Last night; and today.

Last night’s rugby had a somewhat historical feel to it.

Betfair were quick out of the blocks. Ladbrokes welcomed them. Betfair went 50-nil up. Ladbrokes complained it wasn’t fair. It finished 79-7 to Betfair. And Andrew Black delighted the attendant fans by stepping up to present the trophy. Ten years whittled down to 80 minutes.

In all seriousness, good on the Ladbrokes guys for putting a team together in aid of a very good cause (the Anthony Nolan Trust); and well done to the lads at Betfair who took the initiative to organise it. It was a fun evening.

If you’re waiting, meanwhile, for a comment from me on the Betfair float, I’m not about to make one about the price or the process.

I would, though, say two quick things.

First, clearly I’m delighted the company is now public – not least because when I argue in favour of Betfair, people can’t tell me that it is because I have a vested financial interest in winning the argument. If I thought the argument didn’t stand up and was in danger of being lost, I could simply sell out.

But far more importantly than that, I’d like to thank all those of you who may be readers of this blog who have played any part in the success of the business, and have therefore made (perhaps indirectly) such an enormous contribution to me personally. I can never thank you all individually, and there are far too many of you even to list, but I am very grateful for what you have done, and very aware of the fact that only fraction of the success could have been achieved without you.