Nick Westby: Irish will be laughing loudest as the French farce unfolds

As the French squad implodes from within in South Africa, the sense of injustice at the fate of their national team being sealed by Thierry Henry's blatant and unpunished handball in the World Cup play-off will be felt less acutely in the Irish Republic.

That November night in Paris had been forgotten by the rest of us whose teams had long since packed their bags for the Rainbow Nation, but as news came through yesterday that the French squad had boycotted training in a unified response against Nicolas Anelka being sent home from the World Cup, thoughts immediately returned to the injustice served on Giovanni Trapatoni's men.

How the World Cup would have benefited from the honest endeavours of the Republic of Ireland team and the colour their fans would have added to a World Cup already rich in culture. What a craic they'd have had.

Instead we have the sulking Les Bleus, who are acting like spoiled brats, their chef de mission being one Anelka, who has never struck me as being a player who puts the team before his own interests.

The mutiny has been brewing for a while, long before the humbling at the hands of Mexico and the dismal opening draw with Uruguay.

Anger is directed at the French Football Federation for sending home Anelka without trial, but the role of the manager – who Anelka argued with at half-time of the Uruguay match – has hardly helped matters.

Raymond Domenech could not woo the French public when he led the team to within a penalty shootout of winning the World Cup four years ago, so he had no chance this time around following such an uninspiring start to the tournament.

Ireland, of course, are not immune from World Cup bust-ups, Roy Keane's famous spat with manager Mick McCarthy in 2002 resulting in the then Manchester United player walking out on the squad.

None of the players followed him, thus putting the honour of representing their country on the grandest stage in the world – the stuff of boyhood dreams – before personal opinions.

It was that team unity that served Ireland so well in that tense, controversial, two-legged play-off against France and set the tone for what has followed in the opening nine days of the finals themselves.

Aside from the constant hum of the vuvuzela, the theme of this World Cup has been the success of the underdog and the gross underachievement of the supposed giants of world football.

Squads of players on a fraction of what their over-paid opponents earn each week have shown what playing with honour is all about, their hard work and organisation overshadowing the big egos and inflated reputations of France, Italy and England.

Ireland would have been worthy members of the World Cup's party-poopers, along with Uruguay, Paraguay, Switzerland, New Zealand, North Korea and Algeria.

Instead we have the French, who cheated their way to the tournament, but are at long last getting their comeuppance.