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Bryn Palmer

England search for right notes (31)

Versailles - For a while on Monday afternoon, it was possible to believe were still world champions in more than just name.

Anyone passing the Stade Montbauron, the team鈥檚 training base in a quiet corner of , might have thought an international boy band was in town, such was the high-pitched squealing frenzy awaiting the squad from 2,000 local schoolchildren.

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Ryan Jones

Going walkabout in Cardiff (11)

Swansea - I finally got the chance of some first-hand World Cup action on Saturday as the , oddly enough, rolled its way into Cardiff.

I decided to indulge myself, too, by getting right into the heart of the city streets and sucking up a bit of the atmosphere.

When you鈥檙e involved as a player you get very little exposure to the buzz of a match day afternoon around and about the stadium where, on top of the 70,000 or so ticket holders, countless more enjoy the day in the capital鈥檚 numerous hostelries.

Ironically enough, after enjoying a fine pre-match lunch I joined some friends to watch the match - where else, but in an Australian bar!

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John Haughey

Murphy absence baffling (243)

Belfast - Ireland coach Eddie O鈥橲ullivan has made three changes for Friday鈥檚 must-win World Cup clash against but the biggest talking-point may be his decision to leave out of the entire 22.

The Ireland team is: Dempsey; Horgan, O'Driscoll, capt, D'Arcy, Trimble; O'Gara, Reddan; Horan, Flannery, Hayes, O'Callaghan, O'Connell, Easterby, D Wallace, Leamy. Replacements: Sheahan, S Best, O'Kelly, N Best, Boss, P Wallace, Duffy.

To put it mildly, Gavin Duffy's inclusion on the bench at Murphy's expense is baffling.

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Tom Fordyce

What's the French for 'schadenfreude'? (53)

Montpellier, Monday morning - You want to know what true happiness is? A man named finding out that the assistant venue manager at the is called Paul Bastard.

The weight off Ben鈥檚 shoulders since he arrived in a country where his name fails to raise a single snigger has been obvious to all concerned, but this was a moment of pure redemption. Only if he had discovered that 鈥淔ordyce鈥 translates as something obscene involving goats and PVC aprons could he have been any happier.

For the residents of , these past few days will forever be known as The Weekend When Nothing Went Wrong.

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Bruce Pope

Citing spoiling the exciting? (53)

Cardiff - Now don't get me wrong, I am in no way endorsing bad tackles or foul play - I wince and utter the occasional expletive along with the rest of the watching world when something nasty happens during a rugby match.

But I'm thinking that the citing commissioners and disciplinary panels at this Rugby World Cup are coming down too harshly on players.

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