Who aren’t Irish in your moaning here about a Munster v Leinster game?
He had his dinner with his colleague John lacey who is a Tipperary man living in annacoty.
Its a disgrace what you are insinuating here but thats the influence of the scummy soccer clouding your thinking , rubby is not like soccer.
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I’m just protecting the integrity of rugby mate. Don’t want one side gaining an unfair advantage.
Get your own house in order first, the scummy soccer is a laughing stock
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Make your mind up.
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Vindication for Franno.
Sunday Times - 1 April 2018
Neil Francis, the former Ireland rugby international, was being “provocative” but not racist when he described the French as “cheese-eating surrender monkeys” in a column on the Irish Independent’s website in February, the Press Ombudsman has ruled, writes Colin Coyle.
The watchdog was ruling on a complaint by Madeleine Halpin that Francis’s column, in which he began with a reference to the French preparing for the Nazi invasion of 1939, breached principle 8, which relates to prejudice, of the code of practice of the Press Council of Ireland.
Previewing a Six Nations rugby international between Ireland and France, Francis wrote “Maybe France cheese-eating surrender monkeys that they have been for the last few years, might actually do something.”
The complainant said the use of the phrase could not be “construed as anything other than racist”. She said that while she was “aware of the provenance of this phrase in a satirical context”, Francis’s article had gone beyond satire she said.
The editor of the site independent.ie defended the phrase, saying it was clearly tongue-in-cheek. “The point of the article as a whole is that the French rugby team should not be underestimated despite Ireland’s recent good run of form against them,” he said.
The editor added that the reference to the period before the Second World War, which Francis referred to as the “Phoney War of 1939-40” was “an analogy, not a statement of fact or a serious historical comparison”. The editor said he had offered to publish a letter from Halpin outlining her concerns.
The complainant rejected this offer, saying the article was racist and “could not be dismissed under the guise of irony or tongue-in-cheek commentary for comic effect.”
In its defence, independent.ie said Francis “often writes in a comical style for effect” and that he had the “highest regard for the French national team”.
Peter Feeney, the press ombudsman, who adjudicates on complaints from the public against publications that are members of the Press Council, ruled that while the use of the phrase “cheese-eating surrender monkeys” was provocative, it was clearly not intended to be taken literally.
“I do not believe there is any evidence to support the view that the article caused grave offence or stirred up hatred,” ruled Feeeney.
“The use of satire in commentary is fraught with the potential to cause offence. But this does not mean satirical references cannot be included in articles if used in an appropriate manner. On this occasion the article fell within acceptable boundaries.”
Francis has courted controversy in the past, suggesting in an interview on Newstalk radio in 2014 that gay men are more interested in ballet and the “hairdressing industry” than sports such as rugby.
The usual suspects are like sausages in a pan here. They are, quite frankly, appallingly trying to bring a referees sexuality into an argument which clearly demonstrates them to feel this is somehow relevant, and shows only themselves up as potentially biased. I won’t use their word, homophobic, as I’m above that sort of thing.
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disgusting that the bandwagon rugby fans are crying homophobia
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You were the first person to question owens integrity. More or less saying favours had been bought through corporate speaking gigs. Im not sure you are above much with absolutely outrageous allegations like that.
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The rugby haters making a show of themselves here again.
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Change your username
No, I won’t change my username. Now piss off and stop spamming.
Nope. I think that in general, any referee on the corporate buck should not be allowed to referee games involving that country. The rugby mob then had their veneer scratched enough to leap straight to homophobia, demonstrating clearly that its clearly a major issue for them.
Having said that, his decision not to award a penalty try to toulon was inexplicable. In his own words, it was fine because “the palm was upward”
You of course leap to all sorts of inferences, demonstrating the level and logical assessment that stood the banking industry so well in the noughties.
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Sweeep sweep sweeeep
You accused Owens of being influenced by his corporate gigs. Then decided to take the moral high ground. Now your windmilling.
No I’m not. You are getting all hot and bothered about this, which shows you aren’t comfortable with it. In any sport, questions would be asked about referees being allowed to sell their services for large sums of money to the sporting fraternity of a country one week, and go out and referee them the next.
Rugby referees are professional, well renumerated , and should not be allowed to do outside gigs. It’s basic common sense. I’m sure you’ll agree if you actually think about it.
Has @dodgy_keeper retracted his comment from last night & issued Mr Owens with a forthright apology?
If Owens was only doing corporate gigs in limerick or in Ireland it would be an issue. Thats not the case.
Also, another poster doubled down on your accusation by bringing an innocent breaking of bread with a colleague and his family into it. This witchhunt, and pile on, against Owens is most unseemly.
It might wash up north in the rugby league clubhouses you visit
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https://www.iod.com/events-community/events/event-details/eventdateid/11441
https://www.firex.co.uk/agenda/firex-inspirational-speakers
https://www.facilitiesshow.com/agenda/speakers/nigel-owens
https://www.eventfinda.co.nz/2016/an-evening-with-nigel-owens/auckland/epsom
He is one of the most popular guest speakers in the Anglosphere. I suggest you get out more, this is like Paddy thinking X Band has a special relationship with Ireland because they told a pissed up audience at Vicar Street that they were the best audience they’ve ever had.
Getting tetchy now gilgamboa, I’m sure the cavalry will be out of bed soon, but let’s look at it this way. A referee, any referee, gets paid large sums of money by the corporate rugby fraternity because they are popular with that group. If something makes them less popular, they are less likely to be asked back.
Take Nigel Owens as a case in point. I know that he has been paid very large sums for corporate speaking in Ireland. My point was simply that, as a direct result of this, he should not be allowed to referee games with Irish sides in them. I have no knowledge of whether or not he is on the English corporate circuit similarly, so I can’t comment, but, if he is, he shouldn’t be allowed to referee games with English sides either. Same goes for all referees and all countries.
Nigel Owens is the only one I have first hand knowledge of.
It is just plain wrong, and obviously wrong.
You can say he is above it. Maybe he is, maybe he isn’t, but by that token, you may as well allow commercial court judges to make extra money off corporate sponsorship.
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