel.
We are off for a romantic weekend in Wales.

More specifically, Rachel will be spending a good chunk of February 14 with my sister and nieces while I head off with my brother-in-law to the pubs of Cardiff’s Mill Lane and elsewhere ahead of [...]

Haka-ed off by cultural minefield

It is official. There is no acceptable response to the Haka.
The traditional Maori call to arms performed by New Zealand’s rugby players before every international match has become something of a bone of contention in recent years.
Some argue it should be banned. I don’t agree.
But we do seem to have reached a point where there [...]

No benefit, small-town mentalities and willy waving

A new week and a new round-up:
So the Government’s long-awaited and frankly ill-judged shake-up of the benefits system is launched with plenty of predictable headlines and comments about getting “cheats” and “scroungers” back into work.
If only life was that simple. Yes there are some horrendous examples of those who cheat the system and yes they [...]