Talented Tadhg has brought tight head role to a new level

LIKE HALF the nation, last Saturday I couldn’t wait to see Ireland play the crucial Grand Slam rugby match live from Twickenham against the arch enemy England. With unintended perfect timing I came across a video on social media about ten minutes before the game, posted by Wexford G.A.A. P.R.O. P.J. Howlin.

It was a short video from Joe.ie about the amazing rise to stardom of our own Tadhg Furlong. It contained interviews with Horeswood G.A.A. men Denis Cadogan and Declan Murphy, former county football manager Aidan O’Brien (who also taught him at Good Counsel), and some amusing anecdotes from Peter O’Brien, Chairman of New Ross Rugby Club.

The video was entertaining, enlightening and informative, but for me what made it memorable was the contribution from Tadhg himself. He came across as humble, friendly, and down to earth.

The video made me take more notice of the Wexford man’s performance during the game.

I was engrossed in every tackle he made, every yard he gained, and every ball he handled.

The icing on the cake was his contribution to the second try, a catch and pass that has to be credited (well partially anyway) to the skills he honed in Horeswood G.A.A. club.

Years ago in club rugby, the prop forward generally had a worse smell of drink off him than any other player, was normally the slowest and unfittest, and usually handled the ball about four times per season.

In modern rugby the role has evolved into a position filled by super-fit athletes, with the strength of a JCB, the vision of an eagle, and the all-round skills to match most other positions on the pitch.

Tadhg Furlong has brought the tight head role to a new level and continues to astound us with his world class performances on the biggest stage.

The true sign of a really great player is to do it when it matters, and he has certainly done that on numerous occasions in the last 18 months. Think New Zealand, Chicago, Six Nations and especially last week.

Alright, we haven’t seen him kick at goal yet, but maybe during the summer we can get Matty Forde or Leigh O’Brien to give him a few lessons.

Watch the video if you can and in his own interview he spoke about his deeds hopefully inspiring young people to play sport, and not just rugby, but any sport.

It’s great to see someone from our own county perform on the world stage, just as Kevin Doyle in soccer and Gordon D’Arcy in rugby did before him.

As a Wexford man, I felt proud of him as I watched the video, but even more so as I saw him immediately perform so brilliantly in the most important game of his career so far.

As a youngster, Tadhg played all sports until he had to make a decision to specialise in rugby when he got a bit older.

Surely there is a lesson there for everybody, as currently there is strong support within the G.A.A. and soccer to get young players to commit to one sport at 12 or 13 years of age.

That’s far too young in my opinion.

Speaking of world class performances, Billy Walsh’s American team entertained Ireland in two boxing matches stateside last week.

Speaking to Billy, he was delighted with the performances of both his U.S.A. team and his previous charges and said the large crowds were treated to some fantastic contests.

For the record, the U.S.A. won 8-4 and 7-3.

However, just to be pedantic, in their report the I.A.B.A. website stated that ‘Billy Walsh who is now USA Chief Second’, implying that he is a mere corner man.

I won’t insult you by re-stating his proper title; anyone from Wexford knows!