Susan Hated Literature

More rugby today. The Six Nations may be over, but the European Heineken Cup is just starting to get real interesting. Three matches today, but I was only paying attention to two^[1] Leinster were playing away to Toulouse^[2] last year’s winners. And Munster were in Lansdowne Rd to play Perpignan. Both matches were quarter-finals, and the winners will be playing each other in three weeks time.

Quick note for those of you who don’t know, Leinster and Munster are two provinces of Ireland^[3] Leinster is counties Carlow, Dublin, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Louth, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Wexford and Wicklow^[4] and Munster is Clare, Cork, Kerry, Tipperary, Limerick, Waterford. Munster and especially have always been the heartland of Irish rugby. And as de mudder is from Limerick we always followed Munster rugby. Connacht^[5] is by far and away the weakest of the provinces. Was even almost disbanded a few years back, but we’ve struggled on.

So, Leinster away against Toulouse, and as Toulouse are such a great team the odds were against the boys in blue. But they went out and more than did the job. 4 great tries. Horgan, O’Driscoll, Hickie and Jowett all scored tries, and Fillippe Contepome was fantastic at controlling the match for Leinster

In the other match Munster didn’t play too well. But in the end, mostly through the efforts of O’Connell and O’Gara, they got the job done and won by a final score of 19-10

Results which mean that there will definitely be an Irish team in the final as Munster will play Leinster in the semi-final. Which leaves me with a dilemma and a half. Who do I support? On the one hand I’ve always supported Munster, but Leinster played so well today. Leinster have Horgan, who has played so fantastically this year for Ireland, how could I ever want a team he plays for to be beaten. But O’Connell, O’Gara and Stringer all play for Munster.

Can I cheer both of them on? I’ll sing the Fields of Atherny and Molly Malone one after another.

Course, I’ll probably end up cheering on whichever side is losing, but being happy for the winners. It’ll be some rugby occasion.

Its been fun, over the past few years, but *shrug* I’m bored now. And so, am retiring from the blogosphere.

For my final post I’d like to mention one of my favourite poems, We Are Seven by William Wordsworth. Its my mind because I posted a link to Sean Bean reading it over on Kelly’s blog. But it isn’t just Sean’s voice that makes me like it.

It was one we studied at college, and I’ve loved it since then.

Extract from the poem:
Sisters and brothers, little Maid,
How many may you be?”
“How many? Seven in all,” she said
And wondering looked at me.

“And where are they? I pray you tell.”
She answered, “Seven are we;
And two of us at Conway dwell,
And two are gone to sea.

“Two of us in the church-yard lie,
My sister and my brother;
And, in the church-yard cottage, I
Dwell near them with my mother.”