German party spoiled by English

At St Killian's Deutsche Schule in Dublin, students were torn between theIreland-Germany game and the English exam papers. Olivia Kelly reports

The three Bs essential to fulfilling football experience are: a big screen, a barbecue and beer. Particularly for those not totally devoted to the beautiful game, these Bs are what make the World Cup season worthwhile, and St Killian's Deutsche Schule in Clonskeagh, Co Dublin, had them all.

To celebrate the coming together of the two great nations on the sporting field the Irish-German school in south Dublin planned a fun-packed day yesterday, with the match showing on a big screen in the assembly area, a barbecue and specially imported German beer (for the parents). An Irish parents versus German parents "friendly" match was also planned and a number of non-partisan matches for the students. The school even added an extra B to the mix with a bouncy castle to keep the younger, less football-obsessed, students quiet during the game.

But then the Leaving Cert had to go and ruin everything.

In the end, teachers and parents of the exam students felt - understandably, the school's business manager, Simone Foth, said - that a huge football-oriented party in the school grounds might be a bit unfair to those poor unfortunates facing the first of their Junior and Leaving Cert exams yesterday.

The tantalising aroma of bratwurst on the grill and the sounds of the exam-free students enjoying themselves would prove too much for the 70 students undergoing a grilling of their own in the exam hall and so it was decided to cancel the event.

"We decided to call it off about three weeks ago after asking the teachers and parents for their views," Foth said. "We didn't want to break the students' concentration and we feared the hype generated from having the match on the big screen would disturb them. But our main concern was that the end of the match would fall into the afternoon exam and the students might find it hard to tear themselves away."

St Killian's is a primary, secondary and "kindergarten" school and many of the younger non-exam students were more than a little upset by the cancellation of their football festivities. A compromise was reached and the party was held on Tuesday, minus the big screen.

The parents' football match did go ahead however, with Ireland beating Germany 4-2 - a result the majority of St Killian's exam students would have been happy to see repeated yesterday. "I won't get to see the match, but I'll be cheering for Ireland," Junior Cert student John Stewart said. "I wish they'd kept the big screen so we could watch the first half, but I suppose the Junior Cert is more important."

Not so, said classmate Paul McCabe. "The match is definitely more important. The Junior Cert is just to get you ready for the Leaving. You'll never even remember what you got in the Junior Cert, but you'll always remember this match."

Supporters of Germany were pretty thin on the ground yesterday or perhaps they were just keeping a low profile. "There's probably one or two, but they wouldn't want to show their faces today," Leaving Cert student Aengus Cox joked.

For one student willing to break ranks, yesterday's match produced the ideal result. "I have both an Irish and a German parent, so I support both teams. I'd like to see a draw, but I'll be happy whatever happens," Beatrice Clarke-Mudrack said before kick-off. She would have liked to see the match, but was resigned to making do with highlights later on. "What can you do? The World Cup can't really take Irish students into consideration."

For the Leaving Cert lads spilling out after paper 1, however, it was time to put their contingency plans into action. "We'll go somewhere to watch the match," said Martin Kennedy, anxiously glancing at his watch. But would the time spent in travel not curtail his viewing? "Well, I think in the exam booklet it says you can arrive up to 30 minutes late, so that would give me 15 minutes to get back from the pub." Before jumping into his flag-draped car, the astute Kennedy predicted a draw. "Germany aren't that good a side," he said.

Other Leaving Cert students may not have played such a dangerous game, but though they were resigned to being back in the exam hall at 2 p.m., for some their hearts were elsewhere. "I'm hoping for Eavan Boland in the poetry in the afternoon, or a character question in Hamlet," Alistair Harvey said. "But what I'm really hoping for is a result for Ireland - you have to have your priorities right."