What is Rugby?

Ireland have not won in Paris since Brian O'Driscoll's hat-trick in 2000 inspired a first win since 1972. © Getty Images.

I’m sure this is going to anger some rugby fans, but I’m going to link football, or soccer as they call it in the States, and rugby.

This is an angle I hadn’t thought of before, but it’s a very interesting one mentioned by 6 Nations debutant Keith Earls.

The Munsterman quipped just recently, “I suppose victory would be all the sweeter given what happened in the football match. If we won by cheating, it would be payback,” said Earls.

I think the comment was more tongue in cheek than anything. It does go to show you though that the World Cup Qualifying match between France and Ireland in Paris is still fresh in the minds of many Irish.

Irish soccer fans were stunned in their qualifier against France when in extra time, Thierry Henry committed a blatant and admitted handball to assist France’s game winning, and World Cup birthing goal. I’m not suggesting that had it not happened, Ireland would have been in the World Cup, because if extra time had run out, it would have went to a shoot out. But to miss out on one, knocking the French out of the competition and two, playing the World Cup after an 8 year hiatus, because of cheating, was absolutely devastating.

OK, that’s enough soccer talk for this rugby blog.

I really don’t think Earls wants to win by cheating and like I said, I have no doubts he was having a bit of fun.

What Earls forgot was that the French don’t have a sense of humor, prompting second-tier scrum half Morgan Parra to call the Irish rugby team “cheaters”.

Parra, through his brilliant line of reasoning suggested that because Ireland are the least penalised team, they are cheaters. I mean who could argue with that line of reasoning? What is cheating in rugby anyway? Creeping up on the offsides line at a ruck? Infringing on the laws is hardly cheating. Taking performance enhancing drugs is cheating. The “Bloodgate” scandal is cheating.

Not that anyone should care what Morgan Parra says, but to call a team cheaters is a pretty serious accusation and has no doubt raised some eyebrows in the Irish camp.

In the NFL it’s called “blackboard material”. In all sports, the NFL particularly, you never want to be a source of motivation for a team. The fact that Ireland have only won in France three times since 1952 is about all the motivation one would need. Parra’s comments though just raised the stakes.

This match is shaping up to be an epic encounter, one that I cannot wait for. There is so much at stake beyond just winning the match in my mind and I hope Ireland smash France because like any sports fan will tell you, a little payback is always satisfying.