Under Discussion: Ireland's win at Murrayfield and Round 3 of the Six Nations
Chatting are: Barry Coughlan, Peter Jackson, Tony Leen, Donal Lenihan and Simon Lewis
TONY LEEN, Irish Examiner sports editor: Reaction to Ireland's win yesterday has been fairly muted Donal, are you surprised at that?
DONAL LENIHAN, Irish Examiner rugby columnist: Not really. Ireland were in a position of strength, leading 21-9 ater 53 minutes, but they failed to kick on against a very poor international side.
TONY LEEN: You mentioned this morning the need for a bit of a clear-the-air in the squad. Necessary?
DONAL LENIHAN: The problem is that after the French game, there was a lot of chat about discipline, and all the penalties conceded were analysed. The management must start all over again, and cover old ground; that is not healthy. Ireland gave away the same penalties in the contact area again, and it is a serious problem.
TONY LEEN: Simon, is this sense of underachievement permeating through to the squad? On Twitter last night that Heaslip and Healy were brooking no negativity...
SIMON LEWIS, Irish Examiner rugby correspondent: Agreed. It's that failure to convert superiority on the field into meaningful results that is now beginng to concern fans. We can all see the developing style coming to fruition, and yet it is being undermined by the silly stuff. That has to be getting at the players as well.
PETER JACKSON, veteran English rugby writer: Against a team who have forgotten how to score tries at home, it was surprising that Ireland didn't win by enough to have nudged Wales out of second on points-difference. At the risk of sounding a killjoy, it's a measure of the lack of quality that Wales should be leading the chase considering that they've still to hit their straps.
TONY LEEN: The chat forum militia are bludgeoning Kidney for substitutions made. Against France it was substitutions not made. Why do I get the sense that the Irish camp isn't buzzing? We have two wins out of three and an unlucky loss to France, but there's a really downbeat mood here amongst rugby? folk.
PETER JACKSON: Rightly so. Anyone outscoring the opposition 3-0 on tries and then coming close to throwing it away on penalties has a right to ask some serious questions. Had Italy possessed a half-decent kicker they might have beaten Wales. But ask yourself this - how can one team concede 12 penalties and no yellow cards, the other just four penalties and yet they end up with the yellow card? That decision made all the difference.
BARRY COUGHLAN, Irish Examiner rugby writer: (Referee) Nigel Owens appeared to be giving clear signals, but his warnings were not heeded. Whether Owens made mistakes or not is immaterial, the penalties were given and Ireland have to take stock of that.
DONAL LENIHAN: In my opinion, Owens was quite lenient towards Ireland. Peter make the point about yellow cards; he was right. No wonder Andy Robinson was animated afterwards.
BARRY COUGHLAN: Thirteen penalties is unacceptable. Ireland could have lost even after scoring three tries to none - that would have been embarrassing.
SIMON LEWIS: I think Robinson could have been less self-righteous about the Jacobsen yellow. Whatever about the penalty count, the prop was warned repeatedly by Owens at previous scrums, and he still sinned at the next one.
BARRY COUGHLAN: I agree with Simon, Jacobsen was getting up Owens' nose all game and got four warnings for his binding and talking too much.
TONY LEEN: So lads, let's get into the nitty gritty. We have two wins out of three, unlucky in the third. Where are the problems - on the pitch or at management level? Specifics please?
DONAL LENIHAN: The big surprise for me was the element of panic that set in for Ireland. It was visible from the stand.
BARRY COUGHLAN: There was a bit of panic alright, but you would have to give credit to the defence at the end.
SIMON LEWIS: Ireland looked kind of rudderless in the last 15 minutes. The defence held and there were some mighty individual efforts in there but there was definitely a feeling of panic and desperation about them.
TONY LEEN: Has O'Gara's performance made Kidney's decision for Cardiff in respect of the 10 jersey? And has Reddan done enough to stay there with him?
BARRY COUGHLAN: In my view, Richie Gray was the best player on the pitch but Ronan O'Gara was the most effective. Scotland conceded that he made all the difference through his astute game management.
DONAL LENIHAN: What about O'Gara being taken off? That was a very strange call and a very difficult time for Sexton to make an impact, given what was happening around him.
SIMON LEWIS: I thought O'Gara and Reddan worked well together; I would definitely start them in Cardiff.
BARRY COUGHLAN: Yes, O'Gara has to stay and Reddan, despite some indecision at ruck time, will probably join him.
SIMON LEWIS: As we said the last time around, O'Gara was the man for this job and he should be the starting fly-half in Cardiff. Reddan was also impressive and worth his place against Wales. I thought Reddan was very positive at ruck time, knew what he wanted to do going in and got on with it, with quick ball to the backs as a result.
DONAL LENIHAN: In fact, individually there were some very good peformances - Cian Healy, Paul O'Connell, the back row plus Denis Leamy when he came on. So it was strange that Ireland didn't pull away. The changes on 60 minutess broke their momentum.
PETER JACKSON: Paul O'Connell really stood up when they needed him most, in the final 10 minutes. Sean O'Brien demanded a place in my team of the weekend at the expense of the Hairy Donkey (Imanol Harinordoquy) and there's no higher tribute than that. As for O'Gara, some comeback but I couldn't for the life of me understood why they took him off.? Wales in Cardiff on Saturday week will be some match.
TONY LEEN: Peter, after round three is everyone in Blighty presuming it's a done deal now? Grand Slam and world domination to follow soon after?
PETER JACKSON: Not if they've got half a brain. Recent history tells everyone that England and the Grand Slam are not a perfect fit. With Scotland at home it'll be a major surprise if they don't win the title but the Slam is something else.
DONAL LENIHAN: That hype is being driven by outside forces. Johnno's biggest test now is managing expectations. He will be good at that.
TONY LEEN: All roads lead to the Aviva on March 19th so. In fairness to England though, they're big powerful boys and there's a cutting edge. The graph is most definitely going northwards for Johnno?...
PETER JACKSON: For sure they look a cut above the rest but Mr Grumpy, of all people, will be wary of Dublin and with good reason. Don't forget, England lost a Slam there in 2001 when Johnson was absent because of injury. But what a prospect - England going for the full bag of chips and Ireland on a Triple Crown.
TONY LEEN: We like to bicker and moan, us lot, but let's face it, if Ireland win in Cardiff it's all systems go for the England game and all is rosy in the garden. Or is it that simple?
BARRY COUGHLAN: In any season you would take two away wins out of two, and Irish teams of the past would have been happy to run France close. Thing is, this squad don't think that way, they like winning and could yet be kicking themselves for losing in Dublin.
DONAL LENIHAN: If Ireland do win in Cardiff - and I think they will - then the England game offers the perfect opportunity to finish the season on a high. Make no mistake, England are beatable.
SIMON LEWIS: Ireland need the momentum and confidence of a win in Cardiff if they are to beat England a week later. They have what it takes to beat England but for all the denials about confidnce being an issue, the Irish are not playing to their potential. Another win will be essential to addressing that.
BARRY COUGHLAN: I agree, England were no better against France than we were except they did win, I will grant them that, but they might be making the mistake of comparing themselves with better former English teams. If they do, it could be the rock they perish on.
DONAL LENIHAN: I agree with you Barry, but the standard of the championship has been very poor, with three really bad teams.
BARRY COUGHLAN: It has been poor; the England v France game was appalling in terms of the number of mistakes made. We're not the only ones prone to not being able to hold on to the ball, it seems.
PETER JACKSON: It has been a poor tournament, except for England. They've played some tasty stuff and put the French in their place. Whatever you think of Chris Ashton, he's certainly got people talking rugby who wouldn't normally be talking about it and that's got to be good for the championship. Wales and Ireland can only hope that their best is still to come. A shame about Scotland and Italy.
SIMON LEWIS: The 'they' talking about Grand Slams is not the England camp but the pub-talk tabloids, let's make a difference here. England have some confident characters but they won't be allowed to get ahead of themselves. Too many England teams of the past have fallen into that trap.
DONAL LENIHAN: Yes, that could be an issue, but I have been impressed with Johnno this season and the few wins have also given him confidence. I like what he is doing.
BARRY COUGHLAN: Johnson is very single minded, but maybe some of the players have more grandiose ideas about themselves.
SIMON LEWIS: You could say that about any set of players Barry, but it always seems to be the stock accusation against England. I don't buy it at all.
TONY LEEN: England are now at home to the Scots on the 13th. Any chance it could be unlucky for some Red Roses, or are the Scots hapless and hopeless in that one?
BARRY COUGHLAN: I cannot see Scotland winning, they will play with passion but the physicality of it will probably wear them down. What of Wales? Are they good, bad or dangerous?
SIMON LEWIS: Wales are all three! There was some pretty ropey stuff from Gatland's men in Rome but they do have an ability to carve openings for themselves with some pretty good attacking play. The loss of their props is a big blow though.
BARRY COUGHLAN: The Millennium Stadium has been good for Ireland but it will again come down to game management. In a fragmented game, Wales are better than Scotland.
TONY LEEN: Peter, you were in Rome, let's have the final word from you. Does the result say more about Italian perspiration, or Wales struggling to hit top gear?
PETER JACKSON: A bit of both. If anything Welsh indiscipline was even worse in Rome than Ireland's in Edinburgh, which is saying something. Wales gave away 15 penalties and again you have to ask how a team can fall foul of the law that often without anyone being binned. Italy missed four shots at goal but there were flashes of Wales at their creative best, like the try finished off by Warburton. The reality, though, is that they've beaten two poor teams and suddenly they're talking about winning the title. There'd have to be a steward's inquiry if that happens....
Source: http://feeds.examiner.ie/~r/iesportsblog/~3/KeRlO14PIDo/post.aspx
Asia ITV Kevin Campbell European Union Twilight Canary Islands
No comments:
Post a Comment