Ireland-14 England-13

ALMIGHTY BOD

Back in July 08, right before this season began I did a post entitled “How Will BO’D be remembered?”

I asserted that our esteemed international rugby captain should in no way be assured of a starting spot on the Lions at the time and the thrust of my argument was in this statement :

…I believe the upcoming season is crucial for BO’Ds legacy. He needs a string of outstanding performances, he needs his name regularly in the back page headlines, he needs to be the inspiration to meaningful silverware for his teams.

Well we had the wonder try against Wasps. A clever little shimmy to go over versus France. A sprint the length of the field in Rome.

And on Saturday, the pièce de résistance to grace Ireland’s Six Nations swansong from Croker – an 80 minute display that was rugby’s answer to cricket’s “a captain’s innings”. So now I can’t see how McGeechan could possibly leave him behind.

Sure, ROG wasn’t at the races with the boot. If his misses had gone over it would have been a 12-point victory just like I predicted. But if this is a team which has its eyes on winning it all, it needs to know it can do so even when we’re not firing on all cylinders.

You didn’t have to be wise enough not to put tomatoes in fruit salads to know that England were going to do all they could to frustrate us on the day, and in my view, they did a pretty good job of it all told.

Our skipper seemed to bear the brunt of their attention. First Flutey rings his bell. Then Armitage gave him a block which had me out of my chair ranting and raving at the television screen, though sadly I wasn’t able to persuade the ref to produce his card.

But despite O’Driscoll constantly holding his head, he wasn’t afraid to put it down and charge at the English defence to touch down for the match-winning score, which turned out to be the difference.

And as for his drop goal…well if the sheer opportunism made it sweet, the execution made it sublime. I don’t get the rules of rugby enough though – seemingly there would have been a yellow card for an Englishman if he had missed? Surely if there’s an infringement worthy of a card it should be issued regardless???

Now…as for overall performance, well, I really hope that Declan Kidney has seen enough of Paddy Wallace to realise he’s not the man to have at centre. To bring home this particular bacon, it’s time to reunite Drico and Darce.

Remember, it was the Ulsterman who coughed up the ball late on and it eventually led to their try which made it so close. So he’s had his 80 minutes now, coach, ok?

Other than that, I see no reason for this team not to remain focused and get the job done in both Edinburgh and Cardiff. And nice and all though the Grand Slam may be, I don’t know about you but the Championship itself would do me just fine.

It looks like my 40th birthday, which is the day the potential Six Nations decider between Wales and Ireland is played, is going to be one hell of a day.

Ireland-30 France-21

Click here for RTE's report

WE’RE BACK

Just in case you were unfortunate enough to watch RTE’s coverage, allow me to tell you what really happened at Croke Park.

While the boys were Montrose were glowing about what a wonderful game of rugby this was for the neutral, the rest of us were on the edge of our seats hoping we’d be able to hold on and fair play to Declan Kidney’s men, we did it.

And as for George Hook suggesting this result was Munster-driven…eh, the tries were scored by who? Man-of-the-match Heaslip, O’Driscoll and d’Arcy with Rob Kearney playing a virtually flawless no 15? Do me a favour, mate!

Of course it is natural to compare this performance with what we would have expected from a team led by Eddie O’Sullivan. That’s simple – the fifteen men in green yesterday were able to adapt to the team they were playing, whereas in recent Six Nations campaigns we’ve never been able to deviate from our plan at kickoff.

Having said that, I had serious reservations about our plan at the kickoff of this match. I counted four times in the first twenty minutes that Tomas O’Leary kicked the ball away from the base of the ruck – I couldn’t see the reasoning behind putting the ball in the hands of any French side no matter how experimental.

So although nobody at our state-run broadcaster seemed to think the final pass to Harinordoquy was forward for the visitor’s first try, the score seemed to justify my confusion at the wisdom of surrendering the ball so easily.

But where in the past the kicks would have more than likely continued, we managed to adapt, and for the first time in I don’t know how long we looked like scoring every time we won possession in their 22, which it has to be said is the hallmark of a side capable of winning it all.

And what stunning tries they were, each and every one of them. Perhaps the French may question their own tackling, but you only have to watch the determination of the scorers crossing the line to see that it would have taken quite an effort to stop them from anyone.

Add to this my assertion that BOTH French tries were fortunate (although the final execution of their second try was exquisite, the move began with the ball yet again falling kindly for Harinordoquy) PLUS the fact that O’Gara wasn’t exactly 100% with his kicking, I’d argue that we could have won by more on the day.

I mean – the signs are all good; this French team will only get better so this was the best time to play them, and if we can produce four more displays like this one and avoid injuries, we have as much a chance in this tournament as anyone else, even the Welsh.

So what if Tom McGuirk and his merry men would be happy to see us lose all five once the overall rugby was entertaining? Hopefully Kidney’s army will appreciate the real fans are fully behind them to succeed whatever the cost.

Castres-18 Leinster-15

JECKYLL & HYDE RUGBY

I think reality is finally starting to hit me – this Leinster team cannot win the Heineken Cup.

I was in denial up to now, thinking that the draw with Cardiff and defeats to Munster, Connacht and Glasgow were all blips which didn’t really matter because, as my name for it suggests, the League itself was meaningless.

Last night, however, my eyes were opened, and finally I think I can see where the problem lies.

From this kickoff, it looked like Michael Cheika had done everything right. Leinster were fired up, the backs were hitting good lines, it looked to all intents and purposes like a five-point haul was on the cards, especially when Girvan Dempsey slapped down the opening try.

And let me be the first to congratulate Jonny Sexton for his magnificent conversion from out wide. It was a kick Ronan O’Gara would be proud of.

Then for a short while after that score, we seemed to go a little flat. I was concerned.

But then I was convinced my worries were over when a series of drives, supporting and offloads led to Sexton crossing for a magnificent second score. Two tries in the first half, a poor opposition, everything was looking good.

And then it started again.

Sexton missed a conversion which was much easier than the first one.

From that moment to the final whistle, we couldn’t get phases going, we couldn’t throw into line-outs, we couldn’t scrum properly, we couldn’t catch high balls, we couldn’t kick tactically OR for points.

I’m not even sure how well our defence really played since our opponents were so average that I couldn’t be sure if they would have managed to cross our line in any circumstance.

So basically, we went into the match in the right frame of mind, yet we couldn’t sustain that level for eighty minutes. What can we put that down to?

You think I’m going to blame Sexton again, don’t you?

Well I’m not – I put our failure down to three words – LACK OF LEADERSHIP.

I suppose the obvious place to point the finger would be scrum half Chris Whittaker, since he was captain on the night, and you could hardly say he led from the front.

But it was all throughout the team, and each and every one of these players has shown this season they can do it. All the things I have listed above have been seen by Les Bleus this season, so we know they have the ability, just not the consistency it seems.

The moment that capped it all was Brian O’Driscoll’s inexplicable decision to kick the penalty himself in the dying minutes when there was plenty of time for the more polished Contepomi to find the line and give us one last chance to pinch it.

Right now, despite the fact that we creamed London Wasps back in October, I firmly believe that there is no way this Leinster squad can lift the Heineken Cup.

I guess it’s up to them to go to Twickenham in mid-January and prove me wrong.

One last point - I am sick to death of having to endure Sky's don't-give-a-damn-about-Ireland live rugby coverage of these matches.  Love him or hate him, we need Hooky!!!

Leinster-29 Dragons-13

[Update February 12, 2014 : With the Dragons coming to the RDS this Friday, our latest trip into the HoR archives looks back to our first writeup involving the region.  This was of course pre-Grand Slam, pre-Heineken Cup victories, pre-Joe Schmidt, and as you can see, pre-my having faith in Johnny Sexton!!!]

 

NOT SO HOT

For the second week running, a rugby team I support won by a scoreline that flatters to deceive.

 

First of all, the match itself was a perfect example of why I refer to this competition as the “Meaningless League”.

 

How are we supposed to take these matches seriously when they are played on the same weekend as crucial internationals? Especially as Ireland AREN’T playing, and their provinces are free to field full strength fifteens?

 

And so, as I was shivering my twig and berries off, I sat in Section F of the RDS stand and watched the boys in Blue, complete with the likes of O’Driscoll, Dempsey and Horgan, beat the weakest Welsh franchise yet failed to take the bonus point.

 

Yes, the failure to get the bonus point DOES bother me. Why? Because despite the freezing weather over 15,000 fans showed up on the night, and when we were awarded a penalty at the 22 with over ten minutes remaining, Leinster chose to kick for goal (and miss…) rather than at least display an interest in going the extra mile, and quite frankly, I wasn’t impressed.

 

Not that there weren’t some highlights on the night. Clearly in man-of-the-match Sean O’Brien and Fergus McFadden we have even more strong players coming through the ranks.

 

But I’m sure anyone who has read this blog before now won’t be surprised that I still don’t think Jonathan Sexton can cut it at this level, at least not yet.

 

Look at the facts yet again – for most of the time he was on the pitch, Leinster were losing. Even on our opening try, his pass which sent O’Brien clear looked to be a bit suspect forward.

 

It seems as though Sexton has his mind made up what he’s going to do even before his scrum half handles the ball, and does it regardless of what transpires as the ball is coming towards him.

 

All night the Dragons played with a backline flatter than a pancake, and only once do I remember a Leinster back try to exploit the space behind them and that was McFadden.

 

We continuously tried to run the ball through their strong defence and he didn’t seem to cop on it wasn’t working.

 

And as if to top it all, we have yet another shoulder injury to Brian O'Driscoll, and hopefully he will recover quickly.  Naturally it could be argued that he should have been rested with the Heineken Cup on the horizon, but I for one applaud him and Leinster rugby for at least rewarding the spectators with his presence on the park.

 

I sincerely hope Cheika chooses to start with David Holwell next weekend as the big boy’s tournament cranks up for another fortnight. JLP

Leinster-41 Wasps-11

STUNG

Forgive me for resorting to the obvious wasp-related pun for my headline, but in this case I reckon the cap fits, don't you think?

Now, believe it or believe it not, I actually managed to find a negative spin for Leinster on the back of this performance and result, but I won't share it with you until the end of this post.

After one minute of this contest, when Paul Sackey took the kickoff and shot all the way down the wing to virtually the try line, it looked like it was going to be a long, long Saturday evening in Dublin 4.

But from that moment on, the Leinster boys turned quality on paper into class on grass.

Right throughout the team, and I include subs in that (yes, even Sexton) there were top notch performances.

Sure, I could rave all day about O'Driscolls early brace of tries, particularly the second one, which had me bowing to his greatness (woulda looked a lot better if everyone in the stand did it with me though).

But what made the difference on the day was the fact that our defence remained solid for the entire 80 minutes, just like I said it needed to do.

The visiting English champions never looked like breaching the blue wall they faced, and it took a controversial try (ironically by an Irishman) to post five points on the board and leave the home support nervously contemplating what the second half may bring.

Well, whatever Michael Cheika said to them in the dressing-room, I'd like to bottle it and sell it on ebay cos I'd be able to retire early. Even with the loss of our talismanic Number 13 to an injury which I hope won't rule him out of Ireland's crucial upcoming internationals, we came out all guns blazing and effectively killed the game as a contest from the kickoff with Luke Fitzgerald's touchdown.

And as we looked on in a mixture of delight and disbelief, we secured the bonus point shortly after and even found time to cross the line twice more, completely blanking our opponents for the second half.

So it's two wins out of two for Leinster in Pool Two, a maximum of ten points, and already a six-point lead over the rest. We now have a home-and-away pair of clashes with a Castres team which is now effectively out of the competition.

How on EARTH can I possibly find anything negative about our situation?

Well, it doesn't have to be negative, it just could be. This result, together with what will no doubt be and endless loop of re-runs on Sky News of Drico's wonder try, will surely have Leinster installed right throughout European rugby as favourites to win the Heineken Cup.

If the lads can stand up to that pressure the way stood up to their illustrious opposition yesterday, this could turn out to be a memorable season. We shall see.

Edinburgh-16 Leinster-27

LEINSTER GET OFF SCOT FREE

Edinburgh today went from bogey team to bogus team.

There was only one thing lacking from Leinster in this contest, and that was offensive execution.

Now that may sound strange since we ran in four tries in the first half and collected an away-day bonus-point victory that will be the envy of the rest of the teams in the Heineken Cup.

But if everything Leinster tried on the day had come off, the scoreline would have been a lot closer to the drubbing they handed the same team in the Meaningless League a few weeks ago.

When it came to tactics and defence, we were a class apart from our opponents and although there were a few questionable refereeing decisions and things got a bit tighter in the second half than maybe they should have, the actual result was rarely in doubt.

Clearly Michael Cheika had done his homework and realised that even from deep in side our own 22, punting the ball straight down the field was the way to go and sure enough, when they ran it back at us more often than not we were able to turn it over.

Though it took us a while to get into our stride, it was clear that all we needed was discipline in ball-retention and the tries would come. Rocky Elsom proved that by opening the account with a surge forward from Edinburgh’s 10-metre line.

Then came arguably the defining moment, or at least that is what no doubt home coach Andy Robinson will claim. Having taken a high ball Horgan flung it clearly forward to Dempsey and after a burst from Contepomi and a neat pass, Drico touched down for a killer second.

Though the home crowd, what there was of them in the cavernous Murrayfield, have a legitimate beef, I very much doubt that this decision would have made much of a difference really.

And if things were as they should be and there was an Irish TV network covering this match, I sincerely hope they would have awarded man of the match to Brian O’Driscoll.

Instead, Sky’s so-called experts gave it to Rocky Elsom, and although he did have a good outing, it was more important to Irish rugby that the Leinster number 13 put in a full match display somewhere near his Lions-captaincy form, and with his line-breaks, his passing, his tackling and even sometimes his kicking, Drico was the man in my book.

Of course, there will be a need for improvement as the tournament progresses, particularly in Jackman’s lineout throws.

But overall, five points on the board with three home matches still to come is a perfect position going into next week’s Wasps encounter, and I wouldn’t have swapped today’s score with either the Connacht OR the Munster ones for love nor money.

By the way...it was a struggle to go this long without saying "I told you so" about the need to switch Felipe in to the number 10 slot.  

How Will BO'D Be Remembered?

First published on personal blog July 5, 2008.

It’s a wet miserable Saturday morning here in Dublin, so there’s not much else to do but sit in and watch Southern hemisphere rugby.

As the All Blacks look to exact some retribution on the Springboks for their having the audacity to snatch the World Cup from them last year, I begin to wonder what the next European season has to offer, and only one thing springs to mind.

Since he burst onto the scene in 2000 with his famous hat-trick in Paris, we have all been waiting for Brian O’Driscoll to assume the mantle his potential demanded – the world’s greatest player. And of course, with consistent Six Nations performances (albeit with limited success), he was given the ultimate accolade when he was named captain of the touring Lions in 2005.

Captain! Of the bloody LIONS!!! It really doesn’t get better than that, does it?

Enter Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu.

Since the infamous spear tackle in Christchurch, we have seen the odd flash of brilliance from O’Driscoll; a blistering sprint for a try here, a pinpoint crossfield pass there, and now and then what I consider his trademark, a try-stopping diving tackle out of nowhere rarely seen anywhere on the globe.

But can we say that we have seen him maximise his true potential? If we had been told back in 2000 that his achievements would amount to the Lions captaincy, a few Triple Crowns and a Meaningless League crown, would that have been enough?

I guess it challenges us to determine what we consider success. When it comes to European rugby, once you look at the success of Wales and Munster and realise that it is not all about the English and the French, the only silverware that really matters a damn is the Six Nations Championship and the Heineken Cup. Both have eluded O’Driscoll.

Not that I’m saying that it is all his own fault, and I hope the above YouTube file demonstrates that I appreciate the role injuries have played on his career.

What I’m getting at is just how important the 2008/09 European season is for the man.

In the May edition of Rugby World magazine, controversial columnist Stephen Jones picks his Lions squad for the tour next summer, and he leaves BO’D at home, favouring Shanklin, Henson, Tindall and Barkley.

Now Jones has a reputation for being a bit anti-Irish (he also excludes Paul O’Connell) but one sentence in his column hits the mark in my view...

“O’Driscoll will need to find some of the old freshness next season before the real Lions are chosen.”

You’d find it very hard to convince me that Brian has done enough in the past 12 months to guarantee him the Number 13 jersey for the first test in Durban on June 20, 2009.

And if that’s the case, then how would it look on his CV to be brought along as a replacement, or even worse, an also-ran on the midweek team having been skipper four short years earlier?

So I believe the upcoming season is crucial for BO’Ds legacy. He needs a string of outstanding performances, he needs his name regularly in the back page headlines, he needs to be the inspiration to meaningful silverware for his teams.

How will he do that? Well of course, he needs to stay fit, and that is in the lap of the Gods.

One thing that can help would be to take the captain’s armband away from him and allow him concentrate on his own game. If I were close to him I’d advise him to actually request this and make it publicly known.

Despite the risk of injury I’d also like to see him playing some role in every match throughout the season, at very least the first half of every Meaningless league encounter.

Although I have been a critic of his in the past, I still have no doubt that he has the ability to make the upcoming campaign a success, and hopefully my Leinster season ticket purchase will be worthwhile.

Interesting times ahead.