'I read that and thought, f***, if a farmer from Ballymena can do that then I can'
Next Saturday will be quite the treat, a Lions match that isn’t taking place in the home of one of the three southern hemisphere powerhouses. New Zealand, South Africa and Australia are the countries where the famed tourists usually ply their trade every four years, yet there are some romantic anomalies to that rich touring tradition. Next weekend at Murrayfield will be the first-ever fixture versus Japan, for instance, a novelty adding to the history of one-off matches such as the little-remembered 1989 Lions win over France in Paris which featured ex-Ireland skipper Phillip Matthews.
The Lions are a very different entity these days, their every move covered by wall-to-wall media, but the world was very different 32 years ago. No social media, no live TV footage in the UK of a midweek Parisian adventure that took place ten-and-a-half weeks after the Test series versus the Wallabies had been won in Australia.
That’s an achievement Matthews never tuned into. He’d been tipped as a potential captain for the tour Down Under, never mind starting in the back row, but he wound up getting neither accolade as he was omitted from the squad that was skippered by Finlay Calder and had a star blindside in Mike Teague.
It’s a painful memory that Matthews gets reminded of every four years when the latest Lions squad gets selected. “I found out through one of the Lions selectors calling somebody who then called me to give me a heads-up because the expectation was I was a nailed-on choice and potentially a captain and then not going at all, everybody knew it was going to be a bit of a shock,” he explained to RugbyPass.
“I got a call and it was probably the most disappointing call ever. I’d a dream since I was 12 or 13 and the Lions means so much. When you see how disappointed the likes of (2021 omission) James Ryan must be now and how much it means, it means so much. You hear the ’89 guys or any tour coming back and talking about what it is like and you know it is such a big thing.
“Yeah, I suppose I get counselling every four years when they announce it because it brings back the memories. There is a bit of that. I couldn’t watch the series itself, I couldn’t watch the ’89 Lions series and to this day I still can’t. If I didn’t think I seriously had a chance, if I was like an outsider, fine, I’d be watching it but because you’re thinking you are in with a really good chance and it doesn’t happen, it’s really tough to watch.”
There was never an exact reason given to Matthews why he wasn’t selected by the Lions to tour Australia, but he has a theory. “No, and you wouldn’t look for a reason either. Like, (Warren) Gatland and his ’21 team have got a particular style in mind and a particular player in mind, and Roger Uttley, the ’89 forwards coach, had a particular style in mind and a particular type of player in mind. In fairness, Mike Teague had an outstanding tour. I think he was the man of the tour so it’s really difficult to argue against that and it’s just one of those things. It was just a style preference thing and it worked and you can’t really argue with that.”
It was July when the Lions signed off on their travels in Australia but their October reunion in Paris for a fixture that was part of the celebrations for the bicentennial of the French revolution didn’t float the boat of all the players who had celebrated in Sydney, an apathy that opened the door for Matthews to belatedly earn selection. He’s not sure what the exact reason was for the mixed uptake, whether umbrage was taken over the Lions being unprepared to splash out and cover the cost of bringing over the squad’s wives to Paris, but it left Matthews packing down in a revised back row that had Andy Robinson at openside and the late Dave Egerton at No8. He had a ball.
“It was one training session. I’m pretty sure it was only one. Did we meet in London and go to a show? I can only remember one significant session and that was in London and then we flew over. I don’t even know if it was on TV, I don’t even know if people at home were aware of it. These days in terms of the way media and sport works it would have been promoted so much on social media, but it was so low key. Hence you can’t find anything even on YouTube about it, with very few details reporting on it. No team picture. Nothing. Absolutely nothing,” he said about a game the Lions won 29-27, a rare treat for an Irish player in Paris as the Five Nations pattern at the time with Ireland was heavy defeat after heavy defeat.
“It was the first time I’d ever played in Paris on a side that was more than holding its own as opposed to going over there and getting duffed playing for Ireland. My abiding memory was of watching, getting up from a scrum or something, and there was this thing called the drift defence. In Ireland, forwards used to describe it as the excuse for backs not tackling, the idea that the backs would actually come up on the inside shoulder of the opposition and shuffle them across as opposed to making tackles. When I saw Jerry Guscott and Brendan Mullin working it because they have such pace, I was, ‘That’s what it’s all about. That is how it is supposed to work’.
“It was just so good there, getting parity up front and in the backs getting dominance, to be honest. It was a real pleasure. The game went at 90 miles an hour. I barely touched the ball but that was the way it was in those days, but it was pretty vivid alright. It’s not the same as touring, nothing like it, but it was a consolation if you like because it came at a time when I didn’t think Lions selection was going to happen.
“I had played so much with the likes of the Barbarians and taken on tour sides and been relatively competitive, but it was just so good to be in Paris against the French team with guys that weren’t in any way intimidated by playing in France. Going to France you have got to match them in terms of aggression and intent and I just often felt a lot of Irish players went over to play in Paris in those days thinking, ‘We’re going to get the s*** kicked out of us here, we’re going to be on the backfoot’. Lo and behold that is what happened.
“So we never really matched them physically, which made the gap even bigger. We had no chance with the mindset that we brought there whereas when playing with the Lions in Paris that mindset was, ‘We are going to win this and we were expecting to win’. It was obviously more talented than an Irish team would have been.”
Philip Matthews of Ireland during the 1991 Rugby World Cup match against Scotland at Murrayfield #OnThisDay in 1991.
? @Sportsfileray pic.twitter.com/sYsmIPj7aK
— sportsfile (@sportsfile) October 12, 2020
Matthews was just a couple of months shy of his 30th birthday at the time and his Lions appearance was the culmination of a 17-year-old dream ignited by Willie John McBride, the venerated hero of the 1974 Lions in South Africa. “He had the first rugby autobiography. There is probably still a copy of it at home in my parents. Whatever year that was out, I would have been in my early teens. I read that and I thought, ‘F***, if a farmer from Ballymena can do that then I can do that’.
“It’s a bit like if you can’t see it you can’t be it and the folklore of the Lions, him leading the Lions, watching those great Welsh sides of the 70s who were really inspirational and a bit of encouragement from a coach and getting on Ulster schools, three years on Ulster schools thinking now I might be able to do this – so from age 13 it was a goal for me. That was what I wanted to do. I wanted to play for Ireland, I wanted to tour on the Lions and it was Willie John McBride’s autobiography that played quite a big part in that around if you can see it you can be it.”
These days hockey occupies much of Matthews’ sporting interest, his daughter Hannah being part of the Ireland team that reached the 2018 World Cup final and is now preparing for the Olympics in Tokyo. “It gives you a bit of an insight into what it is like when my parents were watching me. It’s a totally different thing. It’s so nerve-wracking,” he said before dwelling on today’s pattern of hybrid rugby players, second rows who can play in his old blindside position.
Privileged to meet one of the #GreenArmy @DublinCityUni Alumna, Hannah Matthews, & her proud Dad, Phillip, at the @LordMayorDublin’s reception for our Hockey World Cup heroes in City Hall! @DCUAlumni @dcu_shhp pic.twitter.com/jTKpHwCdDi
— Brian MacCraith (@muirtheimhne) August 6, 2018
“Because of the general increase of athleticism, there are some players that can do both. Tadhg Beirne, Courtney Lawes, even (Maro) Itoje has got that athleticism. There are other second rows, like Jonny Hill for instance, who aren’t going to be a No6 any time soon. If I was playing today I could probably do six, seven. Maybe at 6ft 3 I might be a seven rather than a six because of the size of sixes these days. I don’t know how different it is but there are second rows playing six now because the athleticism has increased across the board.”
The one-off Lions versus France match is still regarded as a non-capped game by World Rugby but the Lions have treated it differently, naming Matthews as their 638th capped player in a list currently numbering 835 players before next weekend’s tour-opening fixture versus the Japanese. He still treasures his Parc des Princes match jersey, reckons he has the match programme stored in a cardboard box full of rugby memorabilia at home in Dublin, while he was incredibly chuffed to receive a Lions cap a couple of years ago in recognition of his 1989 appearance.
“When you pick up the Lions jersey for the first time and you hold it, you look at the badge and it is all about the jersey for me. And then to get the cap a few years ago was a wonderful thing to do retrospectively. Every player that has played for the Lions now has a cap and a number and everybody gets a cap going forward because back in the day they didn’t give Lions caps. They are really treasured items for me, that jersey and the cap because the Lions is so steeped in history. It’s just an incredible thing.”
Comments on RugbyPass
True Jordie could earn a lot more in Japan. But by choosing Leinster he’ll be playing with 1 of the best clubs in the world and can win a champions cup and URC…..
6 Go to commentsThanks for that Marshy, noticed you didn't say who is gonna win it. We know who ain't gonna win it - your Crusaders outfit. They've gone from having arguably the best Super Rugby first five ever, to having a clutch of rookies. Hurricanes all the way!
1 Go to commentsGeez you really have to question the NRLs ability to produce players of quality. Its pathetic. Dont the 25mil in Aus produce enough quality womens players. Sad.
1 Go to commentsBulls fan here, and agree 100% with the conclusion (and little else) of this article. SA sides should absolutely f-off from the champs cup until we get fair scheduling, equal support for travel arrangements and home semis. You know, like all the european teams get.
21 Go to commentsI’m yet to see why Grace would be an ABs contender. He’s pedestrian and lacks the dominance required of a top flight 8.
10 Go to commentsGee my Highlanders were terrible. They have gone backwards since the start of the season. The trouble began when we left Millar behind to prep as the 10 against the Brumbies and he was disconnected from the team that came back from Aussie. We rested Patchell for that game and we blew an avalanche of ball in good attacking positions in the 1st half. Against the Rebels we seem to of gone into a pod system with forwards hanging off from the breakdown leaving Fakatava to secure our ball!
78 Go to commentsPot Kettle, the English and French teams have done it for years.
21 Go to commentsHas virtually played every minute of previous games. Back row of Li Lo Willie , Grace and Blackadder would be the 1. Crusaders issue is a very average 1st 5 who cannot run. Kicking in general play is also below par They need to put Yong Kemara in. He must have so.e talent for them to bring him down from Waikato. Hoehepa would struggle to play in so.e club sided
10 Go to commentsI hope this a good thing making all these changes!
2 Go to commentsThe Hurricanes are good, especially with a decent coach now. However, let’s be real, the Crusaders and Chiefs are clearly a good degree weaker without the players they’ve lost overseas now. The Canes lost one player. It’s also why the aussie teams ‘seem’ to be stronger.
9 Go to commentsOr you could develop your own players instead of constantly taking from the SH competition and weakening it in the process? With all the player and financial resources these unions have compared to SH countries you’d think they could manage that, or is weakening the SH comps and their national sides an added bonus? Probably.
3 Go to commentsNot so fast Aaron, we might need you in black yet lol. God knows he’d be a lot less nerve-racking than hot and (very) cold players like Perofeta. It’s really a shame Reuben Love isn’t playing 10, we’ve got enough 15 options.
4 Go to commentsAnd those from the NH still seem to be puzzled (and delighted) why NZ’s depth isn’t what it once was. Over 600 NZ players overseas, that’s insane. This sort of deal is why Super Rugby coaches have admitted they struggle now to find enough quality to fill out their squads.
6 Go to commentsArticle intéressant ! La question devrait régulièrement se poser pour les jeunes français originaires de Nouvelle-Calédonie, Wallis-et-Futuna et de Polynésie entre la Nouvelle-Zélande et la Métropole… Difficile pour la fédération française de rugby de se positionner : soit le choix est fait de dénicher les jeunes talents et de les faire venir très tôt en Métropole, au risque de les déraciner, soit on prend le risque de se les faire “piller” par les All Blacks qui, telle une araignée, essaye de récupérer tous les talents des îles du Pacifique… À la France de se défendre en développant l’aura du XV de France et des clubs français dans ses collectivités d’Outre-mer !
3 Go to commentsWrong bay. He needs to come to the REAL BAY which is Bay Of Plenty and have a crack at making the Chiefs.
3 Go to commentsIs Barrett going play full back??? They already have all the centers…
16 Go to commentsForgive my ignorance, I might not fully understand so would appreciate clarification: Didn’t the Bulls have to fly with three different carriers, paid for by the South African Rugby Union, whilst Edinburgh got a chartered flight sponsored by EPCR? Also, as far as I understand it South African teams don’t yet share in the revenue from the competition and are not allowed to host Semi-finals or Finals at home. Surely if everyone wants South Africans to “take the competition seriously” then they must make South Africans feel welcome, allow them to share in the revenue, and give them the same levels of access as the teams from the other countries. Just a reminder that South Africa has a large and passionate Rugby audience. Just by virtue of our teams being a part of these competitions means that more of us are likely to watch the knockout games, even if our teams haven’t qualified. It would be silly to alienate such a large audience by making them feel unwelcome.
21 Go to commentsFirst of all. This guy is very much behind the curve. All the bleating, whingeing, whining and moaning took place days ago already. Not adding anything to the topic other than more bleating, whingeing, whining and moaning. 🍼 Second of all, not one mention of the fact that South African teams can’t get home semi finals or finals. The tournament was undermined and devalued by the administrators. 🤡 Thirdly, football teams often have to juggle selections in mid week games, premier games, champions league games etc. and will from time to time prioritize certain titles over others. 🐒 And lastly FEK Neil, and anyone else for that matter, for insisting on telling teams how to manage themselves. If they make what is largely a business decision that suits them and doesn’t suit you - tough shite. 💩 It’s not rocket science as to why the Bulls did what they did. If this guy is too slow to figure it out (and is deliberately not mentioning one of the key reasons why) then he isn’t a journalist. He should join the rest of us pundit plebs in comments section. 🥴
21 Go to commentsSo the first door to knock on Rob is Parliament followed by HMRC. The Irish Revenue deliver a 40% tax relief rebate on the HIGHEST EARNING TEN YEARS of every pro Irish rugby players contract earnings at retirement. That goes a long way to both retaining their best talent and freeing up wages for marquee players. Who knows, if that had been in place in the UK, you might not have been able to poach Hoggy and Jonny Gray from Glasgow…!!!
3 Go to comments1. True, if that “free” ticket means access to all but the prized exhibit - EVIP only. SA cannot host semis, even if they’ve earned it (see Sharks vs ASM Clermont Auvergne at… Twickenham Stoop). 2. Why no selective outrage over Lyon doing the exact same thing a week earlier? Out of all the countries France send the most “B teams”, why nobody talking about “disrespect” and “prioritising domestic leagues” and “kicking them out”? 3. Why no mention of the Sharks fielding all of their Springboks for the second rate Challenge cup QF? No commitment? 4. Why no mention of all the SA teams qualifying for respective euro knock out comps in the two seasons they’ve been in it? How many euro teams have qualified for KO’s in their history? Can’t compete? 5. Why no mention of SA teams beating French and English giants La Rochelle and Saracens? How many euro teams have done that in their history? Add no quality? The fact is that SA teams are only in their second season in europe, with no status and a fraction of the resources. Since joining the URC, SA has seen a repatriation of a number of players, and this will only grow once SA start sharing in the profits of competing in these comps, meaning bigger squads with greater depth and quality, meaning they don’t have to prioritise comps as they have to now - they don’t have imports from Pacifica and South America and everywhere else in between like “European” teams have - also less “Saffas” in Prem and T14, that’s what we want right? 'If the South Africans are in, they need to be all in' True, and we have to ensure we give them the same status and resources as we give everyone else to do just that. A small compromise on scheduling will go a long way in avoiding these situations, but guess what, France and England wont compromise on scheduling because they ironically… prioritise their domestic comps, go figure!
21 Go to comments