MUHAMMAD ALI WAS pretty impressed by what he saw in Ireland if the 1972 footage above is anything to go by.
The boxing legend, who has passed away at the age of 74, marvelled at a country that was greener than “even Kentucky,” whiskey which “takes a long time to make” but doesn’t “take long to drink” and the “pretty rough” Gaelic footballers and hurlers.
The Kentucky-born boxer was in the country for his fight with Al ‘Blue’ Lewis in Croke Park, which he subsequently won by TKO in the 11th round.
It was not the only time the sporting icon came to Ireland. In 2009, he visited Ennis, Co Clare, his ancestral home — Ali’s great-grandfather, Abe Grady, had emigrated to the US from Ireland in the 1860s.
A crowd of 10,000 turned out for a civic reception to mark Ali’s visit, with the boxing legend subsequently being made the first Honorary Freeman of Ennis.
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Hardly world beaters, especially going forward
@COYBIG: two evenly matched teams tomorrow so
I think travelling to Georgia will affect them. It’s a long journey. We have a chance.
@prop joe: good pt. I had not considered that. I think we will beat them.
Havent lost to these since 92. No Bale wine rate since 2012 is 9%.
Believe
Coybig
We will beat this shower tomorrow COYBIG! The welsh think the only have to turn up to beat us!
Whats the team photo about?
@Jane: It’s something Wales have been doing for a couple of years now as a bit of a joke, they deliberately take terrible team photos. Go back through all their qualifiers and you’ll see some with one player kneeling and the rest standing, and the opposite. Leaving gaps like that etc. No idea what it’s about.
@Eanna Costello: I’d never noticed it before, thanks
@Eanna Costello: I think they did one bad photo by mistake and just kept it going then for a laugh
@Jane:
More examples here. It’s gas really.
https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2017/1008/910725-the-wonders-of-the-wales-team-photo-what-is-going-on/
Seems like you guys think you have this in the bag already.
To put some perspective here – Wales have lost 3 games since 2013 when Bale wasn’t playing. Two of those were friendlies when other players including Ramsey were also not available, and the other one was after we’d already qualified for the Euros.
We haven’t lost a game since the 2016 Euros Semi final, we’ve kept a clean sheet for the last 3 games which we won, and tomorrow night we’re playing at home.
So despite the dismissive remarks above, Wales may pull off a huge upset.
@Saul Hamilton Evans: “not world beaters” “evenly matched” “we have a chance”. How is that us thinking its in the bag or dismissive of Wales? I think nearly all Irish fans thinks Wales are favourites but as said above, we go to Cardiff with a chance.
@Paul P O’Sullivan: is focain bómán é.
He’s a clown