Welcome to the ‘arsehole of the world’

THEY have a sense of humour in Invercargill and, let’s face it, you would need one to live here.

Former Lions hooker Brian Moore infamously compared this most southerly outpost in New Zealand to the nuclear wasteland of Chernobyl and yesterday its good citizens hit back. As Moore’s successors in the 2005 Lions squad to play Southland this morning disembarked from their chartered jet and strolled across the tarmac, they were greeted by two men bearing a tray each of Bluff oysters, the local delicacy. The men were wearing gas masks and bright yellow anti-radiation suits.

This is the tour stop every player must have dreaded. Bad enough you weren’t selected for the Test team, but as further punishment they made you play in Invercargill.