Championes!!!

I AM AT HEART a sports romantic; I get teary easily at the uncertinty and drama of all sports, since, as a sports writer, I get to see the sheer effort which goes into sporting achievement and greatness.

Thus, I got a kick out of seeing, in addition to reclaiming the Calcutta Cup on Saturday, we won the Raeburn Shield and became lineal World Champions.

Scoff if you like, call this a meaningless construct, but, the Raeburn Shield goes right to the heart of sport. To explain, somebody did the research, they went back to the very origins of international Rugby Union and that game, between Scotland and England, at Raeburn Place, back in 1871. Scotland won that one and became the first World Champions – they then took it that, every time the current World Champions played, they put that title on the line and if they lost, their conquerors became the new Champions.

Using this simple formula, they traced it forward and, what do you know, England arrived at Murrayfield on Saturday as Lineal World Champions and holders of the Raeburn Shield, we beat them, now we hold it, but must defend it against Wales, in Cardiff on Saturday.

The current new chapter is our 18^th time as Lineal World Champions; in truth, we have not got a great record in holding onto the Shield, and with Wales having all but forgotten how to win a Rugby Union international, I'm a wee bit worried about our first defence, so, let's enjoy the World Champions feeling while we have it.

There are so many tinpot trophies up for grabs in international rugbyh today, perhaps the Raeburn Shield should be treated with a wee bit more respect, and be better recognised than it currently is.

MAGNANIMITY in defeat is not a subject taught in some nations: England, South Africa, you know who you are. However, it was great to see how well Italian Captain Michele Lamaro coped with the disappointment of losing in Dublin on Saturday.

He oozed class in his post-match comments, never more-so than when he paid tribute to oor ain Hollie Davidson for her performance as Matcfh Referee. The eyes of the Rugby World were on wee Hollie in that game, and I dare say, a lot of people weere maybe hoping she had a 'mare. But, as usual she was a class act, as was Lamaro post game.

BACK IN the 1950s, when I first picked up a Rugby ball, come what was then Five Nations time, there was little talk each year of Grand Slams; from memory a Triple Crown was the gold standard. Maybe this had something to do with the French, back then, being viewed something like Italy is today – a foreign irritant in what was basically a British Isles battle.

I get the feeling, in my dotage, now the FFR has got its act together and the Top 14 is arguably the best-run league in Europe, we could be entering a time when the French are significantly ahead of the British Isles nations, to the extent, Grand Slams by England, Ireland, Scotland or Wales, or for that matter Italy, will become like hen's teeth – and we could see a return to looking on Triple Crowns as a sign of success.

It's been some time since we went to Dublin looking to clinch a Triple Crown, why not this year – unless, of course, we slip on a big banana skin in Cardiff on Saturday.

IN AN INTERVIEW this week, former Ireland and Lions hooker Keith Wood put forward the notion that players are completely worn-out following an Lions Tour. England back Tommy Freeman then admitted to mental fatigue following his endeavours in Australia last summer.

On the field, England and Lions Captain Maro Itoje has looked a shadow of his former self in his first two Six Nations games; Scotland prop Pierre Schoemann was dropped folowing the game against Italy in Rome, while Duhan van der Merwe has also lost his Scotland place.

In the Amateur Era, when Lions' Tours were a lot longer, it was not unusual for returning tourists to not play until November or December, maybe having a couple of club games and maybe an Inter-District run-out, before the National Trials and back into Five Nations action.

Now that players are professionals, they do not have this luxury – their employers want them back playing ASAP, which could see more examples of player burn-out and perhaps shorter careers.

Mind you, we are in Rugby Union, still some way away from the likes of the average NFL career length, of 3.3 years. But, who knows, we could be heading that way.

FINALLY – RUGBY UNION'S version of John Cleese not mentioning the War was surely Robert Kitson's quickly-assembled praise for the French half-back pairing of Jalibert and Dupont, in Tuesday's instalment of their Rugby blog – The Breakdown.

Clearly under orders not to mention The Sweaties or how the wheels came off the chariot at Murrayfield on Saturday, the piece had the air of a hastily-prepared diversion piece, since he couldn't run the planned: This is England's year piece.

In it, Kitson managed to name-check several past half-back pairings of note; significantly, he couldn't find an English pairing to mention while he failed to include in his list of great pairings, the likes of Rutherford and Laidlaw, Hastie and Chisholm and Chalmers and Armstrong. But, as I said above, he was clearly under orders not to mention any of us.