Luck of the Irish

Once again it seemed like Ireland had a chance to making the rankings but with only days to go in Season 7 have fallen off the chart. YGO Online International examines Ireland’s unique seasonal cycle.

Many small nations have made it into the YGO Online International World Rankings over the seasons, from Cape Verde to Fiji to some of the smallest nations in the world including San Marino, Monaco and the Vatican. However, missing from the list is Ireland, considered to be overachievers in many other fields.

As Ireland has yet to make the rankings, its history is hard to track but the basic story, in almost every season, is as follows. An Irish duelist (or perhaps two) does mediocre over the season, allowing the island nation to cling near the bottom of the rankings. However, in the last few weeks of the season, the duelists either fail to perform to fail to show up and in the end, Ireland is nudged off the table just in time to fail to make the world rankings, again.

Today, with under two weeks remaining in Season 7, Ireland once again has slipped off the chart and it’s unlikely to return before the finish. Ireland’s situation is mostly unique as whereas with nations like Greece, where high ranked duelists quit after one season precipitating a fall in the rankings, Ireland’s duelists quit before the season’s end but then seem to come back swinging in the new season.

Ireland’s achievements internationally has always been limited, in part because of the need by some to live up to the “jovial, up for the craic” stereotype where taking things seriously and, even worse, succeeding at them, is considered quite imperial, thank you very much. Perhaps in Season 8 this can be broken by a duelist or two although seven season’s precedent says this is unlikely. Until then, the Irish despair will continue.

~ by ygointernational on August 28, 2008.