Power of sport - Unity through opposition

JUST as an outward looking and more confident America can be a force for good so too can the great friendships built on sport.

Today Ireland play Italy in an effort to qualify for the World Cup finals in South Africa, a country that, through sport, did so much to re-establish itself in the international community after the awful decades of apartheid. That the game will be played in Croke Park is another tribute to the unifying power of sport.

Last night one of the world’s great rugby competitions began. Over the next seven months Europeans of all shapes and sizes will knock lumps out of each other as they try to win the Heineken European Cup.

Real unity through sporting opposition; let the games — and friendships — begin.