Every Friday from 12noon I look ahead to the weekend's rugby for the Irish provinces and beyond.
Standard practice is for senior players to give an underage selection a pre-match team-talk to motivate them for a big match...I'm wondering if the opposite should apply in the Ireland set-up?
Despite the hectic end to Leinster's domestic campaign, June has been by far the busiest month of the season. But even with all the corporate hype surrounding the Lions tour, there is no contest for the matches I have found the most enjoyable...the Wolfpuppies.
With the smell of the 2013 Six Nations campaign still relatively fresh despite the coaching changes, whether it's Joe Schmidt or Les Kiss calling the shots over in Toronto this weekend, you can be sure they're wishing they could somehow bottle whatever it is Mike Ruddock is serving his Under20s over in France!
That they fell short against the Baby Blacks to be pipped to a semifinal spot by the English who were inflicting a cricket score on the USA was about as unjust an outcome as this great sport can produce. And if, as is likely, New Zealand should comfortably prevail in their semifinal against England it will get even worse. Hopefully the Irish lads will be proud regardless.
It's not just about what they have achieved, but also the way they have achieved it, proving that what you have done before matters nothing, it's how you apply yourself from kickoff right the way through to full time. If that can somehow rub off on the senior squad then Joe's tenure could well hit the ground running.
Anyway...time to crack on and look ahead to the weekend and beyond...all four touring squads with Irish involvement are still in action.
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(all times Irish)
Saturday, June 15, 2013
Lions Tour
NSW Waratahs v Lions, 10:40am
Just one week and two matches left for Warren Gatland to do for real what countless thousands of fans have been squabbling about for months...select a team for the First Test. And this selection seems to very close to it.
I was delighted to hear the Lions supremo reiterate what he said back in March, that his squad captain was by no means guaranteed a starting position in Brisbane next week. Given Sam Warburton's recovery from injury (he seemed to pull up at one stage after a long run against the Reds last weekend) together with the excellent form from other back rows on this tour, he needs a display close to Man of the Match levels this Saturday to get him into my team, anyway.
And it's at the back of the scrum where the biggest headaches are to be had. It wouldn't surprise me a jot if WG went for a familiar Lydiate-Warburton-Faletau trio while my own preference of O'Brien-Tipuric-Heaslip is as much based on form as it is green goggles.
At least Jamie has a chance to prove himself once more this weekend, and given he also started during the week, it could be that he is playing himself into contention.
The question marks are also evident on the wing, doubly so now George North looks as though he could join Tommy Bowe on the injury list. Thorinho mooted the possibility of Halfpenny switching to the wing allowing Rob Kearney to go to full-back. If so he, like Warburton, will have to do a lot before next Saturday to prove his fitness and surely must at least feature for forty minutes between the two matches to do that.
Also on the wing, I got some stick on the Facebook page for suggesting Simon Zebo could play his way to the forefront but I honestly believe stranger things have happened. He will get his chance on Saturday, we'll see how things go.
Other positions would appear set in stone barring injury...namely 3,4,5,9,10 & 12. Jonathan Davies has done ok on the tour so far but I can't imagine what he can do here to oust BOD from the 13 jumper.
In the front row I'd say the loosehead role is Vunipola's to lose while all Tom Youngs would appear to have to do to make the Brisbane bench is hit his darts.
On the Tahs side, they may be deprived their Wallabies but they still have some proven Super Rugby operators on display...flyhalf Bernard Foley has been tearing up the competition since his return from 7s duty while they have a dangerous back three which includes Drew Mitchell and Cam Crawford, the latter of whom has 7 tries in the competition this season.
Put all of that in the hands of the wily Michael Cheika (who naturally would know the abilities of most of these Lions) and you have a team that's every bit as capable of bringing a challenge to the tourists as were the Reds last week.
The bookies are offering a 25-point spread for this one. Not sure the Lions will be able to match that, but I do expect them to establish a lead early and stretch it towards the end. Lions by 14
Test Matches
New Zealand v France, 8:35am
As Ireland found out last year, a spirited performance in defeat to the All Blacks can often poke the bear into producing a mauling the following week. I have a sneaky suspicion that could well be the case again this time around, though perhaps not quite by the same margin as the infamous Hamilton Horror Show. New Zealand by 20
Samoa v Italy, 2pm
Samoa are becoming to rugby what Ireland are to cricket - in with a more than decent claim to a place at the sport's top table. And after dispatching the Scots last week, there's every reason to believe they will make that claim even stronger here. Samoa by 8
South Africa v Scotland, 4:15pm
Losing Ryan Grant to the Lions was a blow to this touring squad. But losing Kelly Brown to injury as well was a catastrophe as they prepare to face a virtually full-strength Springbok XV. Have mercy on their souls. SA by 30
Argentina v England, 8:10pm
The Pumas never fail to disappoint me when I back them to do well. I didn't think they'd beat England last week, but I thought they'd at least give them a battle. Instead Stuart Lancaster's side romped home and despite the raving of their press, couldn't consider it a battle. They will probably be raving even more after this one, but the question marks will remain over this squad of players until they get over a Six Nations finish line as far as I'm concerned. England by 16
Canada v Ireland, 1am (Sunday)
The key to analyzing this Ireland selection lies in our interpretation of the mysterious "stomach bug" that afflicted the group back in Houston. Was it a dodgy Texmex dinner or an overdose of tequila? Or maybe it actually was a genuine stomach bug. We'll probably never know, what goes on tour etc...
As much as I hate looking for conspiracy theories, and also as much as I am a Leinster fan, I can help but wonder why Mike Ross, Ian Madigan, Isaac Boss and Devin Toner are in the starting lineup for this fixture. The first needs a rest, the second & third need challenges from Paddy Jackson & Paul Marshall respectively while the fourth needs a wake up call.
There are some who are getting their opportunity in Toronto. Kevin McLaughlin and Tommy O'Donnell join skipper Peter O'Mahony in the back row while Trimble, Downey and Jones all start in the back line. All of them can do themselves favours with decent displays.
As the Canadian team, well without Jamie Cudmore & Chauncey O'Toole I'm pretty much lost. Apart from Taylor Paris on the wing who plays for Glasgow, the only name in their lineup that really "shines" is that of openside flanker John Moonlight.
Which means this is one of those tour matches where there is little to gain yet much to lose. Hopefully the Irish will be less mindful of the fact that their holidays are about to begin and more so of what happened to the Welsh in Japan this morning. They should get the job done but not too easily. Ireland by 7
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Tblisi Cup [note - times to be confirmed]
Uruguay v Emerging Ireland, 1pm
The EmerIre's were very unlucky against the South Africans during the week I thought - even if the defeat was deserved, the margin certainly wasn't. Still they can round off this tournament in style with a convincing performance against the Uruguayans who failed to score a try in their opening two matches.
Once more Rhys Ruddock leads out the side and Ian Keatley wears the 10 jumper. Jordi Murphy gets a start while the rotation of Munster locks continues with O'Callaghan and Foley starting and Nagle on the bench.
There's a bit of confusion surrounding kickoff time but I'll go with the IRFU's 1pm and the match could be streamed live on the IRB site. Hopefully it will be worth watching for Ireland fans - I think it will. EmerIre by 17
Georgia v South Africa President's XV, 3pm
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Lions Tour
ACT Brumbies v Lions, 10:30am
PREVIEW TO PUBLISH TUESDAY MORNING
Junior World Championship – Playoffs
Spin it any way you want, call me biased, I don't care. The performances of the Irish Under 20s at these Junior World Championships should be enough to earn them a place in the final four.
Since when does a win over the Wallabies plus three tries in a valiant 5-point defeat to the Baby Blacks constitute "not enough"?
If the rugby gods have any sense of justice at all, New Zealand will run riot over England in this evening's semifinal, for it will provide a crumb of comfort to Irish fans who have even been denied watching the Wolfpuppies' 5th-place playoff against France, a fact made all the more confusing by the fact that it's French television hosting the coverage.
But if reports from Bernard Jackman in Grenoble are to be believed, the underage game in France is in a sorry state, so perhaps they'd rather not watch them go against Mike Ruddock's latest crop of youngsters as they aim to replicate last year's 5th place finish.
Rory Scholes moves to full-back from the wing for this one, while the half-back pairing of skipper Luke McGrath and Steve Crosbie feature yet again.
In the forwards, there has been impressive outings from both hookers Bryan Byrne and George McGuigan, good to see some prospects at this position. Malone's Conor Joyce has also done well and he shows his versatility as he moves over to blindside flanker from number 8.
They have been the highlight of my June rugby to date, and they fully deserve a winning end to this tournament. Best of luck to them. Wolfpuppies by 10
Samoa v Fiji, 5pm
Argentina v Australia, 5pm
South Africa v Wales (semifinal), 5:15pm
Scotland v USA, 7:15pm
Ireland v France, 7:15pm
PREVIEW TO PUBLISH TUESDAY MORNING
New Zealand v England (semifinal), 7:45pm
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Be sure and enjoy your rugby this weekend wherever you are. JLP
