Simon Geoghegan.

racso1975

does anybody know is he still involved in rugby at all? Just watchin him on rugby gold. He really was a great exciting player to watch and imo never really sealed to his full ability

Robbo

There was a lengthy piece on him a few months ago in the Times I think. He still suffers greatly with the arthritis in his toes and he now works as a solicitor in a corporate firm in London.

piby

I was very young when he was about but he really was one of the few shining lights back in the dark days of the 90's. I think I remember that piece in the Times didn't he have to retire early and there was the whole 'He could've been one of the greatest'! LIke I said I was young so I only know bits about his career!

Hippo

Indeed he could have been one of the greats, but received maybe 3 passes in his entire international career. You only have to look at Rugbai Gold to be reminded of how shockingly bad the Irish team was capable of being at the time. Dark days alright.

toomevara

Good Piece, thanks for the steer Robbo. Difficult to remember now just what a breath of fresh air they guy was. Turned loads of people onto rugby and had balls off the pitch dealing with the Blazers, which is more than could be said for alot of his contemporaries who were happy to settle for mediocrity. Shudder to think how good he could have been in a decent international set-up.

Ghost Of Simon Geoghegan Comes alive in Cardiff

David Walsh

In the midst of the Irish laughter around Cardiff last night I kept hoping that around the next corner, Simon Geoghegan would appear. He's 40 now, probably not as blond as we remember him and the speed, that’ll be gone as well. But you would recognise Geoghegan soon enough because the fire that torched his rugby life, time couldn’t touch that. Last evening in Cardiff, there was something I wanted to say to him.

In the six seasons from 1991 to 1996, he played 37 times for Ireland and lost twice as many games as he won. Eleven tries might not seem that much but if you knew how Ireland played back then, how few tries they scored, Geoghegan’s record wasn’t bad. For goodness sake, he went through the entire 1992 Five Nations campaign without getting one attacking pass. It was that bad.

He is best remembered for the try at Twickenham in 1994, that glorious moment when he shot outside of Tony Underwood and bolted for the left corner. Ireland had moved the ball cleverly, decoy runs from Maurice Field and Conor O’Shea caused England’s midfield defence to hesitate and when Phil Danaher and Richard Wallace chain-passed the ball to Geoghegan, there was daylight — all he ever needed.

Slightly out of position, Underwood was a sitting duck easily by-passed and once he was clear of his opposite man, Geoghegan’s instinct made him step off his left foot, as if he intended to cut inside, and that was enough to make the covering Jon Callard ever so slightly check his run. The full-back wouldn’t have realised what had happened but by the time he got his arms around Geoghegan’s legs, the try-line was there, the ball grounded.

Later in the match, with Ireland defending frantically, Geoghegan seized on Callard’s chip meant for Underwood, caught the ball 15 yards from his own line, rounded Underwood, outpaced Will Carling and then kicked it over a line of white jerseys and deep into England’s half. From the move, Ireland got the match-clinching penalty. It was 13-12 in the end and all down to him.

The truth is that Geoghegan had a miserable time in the green jersey. From his first 14 international matches, there was one victory and that against Zimbabwe in the World Cup. Ireland didn’t know how to prepare for Test rugby and the gap between what the players were doing with their clubs and what they were attempting for Ireland was unbridgeable. There were others who found it hard to stomach, plenty of them, but stomach it they did. Geoghegan was the one who pulled off his jersey in the changing room at Murrayfield in 1993, after the latest defeat, and flung it on the floor. That was a statement that got him into a world of trouble.

But what is a jersey if it brings only grief? It had been a terrible Irish performance, a 15-3 loss to the Scots in a dismal match. At the moment of Geoghegan’s fiery undressing in the changing room, the then manager of the team Noel ‘Noisy’ Murphy was rallying the beaten troops. “Come on, boys,” he said in that wonderful Cork lilt of his, “heads up, I saw a lot of positive things out there.” It was too much for Geoghegan. “Name them,” he said, “name them.” There followed a momentary but uneasy silence. A week later Geoghegan’s opinions on the awfulness of Irish rugby were delivered in a newspaper interview. There was a players’ meeting, plenty of IRFU outrage and on that Sunday morning, he was given a one-day suspension from the squad.

He was publicly criticised by teammates. It seems laughable now but it wasn’t at the time and the banishment, however temporary, hurt him. He rang his Dad, shed a few tears and was only just persuaded to stay in Dublin. Ridiculously, he wasn’t selected for the 1993 Lions to New Zealand and you just knew he was paying for breaking the game’s unwritten code. Perhaps the saddest thing of all was that Murphy and Geoghegan shared the same passion for Irish rugby. Maybe the difference was the age-old one between player and official.

So many good players of that generation, like Geoghegan, ended up winning about a third of the test matches they played. Brendan Mullin was an obvious example, 17 tries, lots of class but too many big defeats. He once told of a conversation with Paul Ackford after an Ireland-England game when the big second row forward said England’s strategy against Ireland was to wait for the usual first 20 minutes of boot, bite and bullock to pass and then take control.

It was that straightforward. There would be inquests and recriminations, promises to make things better but ultimately it was only laughter that saved us from insanity. Before they left the dressing room at the Parc des Princes one Saturday afternoon, the Irish players had sworn an allegiance to each other that recognised no limits, not even the ultimate sacrifice. These men were ready to die for each other. Then, when it all quietened and each was left momentarily with his own thoughts, Willie Duggan broke the silence. “Remember lads,” he said, “when we get out there, it is every man for himself.” Paris was a graveyard for Irish back row forwards; Ronan Kearney, Don Whittle, Paul Hogan and Ken O’Connell all got their biggest opportunity in Paris and suffered because of that. They deserved better but sometimes a man finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. That was Geoghegan’s lot. At 27, he limped away from Test rugby, undone by a toe injury that wouldn’t heal. The outstanding Lions of 1997 wanted him in their squad, and kept a place for him that he couldn’t take. He would have been a star on that tour. Take away the Twickenham try and what was he left with? Good for him that he had qualified as a lawyer and had a decent job.

Had he turned up in Cardiff last evening, I would have said it wasn’t all in vain, that the seeds didn’t fall on barren ground. The pace with which he burned opponents, the passion that overwhelmed them and his love for try-scoring inspired the next generation. You ask Luke Fitzgerald about his earliest rugby memory and you will hear again about that Twickenham try of 1994.

There’s the difference. Fitzgerald and Heaslip were the right men in the right place at the right time. They signed up to Brian O’Driscoll’s Ireland, a team that won more than it lost, that had three Triple Crowns to its name, and when they asked the skipper how tough it was in Paris, O’Driscoll said the first time he was there, he scored three tries and Ireland beat France. Of course, today’s players deserve all the credit. The victory ensures they will be remembered as the Golden Generation. But remember, too, the fine players who went before, the guys who carried the torch at a time when it burned with plenty of light but precious little heat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lc2VZb1Fm2g

NotWormBoy

I was only ten at the time, but I remember (me and the rest of the house) going absolutely mental at the time of that try against England. One of the few bright sparks in a rather dark time. Looking back on some of the games on Rugbai Gold and comparing them to the results of the last few years, its easy to forget how awful we really could be. Two wins in the 5 nations was a good year.

little173

I loved watching him all through my childhood down at Sunbury, he was so electric and was way ahead of his time. His pace and strength was legendary and suffered the same as a lot of Irish backs at the time when the Garyowen was the only call.

The Walsh article with regards to Irish Rugby's lack of preparation, lack of tactics and the "give it a lash" "plucky Irish" tag that has prevented our sporting teams in the past is cringe worthy to look back on now.

It should make us all the more proud that we are now the ones at the fore front of rugby professionalism, nutrition, rehab, player welfare, tactics etc etc, we have players in POC and BOD who are the very opposite of this by gone era and have now established ourselves as a world force. Geoghegan would have loved it now.

Realex: Jonathan

He was class in Jonah Lomu Rugby on the Playstation too. His legacy is intact

Roanmore

I had the privilige of seeing him live, unfortunately it was in one of the worse games of rugby I have ever seen (Scotland 6 all draw). He was the only bright spot that afternoon, there was a sense of expectation when he got the ball but again that wasn't too often. Great player and I would love to see him in today's team. I remember at the time his injury was described as like having a stone in your shoe all the time near your big toe.

anonymous_joe

realex_jonathan wrote: »

He was class in Jonah Lomu Rugby on the Playstation too. His legacy is intact

Only way to win the 5N as Ireland, which was bloody difficult as a kid I'll have you know.

KC61

He was also the player who managed to stop Jonah Lomu with a fantastic tackle at the World Cup unlike a certain rather cocky Tony Underwood who got trampled all over.

A truly great player, my rugby hero, who was miles ahead of his time and we can all only dream "what if?".

I'll never forget him flying up outside Pat Howard at Lansdowne Road to score a try for the Barbarians v South Africa to drive the crowd wild!

toomevara

Meant to put this up yesterday, I mean, how good is this?..searing speed, fabulous rugby intelligence, aggression, beautiful and to cap it all mullers Rob Andrew, you'll go a long way to see a better passage of play from a player in an Irish shirt in any era.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bl1-wk0uaak

pickarooney

Unbelievable speed in that second clip. Although, apart from Geogehegan the only think I miss about those days is the jersey.

Ciaran-Irl

toomevara wrote: »

Meant to put this up yesterday, I mean, how good is this?..searing speed, fabulous rugby intelligence, aggression, beautiful and to cap it all mullers Rob Andrew, you'll go a long way to see a better passage of play from a player in an Irish shirt in any era.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bl1-wk0uaak

Awesome piece of rugby. What a player.

thebaz

wonderfull player - after BOD the best three quarter i have seen for Ireland - if only he was a few years younger and no arthritis - how he would have loved to play in the current Irish team

OldJay

thebaz wrote: »

wonderfull player - after BOD the best three quarter i have seen for Ireland

Geoghegan was tops indeed and very inspirational too but . . . O'Driscoll isn't a three-quarter.

jayteecork

Didn't give Andrew time to get up at all.

Illegal tackle imo.

Then again it's Rob Andrew so good one, Simon.

Luckycharm

Justind wrote: »

Geoghegan was tops indeed and very inspirational too but . . . O'Driscoll isn't a three-quarter.

Do you always have to be so picky

Anyway he is the most exciting Irish Back I have seen in the Flesh bar NONE !!

anonymous_joe

Well he's right. If we were from NZ he'd be a 3/4.

OldJay

Luckycharm wrote: »

Do you always have to be so picky

Yes. It is a matter of pedantry, mate*








*forgot smiley thingy

jayteecork

anyone have him bringing down a Full Tilt Lomu at the WC 95?

OldJay

jayteecork wrote: »

Didn't give Andrew time to get up at all.

Illegal tackle imo

Interesting point there and part of a largely misunderstood ruling.
Its an illegal tackle, correct but . . . unless the player actually makes an effort to get up (ie. they can't be tackled in the process of getting up or while on the ground obviously), there is no law stating that a player must allow another time to get up.

With a combo of 15.5.b and 15.7.b, the ref's interpretation will come into effect when a defender goes down on ball, in a situation that is not a ruck and is not a tackle.
1) Player chasing the ball may contest for it (while staying on feet - unlike Simon Geoghegan in the clip even with player holding it remaining on the ground.
2) Defender going down on ball must release it (if not sanction is penalty for holding on) or else hope for support in which case a ruck will form and opposition player vying for possession must change tack.

Had Geoghegan stayed on his feet and grabbed for ball, he would have been perfectly entitled to do so.

Should have been a penalty for sure. For tackling a player on the ground.