Flannery is doubtful for 6 Nations campaign.

Munster’s Jerry Flannery is doubtful to be fit in time for the 6 Nations in February.

Flannery is set to undergo exploratory surgery later this week on his achilles. He was unable to participate in Munster’s victory over Perpignan last weekend.

Ireland coach Declan Kidney’s selection issues will become far harder than ever before harder after his other experienced hooker, Rory Best, has been ruled out for the season after sustaining a chronic disc injury from the summer tour to America.

Jerry Flannery is such a dynamic hooker ad will be an incredible loss to the irish team if it is announced that he cannot play.

Connacht's Sean Cronin looks to be in pole position now after making his debut off the bench against Fiji during the autumn internationals. Cronin is a player that I personally dont know too much about, His debut against Fiji failed to make a lasting impression on me.

To be fair to him, he replaced Flannery in the 73rd minute, it would take quite a player to make a lasting impact on his debut in 7 minutes. But this will be his chance to prove himself on the international stage if Flannery is ruled out, he has had a huge impact for Connacht this season and it will be intresting to see new faces within the Irish team.

The uncapped Fogarty brothers John, 32, and Denis, 26, appear to be next in line behind Cronin.

John Fogarty has been keeping Bernard Jackman out of the Leinster team for most of this season with his excellent form, while Denis Fogarty has been getting regular action for Munster because of Flannery's international commitments and injuries.

Jerry Flannery was unable to participate in the Lions series, after sustaining a series elbow injury in training. I hope that these injuries do not affect Flannery's career too much, as it would be such a shame to see such an influential player retire due to injury.

Ireland open the defence of their Six Nations title against Italy at Croke Park on 6 February before facing France in Paris a week later.

The best tries of 2009 - who's your winner?

TheIRB, has come together with the International Rugby Players Association (IRPA), and has announced the contenders for the IRPA Try of the Year 2009.

This exclusive list comprises of 15 tries split between the June internationals, the autumn series, the British & Irish Lions tour of South Africa, the Tri Nations, and from the Six Nations.

Shane Williams is the only player on the list to have two tries featured, for Wales and for the British & Irish Lions.

Last year, Brian O’Driscoll won the Inaugral IRPA Try of the Year Award with inspiring try against Australia.

But for the first time in the history of this award, it’s the public who will vote for the winner.

Here is how you can vote to decide your winner. Just send an E-mail to votetry@irb.com with the number (1-15) of the try you think should win.

You can vote until December 31 and the winner will be announced in early January 2010.

The Contenders are:

1. Berrick Barnes Vs New Zealand, July

2. Lee Byrne Vs France, February

3. Gonzalo Camacho Vs England, June

4.Jaque Fourie Vs British and Irish Lions, June

5.Imanol Harinordoquy Vs Ireland, February

6.Jamie Heaslip Vs France, February

7. Cedric Heymans Vs New Zealand, June

8.Rob Kearney Vs South Africa, June

9. Ma'a Nonu Vs Australia, August

10. Isaac Ross Vs South Africa, August

11. Shane Williams Vs South Africa, July

12. Alexander Yanyushkin Vs Uruguay, June

13. Vincent Clerc Vs South Africa, November

14. Shane Williams Vs Argentina, November

15. Mils Muliaina Vs France, November

Understandably you won't remember each and every try from memory so here is two videos showing the contenders.

The first video comprises of tries 1-10, and the second shows the 11-15 contenders.

Personally, my favourite try has to be Lee Byrne's, I keep watching the clip over and over again, and he just seems to come out of nowhere. He runs a fantastic line and just cuts the defence in half to allow for a brilliant try.

What's your favourite?

Baa-Baa’s conquer the All- Blacks, but what’s the history?

What a fantastic fast paced game of rugby we saw at the weekend, the Barbarians came out victorious over the All-Blacks with a hat-trick of tries from Bryan Habana.


I absolutely love watching the Barbarians play rugby, and it’s a fixture I look forward to every season.

There is a certain way about how they play, that brings great family fun and entertainment to rugby and it's a chance for world class players from across the globe to play with each other in game that can be viewed as just a bit of fun, while still having a huge competitive nature.

What I found interesting at the weekend specifically, was after Habana crossed over for his third try, Matt Giteau and Joe Rokocoko ran up to Habana giving him high fives, hugging and celebrating, when just 2 months ago, they were tearing each other to shreds in the Tri-nations.



Players like Tendai Mtawarira(The Beast),Victor Matfield, Jamie Roberts and Andy Powell who were in the centre of the bruising Lions series were playing alongside each other.

In the midst of this fixture I decided to look back at the history of the Barbarians and see how an invitational team of players formed to take on international teams and provide such entertainment in a unique fixture.

In Brief, the Barbarians are a rugby club, whose members play through invitation only. They have no home ground and play with an attacking platform with no pressure on winning.

The Barbarians team was brought to life by William Percy Carpmael, who was inspired by his playing experiences at Blackheath and Cambridge University, as well as the culture he experienced during rugby tours.



Carpmael was fascinated by the idea of regular fixtures involving players of the most elite level.

In Leuchters Restaurant, Bradford, the Barbarians idea was thought over dinner in 1890. The idea took off, and the club's spiritual home became the Esplanade Hotel, Penarth, where the future Barbarians would always stay.

During the off season in 1890 Carpmael invited a group of players to join him on a tour to the north of England. This provided Carpmael with the opportunity to play alongside people who would normally oppose each other and become friends. This proved to be a big success and he formed the Barbarian Football Club. During their first tour, they played against Huddersfield and Bradford.

It wasn’t until January 1948 that the first international fixture was arranged with the Barbarians. The home union tour committee invited the Barbarians to play a match against Australia which would raise funds for their home journey.

45,000 people were present in the Cardiff Arms Park to see the Barbarians beat Australia 9-6.

Since then, the Home Union Tour Committee has included a match wherever possible for touring teams.



There have been numerous games that have cemented their place in the history books, since that first fixture. In 1973, the Barbarians played against the All-Blacks in Cardiff Arms Park. This match is notable for what has been voted the greatest try ever scored.



The try by Gareth Edwards was started in the New Zealand 22, a succession of 7 passes allowed Edwards to score in the right corner and send the Arms Park wild.

Another famous victory occurred in 1961, when the Barbarians played South Africa. The Springboks were unbeaten on their tour of Great Britain and Ireland. In their last match of the tour the Barbarians held on to a 6 - 0 lead.

For a player to receive an invitation from the Barbarians they have to play rugby at a high standard, while having exceptional composure both on and off the field. Since 1890, players from over 25 different countries have worn the famous black and white jersey. Once invited a player becomes a life member of the club.



One thing that I find interesting is that the Barbarians wear the socks of their respective club or nation. I recently found out that it’s an old tradition used to show the different nationalities and cultures of the 15 men playing together.

It’s a huge experience for young players such as Leigh Halfpenny and Jamie Roberts, because let’s face it, there isn’t going to many times that you can beat the All-blacks, so to be part of a team who as beaten the likes of Richie Mccaw, and Luke Mcalister is a real confidence boost when lining up against them in future.

We next see the Barbarians play in May 2010 when they take on England.

Here is a video, showing the best bits of the Barbarians in recent times. There are many recognisable faces, such as Lawrence Dallaglio, Jason Leanord, Brian O'Driscoll, Carlos Spencer, Jonah Lomu and many many more.

Who will win the 6 Nations 2010?

The autumn internationals have finished and they produced fantastic international spectacles, from Scotland beating Australia, to the Irish defeating South Africa in a foggy Croke Park.

Within the next few months we will be looking forward to more action in the Guinness Premiership, the Heineken Cup and the Amlin Challenge cup.

However just on the horizon is the prestigious 6 Nations tournament. The question is, who is going to win come the end of the 20th March next year?

Having looked at the fixture list, I have come up with a quick preview about what to expect.

In my opinion, I think that Ireland will come out victorious for the second time in a row. However the decisive test in my opinion will fall on the second weekend, Ireland travel to Paris to face the French at the Stade de France.


The French are dangerous at home, but if the Irish get under the French early on then the fickle home crowd will quickly turn against ‘le blues.’

The tournament is about being consistent, Ireland have shown this throughout 2009 and the autumn internationals. However I do not believe this will be a grand slam year.

England travel to Murrayfield in the Calcutta cup, this fixture holds a special resemblance not just because of the history between ye olde enemy, but England have not won in Edinburgh since 2004.

Andy Robinson was in charge of the England squad who lost in 2006 and it will be interesting to see what happens when he faces the team that put a black mark on his career for a few years.

Wales have the potential to do well, but will need to improve on their recent form for their trip to Dublin, as do England when they travel to Paris. There are many positives that Andy Robinson has brought to Scotland, however, we are still yet to see Scotland score tries.

The Scots will struggle if they fall back on their old game plan of relying on Phil Godman or Chris Paterson to kick their way to victory.

Italy are constantly the under dogs, but teams can never underestimate them as in the past, the Italians are known for causing an upset.

My prediction for the 6 nations table is:

Ireland
France
Scotland
Wales
England
Italy

What do you think?

Here is video highlights of last years 6 nations tournament, where Ireland won the Grand Slam after a 61 year wait.