Irish rugby heroes deliver redemption
Victory has given us back our self-belief in difficult times
CHAMPS:Brian O'Driscoll and Ronan O'Gara celebrate after Ireland's Grand Slam win over Wales yesterday
Sport, as Nelson Mandela once said, can create hope where there was once only despair.
The lion of South Africa was right. Ireland, now in the mire of a deep and pervasive anxiety, needed victory, needed hope, and our rugby team delivered.
So much pressure was on them to end 61 years of Grand Slam disappointment that it was unfair to inflict the extra burden of asking them to save a nation's psyche.
But that is what they did. And today we will walk a little lighter and perhaps see this recession for the impostor that it is.
The victory over Wales in the cauldron of the Millennium Stadium may go down as a turning point.
For Brian O'Driscoll it was simply a dream come true. More than half a century of heartache over, he can now be truly regarded as Ireland's greatest rugby player.
It may help ease the paralysing despair of these dark days and convince us that they will not last forever.
If the Golden Generation can cast off the shackles of more than half a century of Grand Slam famine then just maybe the Irish people can summon the determination of will to tackle our economic ills
Only a rugby game? Nonsense. A squad of men from north and south showed a resolution and unity of will that cannot but inspire.
The triumph of this all-Ireland team was proof, if we needed it, how much can be achieved if we put aside petty differences and sectional squabbles and pull together.
There is a stark message here to the unions and the social partners and those who seek a national retrenchment. Strikes at a time when we need full production is a folly.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen, who was at the match with the President Mary McAleese, summed up the nation's elation
"I applaud the team's courage and remarkable determination and will to win for Ireland. It was outstanding. The Irish team's performance was nothing short of superb. The players have brought great distinction to themselves and to our country"
The nation's hopes and dreams were finally realised with this 17-15 win over Wales in Cardiff's packed Millennium stadium.
Those are the bare facts, but they can hardly convey the exultation of the 25,000 supporters who were in Cardiff for this momentous day -- not just in Irish sport, but in Irish life.
If a team reflects the nation it represents, then things are not too bad. We are made of the right stuff.
It came down to the last kick of the match and with the nation's heart in its mouth, Stephen Jones' failed to get the distance and Ireland were exultant.
Yesterday is a day that will live long in the memory as the day when the Golden Generation of players who, so often in the past fell short of the line, finally realised the potential that so many have spoken about for so long.
Jack Kyle, the hero of 1948, was in the stands to witness the great moment. At last the mantle has been passed to the Golden Generation.
Heroes all. O'Driscoll, Hayes, O'Connell, Flannery, D'arcy, Kearney, O'Gara, Bowe -- names that now rightly take their place in Irish rugby folklore.
All week, since the defeat of Scotland, the tension and the expectation mounted day by day and signs of the high emotions were visible in the early bust-ups on the pitch.
From start to finish it was a nerve-wracking affair, with no score for the first 32 minutes.
It was heart stopping from start to finish.
It wasn't looking good for Ireland as they trailed 6-0 at half time after conceding two soft penalties.
At half time, George Hook on TV urged the nation not to panic and that the game plan would come good.
It was as if he was seeing into the future, because he was right.
Given how close the game was, Ireland had to score first in the second half -- and they did. O'Driscoll, who has been in outstanding form this season, squeezed over the line for a marvellous try and O'Gara made sure of the conversion to make it 7-5 and restore Irish hopes at the same time.
As so often happens, massive games such as yesterday can turn on an instant and the flair and magic from Tommy Bowe was the difference which ultimately saw Ireland over the line. His fine break that saw him run in under the posts moments later was the defining moment of the game.
The Irish defended resolutely. Filled with confidence they gallantly kept the ferocious Welsh, who themselves were chasing the championship, at bay.
If O'Driscoll was Ireland's inspiration, Paul O'Connell was our driving force; robbing the Welsh line-out time and time again.
However, Ireland's indiscipline in the second half let Wales back into the match through two penalties, and then they took the lead through a drop goal -- only for Ronan O'Gara to take the Grand Slam with a score of such exquisite beauty that it took the breath away.
Sport has the power to change the world, the power to inspire, the power to unite. But for Brian O'Driscoll this was simply a game that must be won.
After the final whistle, jubilant Irish fans thronged the streets of Cardiff. It was a celebration, but it was also relief.
A Grand Slam on the rugby pitch will not bring back the jobs we have lost after the halcyon days of full employment.
Nor will it bring back the savings of ordinary people lost in the stock market collapse. But it does provide a vital fillip to the country.
All is not bleak and fine days will come again is the message.
It also emerged after the match that Declan Kidney took the team away after Christmas to discuss where they were going wrong.
"Nobody pointed the finger," said Kidney yesterday after the game. "We just decided let's give this a right go -- we never dreamt it would come to this."
"It would have broken my heart," said captain Brian O'Driscoll after lifting the Championship trophy presented by Prince William.
Paul O'Connell went up to received the Triple Crown shield from the British royal. "I honestly thought we had lost it," he said later. "It was brilliant . . . just what a load of balls to score that try," he said.
But O'Connell acknowledged that both he and Donnacha O'Callaghan had given away needless penalties.
However, he then described Ronan O'Gara's drop goal as "another manky one".
Commentator George Hook, who predicted the win even when Ireland were down six points at half time, said that the team were playing "according to plan".
"If Kidney had gone for religion instead of teaching he would be the Pope," he said.
David Humphries, Nicky English and Barry McGuigan all addressed the team on the morning of the match to prepare them for the epic encounter.
Reflecting on O'Gara's kick, George Hook said: "If he missed it then that's what he would have been remembered for for the rest of his life -- but he stepped up and took the responsibility."
- Jerome Reilly in Cardiff
