Alright, so today I wanted to share a bit about something I tried a while back. You know how it is, you hear folks talking about something with loads of passion, and you think, “Maybe I should give that a go.” For me, that was rugby, specifically when Wales and Ireland were set to play. The buzz around it was massive, so I thought, “Okay, let’s see what this is all about.”
Dipping My Toes In
I decided if I was going to experience this Wales Ireland rugby thing, I should at least try to do it somewhat properly. My first thought was maybe getting a jersey, you know, to feel part of it. I even went to a sports shop, wandered around a bit. But then I thought, nah, that feels like jumping in too deep, too soon. So, I settled on what I thought was the next best thing: watching it at a pub. Figured the atmosphere would be electric, and maybe I’d pick things up from the crowd.
So, I found a spot, got myself a drink, and settled in. The place was already humming, lots of red shirts, plenty of green ones too. Good start, I thought. People were friendly enough, lots of banter flying about even before the game kicked off. I was genuinely looking forward to it.
The Match Itself: A Bit of a Blur
Then the whistle blew, and off they went. And honestly? It was a whirlwind. Big blokes running into other big blokes. The ball flying around – and that oval shape, it really doesn’t bounce predictably, does it? I was trying my best to follow, really I was. But there were so many things happening all at once.
I remember one moment, this massive Irish forward just powered through a couple of Welsh defenders. The roar from the Irish supporters was deafening! Then, a few minutes later, a speedy Welsh winger would make a break, and the Welsh fans would go wild. It was exciting, in a chaotic sort of way. But the finer points? Lost on me, mostly.
Here’s a list of things that just kept me guessing:
- Why they kept stopping the game for those huddles – scrums, I think they’re called. Looked like a lot of effort for not much ground gained sometimes.
- All the different penalties. The referee would blow his whistle, make some signal, and I’d be none the wiser.
- What exactly constituted a ‘good’ kick. Sometimes they kicked it miles, other times just little dinks.
Honestly, I spent half the game just watching other people’s reactions to figure out if something good or bad had happened. Not ideal, I’ll admit.
So, What Did I Learn?
By the end of it, I was more tired than anything, just from trying to keep up. Wales and Ireland played their hearts out, no doubt about that. The passion was incredible. But did I become a die-hard rugby fan overnight? Not really.
And it got me thinking, you know? Sometimes you try to force yourself into liking something because it’s popular, or because people you know are into it. It reminds me of when I decided I absolutely had to get into baking sourdough bread. Everyone was doing it! I bought all the gear, the fancy flours, the starter thingy. Fed that starter for weeks. My kitchen was a mess. And the bread? Well, let’s just say my local baker had nothing to worry about. Some things just aren’t for you, no matter how much you want them to be, or how many YouTube tutorials you watch.
It’s not to say I’ll never watch a Wales vs Ireland game again. Maybe I will. Maybe I’ll try to understand it a bit more next time. But the big takeaway for me was that it’s okay not to get swept up in everything. It’s okay to just appreciate something from a distance, or to admit that maybe, just maybe, it’s not your cup of tea. And there’s nothing wrong with that. I still enjoyed the atmosphere in that pub, and the sheer energy of it all. That was an experience in itself.
