Ireland’s display on Saturday was much like Jamie Heaslip’s physique…a bit flabby round the edges, but good enough to get the job done. By the end of the first series, we sit atop the Six Nations standings, and I’m not sure how much more we as Irish fans could have asked for.
Brian O’Driscoll, who showed some flashes of sheer genius on the day, said it well afterwards via his twitter account…they played like a team that hadn’t been together since November and I say we listen to the man and have faith that the boys have their A game tucked in their back pocket for the two massive away games to come in this tournament.
And to be honest, right up to moment that Rob Kearney’s lazy attempt at a clearance led to their only try, we were showing the domination, poise and tactical prowess we’ve come to expect from the boys in green.
The backs were trying out some new moves, always good to see when you consider the other 5 nations will no doubt have spent hours analysing DVDs from 2009.
Leinster skipper Leo Cullen gave Declan Kidney yet another glorious selection headache as he seemingly picked off Italian lineout darts at will and set up our second try.
It was as though the visitor’s score served as a wake-up call to the lads in that maybe now was a time to shut up shop, forget about points difference and bring the game home focussing on injury minimalization.
And guess what, that’s exactly what they did. Italy got their last score in the 44th minute and there was NO way they were going to cross our line again even with their break in the closing minutes.
Now…of course I agree ROG had a good outing, but in my book, that’s all it was, good. He kicked his kicks, but each one were ones he’d be expected to get and the only pressure that was on him either came from his own early-season form or his Leinster nemesis sitting in the stands.
I suppose possession should be nine-tenths of the law when it comes to Kidney’s selection for Paris, but it will be a close call nonetheless.
All in all I have faith in this squad to use the 7-day turnaround to iron out the kinks and be ready for battle in the Stade de France.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the competition….
Uh…word to the wise, England fans…you didn’t actually win the World Cup!
Watching their fans in the Twickenham crowd and reading their tweets, you’d think they had, and some non-English pundits even referred to their display as “awesome”. Were they watching the same game?
They scored 3 tries…two when AW Jones was in the bin for a moment of madness and one after a wayward pass by Stephen Jones while they were chasing the game.
This says it all….when Jones got his yellow, the score was 3-3. And the quality of rugby up to that point was about as exciting as a documentary on stamp collecting.
I’ll give Martin Johnson one thing…he definitely instils belief in his players. They just don’t seem to have the skills or tactical nous to back it up. They’ll make things tough when Ireland come to town, that’s for sure-especially after a likely 2nd victory in Rome will leave them undefeated at kickoff-but you can be pretty sure they won’t have possession handed to them quite so easily as the Welsh did.
As for Warren Gatland, I think he sits at the opposite end of the coaching spectrum. His players have the talent and the know-how, he just doesn’t seem to get them to gel on the day. Personally, I think it’s time to give Leigh Halfpenny his chance to raise his game to the next level.
Midway through the first half I feared France would run away with this one and top the standings at the end of the weekend, but then I realised their philosophy was much like Ireland’s…no need to go for tons of points when you run the risk of injury for bigger games to come.
And so the game at Murrayfield was very similar to that at Croker…two first half tries then time to shut up shop. Scotland showed a bit of promise at times but admirable though their attempts at crossing the line may have been, I feel they should have known their limitations and taken the easy drop goal opportunities when they had them and maybe the outcome could have been different.
Nice touch for them to honour by way of their jerseys the one player who chose not to tog out for them on the day, though…
