Sir, - During RTE's coverage of the Ireland v Malta soccer match, George Hamilton mentioned how subdued the 35,000 crowd was as Amhran na bhFiann commenced. Contrast this with Ireland's Call, which is sung with great gusto at Lansdowne Road by Irish supporters and players before rugby internationals.
I believe that most people (myself included) don't know the words of the Irish anthem and don't understand them either. That is why we get such mealy-mouthed renditions of the anthem at large public occasions.
I found it refreshing to hear the anthem in English during the President's recent visit to Canada. Are the actual words of the anthem considered too inflammatory for us to sing in English? Is this another "Irish" solution to an Irish problem? - Yours, etc., Geoffrey Buckley,
Moore Avenue,
Newbridge,
Co Kildare.