THE PRINCIPAL requirement of the Irish team against the touring Australians this afternoon is to be competitive for the entire 80 minutes - unlike the disastrous performance against Western Samoa. This objective is greatly assisted by the return of Keith Wood to the side and, furthermore, by his elevation to the captaincy.
Although I did not see his performance for Ireland against the Junior Springboks he greatly impressed everybody who saw the game. He is, undoubtedly, an inspirational player who will lead from the front by example. Hopefully, that will have a knock-on effect on the rest of the team. Irish teams have always been built around a few world class players and on current form he is one of the few on the Irish side who can lay claim to that status.
The changes in the laws introduced over the last six months have resulted in a totally different game. Some players and teams are taking much longer than others to adapt. The changes are far more suited to sides who favour a running, positive style. The Irish game has been traditionally based on passion, commitment and destructive tactics.
Consequently the game in this country appears to have further to travel than most of the other established rugby nations. Had a stranger seen the game against Western Samoa, without any knowledge of the previous history of rugby in the respective countries, he would surely have thought that the visitors were the more experienced and accomplished side, playing against a team which did not really seem sure of what it was supposed to be doing. That may seem like a very harsh criticism, but it was the reality on the evening.
While a tight driving game may have succeeded against the Fijians 12 months earlier, that same style does not work as effectively under the new laws. It is essential now to run at the opposition with the ball in hand or else they will run at you. It is far easier, having won possession, to retain it.
Any coach will tell you that if you run at the opposition and keep possession for any length of time, you will either be awarded a penalty - for any one of a number of reasons - or you should be able to create a try-scoring opportunity. Furthermore, kicking the ball to touch is no longer as useful a ploy as it was in the past because you can be reasonably sure that the opposition will win their own throw-in.
Just as the expression "against the head" evolved because of the certainty of winning one's own put-in to the scrum, one could now describe winning an opposition line-out as being "against the throw", so seldom is it achieved.
If the timing between the thrower, lifters and the lifted (he can no longer be called the jumper) is co-ordinated, there is no longer any excuse for not winning one's own line-out ball. Undoubtedly various teams will design various line-out defence mechanisms. Against Australia we will need to be a little more imaginative on their throw-ins than we were against the Samoans, who won their line-out ball with ease. We also need to be more clinical on our own line-outs.
In the modern game you must score when you have the opportunity. The team that takes its chances will come out on top. In the modern game, both sides invariably get chances. We saw a perfect example of this earlier in the season when Leinster played Leicester in Lansdowne Road in the European Cup. Leinster created far more chances than their opponents, particularly in the first half and early in the second, but due to panic when near the opposition line and bad decision-making, they failed to avail of these opportunities. Their opponents, however, were clinical.
This Irish pack has a lot of useful footballers and I sincerely hope that they will get the opportunity to run with the ball. Hopefully Nick Popplewell has recovered his world-class form of a few years ago. Gabriel Fulcher and Jeremy Davidson should guarantee our own line-out possession. It will be interesting to see how the back row copes with the Australians. In Munster's recent performances, David Corkery and Anthony Foley were the two main Munster forwards to emerge with credit. Some of their tackling was absolutely outstanding and this, obviously, did not go unnoticed.
There is no reason whatsoever for our pack to be intimidated by the Australians and, if anything, in this area I think we could achieve an advantage. The influence of the captain will be most immediately felt in this area.
Our backline, however, faces a major challenge. The Australian backs are far more experienced as a unit. They are also physically stronger. While Paul Burke and Mark McCall are both brave and willing tacklers, their lack of weight makes it physically impossible for them to stop the attacker before he crosses the gain line. I am sure that the Irish management will have spent a great deal of time organising the defence in general after the Western Samoan game.
We must remember also that the Australians, being a touring side, are training together every day and will therefore probably be far more coordinated than the Irish side. Five changes in the backline alone since the last outing - albeit one enforced by injury - reflects the uncertainty of the selectors in this area.
In regard to back play in general, one thing is for sure, we will have to devote far more time and energy to coaching back play in the future than we have done heretofore in Irish rugby. The vast majority of our coaches have been forwards and far more thought, time and energy has been devoted to forward play.
In the past you could, effectively, shut out a good backline by depriving them of possession.
The new laws have shifted the balance. A better backline can have a far greater impact on the game as a result. When we do get possession, I hope the Irish backs intend to run at their opponents with conviction and innovation. The backline selected would appear to indicate that this is the intention.
The Australians have managed to go unbeaten on this tour so far without, by their own admission, reaching any great heights. The cancellation of the midweek match was a bonus for them, leaving them with a much fresher squad and fewer injury worries. They have always produced their big tour performances in the internationals. They will know they are likely to be on the receiving end of a backlash from the Irish side at the start of the game.
Visiting teams to Lansdowne Road have always expected a warm reception. However, they will also tell you that they expect the opening storm to pass over reasonably quickly. It is up to the Irish players today to ensure that the visitors meet a prolonged storm.
In wishing the team and their new captain well, I would remind them that none of their supporters will be unreasonable if they lose the game, but there will be a lot of disappointment if there is not a huge improvement.
Irish rugby, both on and off the pitch is badly in need of the encouragement of a much improved performance.