Red carpet proves red rag to bullish Johnson

MARTIN JOHNSON — hero or villain? Both.

The giant Leicester and England lock slots neatly into either role. His forceful play, inspirational leadership and win at all costs mentality have made him a hero among the England squad and their fans.

They simply do not look as powerful without his reassuring presence in the engine room. If England are to justify their World Cup favourites tag, it is essential that Johnson and their other talisman Jonny Wilkinson are fit come October.

And yet, while it is easy to see why he is revered by his own, it is equally plain to see why he attracts so much vitriol elsewhere.

The man exudes menace. With his massive build, black beetling eyebrows and perma-frown he resembles a pantomime baddie. He tends to be terse with the media, which means his exposure to the public does not show him in the best light. And then there is the way he plays.

On the edge would barely begin to describe it. He has had disciplinary problems throughout his career and would be considered in many quarters to be a dirty player (although I would not say that to his face). His legendary intimidation of referees, where he uses his standing in the game to provoke uncertainty, also adds to his unpopularity. A hero if he's on your side, a villain if he's not.

So what are we to make of his actions in Lansdowne Road last Sunday? There are a couple of issues here. Refusing to move his team to their allotted position on the red carpet and forcing our Head of State to lose face in front of her own people was boorish, ignorant and showed a total lack of respect.

That said, I believe President McAleese should not have been meeting the teams in the first place.

The hype before this game was unprecedented and by the Wednesday of last week, both teams were wishing they could just get the match started. Imagine then, finally taking to the pitch and then having to endure a torturous sequence of formalities.

First there is the presidential salute (the first few bars of Amhrán na Bhfiann) which always confuses supporters who stand up thinking the anthems are starting. Then the president meets the teams. She seems like a lovely woman and it is an honour to meet your Head of State, but I'm sure the last thing players need after coming from the head-banging atmosphere of the changing-room is to exchange chit-chat with a woman who, in the case of the visiting teams, means absolutely nothing to them.

It used to be a common occurrence to meet dignitaries in the past, but now I believe Lansdowne Road is the only place where it still happens for international rugby fixtures.

After the president departs, we have the visiting anthem, then Amhrán na Bhfiann, then the inexperienced visiting players break away thinking the anthems are over, then I block my ears and close my eyes, then we have 'Ireland's Call'.

The whole process is excruciating and takes almost a quarter of an hour all told.

You could halve that time. Forget the presidential parade, play Amhrán na Bhfiann in Dublin and play Ireland's Call (awful and all as it is) when we are abroad.

Problem solved.

I watched the match in a bar in Shepherd's Bush in London and when Johnson made his stand it provoked a mighty, warlike cheer from the English fans in the pub.

It was rude and it was wrong but it was also a statement he was not going to be dictated to and it was provoked by a ridiculous pre-match procedure which irritated him to the point of foul-mouthed fury.

Admirable and yet repugnant. Hero villain.