damp squib

Fled from what? There was an amnesty after the war for all factions. Lebanese emigrants, Christian or Muslim, left to escape the war or subsequently to escape poverty. Of the more high profile Lebanese RL players currently playing I think only Abbas Miski is Muslim but that will change with the new generation of players coming through. Arguably the most famous Lebanese RL player of all time, Hazem El Masri, is Muslim.

The Ireland-based board is most likely in place precisely because it does what it is told by the people with all the power in England. I have no doubt that most of the people in England involved in Rugby League Ireland did not have malign intentions but they have effectively hijacked a national sporting organisation and are using it for the benefit of English Rugby League players of Irish descent and to the detriment of the sport and it's players in Ireland.

Fan of Catalans and Toulouse but more of an overall fan of the game since 2012 when I accidentally watched a challenge cup semi final on TV. First live game was watching Ireland get destroyed 50-0 by Australia in the 2013 RLWC in the ####### rain in a Limerick stadium that ran out of beer at half time.

Whatever the attendance was the stadium looks so much better on TV than Ealing Trailfinders.

Quote from Matty Johns in the article: “Let’s imagine the Roosters are faced with a scenario where they allow Joey Manu to go to French rugby or we let him go and have a stint at Castleford. That’s the opportunity for players to really optimise their income while they’re in the game.” This feels like a sarcastic joke at Castleford's expense.

My wife is Lebanese and I'm Irish so I can make an attempt at explaining the differences as I understand them. Lebanon and Ireland are the two perfect examples of why there is no one size fits all solution to the problem of heritage players in international rugby league. The Lebanese diaspora in Australia are far more "fresh off the boat" than the Irish diaspora in the North of England which ceased to be a significant destination for Irish emigrants decades ago. This means that in general the links are far stronger and more meaningful between Lebanese and Lebanese-Australians than for Irish and British-Irish. Lebanese people tend to see their diaspora as more "authentic" than the Irish people. I also got this impression from the media output of both sets of players during the last two world cups - the Aussie-Lebanese players would talk about their parents hometown in Lebanon whereas the British-Irish players media content was far more superficial (players drinking Guinness, Micky McIllorum posting the Ivory Coast flag etc.) I'm far from an expert on Rugby League in either Ireland or Lebanon but having followed both for years I would say that overall domestic Rugby League in Lebanon has mostly benefited from the heritage involvement whereas in Ireland I think it's been hugely detrimental to the development of the sport here.

Each individual will be different but in my experience the connections are far weaker than they were a generation ago. It wasn't uncommon for people to be born and live there whole lives in England and yet identify exclusively as Irish e.g. Jack Grealish's dad. That's far less common with the younger generation e.g. Jack Grealish. IMO the end of the troubles made being Irish in England a much less unpleasant experience which made it easier for people of Irish descent to fully accept an English identity. There's also very little Irish emigration to the north of England any more so maintain the connection. It also means the heritage player pool will run dry pretty soon I imagine

That's interesting. I remember a few years ago Richard Egan (I think) announced a new policy that guaranteed a significant minimum quota of domestic players in international squads. Liam Finn (I think) and a few other heritage players and staff publicly criticized the policy and it was immediately dropped and never mentioned again. It convinced me that the Ireland based staff were token figureheads and that the the Ireland national team was being run from England for the benefit of heritage players and staff. I completely agree that this situation is actively harmful to the development of rugby league both in Ireland and elsewhere, as we potentially take tournament places away from countries where genuine development is happening. I feel no connection to the Irish national team in rugby league and haven't for years.

Out of interest wast the person you spoke to Irish? From the outside it has always seemed to me that RLI is almost entirely run by people from the north of England with a few token Irish without any real power.

I can see why you would think that but it is more complicated than that. In my experience the degree to which a person is genuinely connected to their heritage generally correlates to how well the population of that heritage has integrated into the new country, or, to put it more bluntly, how much discrimination they experience in the new country because of their heritage. I see a noticeable difference between people of Irish heritage born and raised in Britain up to around the 70s and early 80s and how their relationship to Britain was affected by discrimination to the point where they solely or primarily identified as Irish, compared to the next generation who are primarily British-identifying and have a more superficial relationship to their Irish heritage. People of Tongan heritage in Australia are no doubt raised with constant reminders of their “Tonganess” by Australian society in a way that people with Scottish heritage don’t experience in England. That creates a much stronger and more genuine connection for better or worse.

I have to admit I had my doubts about whether Bateman would make it in the NRL but I've been well and truly proved wrong. I really hope English backs start to have similar success soon...

Yeah I think they were necessary to explain the background and everything.

I saw Peterloo last week and I highly recommend it. A very timely look at England's radical history. It can be a bit heavy on the speeches as you would expect but they build up the tension well to the final massacre. The best part about it though is that it really shows the tensions building between the working class and middle class in the reform coalition which would lead to the future betrayal of the former by the latter. Great performance by former Wigan Ladies player Maxine Peake as always.

The story is that Irish is Whiskey and Scotch is Whisky but like most of these things it's only really taken off in modern times as a marketing ploy (like the Guinness two part pour). Scotch and Irish distilleries have used both spellings at various points in history. The real insurmountable difference is between Uisce Beatha (Irish Gaelic) and Uisge Beatha (Scottish Gaelic).

It's pretty common in Ireland to drink whiskey with water. My favourite pub in Dublin gives you a jug of water as standard with any whiskey. It's actually physiologically impossible for the human tongue to detect any kind of subtle flavour in a cask strength without some dilution so as you say any faux "purist" who objects hasn't a clue.

Did you receive those messages personally? If you got it off social media it's almost certainly fake.

It's impossible to taste anything in a cask strength whiskey without adding water. Many 40% whiskeys are improved with a drop or two to taste as well. My local always gives you a small jug of room temperature water with your whiskey.

I don't do it myself but it's a decent compromise between my desire to share the wealth and my knowledge that my brother would pour himself a glass of my 21 year old Redbreast and douse it in ginger ale without a second thought.

Would appreciate a review of the Amorik. It keeps calling to me from the airport duty free...

I think they're probably the best value Irish whiskeys at the moment. Bushmills 10 is my go to pub whiskey if I'm not trying something new. Blackbush has the advantage of being drinkable as a whiskey and also cheap enough that you don't mind others taking some to drown it in coke.

It's an awesome jersey. If only the Ireland one wasn't a international war crime against fashion...

Yeah, what do the Germans know about beer?

A very emotional Jack Charlton paraded in front of a standing ovation. Nice moment.

Anyone watching Ireland vs England? Riot police at the ready!