A chara, - The present dispute between the former Ireland captain, Keith Wood, and the IRFU is symptomatic of a great deal that is amiss in the game of rugby today. Mr Wood has a right to be believed when he says that he would play for Ireland for nothing and that "money itself is not an issue for me", and I am prepared to believe him. After all, the honour of playing for Ireland and the love of Ireland have been sufficient and credible incentives in the past. Since the formation of the IRFU in 1880 many thousands of Irishmen have been willing and proud to sacrifice their lives for the green of Ireland. On the other hand, it is scarcely to be believed that anyone in his senses would wish to die for Nike or the Irish Permanent.
Indeed, the claim of sponsors (this is, of bankers and brewers mostly, with a keen eye for commercial advantage) to have their devices and names prominently displayed on the national jersey shows a breathtaking arrogance. It ought to be an article of faith among us that the Irish jersey cannot be bought, but must be earned. It was not sponsorship that enabled Munster to defeat the All-Blacks in 1978, but an unquenchable spirit, as Edmund Van Esbeck reminds us in a timely piece (The Irish Times, October 31st). As he so rightly says, these are "glorious memories" that "no money could ever buy". Ireland cannot compete with the rest of the world in terms of drugs or money, but only in the strength and inspiration of her historic traditions. - Is mise, Gerard Morgan, FTCD,
Trinity College,
Dublin 2.