DUBLIN - If a massive structure of glass and steel could float on communal sighs of contentment, the Aviva stadium would be half-way to Mars by now. As game-time beckoned on Saturday, under an azure sky and a fiery orb dimly remembered as the “sun”, barbecues scented the air around Lansdowne Road and Irish-Americans beamed and bantered with the locals, a patch of Dublin 4 was morphing briefly into a field of dreams. This was no movie cliche.
For many of those tens of thousands streaming into the stadium, it was the culmination of a complex, emotional journey, where generations of storytelling were brought to life, vows to faith and heritage were renewed, quiet tears were swallowed and some poignant dreams fulfilled.