Ask Paul: Your Questions Answered
Welcome to the second edition of Ask Paul, where the big man answers your questions on just about everything (rugby that is).
Paul O’Connell Answers Your Questions
After the game against Namibia there is one big question, but Paul also took time out to answer a few more personal questions as well.
Paul, what happened against Namibia and did you underestimate them? (Brian O’Donovan)
Paul O’Connell: No we didn’t. We prepared well and that’s the irony given the performance. You can’t legislate for dropping the number of balls we did in the match or the number of turnovers we made. If you did that against any team you’d be in trouble. We invited Namibia into the game on the back of the number of mistakes made and they took up the challenge.
What were your impressions of the Georgians after their performance against Argentina? (Mick Scanlon)
POC: I was really impressed particularly with their skill levels. Their physicality against Argentina was unbelievable. You have to take note of the calibre of the team they were playing against and that made Georgia’s efforts all the more praiseworthy. The Pumas tried to take them on around the side of rucks and found the going very tough.
As you will be spending time in the romantic city of Paris, will you get to see the sights and have you a significant other to share it with? (Vicky Carroll)
POC: I’ll answer the second part of your question first: yes and her name is Emily. In terms of sightseeing you have to be careful. We are here to play rugby first and foremost and it’s important that between matches and training you get enough rest. The last thing you need to do is spend hours in a queue with 25,000 other people. Now I don’t want to sound like a philistine so I will add the rider that if the opportunity allowed we would go for a short stroll but there’ll be plenty of time for us to enjoy the sights when we go on supporters trips after we’ve retired.
What is your favourite way to pass the downtime between games? (Tina Fox)
POC: I rarely go out playing golf during the season so it’s the simple pleasures like reading books (currently Hegemony or Survival by Noah Chomsky: and no I am not reading it cover to cover), going for a coffee or ice cream or in our case here in Bordeaux we have a very good team room.