At one stage for Catholic observers, Good Friday was all about compulsory fish, holy music on the radio and an abstention from alcohol. Then the nation relaxed. But Good Friday, however, still remains the only day of the year except Christmas Day that is totally dry.

This year, however, a rugby match raises problems – not about whether that all-important Magners league clash between old enemies Munster and Leinster at Thomond Park should be rescheduled on the grounds that it is on an important day on the religious calendar. But about the fact that because publicans can't sell alcohol on the day of the big match, they should either reschedule the clash, or suspend long-standing licensing laws for such a special case. If the match isn't rescheduled, no doubt all sorts of schemes will be concocted to circumvent the ban on the serving of drink.

It is ironic that a match sponsored by a cider company should be scheduled for a day where alcohol is prohibited from sale. But it is even more ironic that a modern, inclusive European democracy still prohibits the sale of alcohol on any day.

Isn't it absurd that a ban on the sale of alcohol for everyone, regardless of religious persuasion, still exists? Surely, the decision not to drink alcohol, like the decision not to eat meat, is purely a personal one?