Moment in Time: London Irish and the 2002 Powergen Cup final
By the end of a superb campaign, however, the Exiles had achieved fourth place in the Zurich Premiership, reached the semi-finals of the Parker Pen Shield, qualified for the Heineken Cup and, most impressive of all, conquered Northampton to lift the Powergen Cup.
Is it greatest day in the club’s history? Well, it is the only serious piece of silverware Irish have won to date and what stood out was the manner of a sublime performance that saw a Saints side brimming with internationals swept away without trace.
Some 75,000 fans, the majority clad in London Irish colours, were present at Twickenham, and how they partied as the Exiles built an unassailable 24-0 half-time lead before scoring five tries in all during a feast of attacking rugby that defied their underdog status.
Geoff Appleford and Justin Bishop notched two tries apiece, while Mike Horak weighed in as well, but replacement lock Glenn Delaney, now back at Irish as forwards coach after a nine-year absence, pinpoints the real hero of that heady afternoon.
“Our player-coach, Brendan Venter, set the tone unbelievably that season and that led us from being a good group of players to being a great team, which culminated in that fantastic win over Northampton,” Delaney recalls.
“We’d been written off that year but that was great for us because there’s nothing better than playing with a chip on your shoulder – and we certainly had that!
“We weren’t fashionable, we weren’t trendy, but what we did have was character. We had players who’d played international rugby, like Brendan and Naka Drotske, but they weren’t what you could describe as superstars.
“What we had, though, was energy, enthusiasm and a real desire for work. Brendan drove that and was also very innovative by bringing in the ‘out-to-in’ defence which no one had ever done.
“It was a wonderful time and, as a team and a squad, Irish was a really enjoyable, hard-working place to be. It all just came together that day.”
Northampton found themselves on the back foot early as Appleford sliced through a non-existent defence, before further tries from Horak and Bishop, along with a Barry Everitt penalty, made it 24-0 as the half-time whistle approached.
Stung into action, Saints set up camp on the Irish line. But there was no way through and as the teams returned to the dressing rooms, the Exiles knew the game was won.
Delaney said: “Funnily enough, the highlight of that game was probably that five-minute period of defence when the team just made tackle after tackle. Saints went away with nothing and that was a really big moment.
“Then seeing Saints captain Budge Pountney and Matt Dawson having a bit of a scrap was great because we knew we’d got them. That summed up the character of our side.
“Chris Sheasby was immense that day as a ball carrier and all 22 players played their part. To this day, it remains one of the best team performances I’ve had the privilege of being involved with.
“Northampton were coached by Wayne Smith and 14 of their starters were internationals, while we were just little old London Irish. But we did it for our fans who were absolutely brilliant.
“We had a good few beers after that… and didn’t win another game all season!”
WHERE ARE THEY NOW: THE CLASS OF 2002
1. Mike Worsley: Joined Harlequins in 2003, but was forced to retire through injury in 2006. Taught business studies at Cranleigh School. Now at Marlborough College.
2. Naka Drotske: Returned home to South Africa in 2004, where he played for and coached Free State Cheetahs. Now head coach of the Super 15 franchise.
3. Rob Hardwick: Left Exiles in 2005 and turned out for Richmond before becoming director of rugby at Bedford Modern School. Also coached at Luton RFC.
4. Ryan Strudwick: Joined Connacht in 2006 before returning home to enjoy a successful four-year stint coaching at the Sharks. Became DoR at Maritzburg College earlier this year.
5. Steve Williams: Joined Ulster that summer before joining their coaching staff in 2007. Later returned to Wales and now coaches Carmarthen Quins and the Scarlets academy.
6. Eddie Halvey: Joined Munster that summer, where he played for two more years. Later coached at Shannon.
7. Declan Danaher: Has stood the test of time and still plays for London Irish
8. Chris Sheasby: Left Irish in 2004 before coaching at Staines, Bracknell and Marlow. Is now a radio pundit and a regular on the after-dinner speaking circuit.
9. Hentie Martens: Joined Bath for a short spell in 2003 before coaching at Cleve and Chippenham. Now believed to be back in South Africa.
10. Barry Everitt: Joined Northampton in 2007. Retired in 2010 and became DoR at Cranmore Preparatory. Recently rejoined the Exiles as kicking coach.
11. Justin Bishop: Joined Doncaster as player-coach in 2007 before returning to Irish as assistant academy manager in 2009. Left for a second time this summer.
12. Brendan Venter: Returned to Cape Town in 2003, but returned to England in 2009 to become Saracens DoR. Now technical advisor to Sarries and South Africa U20s.
13. Geoff Appleford: Joined Northampton in 2007 but was forced to retire two years later. Now runs video analysis firm 4sightsportssolutions.com
14. Paul Sackey: Joined Wasps in 2005 and later capped by England. Moved to Toulon in 2010 and now turns out for Stade Francais, whom he joined last year.
15. Michael Horak: Joined Treviso in 2007, then had a year at Saracens before retiring in 2010. Became defence coach of Super 15 side Cheetahs and is now their general manager.
Replacements:
Richard Kirke (for Drotske, 47): Returned home to New Zealand in 2003. Later moved to Hong Kong where he now manages a property company.
Simon Halford (for Hardwick, 47): Left Irish in 2003 and is now back in New Zealand, where he coaches at Havelock North Rugby Club, in Hastings.
Darren Edwards (for Martens, 57): Current head coach of Newport Gwent Dragons. Joined Leeds in 2008. Stayed for two years before coaching Wales U20s.
Glenn Delaney (for Williams, 67): Joined Narbonne in 2003, before becoming DoR of Nottingham in 2004. Now back at Irish as their new forwards coach.
Rob Hoadley (for Venter, 75): Joined Wasps in 2004 where he later became defence coach. Recently move to Japan where he coaches the Black Rams.
James Cockle (for Halvey, 76): Left Irish in 2003 and is now a mortgage broker in the City.
James Brown (for Everitt, 79): Joined Worcester that summer, where he stayed for six years before moving to London Scottish. Retired recently and now works for Betfair.
