RUGBY HEROES LUNCH

Wednesdays Lunch was excellent. Martin Bayfield was a superb MC - very quick-witted and contolled events, especially the Q and A session marvellously. Found myself sitting next to Will Greenwood for the first 2 courses which was great. What a nice bloke - though I'm sure he's sick of talking about rugby. He was probably also pretty sick of us as a table - 3 bloggers and 1 regular contributor to comments sections (great to meet you both Shaky and Aaron) meant there were a certain amount of in-jokes and blog-gossip going on, but I think the final straw was when he announced he was off to Singapore next stop for a well-earned family holiday and a certain Welshman who was on our table commented - "What do you want to go there for? It's crap". Just what a man who has shelled out a load to bring the family over for a week wants hear. Still, that's the Welsh for you.

Managed to get myself a couple of autographs (Greenwood and Dallaglio) but sadly missed Jason Leonard - I think he had heard that the all-you-can-eat buffer at Cafe 2 was still open and suddenly rushed off in case his food levels got dangerously low before dinner.

Also managed to get myself nicely toasted, and though I resisted the urge to make any bids during the auction of signed shirts etc, after the event I found myself in the bar where the silent auction was being held, and was irresistably drawn to a photo of Our Lord Martin Johnson holding aloft The Cup after The Game last November, signed by the great man himself (actual photo shown in the link). Now it is mine and, as soon as I can be bothered to get the drill out (could be a long time in this weather) it will take pride of place in our house. Sadly Mrs C doesn't seem too impressed with the idea of hanging it over the bed but I will keep working on it. At least I can take comfort from the fact that I had considerably less need to lie about how much I paid for it than the bloke who left at the same time as me carrying HK$75,000 worth of rugby shirt with an illegible scrawl on it ("I'll tell her it cost HK$1,000 he muttered" - Good luck!). At least the signature on mine is legible and the photo reminds you of The Great Event, plus the amah is much less likely to wash a photo that a rugby shirt with a scrawl on it (1 bloke in the bar recounted sadly how he had bought an All Black shirt signed on the collar by the legendary Sean Fitzpatrick at a similar event a few years ago, but as he was a little the worse for wear when he got home he just dropped it in the corner of the room and woke the next morning to find it already in the washing machine. He now owns the worlds most expensive unsigned (but with a nasty grey stain on the collar) rugby shirt. Good job it's all for charity eh!