Terry Brennan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This subject is close to my heart and it is nice to be able to say there was unanimous support for the motion and the Minister of State.

The working group working on the World Cup proposal is to be commended. As the Minister of State stated, we have the third best rugby team in the world and will find out next year if it is the best. We have the infrastructure and sports facilities, North and South, required to host the prestigious World Cup.

The Minister of State also mentioned our golfers, the opportunities offered by golf and what the sport does for the country. Our golfers are sports ambassadors the length and breadth of the world. There is great coverage of the international events held here.

I have not mentioned Katie Taylor until now. It must be acknowledged by one and all that her achievement is incredible. As somebody said, it equates to retaining the World Cup four times and it was all done in a period of ten years, as the championships are held every two years. We wish her well in her attempt to repeat her feat and perhaps she will retain her world championship before repeating her feat in London in Rio in 2016.

On the cross-Border appeal of hosing the Rugby World Cup, I agree wholeheartedly with what the Minister of State said. Without question, if we had had George Best, Pat Jennings, Pat Rice and Danny Blanchflower and other colleagues, we would have won the World Cup in soccer. We must try to emulate what these sportsmen did. As the Berlin Wall has come down, nothing is impossible.

I again congratulate the Minister of State. He is doing a wonderful job and I love his enthusiasm, a sentiment shared by every other speaker.