Arnie Skelton

What news since the new year?

David is on his last day of a week’s snowboarding holiday in Pas de la Casa, in Andorra. He says the snow is perfect, and they’ve had a ball. He’s been tour operator for the group, so has a second career available to him, if he finds the legal job too boring…

Couple of walks in the freezing temperatures, but spectacular views with the frost hanging from the trees like frozen snow. One of the walks was in Castleton, on Man Tor. This was a first for me, and the real highlight was the road subsidence due to lanslides, which eventually has caused a major route over the hills to be closed. Well worth a look…

Last night I saw Sale Sharks beat London Irish in a top of the table clash, in sub-zero temperatures. Gritty rather than pretty, but a good, tense game - with of course, the right result.

Which reminded me…earlier in the season I was in Galway, and the local team there is Connacht. The evening I was there they were playing London Irish in the European Challenge Cup. The visitors ran out easy winners in the end. But three amusing things about that game. Firstly, I was surrounded by London Irish supporters, and there wasn’t an Irish accent to be heard from any of them…secondly, both sets of supporters were shouting ‘come on the Irish!’….and finally - there were no players from Ireland on the London Irish side!!