Former captain breaks silence on why he never sang the Irish national anthem

Despite his success, Best’s Northern Irish background made him a target for occasional criticism.

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It’s understandable why Best doesn’t sing "Amhrán na bhFiann" before home games, but the 36-year-old’s silence during “Ireland’s Call” – the anthem designed to unite the whole island of Ireland for rugby – raised more than a few eyebrows, especially since he was captain.

Now, Best has opened up about his reasons for not joining in, sharing the story in an insightful interview with former teammate Darren Cave on .

His explanation is as straightforward as it gets:

"Look, the thing is, it’s so ironic that you get abused for it, and nobody’s ever stopped and asked you, ‘why don’t you sing it?’" Best explained.

The roots of his decision go back to his Ireland Schools’ days, where a memorable moment left Best thinking twice about his pre-match rituals.

“It goes back to my Ireland Schools’ days. You think it’s going to be the greatest honour you’re ever going to achieve. You’re playing for Ireland. Being from rugby families like we were, you’re going ‘this is incredible!’” he recalled.

"You get so emotionally charged for it. And Ireland’s Call comes on that you’ve heard so many times in the old Lansdowne Road or watching on TV, and you’re belting it out.”

But then came the game that changed everything.

“I remember we played France or England. Kicked off. I’m flying up going ‘the first guy is getting it!’ They catch it, kick it out, and I’m turning around, running back to get a ball, still thinking ‘somebody’s gonna get it.’ I fired this throw in and it went… like I tell the story that it went three times the height of the person I was throwing it to. It wasn’t that bad! And it flew over the top.”

That one throw made Best realise just how emotional the national anthems could be for him. "From then on, I went, I can’t go into a game… because it’s so emotive to me, Ireland’s Call. And actually, even the tail end of the Irish national anthem, you know the way you get that build-up for that crescendo at the end."

For Best, the risk of losing focus in a crucial moment was just too high.

"The problem is then, I worry that it’s going to happen in a big game. That we’re going to kick off against the All Blacks, Beauden Barrett’s going to catch it, kick it out, and then I’m fully charged, trying to focus in.

"It is such a core skill. It’s a bit like goalkicking, you have to get your heart rate down, you have to focus, get your breathing back, and focus for that split second to throw the perfect throw.”