Tom Court

[Snipe Watson]

Forgot to post this the other day. An important article for all to read. A very candid piece that comes as no real shock, to me anyway.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 53094.html

[BuckRogers]

I like Tom, good honest fella and was a lot better than many south of the border gave him credit for. He developed into a very decent LHP who more than handled any and all comers. He was also pretty handy around the park as well. I do still think we are poorer without him, he gave Big John a serious doing when they met in the Aviva.

[shamalicious]

I'm an Angry Tom fan too. You couldn't say he wasn't dedicated to Ulster's cause.

[solidarity]

Fair play to big Tom for a piece that reads as honesty without rancour. As an Ulsterman, he's not alone in feeling that his face didn't fit in the Ireland set-up; maybe that was as much of a reason for his omissions than his land of birth. Then again, Jared's popularity seems to knock both theories on the head.

Hope Tom has a few more happy years yet of rugby and many more of happy family life.

[Snipe Watson]

Fair play to big Tom for a piece that reads as honesty without rancour. As an Ulsterman, he's not alone in feeling that his face didn't fit in the Ireland set-up; maybe that was as much of a reason for his omissions than his land of birth. Then again, Jared's popularity seems to knock both theories on the head.

Hope Tom has a few more happy years yet of rugby and many more of happy family life.

There is always a perception of bias against Ulster players and it is well founded. Elements of the southern media (by no means all) barely disguise their contempt for anything north of the border.
Tom's case is a classic, he was hard done by and judged shockingly by the southern media. The reason why this happened, in my opinion, is that they knew they could get away with it because he wasn't one of theirs. An Aussie playing for Ulster who was not a clear international starter was easy meat for a media who like to find a convenient scapegoat. Had he been at Leinster or Munster he would have received a much easier ride, especially on RTE I loathe Tom McGurk (a side issue in this case, but always worth saying) . The coaches may not have been any easier as Tom was never a front line international, he was solid at that level rather than being a major star. Of course when you feel you are marginalised, you are not going to perform well. The proof of the pudding being the fact that Tom delivered over and over again for us, where he felt appreciated. This story also sheds a lot of light on why Tom had faded for us in his last season and why he has come good in London. Getting out of the IRFU system would have been great for his state of mind and getting a good night's sleep will always work wonders.

[Russ]

If Tom played for Munter he would have been their Aussie brother who gave his heart and soul for the betterment of the province and adopted country

Since he played for Ulster he was just one to be abused

[Snipe Watson]

If Tom played for Munter he would have been their Aussie brother who gave his heart and soul for the betterment of the province and adopted country

Since he played for Ulster he was just one to be abused

More succinct than my post Russ, but much the same.

Having said that, we shouldn't miss the main point of the piece and that is the unseen, but nevertheless real damage that is done to individuals by injudicious words and the courage it took to give that interview. The big man has shown that he is indeed a big man.

[big mervyn]

Probably quite a few here who have woken up in the early hours through a bit of work related stress. I know I have at times and 3am is a lonely place. Must be a lot tougher in a profession where you're only a handful of bad days away from a demotion or even the sack.

Good point that it probably affects those that care about their job more. Tellingly, I remember somebody saying at one of the URSC events that Tom was a pre-match boaker/recther (like ROG).

[Russ]

Probably quite a few here who have woken up in the early hours through a bit of work related stress. I know I have at times and 3am is a lonely place. Must be a lot tougher in a profession where you're only a handful of bad days away from a demotion or even the sack.

Good point that it probably affects those that care about their job more. Tellingly, I remember somebody saying at one of the URSC events that Tom was a pre-match boaker/recther (like ROG).

To compare Radge and Tom in the same sentence is dirtying the name of the great Tom

Radge was a bit part player who used the meedya to foster his image

Tom was shat on by the meedya when giving his all for the shirt

[BaggyTrousers]

Probably quite a few here who have woken up in the early hours through a bit of work related stress. I know I have at times and 3am is a lonely place. Must be a lot tougher in a profession where you're only a handful of bad days away from a demotion or even the sack.

Good point that it probably affects those that care about their job more. Tellingly, I remember somebody saying at one of the URSC events that Tom was a pre-match boaker/recther (like ROG).

To compare Radge and Tom in the same sentence is dirtying the name of the great Tom

Radge was a bit part player who used the meedya to foster his image

Tom was shat on by the meedya when giving his all for the shirt

That is just incredibly dumb.

[Russ]

Probably quite a few here who have woken up in the early hours through a bit of work related stress. I know I have at times and 3am is a lonely place. Must be a lot tougher in a profession where you're only a handful of bad days away from a demotion or even the sack.

Good point that it probably affects those that care about their job more. Tellingly, I remember somebody saying at one of the URSC events that Tom was a pre-match boaker/recther (like ROG).

To compare Radge and Tom in the same sentence is dirtying the name of the great Tom

Radge was a bit part player who used the meedya to foster his image

Tom was shat on by the meedya when giving his all for the shirt

That is just incredibly dumb.

Not the first person to say that to me today

[Snipe Watson]

Probably quite a few here who have woken up in the early hours through a bit of work related stress. I know I have at times and 3am is a lonely place. Must be a lot tougher in a profession where you're only a handful of bad days away from a demotion or even the sack.

Good point that it probably affects those that care about their job more. Tellingly, I remember somebody saying at one of the URSC events that Tom was a pre-match boaker/recther (like ROG).

To compare Radge and Tom in the same sentence is dirtying the name of the great Tom

Radge was a bit part player who used the meedya to foster his image

Tom was shat on by the meedya when giving his all for the shirt

That is just incredibly dumb.

Not the first person to say that to me today

[BaggyTrousers]

Furthermore, whinging about players being harshly treated is not unique to Ulster nor have Ulster been worst affected. For more than 100 years the Ireland team was selected by 5 men, 2 from Ulster, 2 from Leinster & a Munsterman. Ulster/Leinster craved it up. Let's not bitch, we are way ahead of that provincial interest game.

[Shan]

Life can be tough when things are not going your way. What are you going to do. We all have our crosses to bear. You keep going and keep the demons at bay as much as possible.

The siege mentality is way overdone though. When things are tough the hardest place to look is in the mirror. Most of the time it is where you'll find the source of the issue.

[Snipe Watson]

Life can be tough when things are not going your way. What are you going to do. We all have our crosses to bear. You keep going and keep the demons at bay as much as possible.

The siege mentality is way overdone though. When things are tough the hardest place to look is in the mirror. Most of the time it is where you'll find the source of the issue.

Life almost invariably is unfair Shan. As you know, I'm not one for the siege mentality if there is any logic. I can see the rationale behind picking Radge over Humph or even Zebo over Gilly. What I cannot have is rediculious abuse that is poured on a particular player by elements of the southern media. Tom Court was pilloried for a bad substitute performance at tighthead when the pack as a unit were already beaten. McGurk (who I loathe) and Hook were the tormentors in chief. Pope interjected with the point that Tom is a loosie, but they weren't having it. Then some of the print morons fell into line.