They Said It – Pat Fitzgibbon

Published on: 18th September, 2009

The only thing you’re ever likely to catch at the end of an English backline move is chilblains.

– David Campese, former Australian rugby player

I will handle things the Brian Clough way. Whenever a player has a problem we will talk about it for 20 minutes and I will listen carefully to what he has to say. Then we’ll agree that I was right.

– Sir Clive Woodward

Rugby is a game for the mentally deficient, that is why it was invented by the English. Who else but an Englishman could invent an oval ball?

– Peter Cook, English satirist

Rugby is a wonderful show. Dance, opera and, suddenly, the blood of a killing.

– Richard Burton

Far be it for me to criticise the referee, but I saw him after the match and he was heading straight for the opticians. Guess who he bumped into on the way? Everyone.

– Ian ‘Mighty Mouse’ McLauchlan, former Scottish rugby player

I think you enjoy the game more if you don’t know the rules. Anyway, you’re on the same wavelength as the referees.

– Jonathan Davies, former Welsh rugby player

It went well. There are no problems, and as a bonus, it showed that I have a brain.

– Corne Krige, South African rugby player, after going for a brain scan

Of course it worries me if the All Blacks are invincible. I mean, it stands to reason, if we can’t see them, how can we beat them?

– Unknown English rugby player

I’ve never had major knee surgery on any other part of my body.

– Jerry Collins, All Black rugby player

We must set our marker down early defensively, not sitting back waiting to see what they do. We need to knock people over and once we do that our game ticks over pretty well.

– Eddie O’Sullivan

I like to get in one really good tackle early in the game, even if it is late.

– Ray Gravell, former Welsh rugby player

It’s a dismissive term to say the Irish team are plucky because it rings back to the old days when we went out and gave it a lash, set our hair on fire and ran after the opposition for 20 minutes and, if they survived that, they beat us by 50 points.

– Eddie O’Sullivan

Rugby players have numbers on their jerseys because the coroner can’t always identify the bodies by the dental records alone.

–Unknown

For an 18 month suspension, I feel I probably should have torn it off. Then at least I could say, “Look I’ve returned to South Africa with the guy’s ear”.

– Johan le Roux, former SA rugby player after taking a bite out of Sean Fitzpatrick, former All Black skipper

One person has to slow him down, a second has to knock him over. He’s young, naïve, and we’ll put pressure on him.

– Will Carling on Jonah Lomu

He’s the kind of a player you expect to see emerging from a ruck with the remains of a jockstrap between his teeth.

– Sir Anthony O’Reilly on Colin Meads, former All Black

We give up positions too easily in the first 10-15 minutes and then start the engines up. I’d rather we started the engines up at kick-off.

– Eddie O’Sullivan

We’ve been together three and a half days now and haven’t been to the pub yet.

– Donal Lenihan former Lions player and Manager, on the difference between the professional 2001 Lions and his 1989 squad

Next weekend is going to be a tough one, whatever happened against New Zealand, Australia are a different bag of hammers.

– Eddie O’Sullivan

 

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