JosNaniGaelic footballer of the year/accountant Bernard Brogan put Ireland’s narrow International Rules defeat to Australia into perspective when he said their opponents “think it’s gas I would from nine to half-five every day and then go training. They’ve had four or five hours’ mid-day sleep by that stage after training in the morning.” As for what’s happening cross-channel: “God, I’d love to get up every day, not having to go into work. To just be able to focus on doing what you love. That would be unbelievable. But £230,000 a week? How do you get your head around that?” he wonders.

Well, you’d have to have a head for starters. One man who has his screwed on is John O’Shea, 29, whose next Man U contract could well be his last. The stg£16.5m four-year deal he’s reputedly on the verge of signing could make him Ireland’s best-paid footballer ever. £80,000 a week’s not bad for a lad who grew up a Liverpool fan and whose first on-field appearance as a sub at Anfield nine years ago was greeted with chants of “Who the f****** hell are you?!”

Meanwhile, regarding that goal by Nani (pictured with John at the races last year) against Spurs on Saturday – quick thinking or typical cheating? That it was handball was obvious but neither the referee nor the linesman signaled it. And if goalkeeper Gomes thought it was a free kick he should have taken it from the spot where the foul occurred, not thrown the ball ten yards forward first.