Call it killing a few birds with the one stone. Or getting a better bang for one’s buck. Or, indeed, exploiting economies of scope. What I’m talking about is using one instrument (in this instance a trip to the West at the weekend) to fulfill a number of different objectives (which I’ll outline presently, m’lud).

There’s the match, of course, on Sunday against the Herrin Gutters, whom we owe on the double from last year, in particular from that three-point defeat to them in the league final. The last time we played them at home was, so my burgeoning Results Archive (which now goes back to 2000 – see: I’m continuing to chisel away at it) tells me, at this time of year in 2005 where we beat them by 2-10 to 1-11 in Ballina. (Check out the 2005 results page for details on the team and scorers from that day; it was the second NFL match that year).

There’s also the chance to fill up my boots with some more fuel for the fire which, as keen readers of this site will recall, I last did before the Christmas. At least this time all the carbon emissions generated on the trip can’t be blamed the logs and the turf alone.

In any event, Green Minister Eamon Ryan should be happy with my third reason for undertaking the trip, which is to hook up a broadband connection in the old homestead. In doing so, I’ll be helping to push Ireland further up the international broadband table, which, in turn, might get Shane Ross off the Minister’s case (though, from last night’s Prime Time joust between them, I don’t think that’s going to happen anytime soon).  As a result, my efforts at helping to bridge the digital divide must, I would have thought, be worth a few carbon credits.