Irish squad visit Sydney

Ireland today mixed business with pleasure as the countdown to Rugby World Cup 2003 gathered momentum.

The squad travelled into Sydney from their seaside retreat at Terrigal, almost two hours drive away, and after a brisk training session at the headquarters of the Australian Army, they moved downtown to lunch with 600 of the City’s top business and social luminaries.

The stern backdrop of Victoria Barracks was the unusual setting for a hard 90 minutes training - and as inquisitive Army personnel watched the Irish in action, a measure of the security in force was when the Irish Media Liaison Officer approached a zealous soldier and asked him to put his camera away!

Then it was downtown alongside the famous Opera House to the plush Four Seasons Hotel where the Irish Rugby Football Union and the Lansdowne Club combined in a sell out corporate lunch staged to officially welcome the Irish party to Australia.

The Lansdowne Club plays a key role amongst the Irish/Australian business community in providing members with the networking opportunity to broaden their contracts in Australia and the Asia Pacific region.

The magnificent function featured onstage interviews with Irish coach Eddie O’Sullivan and star players Keith Wood and Brian O’Driscoll as well as the Aussie wing legend David Campese.

After the Irish party was greeted with a standing ovation against the rousing backdrop of Ireland’s Call, IRFU President John Quilligan told the gathering that: "After many months of intensive planning and preparation by players and management, we are finally here, confident that we have left no stone unturned in our approach to this year’s tournament.

"This is the start of what will be the greatest celebration of rugby the world has ever seen and on behalf of the IRFU I would sincerely like to thank the Lansdowne Club for allowing us to commence the celebrations right here in this beautiful city of Sydney.

"There will be plenty of excitement right up to the finals on November 22 and we hope to live up to our ranking as one of the top rugby teams in the world," he said.