One from Ulster and one from Munster, but both sharing a farming background, the Irish Times' Gerry Thornley sits in as Irish internationals Rory Best and Denis Leamy talk about a friendship that stretches back to the all-conquering Irish schools trip to Australia in 2000.
"Best was 17 and Leamy 18 when they toured Australia, winning all nine matches. “The closest game that we won was the Test match, and we won 35-6 or something – stuffed them. We had a decent old team,” chuckled Best, which is putting it mildly given the squad included the likes of Gavin Duffy, Shane Jennings, Roger Wilson, Matt McCullough, Stephen Keogh, Frank Murphy, Ian Humphreys, Scott Young and Andrew Maxwell.
“Almost everyone at one point had been involved in a professional set-up,” said Best. “People like John Lyne was on it and at that stage he and Jodie Danagher were two of the best props I played with. They were unbelievable at underage.”
"Ask them what brought them together and Leamy echoes Fr Jack when he quips: “Drink!” Indeed, they had a few days off in Surfers Paradise, which happened to coincide with Best’s 18th birthday. “I’m not in the same league as Leamy,” says Best, to which Leamy retorts: “He’s a martyr for the cause.”
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