Another one bites the dust. That comes to mind as, in recent times, so many top sports people have passed on. It is extraordinary.
The latest is Simon Hobday. What a golfer. What a character. What a story teller.
Years ago I was asked to play in a mini-golf tournament to honour Hobbers. My father-in-law was over from Ireland so, generously, he was invited as well. After the golf there was a bit of a session around a large table in the club.
Simon, unexpectedly given his reputation as a hell-raiser and character of note, sat at one end and talked quietly to the people around him. Then something magical happened. One by one, everyone else at the table realised Hobday was performing and craned to listen in. Effortlessly he had captured the floor.
What followed was a master class of story-telling. He gave an insight into the days when the European Tour was a party of characters as well as a professional circuit, and it was an unforgettable evening.
My father-in-law, a top international banker, said that apart from Tony O’Reilly, he had never encountered a more entertaining human being. Simon captivated us with a story of how he led the German Open going into the final round. He departed from his normal partying to get an early night and insisted on being dropped at the rather isolated digs in which the SA golfers were staying. It was cold and wet. As the taxi drove away, he shouted that he hadn't got the key. One of the other players lobbed it out of the window as the taxi roared off. Simon described the glinting keys turning in the light and dropping to the ground in front of him - before disappearing down a drain. He spent the evening huddled and shivering in a hedge waiting for the party-goers to return. He never played it safe again.
Hamba kahle, Hobbers.
In an age when rugby tactics seem to be becoming homogenous, let’s salute Italy. Most of us expected England to beat them by a hundred last week but only ended up winning 36-15 when it was close at 17-15.
Eddie Jones was less than generous after the game and called the Italian tactics not a part of rugby. The debate has raged since.
So, what do we think? Was it like bowling underarm on the last ball in a cricket match to prevent the opposition hitting a winning six?
On the contrary, let’s applaud Italian coaches Conor O’Shea and Brendan Venter. They were on a hiding to nothing and decided to rather use their brains. They looked at the laws and interpretations and at an England team that is ruthlessly efficient rather than imaginative and creative. They used the law that states there is no offside unless a ruck has formed after a tackle and a ruck must consist of at least one player being in physical contact with an opponent. So the Italians did not contest possession after the tackler rolled away and this enabled their scrumhalf to disrupt England from the English side. The English players were totally confused and at one stage were heard asking the ref to explain the laws. He correctly told them he was a referee, not a coach. The game was almost farcical but nevertheless fascinating.
The lesson is about facing a side that is superior. So often in rugby we know who’ll win before the game. The days of the big upset are almost a thing of the past. In fact, it was Jones himself who masterminded the last great upset - Japan’s win against the Springboks in Brighton. There he negated the giant Bok pack by employing a channel-one ball from the scrum. This worked like a charm and gave quick possession to his side.
But the real benefit was not the tactic itself. It was the fact that the coach, and thus the team, had created something on which to hope.
In Brighton and at Twickenham you could see that the Japanese and Italian players were not losers in attitude, and this is the point. That small point of belief affected their whole demeanour and mind set.
When you face incredible odds, the players must have some belief that they can win. A novel tactic or unusual approach or radical use of the laws can provide such a vehicle. I do not believe Jones was really upset with the Italians. Inside, he recognised they had almost done what he did in Brighton - given a glimmer of hope to players who had none.
How will reappointed Allister Coetzee achieve belief and a winning culture this year? Maybe it starts with captaincy and Warren Whiteley because the No8 has walked this road successfully with the Lions.
We wait with baited breath.
*Robbie is a former British Lions, Ireland and Transvaal scrumhalf