We're not 100% on this, but we are pretty sure that today was the first occasion that RTE ended their coverage of a rugby match with a cheeky dig at an English player via the medium of The Deleted Instagram Post.
England huffed and puffed against France at Twickenham this evening, and trailed 16-12 with eight minutes left on the clock. That was until substitute and former Leinster centre Ben Te'o intervened.
He crossed with just his second touch on his Six Nations debut to secure England a hard-fought victory.
Te'o, of course, is well-known to Irish fans. He is a rugby league convert, and spent two years at Leinster from 2014 to 2016, before moving to Worcester Warriors before he could qualify for Ireland under the residency rule.
He qualified for an English passport owing to his parentage, however, meaning that a move to the Premiership would be the only hurdle to being capped by England at international level. Te'o has already represented Samoa in rugby league.
He considered declaring for Ireland before moving to England, before explaining his rationale for choosing England to Irish Examiner.
I just thought a year is a long time. You don’t know what’s around the corner in terms of what the Irish coaches are thinking. They might go the other way. I just think when you see an opportunity and it feels right just take it and go with it.
RTE ended their coverage tonight with host Daire O'Brien thanking panelists Ronan O'Gara, Brent Pope and Shane Horgan before bidding farewell by saying 'we will leave you with a deleted Instagram post from England's matchwinner'.
The following flashed on screen, and elicited a chuckle from Ronan O'Gara.
Thanks @NickiOSullivan pic.twitter.com/WlG4IcNFby
— The Champ Champs (@GifsRugbyNStuff) February 4, 2017
