Irish Lions: Blue band performs in downtown Dublin

Story posted August 29, 2014 in Sports, News, Ireland by Melissa Conrad / John Curley Center


DUBLIN – It wouldn’t be an outdoor show in Ireland if rain didn’t make an appearance.

VGhlIE5pdHRhbnkgTGlvbiBkYW5jZXMgd2l0aCBFbGxpZSBLaXJrcGF0cmljaywgNSwgb2YgRHVibGluIGR1cmluZyBhIHBlcmZvcm1hbmNlIGluIER1YmxpbiBieSBtZW1iZXJzIG9mIHRoZSBCbHVlIEJhbmQsIGNoZWVybGVhZGVycyBhbmQgTGlvbmV0dGVzIG9uIFRodXJzZGF5LCBBdWcuIDI4LCAyMDE0LiA=The shower didn’t last long, though, as Penn State and Central Florida put on pep routines for a crowd of about 150 on Thursday afternoon in central Dublin.

The Nittany Lions were represented by the Blue Band, cheer squad, Lionette dance team and mascot outside the CHQ Building for a show that included Penn State’s standard pregame rituals.

“My son is in the Blue Band, and he found out two weeks ago that he would be coming to Ireland,” said Penn State alum Tony Moscollic, who was there with his wife, Rhonda. “In a couple weeks is our anniversary, and we were going to do something anyway, so we booked this trip spur of the moment a week before we left.”

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It was the first authentic American college football tradition event of the week. Both teams arrived Wednesday morning. The pace of fan arrivals picked up noticeably on Thursday, with many coming in for a long weekend.

“When we got here, our hotel room was ready right away for the first time ever,” said Maureen Markward, mother of Nittany Lion cheerleader Dutch Markward.

“We haven’t stopped moving since.”

(Melissa Conrad (writer) and Hannah Byrne are students in the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism.)