The clip has now been deleted
A video of Northampton player Tommy Freeman speaking before a game at Croke Park has been removed due to inappropriate wording.
Northampton will become the first English club to play at Croke Park when they face Leinster in the Champions League semi-finals on Saturday night.
The match, which was polled at 82-000, will be the first rugby match to be played at GAA home ground in 14 years.
Before heading to Dublin, Northampton's players received a history lesson from Ireland's fitness coach on the huge significance of Croke Park in Irish history.
The stadium was the site of the Bloody Sunday massacre in 1920, when British troops opened fire on spectators at a Gaelic football match, killing 14 civilians.
This atrocity was one of the most significant moments of the Irish independence movement in the early 1900s, meaning Croke Park holds a unique place in the country's history.
Tommy Freeman's unfortunate choice of words
Northampton and England star Tommy Freeman spoke to Laurence Dallaglio for his Rugby Podcast ahead of the game in Dublin.
But the winger's choice of words was unfortunate when discussing the game.
In a now-deleted video that Dallaglio shared on social media, the Northampton man said: “We definitely went out there with the intention of doing a good job and doing the best we could to make the Enter the finals yourself.
“Personally, I think the pressure is probably on Leinster because it's Croke Park, and the history behind Croke Park. There's probably some pressure on their side.
“We're going to put our best foot forward and do our best…and hopefully get results.”
The use of the term “gunfire” in connection with the 1920 Croke Park killings is regrettable, and while there's no suggestion that there was anything intentional about Freeman's choice of words, some have wondered why the producers of the podcast didn't notice it This is a problematic wording.
One person shared the video on social media and said: “How on earth did the pod production team completely miss this?”
Another wrote: “Omg, unfortunate wording or sarcasm – who knew? Apparently the 'education' lesson worked!!”
A third commented: “PR disaster! Hope the game can be played in the Leinster dressing room before the game.”
Rather than placing the blame on Freeman, many said it was simply a British slip of the tongue.
“Deleting it (the clip) was the right and respectful thing to do. He is young and may not understand the gravity of his words. We move on. We are focused on rugby now,” one person said.
Leinster's match against Northampton will be played at Croke Park on Saturday 4th May at 17:30.
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