THE trend of Irish teams being handed difficult European assignments in recent years continued at the draw for the European Challenge Cup yesterday.

IRELAND are set to take on South Africa this autumn in the United Arab Emirates in what would be an unprecedented international test.

Ireland grabbed their third win in a row to finish their world U-20 championship campaign in ninth-place after an emphatic victory over Scotland.

Rob Andrew insists he has not presided over ‘Tour from Hell II’ despite England suffering two heavy defeats to New Zealand and four players being accused of a serious sexual assault.

In the charming 1974 elegy to a dying western genre, ‘My Name is Nobody’, partly written by cinematic genius Sergio Leone, Jack Beauregard — played wonderfully by Henry Fonda — is winding down on his career as an ageing gunslinger, finally recognising that his days are numbered.

As a Christchurch bookend to this crazy tour, this was similar to the Auckland first Test, just a little bit tattier, a little bit more dog-eared, but still nothing compared with what filled the days and nights between the rugby.

For the last month, Ireland’s maternity hospitals and rugby in the southern hemisphere have had a lot in common.

No one knows for sure whether it will be this week or next but, some day soon, Dan Carter will make his choice.

ERIC ELWOOD is gunning for an Irish hat-trick when his side face Scotland in their final U-20’s championship clash today.

Ireland ‘A’ coach Allen Clarke has made five changes to his side for today’s Barclays Churchill Cup Plate final against Argentina Pumas in Chicago.