What if our super Jonny had missed?

IAN ROBERTSON sat on a sofa in Old Government House Hotel and mused. 'It was a shame about that drop goal,' he said.

Of course, by 'that drop goal' he means THAT drop goal. Jonny Wilkinson's right-footer with a few seconds of extra time left in the World Cup final.

Robertson's BBC Five Live commentary of that moment has been replayed many times already and will continue to be for years to come and although a proud Scot, he is happy to admit that he does support England against most nations, with the obvious exception of his homeland. And also Ireland for reasons he cannot quite fathom.

So why was he disappointed that the ball sailed through the posts that famous Saturday back in November?

'If that drop goal had missed, because there were just a few seconds left, the game would have gone into five straight minutes of sudden death where the first team to score would have won.

'I doubt whether either side would have conceded in that time so then it would have been a ?penalty shoot-out?, which would have been fantastic.'

He takes his time to picture the scene with both sides having to choose five players to attempt to land a drop goal from in front of the posts on the 22.

If still level, the next five players (a new set) would have attempted drop goals from out wide and then, if the winner was still undecided, the remaining five would have a go from the other side.

'England would have really struggled,' Robertson said.

'Wilkinson would obviously have been one, Matt Dawson can kick and Josh Lewsey could drop kick, but that is about it from the England team.

'I cannot remember ever seeing Tindall and Greenwood drop a goal, Robinson can't punt let alone drop-kick and Ben Cohen's no kicker.

'England only had three players who can drop kick and if it went to the final five it would have meant the front five having a go. It would have been hilarious.'

But if Wilkinson's effort had sailed wide, the Guernsey audiences who thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment provided by Robertson on Tuesday as part of the Sweet Chariot Tour would have missed out on a man with great knowledge, wisdom and humour.

As we sat down to begin the interview I ask whether it was unusual for him to be the interviewee rather than the interviewer.

'It is, although I have done quite a lot of interviews since the World Cup. On the Saturday of the England-France match in Paris, the Financial Times did a good 2,000-word article with me and at the beginning of the week I was in the Daily Star. So I should have reached everyone that week,' he quipped.

A very amiable and approachable man, Robertson was delighted to accept the invitation to come and talk to both a lunch and dinner audience on Tuesday, especially as it was for charity fund-raising purposes.

He found it very easy to entertain each audience with a totally different half-hour of rugby stories.

He was also quick to praise the Rugby Football Union for sending the World Cup trophy on a tour of the country.

'The Australians in 1991 won the World Cup, which has the official name of the William Webb Ellis Trophy. They called it ?Bill? for short and they took it on a tour around the whole of Australia so that everybody got the chance to see ?Bill?.

'The New Zealanders had won it in 1987 and it stayed in New Zealand's RFU Headquarters in Auckland for four years. The South Africans took it to a couple of townships for promotional reasons in 1995 but it did not go around the whole country.

'Then, when the Australians won it for a second time in 1999, they took it everywhere again and now England are doing the same. ?Bill? has been on the road virtually since it got back.'

Robertson is under no illusions as to what the success has already meant to Rugby Union in the British Isles as a whole, saying that it has and will lead to the burgeoning of mini rugby and that the sport is very much on the up.

But he was quick to add that the win had not come before time.

'Six hundred and 24 thousand seniors play rugby every weekend of the season in England.

No other country has even half that amount and on that basis England should win the World Cup every four years and the Grand Slam every two years, taking into account they have to play in Paris every two years.'

The fact that the English met the hosts in the finals was the big surprise of the World Cup for Robertson. He felt it was a three-horse race between England, New Zealand and France and, being a betting man, had backed the English and Kiwis.

But he had no doubts England would win the final while it was being played.

'They were well on top and Ben Kay, of course, dropped that pass when on top of the line. Kay has said that they had rehearsed that exact move 50 times over the eight weeks they had been in Australia and every time Matt Dawson had gone over himself and the reason he dropped it was that he was so surprised that Dawson passed.

That was a typically forthright view from the BBC rugby correspondent. He did not pull his punches about the French team either when we later went on to discuss the Six Nations Championship that has just passed.

'They are gold medal under-achievers. I said to friends before the Six Nations that they would beat England for certain, but they could lose to Italy because they are stupid,' Robertson said.

'I had a wonderful bet for them to lose to Argentina in the two tests in Buenos Aires. The French took a full strength side, but because it was ?just Argentina? they did not take it seriously and lost 2-0. That worked out very well for me.'

And as for England in the Six Nations.

'They have taken a few steps backwards. They missed Wilkinson a bit, but not as much as Martin Johnson. He has been an inspirational leader. He is a hard man, competitive and a winner and he brought everyone up to his ambitions and his appetite.

'They have also missed Tindall, as much as Wilkinson probably. They have just generally cocked up the backs selection and they have got definite problems now. Either they have got to shore up for the summer tours or rebuild.'

As well as rugby, Robertson has reported on many sports since he joined the BBC as a 27-year-old in 1972 after his own playing career (he was capped eight times by Scotland) was cut short by a knee injury.

He is a keen golfer and his handicap has recently dropped from 18 to 15, although that is because 'the clubs get better so the balls go further' rather than any improvement in his own game.

And we finished on another sporting interest of Robertsons.

'I've done 15 years as a horse racing reporter. I was at the BBC right through the Red Rum days.

'I knew nothing about horse racing but loved punting. Then they saw through me and took me off it.'

The bookies still take his money though.