Slán leat & tabhair aire

Swiwi.

I hope no-one minds me putting this in a thread (or my attempt at Gaelic), but...

...it's time for Swiwi to migrate back to the motherland (or at least the other half's motherland), so I wanted to wish everyone good luck for the future!

It's been great fun living in Ireland, and stumbling upon this forum when Ireland toured NZ in 2012 turned out to open doors to all sorts of rugby debate, and even meeting a few of ye in person.

I doubt there's any other Kiwi in the world (ok, Joe Schmidt maybe...) who knows as much now about Irish rugby and its players...and it's all due to browsing this site and actively following the Irish provinces and national team! Which has been great fun. I've got a heap of rugby memories from my time here, some of which I list below.

Seeing Doug Howlett scoring his first try for Munster (at Musgrave Park)...and later meeting Doug in person when he visited my workplace (which I organised, I might add...)

Munster v Toulouse HEC 2008 final. Watched that one with the delirious fans at Barry's in Douglas.

Munster v the ABs. Couldn't get tickets for the life of me, bugger it. But the Dropping Well was grand.

NZ v France 2007 Watched this one in Cork. When something can go wrong it will go wrong...

NZ v France 2011 Watched this one in Kielys. A deathly silence in the pub in the 2nd 40, as the mostly NZ fans felt that 4 yearly sinking feeling...

Brad Thorn's first game for Leinster. Watched this at the RDS.

Ireland v England at Croke Park. That was great!

NZ v Ireland at the Aviva. Still wouldn't have minded an Irish victory.

Leinster v Northampton with the comeback.

Leinster v Ulster and v Glasgow at the RDS.

Ireland v France, 2014 6N, just sensational.

I've been to games at Musgrave, the Galway Sportsground, Croke Park, Donnybrook, Aviva and the RDS. Big regret that didn't get to Thomond or Ravenshill. Inexcusable really.

I mostly kept my cool, 3 yellow cards over 2 years is not quite Dylan Hartley territory. The mods do a decent job, keeps the forum pretty much on tangent.

Rugby aside, I've seen pretty much most of Ireland - West Cork, Connemara, and Donegal stand out and there's also the not so small matter of 2 kids born here...their accents sound more Irish than the Irish...

Anyway, all the best, I will post here a bit, but I doubt as avidly as before. However, I know whenever there's a big game on and I want a decent preview and a lively discussion thread, I'll find it here.

Last but not least, please beat the frogs in RWC pool play!

Cheers!
Swiwi

Pudsy33

Best of luck with everything Swiwi! Hope you stick around, always find your post entertaining and informative.

sydthebeat

Best of luck in the alps!
Gonna miss your inside track on the super xv, but sure keep popping in here for the craic and banter.

Best of luck with your move to you and your family.

dregin

Best of luck mate!

molloyjh

Best of luck mate. You were here for the heydays of Irish rugby so far it seems. Let's see if you can work your magic on the Swiss. No pressure....

ScissorPaperRock

All the best!

Hope you stick around though. The handy thing about the internet is you don't need to be in Ireland to post here!

Winters

Best of luck Swiwi, it was a pleasure.

Go n-éirí an bóthar leat

irishbucsfan

Best of luck Swiwi, hopefully you find your way back to the Internet often enough to stay in touch somewhat!

Sound of Silence

I'm more of a lurker here than anything, but I've always enjoyed your posts Swiwi! Best of luck with the move, and I hope you enjoyed your time here!

mfceiling

Best wishes swiwi...lovely to read posts that weren't tied to any provincial bias.

Switzerland is beautiful..what a place to bring a family to. The very best of luck there.

Swiwi.

Cheers for the well-wishes lads. It's true about the internet though, I remember back in the day having to turn the TV on 5 minutes before the game to allow the cathode ray tube to warm up and furiously trying to adjust the rabbits ears to get the best picture.

Molloy I doubt I can get the Swiss into rugby, but hopefully a few Kiwi & Irish expats floating about! Podge is in Geneva anyway...

Journeyman_1

GL Swiwi, I too enjoyed your posts!

Morf

Brad Thorns first game for Leinster was against Connacht in an A game!

Bloody Aussies!

Swiwi.

Morf wrote: »

Brad Thorns first game for Leinster was against Connacht in an A game!

Bloody Aussies!

Hmmm. Multiple reasons for a ban there.

I must say each morning always brings a new post from Morf from the small hours of the night, so you might question my heritage but I wonder about your profession...;)

vienne86

Only just read this news. Best of luck to you and your family, Swiwi. Maybe you will get to see the odd Top 14 game in eastern France - Lyon, Grenoble, Oyonnax? Have loved your posts and hope you find time to stay in touch.

Tox56

Morf wrote: »

Brad Thorns first game for Leinster was against Connacht in an A game!

Bloody Aussies!

The look on the Connacht A lads faces when they realised they'd be up against Brad freaking Thorn must have been something to behold

Best of luck Swiwi, your neutrality was always a bonus on this forum so you should fit right in...

Podge_irl

Swiwi. wrote: »

Molloy I doubt I can get the Swiss into rugby, but hopefully a few Kiwi & Irish expats floating about! Podge is in Geneva anyway...

While watching the 6N this year I actually bumped into the Swiss national rugby team in the pub. About the only Swiss people (and a lot weren't Swiss) I've ever seen even in the vicinity of a location showing a rugby match unfortunately.

Anyway, I'll say Welcome rather than Goodbye!

.ak

Good riddance!




But seriously, all the best in your new venture. Be careful over there, I hear their cheese is a rip off (it's full of holes) and their banks are dodgy. Other than that you should be fine.

chupacabra

Youre a loss to this board. Do swing by now and then.

Enjoy all the Roesti and Raclette. Some day ill move there myself and lobby for a Hornussen sports board. :cool:

Teferi

Now is your chance to qualify for international rugby and represent the mighty Swiss! Best of luck mate.

awec

All the best swiwi.

Go to Switzerland safe in the knowledge that awec thinks you're dead on.

Be sure to spread the good word of awec over there.

Buer

Farewell. You were certainly among the top 10 antipodean posters on the rugby forum.

All the best in Switzerland, the hedonism capital of Europe. Make sure to pop in once in a while.

Larbre34

Till the next time, go easy Swiwi.

Wexfordboy89

Good luck and all the best for the future hope you drop by the forum from time to time

P_1

Best of luck in Switzerland Swiwi. I do hear that they have better internet (any many other things) over there than they do here so don't be a stranger

Zzippy

Good luck Swiwi, I hope it won't be the last we hear from you - they do have internet in Switzerland now, I hear

Now I feel especially bad for missing that beers.

So long



(formerly grimebox)

Morf

Swiwi. wrote: »

I must say each morning always brings a new post from Morf from the small hours of the night, so you might question my heritage but I wonder about your profession...;)

I'll sleep easier knowing how much you'll be paying for a beer! :pac:

Try to introduce the Swiss to "ah sure it'll be grand" and "ah sure you'd give that lad/girl a job, he/she's x's nephew/niece/cousin/went to school with their dad".

You'll be missed, cuz.

Losty Dublin

Congratulations on the good news, man. I hope that the venture will work out well for you both. I am surely not alone in hoping that you will still contribute on here whenever you can; you will be badly missed if you leave the forum

b.gud

All the best in your new adventure, don't be a stranger

Podge_irl

Well look at that - some nice fellas have put on a party just so you fit right in.

Yeah_Right

Good luck mate. I will try to help these Irish lads with a kiwi perspective on all things rugby but I think I will struggle to live up to the standard you set.

Podge, any chance you could find a bigger photo?

Thanks

That photoshopped baby is really creepy

Where are you moving to Swiwi? Hope for your sake it's not Geneva :P

Podge_irl

Deleted User wrote: »

Where are you moving to Swiwi? Hope for your sake it's not Geneva :P

All the cool kids live in Geneva*





*not even remotely close to being true

Swiwi.

Deleted User wrote: »

Where are you moving to Swiwi? Hope for your sake it's not Geneva :P

Kanton Wallis, Jabba.

Geneva will be about 2 hours away...close to Podge but not too close

Funk It

All the best Swiwi, always found your posts to be top quality, never be a stranger.

Swiwi.

Swiwi. wrote: »

Kanton Wallis, Jabba.

Geneva will be about 2 hours away...close to Podge but not too close

With me half way in between in Waadtland ^^

Best of luck with the move. At least in the French part there is some semblance of rugby, but it's niche

Podge_irl

Had never heard of Waadtland - Google tells me it's Vaud. Is that not purely French speaking? I'm heading there Friday to hit up the Montreux Jazz festival.

Swiwi.

Podge_irl wrote: »

Had never heard of Waadtland - Google tells me it's Vaud. Is that not purely French speaking? I'm heading there Friday to hit up the Montreux Jazz festival.

Nice! That jazz festival is on my to do list. Do report back.

Podge_irl

Podge_irl wrote: »

Had never heard of Waadtland - Google tells me it's Vaud. Is that not purely French speaking? I'm heading there Friday to hit up the Montreux Jazz festival.

Yea thats right, it's Canton Vaud (entirely French speaking).

Was in Montreux over the weekend. My head...

Enjoy the festival!

former legend

I see the 'Swiwi retirement' thread now has more posts than the 'Buckley retirement' thread. Poor aul Tony, the final indignity...

Well I'll strike a blow for Mushy and rain on Swiwi's parade by pointing out the grammatical error in the thread title; "leat" and "tabhair" are only for the singular form, it should be "libh" and "tugaigí" if you're talking to more than one person.

former legend

former legend wrote: »

I see the 'Swiwi retirement' thread now has more posts than the 'Buckley retirement' thread. Poor aul Tony, the final indignity...

Well I'll strike a blow for Mushy and rain on Swiwi's parade by pointing out the grammatical error in the thread title; "leat" and "tabhair" are only for the singular form, it should be "libh" and "tugaigí" if you're talking to more than one person.

Tuilagi could have been Irish this whole time

Buer

former legend wrote: »

Well I'll strike a blow for Mushy and rain on Swiwi's parade by pointing out the grammatical error in the thread title; "leat" and "tabhair" are only for the singular form, it should be "libh" and "tugaigí" if you're talking to more than one person.

Proof that the Ulster lads aren't the only ones that don't have a clue about Irish.

I don't think I'd have copped that ever.

Swiwi.

former legend wrote: »

I see the 'Swiwi retirement' thread now has more posts than the 'Buckley retirement' thread. Poor aul Tony, the final indignity...

Well I'll strike a blow for Mushy and rain on Swiwi's parade by pointing out the grammatical error in the thread title; "leat" and "tabhair" are only for the singular form, it should be "libh" and "tugaigí" if you're talking to more than one person.

I am suing google translate as we speak former legend.

ScissorPaperRock

Buer wrote: »

Proof that the Ulster lads aren't the only ones that don't have a clue about Irish.

I don't think I'd have copped that ever.

Ahem.

Donegal (where a quarter of Gaeltacht inhabitants live) is also in Ulster!

Podge_irl

ScissorPaperRock wrote: »

Ahem.

Donegal (where a quarter of Gaeltacht inhabitants live) is also in Ulster!

Yeah, but if Leaving Cert Irish aurals are anything to go by then them folks up yonder sure as hell don't speak any kind of Irish I'm familiar with.

thomond2006

Podge_irl wrote: »

Yeah, but if Leaving Cert Irish aurals are anything to go by then them folks up yonder sure as hell don't speak any kind of Irish I'm familiar with.

Cuid Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah

agus m'Umbro Top

Buer

Podge_irl wrote: »

Yeah, but if Leaving Cert Irish aurals are anything to go by then them folks up yonder sure as hell don't speak any kind of Irish I'm familiar with.

Oh Christ. Flash backs. Panic attacks.

Léigh anois go curamach ar do scrúdpháipear.

thomond2006

Buer wrote: »

Oh Christ. Flash backs. Panic attacks.

Léigh anois go curamach ar do scrúdpháipear.

The collective groan in the exam hall when the Nordie Irish part started...