Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
NZ NZ

'We thought Quins were arrogant, thought they were above themselves'

By Liam Heagney
Paul Sackey on his England days (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

It was just four weeks ago when rugby fans feasted on the latest dramatic installment in the London Irish versus Harlequins rivalry. Quins came from behind in added time to secure a dramatic 26-24 Gallagher Premiership win in a match at The Stoop that should have ended with a penalty on halfway for the Exiles after Bernard Janse van Rensburg was taken out in the air, foul play ignored by the referee which paved the way for the result-stealing try.

ADVERTISEMENT

The raucous October 28 atmosphere that was generated was a reminder that the clubs don’t really like each other all that much. Their rivalry had its genesis in clashes around the turn of the millennium when the Irish used to rent The Stoop off Harlequins, an edginess that culminated in a memorable March 2002 Powergen Cup semi-final between the clubs.

Irish weren’t supposed to win 32-27 and go on six weeks later to win the final 38-7 versus Northampton in front of 75,000 at Twickenham, but they impressively got the business done against Harlequins and the memories haven’t faded if the vibrant recollections on the latest episode of Rugby Stories is a gauge.

Video Spacer

Video Spacer

The BT Sport Pods series has been recalling famous moments in the histories of the Gallagher Premiership clubs and their episode on London Irish has revisited the 2001/22 season when their cup-winning run included knocking out local rivals Harlequins on a terrible weather day.

Presented by Craig Doyle, the Irish episode colourfully heard from Paul Sackey, Chris Sheasby and Barry Everitt – and it was would-be England winger Sackey who best described his club’s issue with Harlequins.

“We hated them in all fairness, we really did,” he said. “We didn’t like them, the fans didn’t like each other. As players, we thought Quins were a little bit arrogant and we thought they were a bit above themselves, so that is where the rivalry between the clubs started.”

Sheasby added: “You always talk about Harlequins and Wasps but this was a local derby. London Irish and Quins had shared the ground, you had all the different elements, the fact that Dick Best had been at Harlequins, Dick Best had been at London Irish, the games that had happened before – this was now semi-final time.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Out-half Everitt has never forgotten waking up and opening the curtains on that March Saturday morning 20 years ago. “One of the things you least want to see when you look out the window when you first wake up is you hate to see windy weather because as a goalkicker and as a fly-half you know that you are going to have to alter your game and how you play.

“Even when it comes down to passing distances and whatnot, so looking out that morning I was going right we are going to have to change tactics a little bit… I went out to do some practice kicks and I missed every single one.

“It was incredibly difficult, I don’t think I experienced wind or a breeze like that on a field and I always remember my father on the day, it happened to be my birthday as well, he turned around to me and said, ‘I’d love to get to Twickenham, I’d love to get the final and I’d love to come and support’. I said, ‘No pressure then, thank you very much on my birthday in these conditions, let’s see can we get you to the final’.”

Sackey, who won 22 England caps between 2006 and 2009, was just 22 at the time of the cup win and he recalled how he loved the atmosphere at London Irish, even though he had a habit of overindulging in the squad’s off-field craic in the slightly less professional early days. “I was new to rugby in itself,” he explained.

ADVERTISEMENT

“I had started playing rugby late, so (at) 15 I started to get little bits of Irish’s history and stuff like that but when I was there, because I was so young I just enjoyed myself and because I really didn’t know too much about rugby, I enjoyed myself even more, if you know what I mean, because I wanted to enjoy it and I wanted to embrace rugby.

“So I just took to rugby and the fans and Irish because Irish was a place where they embraced you – you had fun,” he said, craic he is still in touch with today as Topsy Ojo, in a RugbyPass interview, referenced a visit by Sackey to a recent London Irish match.

“I actually loved it, I loved being part of it. I really enjoyed playing so we liked to party, we liked to have fun, we went out a lot but did it together as a team. We were a very close-knit team but I think we enjoyed ourselves a little too much, I was a bit of a nightmare, to be fair I was a big nightmare. I sort of did my own thing a lot of the time, I was quite laidback.”

Laidback is a Sackey Irish description backed up by Sheasby. “His seat in his Mercedes used to be reclined so far back with that casual attitude, but I was always worried about his driving because he could barely see over the steering wheel.”

The former seven-cap England back-rower added about Irish: “This wonderful club that everyone loved, probably everyone’s second favourite club, a club that was always fighting to stay up. It was always a close-run thing, always sort of near the relegation zone.

“On any one weekend, it could pull out the most amazing victories by playing the most amazing rugby but just not consistent enough and therefore always in that battle at the bottom. So not competing consistently at the top but a great place to be, a great place to be a part of and to play. It was all about the craic and the Guinness and the fun and that wonderful Irish atmosphere.”

  • For the in-depth London Irish story, check out BT Sport’s podcast series, Rugby Stories, part of the BT Sport Pods lineup of podcasts. Every Monday, Rugby Stories, presented by Craig Doyle, will spotlight and celebrate English club rugby history. Btsport.com/pods
ADVERTISEMENT

Join free

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | Episode 6

Sam Warburton | The Big Jim Show | Full Episode

Japan Rugby League One | Sungoliath v Eagles | Full Match Replay

Japan Rugby League One | Spears v Wild Knights | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 10 | Six Nations Final Round Review

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | How can New Zealand rugby beat this Ireland team

Beyond 80 | Episode 5

Rugby Europe Men's Championship Final | Georgia v Portugal | Full Match Replay

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

T
Trevor 58 minutes ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
B
Bull Shark 4 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
FEATURE
FEATURE Storm clouds gather over Biarritz with owner poised to bail out Storm clouds gather over Biarritz with owner poised to bail out
Search