Rise up this morning and went to Ireland's media gathering in Guildford. Simon Zebo is doing television.This is interesting for two reasons.
The genial Cork winger is fast becoming a fullback in everyone's eyes after Joe Schmidt went against his prototype player when selecting the only Irish man capable of flinging that right-handed pass for Keith Earls's try against Romania on Sunday at Wembley Stadium.
A player with the ability to stutter step any defender, to offload, to flick a ball off his heels. The always solid Felix Jones was left at home.
Zebo was released from camp on compassionate grounds earlier this week to attend the funeral of John Geary, his maternal grandfather, in Cork.
“I’m okay. As well as can be expected. Tough couple of days but getting back into camp and around the lads has made it a little easier. We were very close. He was like a father to me, lived right around the corner from me, my grandmother as well. I would have seen them every single day. Had great memories with him. Yeah, he’ll be missed.”
He could still keep the No 15 jersey against France (Rob Kearney has a buttock strain, Jared Payne a bruised foot).
“The lads were very quick in coming up to me to say how sorry they were and how upset I must have been. Five minutes later they were making jokes and slagging me. Ah it was just great. They helped me take my mind off the tough side of it.”
New dimension
In the vacuum that currently exists, as we wait for Kearney to recover, Zebo could bring a new dimension to Ireland’s offence while inviting Italy to launch high balls into the back field, certainly more than they would on Kearney’s aerial watch.
Before Zebo's sitting comes Chris Henry.
Sky Sports: "Well Chris, does it feel like this World Cup is just about to really get going? Two warm-up games almost and now it's Italy! The business end! Of the Pool stages."
Chris deflects with sound bites which is not a criticism of the Ulster flanker because that’s all that question deserves.
It's the same scenario with the Sergio Parisse question. And the "sea of green" enquiry. Henry obliges. You get back what you give in.
The pall is lifted by James McConie, the New Zealand comedian who does a less vulgar Dennis the Pennis impression for The Crowd Goes Wild show.
In Bagshot this week he wondered about Tom Wood's foot after its sickening collided with Liam Williams' head. He once let Alesana Tuilagi smash him into a pool filled with Samoans. He got Usain Bolt to sing Bob Marley in a mixed zone (Three Little Birds).
“Chris, what’s Joe Schmidt like as a coach?”
“I get asked this question an awful lot. My answer is he is a great coach, a pretty intense scary guy as well. You’ve got to have done your homework, know the small details because he sees everything. But he is a great guy, great coach . . . we respond really well to him.”
“So he’s quite laid back?”
Henry is a smart guy but can’t get to the pitch of humour as he’s probably tuned to the usual mind-numbing questions. He straight bats.
“And can you understand him?”
Henry gets there: “It’s difficult at times. He calls Jared ‘Chad’ an awful lot. I look across and wonder what he’s talking about . . . We are all getting used to it.”
McConie goes again: "Huge opportunity for Ireland to win the whole thing?"
Henry straight bats again.
“I was trying to get you to say ‘opportunity’ because you are Northern Irish and it sounds good.”
“Opp-Or-Tun-ity?”
“There you go.”
Zebo is up next.
Sky Sports: “Simon, does it feel! That the World Cup! Is about to start for real! A hugely important game in the Pool.”
The Parisse question is followed by “sea of green”enquiry.
McConie asks him about Schmidt. The response is a straight answer from Zebo.
“And what do you make of his accent?”
“It’s very confusing when he is giving out to me. I don’t really understand him . . .”
Ready to fill Rob’s boots if he’s not fit for Italy?
“I’m prepared to play anywhere. I’d play flyhalf if I had to go in there. I am ready.”
McConie: “Would you play hooker?”
“Yeah, I would! I’d play anywhere.”
McConie asks to speak to Joe. Claims to have played with him way back when. Schmidt appears and does an interview.
Later in the evening the Irish management took the media out for drinks in Guildford. Nothing to report from that. No stories. Because nothing happened.
Every little thing gonna be all right.
