Recently by Brian Dick

I have been fortunate enough to watch rugby for a living for more than five years now and I've seen some wonderful matches and individual performances in that time.

And I've always said that Birmingham & Solihull's victory over London Wasps in February 2004 was the highlight of that period.

How the world marvelled as the butchers, bakers and candlestick makers dumped the biggest names in the sport on their illustrious backsides.

Saturday was another such occasion. Moseley's National Trophy semi final upset was cast from the same mould.

No, that's not quite right, rather it was the same cocktail of manic motivation and condescending complacency that left Exeter comatose in the gutter and Moseley intoxicated with their own success.

Tomorrow's the famed double-header
When Mose could be slapped even redder
Painful defeat to an end would bring
A truly special EDF spring

But...they're not supermen coming from Ex
And there just might be a last hurdle hex

Most say they don't have a sniff,
Those red and black hordes of coach Smith
Their guests will be far too strong
Not a foot - or a toe - will go wrong

But...if Mose stick it to every last Chief
Those critics might yet come to grief

In the cup they've lost out to Mike Teague
And there's not been much good in the league
Years of losses have piled like the leaves
And scattered on the cold Billesley breeze

But...Saturday's the day when it's through
All those deferred dreams in the end may come true

It's a long shot, we admit it, of course,
But if Exeter fall from their horse,
And Mose steal an improbable win
How the proud city will grin
And in beating those giants from Devon
For once the Common will be heaven.

Anon 2009

I have to say even having invested 12 hours of my life getting to and from Twickenham to watch a dire England performance and seen Scotland turn in a shambolic first half display that would have discredited Mauro Bergamasco - it's great to have sport's finest tournament back.

And if the next round is anything like the last, we're in for a shed-load more treats.

I can't wait to go to Cardiff this weekend for the next instalment of what will probably be another Welsh procession. Not that I begrudge it one little bit.

The sight of France ripping the Boys in Blue to shreds will be pretty scintillating too and one can only wonder what Ireland will do to Italy if they play anything like.

But let's reflect awhile. Here are my five highlights of the first weekend. Feel free to add yours.

Thanks for your attention thus far. I hope it's proved thought provoking if not illuminating.

As said in Part Two, today's offering centres around the timing of the changes, the opposition to them and what it means for clubs on the side of the other drawbridge.

There's also a few extra points at the end which don't really combine into a single theme so if they seem a bit random - they are.

What emerged for me was the fact for everyone's grumbles about the timing of the changes, FDR had better not overplay their hand.

If what he says is right, there are a few people who have been filibustering to an Olympic standard.

There's also heart-warming words for whoever wins National Two for the next few years.

Finally I'd like to express my gratitude to all the people who responded to my initial request for questions.

As well as those who posted on this blog there were probably as many who emailed me directly.

I hope you feel I managed to put the issues you raised to Mr Thomas and get some sort of response.

So here goes...

Back again. On to the nuts and bolts of how the Championship will work and what 'professional' actually means.

On the first issue the provision of an attractive Anglo Welsh tournament is clearly crucial to making a reduced division work. Although Mr Thomas didn't actually say it, things are clearly not going well in this direction.

The problem? Premier Rugby Ltd of course.

Then there's there play-offs. Another sticking point.

The problem? You guessed it PRL.

And of the thorny issue of what a club has to be to do be considered professional. I almost fell off my chair when I heard his answer, make your own judgements and feel free to leave any comments on this blog.

I will post the final part tomorrow in which Martyn explains why the proposals have been carried forward despite so much opposition, their timing and how a team makes it from National Two into the Championship.

But first today's responses...

I will not bore you with the reasons behind my delay in reporting back. Suffice to say the number of people working from home due to the snow made access to our internal server slightly less easy than walking into Fort Knox carrying a crowbar and wearing an arrow-suit.

Nevertheless, I am happy to report that Mr Thomas was both indulgent and forthright in the answers to our questions and for half an hour did his best to address many of the concerns we all have over the Championship.

Whether he assuaged them entirely, I'm far from convinced and would welcome your thoughts.

I will be interviewing Rugby Football Union chairman Martyn Thomas this Friday and would like to use this platform as an opportunity to gauge the feeling and concerns of rugby supporters across the land.

If you have any questions you would like me to ask Mr Thomas please post them on this blog between now and Friday lunchtime and I will do my best to ask as many as possible.

At this stage I do not know how long I will have with him and in any case plan to explore his thinking on proposals for the Championship, its funding, structure and admission requirements.

I've just re-read my Moseley-Henley match report and feel the tone of the piece is rather grumpy. Allow me to explain.

My memory of last Saturday's game is not a happy one and it's nothing to do with the fact Moseley didn't play especially well.

What sticks out most is the fact I have never been more cold in my five years as the Post's rugby correspondent.

Billesley Common is always windy but last weekend the Mistral-like gale was bitingly cold. I've still got the earache even though I managed just 40 minutes in the wind tunnel that is the main stand.

To my shame I watched the second half from an empty corporate box which while still chilly and utterly free of prawn sandwiches was at least not battered by the conditions.

What was it Kenneth Williams said? 'Infamy, infamy, they've all got it....'

Amidst the puerile name calling and personal abuse, the Shane Williams topic has raised some very interesting points.

I'm not for a minute going to sit back and pretend I don't stand by the general thrust of my argument nor claim I wrote what I did to provoke a response.

For the benefit of clarity: I don't think Williams has been the best player in the world this year and I don't think four of the five nominees should have come from the northern hemisphere.

I do believe there are considerable flaws in his all-round game and these must be off-set against his undoubted qualities.

As rugby correspondent for BPM Media I am inundated with press releases from governing bodies, rival media outlets, clubs of all sizes and even some players.

Most of them are totally irrelevant to what I do, some are helpful and others are somewhere in between.

But every so often a beauty drops into my inbox. Just like this the one found here