Ireland

APV1 says...

@ JeanLucJoinel - you're absolutley right, the French travelling fans should also be able to get appropriate and commensurate compensation. But I'm not sure it's fair to apportion much (if any) blame to Pearson. He has to make the final call, just before kick-off, whether the pitch is playable. That's all he could do and what he was required to do. He isn't part of the scheduling discussions, nor what could / should have been done in advance. All he can do is, at the last moment, make a decision by walking the pitch and testing it under foot. he's not allowed to do anything else, so he waited until the last moment - to give it every chance - and then made a very tough call. But the right call. He couldn't do it earlier, just in case the ground staff got it to a playable condition.

Posted 10:57 20th February 2012

Rosbif says...

blametheref, APV1, bambo and lyhel, collectively, four of the most reasonable and insightful posters I have had the pleasure of following this past year or so. I think I agree with you all, if that's possible. As a Frenchman I'm embarrassed, but also a little defensive. Delicate balance to strike.

Could it have been handled better? You bet. Are we expecting too much for self-interest and incompetence to be kept at bay? Not really. Is the 6N still the greatest tournament on earth? Yes, just about. But it's the fans and the players that make it so, certainly not the money, the TV and the politics. And something died a little this past week in my opinion.

If games are postponed, say, once every 25 years or so, I would hope that some of the 25 years' worth of profits and retained earnings could be used to "soften" the blow. Isn't that what businesses do to safeguard their clients? Run a surplus. Keep a buffer. And yet, as we have come to expect of capitalism these days, it's all about the last penny, who's fault it was, who can be blamed (or indeed sued), who is the victim and deserves compensation etc etc.

Maybe it was always thus. Maybe we're just getting older, and seeing things as they truly are. But it's sad to realise that "the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started, and know the place for the first time...."

Posted 22:17 18th February 2012

APV1 says...

@ Iyhel - I don't and didn't and I'm sorry I gave that impression. As I stated, I genuinely love the French, but this has very much annoyed me. I should have said, "...fine example of FFR bull...", not "French". I was ranting and got carried away. Just be thankful you don't have the RFU "looking after" your national game! ;-)

@ bambo - I can be as angry and as frustrated as I like, so the chances of me calming down at your behest is unlikely. Why should the Irish supporters have to find assistance elswhere, when the professional thing to have done would be to publish it bi-lingually? I just think this is another example of the FFR mucking something up. And surely it's basic manners and old-fashined "customer service" to try to assist people who have suffered as best you can. By only publishing in French, it only compounds the issue.

There's no conspiricy and I haven't suggested there is one. But I do lay this firmly at the FFR's door and it makes me annoyed.

I have been very critical of the RFU (and, indeed, SARU) in the past, so please don't think this is a case of me having an issue with the FFR or the French in general - I don't. But I do think they have handled this terribly and should bend over backwards to make amends.

I'm not blaming anyone for the weather. But I am annoyed by the way it's been handled, the buck-passing that's gone on and the lack of acknowledgement that people - ordinary rugby fans - have suffered. No, it's not life and death, but it is still a significant issue.

Furthermore, it just gives people another opportunity to knock our great sport. What with the RFU and SARU's recent history, we need to be doing better than this.

Rant over (for now). Please will you pass me that soap box for me to use to step down from my high horse..?!

Posted 11:18 17th February 2012