Thursday, March 03, 2011

One in the eye for the English!

Ireland's incredible win over England in yesterday's Cricket World Cup has made news all over the world. Boston.com, in a post by Kevin Cullen, writes Wicket awesome -- Irish stunner over English one for the ages. This is a really interesting perspective on the meaning of this win. Here in Ireland I have heard that this is like  Kilkenny beating Kerry in football!

Photo from Boston.com.
Cullen writes about former British Prime Minister John Major - "Today, somewhere in one of those invincible green suburbs, John Major is crying in his warm beer, tempted to knock some old lady off her bicycle and kick both the dog and the pool filler, having witnessed the positively Orwellian sight of Ireland beating England. In cricket!". 

Ireland had a surprise win in the 2007 World Cup over Pakistan - but this is huger! Any time Ireland beat England in anything - is a huge occasion. Even if it is only cricket, which is played by only a few people in Ireland. The manner of the win was incredible - not a fluke. And Kevin O'Brien is a definite Irish hero for the rest of his life - I'm sure that he will never have to buy a Gin and Tonic ever again in the cricket clubs of Ireland!

What is it about beating England? I tweeted about this last night - here's my tweet:

Euro 88 Ray Houghton, Ireland beat England. 2011 Cricket World Cup, Kevin O'Brien, Ireland beat England again. Twice in 23 years! #cricket

We survive on the scraps of wins over England - apart from rugby, a win is so rare that it calls for national celebration when ever it happens. ABE - Anybody But England, alive and well in Ireland. I've heard it said that people in Kerry will always cheer for England's opponents - except when they are playing Dublin!

A good day to be Irish - thanks to our cricket team. Good luck Boys in your next game against the mighty India!

1 comment:

  1. In a gloomy week this brought a big smile - bravo Eugene for capturing the moment!

    ReplyDelete