Vive La Difference

Well, a fun weekend in Northern France has just passed without too much incident. Two towns, Lille and Lens, did their best to entertain 35,000 England rugby supporters in a fairly football dominated part of the Country.

It was disappointing that the promise of large screens in the town square did not materialise, and I understand that is likely to be the same in Bordeaux this weekend. As home to Begles RFC, though, I will be expecting a bit more awareness of the needs of the travelling fans.

Not withstanding that, hundreds of French, Argentine and English fans packed ' Le Pub' in the centre of Lille old town on Friday and enjoyed an excellent start to the tournament, as the Argies provided a day 1 upset and beat Les Bleus. It proved to be the only upset of the weekend, as Wales and Scotland both overcame shaky starts to win, Ireland stuttered to victory over Namibia, and England won, but with little conviction in Lens.

Lens is a mining town which now finds itself falling on hard times.the centre is dominated by the huge marshaling yards which must have been a hive of activity during the height of the coal excavation period, a period which was ended by cheap importation from Poland and other Eastern European countries. There is little evidence of the old trade, save for a statue in the grounds of the university, and a protected area, much like Saltaire in Yorkshire, which shows the layout of the old mining community, with streets and facilities as they were many years ago.

All the bar staff and local people did their best to welcome the invading hoards, although the riot police seemed extremely disappointed that they had no Sang Anglais on their batons. Our guard of honour at the station as we left Lens for Lille in the evening was truly out of Monty Python. My colleague, Stan, took his life in his hands as he marched along the line straightening their hats, and ensuring they were carrying their rifles at correct angle before bidding then a fond farewell.

Stan it was who introduced me to the term 'Barringtons' many years ago. He was a swift drinker in those days and would go to the bar between rounds for a livener, as we were drinking far too slowly for his liking. Such action is referred to as getting a Barringtons, and is named after James Barrington-Dolby, who would provide the between rounds summary on the boxing, for the BBC. That was in the days when Eamonn Andrews used to do the commentary.

I notice that EDF are one of the main sponsors of the Rugby World Cup. After drinking all that continental lager I suspect Gaz d'France might have been a better choice. C'est la vie.