Wait'll you hear what somebody told me at the Birther Rally the other day ...
More xenophobic nonsense from the Independent’s resident hick hack, but the real highlight is – of course – yet another gratuitous plug for Dolphin RFC. Oh, haven’t you heard? The hooker on the Irish U20s is from Dolphin, Fergburger’s club. Better find a way to get that in somewhere.
“It is hard to imagine that home-grown hookers such as Sean Cronin, Mike Sherry, Damien Varley or the increasingly impressive Niall Scannell will be breaking out the champagne when Strauss qualifies.”
The IRB regulations regarding residency are what they are. That the IRFU have moved to address perceived weaknesses in the depth chart by bringing in project players isn’t illegal. It might be perceived as ethically dubious … but then some people might take that line on giving shout-outs to your local club in a national newspaper at every opportunity.
There are plenty of other young hookers who might feel the pinch as well, like 20-year old Niall Annett, who picked up 18 Irish U20 caps in two years and captained the team to the Junior World Cup in 2011; or 23 year old Heineken Cup-winner Jason Harris Wright, now at Bristol; or Connacht’s 22-year old Dermot Murphy. But f*ck it, they’re not from Munster, so they don’t get a namecheck.
Digging Like a Demented Mole 
You’ve certainly got a sharp eye mole! Good spot.
Niall Scannell is no doubt a good player in his own right – the whole “increasingly impressive” shtick is going over the top! He’s a Munster Academy player who has played one U20 international and didn’t exactly blow the doors off against a p*ss-poor Welsh outfit.
I think Farrelly is right, that American fella at out half has really been holding up Sexton’s development.
In fairness, the Yank is a top man for the field goals. There has been a whiff of Billy Cundiffe about Sexton at times.
That would be the same national anthem which translated means…..some have come from a land beyond the wave!……
I take the guy’s point though, that there is something that makes him uneasy about cynical exploitation of the rules. Didn’t think much of Tuilagi’s posturing to play elsewhere having just qualified for engerland for instance, but Strauss is a bad example to use. An absolute stalwart, who came here to play provincial stuff and has grown exponentially as a player. We will be lucky to have him.
Isn’t Niall Scannell’s uncle the Munster team doctor, Len Harty? The plot thickens (with irrelevant trivia)