Gerry Thornley: Ireland’s Chicago adventure was deflating in more ways than one
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It had all been set fair. As the week wore on, the sun continued to shine and tens of thousands of rugby fans from both countries descended on Chicago in increasing numbers. All manner of former Irish internationals from different eras were part of the jaunts and the junkets. Some supporters paid extraordinary numbers to be there, and for the majority of the Irish in the 62,000 sell-out attendance who travelled from this island and far afield, the adventure did not come cheap. The American sports market has long been rugby’s great mirage and on Friday the chief executives of World Rugby (Alan Gilpin), the IRFU (Kevin Potts) and NZ Rugby (Mark Robinson) held court to discuss the countdown to...