THINKING ALLOWED

It happened during the early stages of the 2003 World Cup in Australia, when two of the union game’s leading administrators – Syd Millar, a cauliflower-faced, three-tour Lions prop from Ballymena; John O’Neill, a super-confident Sydney businessman armed with a tongue as sharp as his suit – found themselves hosting an important press conference in Perth.
O’Neill, responsible for securing sole hosting rights for his country and determined to run things his way, was asked a dozen questions – maybe two dozen – and answered each of them without stumbling over a syllable or los...