Templemore's Loughnane on Rugby World Cup adventure by train
By Shane Brophy
With the Rugby World Cup getting underway next week in Japan, a Templemore man has embarked on an adventure of a lifetime to be there.
Cuilan Loughnane, owner of the White Gypsy Brewery in Templemore, is heading half way around the world to Japan primarily by train on a trip entitled “Templemore to Toyko”.
The once in a lifetime trip came about after Cuilan and a group of friends had planned to go to the Soccer World Cup in Japan and South Korea in 2002 but it fell through and he wasn't going to make the same mistake this time round for the rugby equivalent in the orient, even if it meant going on his own which is how it worked out.
Cuilan, who is a massive Munster supporter and celebrated his 50th birthday this year on the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the hugely successful White Gypsy brewery, departed Templemore train station on Wednesday 4th September for the 12,000km trek, via Dublin and then the boat to Holyhead in Wales.
From there, it was the train all the way to London through the channel tunnel to Paris, and then onto Frankfurt and Hamburg in Germany before crossing into Denmark and Copenhagen. From there it was onto Stockholm in Sweden to Helsinki in Finland and then onto Moscow in Russia where he got on the Trans-Siberian railway and of Wednesday 11th September, he had reached the midway point of Ishim (below) in southern Russia before moving onto Vladivostok on the east coast, a journey of six days from Moscow where he is due to arrive on Monday.
From there it is back on the boat to Donahae in South Korea for the connecting ferry to Sakaiminato when Cuilan finally sets foot on Japanese soil before the final twelve hour train ride to Tokyo where he is due to arrive next Wednesday or Thursday
Cuilan will take in three games while he is in Japan, starting with Ireland's first game against Scotland on Sunday 22nd September which is at 4.45pm local time, 8.45am Irish time. He then moves on to Fukuoka for the Italy v Canada match on Thursday 26th September, wrapping up his trip with Argentina v Tonga on Osaka on Saturday 28th September, before returning home by airplane following the trip of a lifetime which will also take in a trip to the world famous Asahi beer brewery so it will be a case a little work and all play for Cuilan Loughnane.