Wednesday 7 October 2015

I've (NOT) been a Wild Rover for many a year

So, how's your Rugby World Cup going?

Not brilliantly I would imagine if you're from Uruguay, Fiji, Canada, Tonga, Samoa, Namibia or any of the other nations either out or about to go out of the tournament.  Such as England.

Yes, the dear old chariot came off the rails.

At least the England squad will have a good view of the quarter-finals.


(OK, you may have seen that pic already but, come on, top comedy!)

After the recent thrill of the competition coming to Leeds and the opportunity to watch two games, I still have one more live date on my personal Rugby World Cup fixture calendar.

Ireland take on France in the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff on Sunday afternoon in the Pool D decider, with the unfortunate loser forced to face the All Blacks.  And I'll be there.

Yup, I head down on Saturday morning, arriving just in time to watch Wales play Australia on a random pub telly.   Then my chums and I will have bit of a night out in Cardiff city centre before bedding down for the evening in our cheap hotel.

And the following day/night, it gets really interesting/unpredictable.  The game won't be over until around 6.30, too late for me to get a train back to Leeds.  And there are no hotel rooms available on Sunday.

My friends have booked themselves into somewhere in Bristol, leaving shortly after the final whistle.  But there's no way I'm missing out on all the post-game fun.

I've therefore booked myself onto a train leaving Cardiff at 4.35 on Monday morning, arriving in Leeds (via Manchester) at 9.15am, ready for a day's work.

I reckon a greasy kebab and a strong coffee at around 3.30 should see me right.

But what happens between leaving the stadium and getting that kebab is anyone's guess.  It's about as much excitement as you can get when you're 43½. 

I'll tell you what I can when/if I get back.