A win-win-win weekend as bailout exit gives us all a sporting chance

THIS weekend, justice was done. Sam Bailey won X Factor, Munster had a thrilling, last-gasp victory over Perpignan to keep Heineken Cup hopes alive, and we exited the bail-out, heads held high. All in all, highly satisfying.

Tue, 17 Dec, 2013 - 00:00

Fergus Finlay

Fergus Finlay is a former political activist and adviser to three governments, the former head of the children's charity Barnardos, a writer and a broadcaster.

It wasn’t easy to keep abreast of events: endless protest in our house when I insisted on watching the Taoiseach’s address just as Dermot O’Leary was announcing the winner of the X Factor.

We’d backed Sam Bailey from the beginning, and watched her grow and develop throughout that gruelling competition. It’s satisfying watching someone perfectly ordinary doing something perfectly extraordinary.