The Steelers are soon off to Ireland, and when they get there, they will have a pretty sweet setup awaiting them. Gerry Dulac reports the team will stay at the Carton House. A former country house that is now a five-star resort, it is not simply well-accoutred, but also, apparently, practical.
The Steelers are technically considered the “home” team for this Ireland game, which brings a significant perk. As the designated home team, Pittsburgh had first dibs for accommodations. It turns out, the Carton House has not one but two “training pitches”, as Dulac writes, describing them as regulation football fields.
On a 1,100-acre estate, Steelers players can land in Ireland, arrive at the Carton House, and never leave until game time. That shouldn’t be a problem for DK Metcalf, who said his only cultural experience in Germany was a Five Guys burger. For others who might want to experience some luck of the Irish, they have a well-manicured estate.
Not that there is much downtime. The Steelers leave for Ireland tonight, arriving there Friday morning. They will practice later that day, presumably, with a Saturday walkthrough, before Sunday’s game. There isn’t much time to kiss the Blarney Stone, in other words.
The Steelers are hoping for a much better international experience in Ireland after a miserable trip to London in 2013. Although all trips to London are inherently miserable (I’m joking, Londoners; I’m sure it’s lovely), the Steelers’ itinerary did them no favors, and then they had their bums bounced back across the pond by the Vikings in Wembley Stadium.
According to Dulac, the Steelers actually wanted to leave for Ireland earlier, but the NFL denied it. QB Aaron Rodgers yesterday expressed disappointment that they couldn’t spend the week there and alluded to the league stepping in.
But both the Steelers and Vikings should be on a similar schedule in Ireland, including arrival times, one suspects. Still, the Steelers have an advantage in lodging at a resort where they merely have to walk outside to the practice field. It’s like a luxury training camp experience, albeit incredibly brief, and with yinz replaced with ye.
Of course, the only thing that really matters about the Ireland trip is whether the Steelers win. I couldn’t care less what kind of sightseeing time they have, what their accommodations are like, and all that. This is a business trip, after all—though I wouldn’t mind staying at the Carton House myself.
