Of the many Ireland press conferences at the World Cup, the most roguish
question belonged to an English journalist who enquired the following of Tom
Court before the quarter-finals. “Tom, how would you feel on Monday if
you were the only Australian left in the tournament?”
The Ulster prop didn’t bat an eyelid and, adhering to the established
political tactic of not accepting the premise of the question (his Brisbane
upbringing), replied: “If you look at my passport, I think you’ll find
I’m Irish.”
A good answer, but weakened somewhat by Court’s Australian twang and the fact
that, in the circumstances, he could not use the ubiquitous Aussie ‘mate’
for added vehemence.
Court has strong Hibernian links through his maternal grandfather, Patrick
Carey, and was always aware of his Irish roots before moving here nearly six
years ago. It makes him an import, but an Irish import, similar to Isaac
Boss, who was raised in Tokoroa, New Zealand but qualified for Ireland
through his Co Antrim grandmother.
Both have been valuable servants of Irish rugby – with the good manners to
play club rugby in the country they represent, as opposed to others such as
Scotland’s Australian stalwarts Nathan Hines and Dan Parks .
The grandparent rule is the nature of business in international rugby and most
countries take advantage of it, with England’s New Zealander Thomas Waldrom
a recent beneficiary through a randomly discovered birth cert.
The situation with ‘special project’ players is different. These individuals
are targeted and brought into the system with the express intention of
qualifying them under the three-year residency rule.
Amid all the recent furore around the IRFU’s new policy on player recruitment,
the issue of ‘special projects’ fell through the cracks, but there are
ethical questions to be answered here — wherever you stand on the use of
foreign players in Irish rugby.
Richardt Strauss’ involvement in Ireland’s Six Nations squad preparation
attracted attention last week. The Pretoria-born Afrikaner, who played for
the Springbok U-19s, becomes Irish-qualified this year and his involvement
in national sessions suggests he is ready and willing to choose Ireland over
his native South Africa. His performances for Leinster emphasise how
valuable an acquisition the hooker could be, but that does not alter the
fact that Strauss is about as Irish as Oolong tea.
Just as ordering ‘Venti Americano’ does not turn pretentious Paddies into
Italians, learning the words to ‘Amhran na bhFiann’ or who won the Battle of
Clontarf does not make you Irish.
None of which may matter a whit, not when it comes to winning rugby matches at
any rate, but this ‘special
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