3. Lansdowne Road
What he said: “Without question the loudest open air ground in the world, Guinness conducted an experiment one year and measured it at something like 121 decibels. I can offer no scientific explanation other than perhaps the noise of the huge, beery, south terrace was often blown down the ground by the prevailing wind.”
What we think: It may have been a rickety old ground but you were guaranteed a passionate (sometimes hostile) welcome from the Irish, and opposition players would admit it was the most intimidating of all the Six Nations stadiums. While other stadia were all-seaters, Lansdowne Road still had old-fashioned terracing – and the noise was deafening!