New Zealand's use of their physique is incredible but we should be able to compete, writes Liam Toland
THE CANUCKS are gone, the All Blacks are gone and finally the Pumas are gone. And what a few weeks we've had. The Celtic Tiger is gone and soon G W Bush will be too and God only knows who'll go with him. So what are we all left with? The Magners League and the Heineken Cup of course! There's no end to it, so bring it on.
This time around the goalposts have moved and the big boys are returning to a very different environment than the one they left a few short weeks ago. Critically what the Munster-All Blacks fixture has achieved is that for every tackle-bag holder in the four proud provinces of Ireland there's hope. Hope that one day their toil will be rewarded. Having played and held tackle bags in equal measures I know the value of hope, that one day the train crash will arrive wiping out all competition for places, leaving a clear line to the European Cup final where the winning try will be yours!
I've spoken to some of those involved in the Thomond Park fixture and they're standing 10 feet tall. It's important to realise that the non-Irish international players (over 80 per cent) are living the dream but not to the level the public may imagine. They are on average incomes over a 10-year period and in the main are reduced to the coach's rhetoric. . . "you're not in the team this week. I know you're playing better than him, but he's an international". I had one coach who would bring us into the "but" office to tell us the news. We'll call him Jed. So Jed would tell me, you're playing great Liam, your tackle count is high and your support is excellent . . . BUT . . .
The autumn series is special for one reason. Once a year we get to pit ourselves against the best in the world. And if we're really honest, as supporters we'll admit that we're all trying to spot the new tricks that the Southern Hemisphere have conjured up over the "closed" season. What's their take on the ELVs?
New Zealand coach Graham Henry is a pretty dour chap but he and his team manage to reinvent the wheel with ease. There are countless developments in the Southern Hemisphere's game and the mood is very positive throughout but it is quickly moving away from "our" game.
The use of their physique is incredible but I'm not convinced that as athletes we're far enough behind to warrant surrender before kick-off.
Take Christian Cullen as an example. At 5ft 11in (1.80m) and 13 stone 5lb (85kg) he's pretty ordinary! However, he's the most capped All Black number 15 of all time and with 46 international tries is second only to Doug Howlett (another ordinary specimen!). Cullen managed all this by his 27th birthday. So how are two ordinary athletes mixing it with the big boys and coming out on top?
I remember witnessing Christian Cullen live in Twickenham in 1996 playing for the New Zealand Barbarians against England. The power and pace he displayed were incredible. He admits the source of his power is his core strength. Or more accurately put, his belly area. Outside of his pace and football, his ability to maximise his physique on the point of contact was what allowed him to ride so many tackles. If you require a reminder just visit YouTube.
Time and again the All Blacks offload on their terms. And when they do the support runner accelerates on to the ball with such ferocity it takes him through contact. This of course is a mindset that can be tuned and taught through hours of drills.
Breaking each and every component down into its constituent part before building it back up. I understand that if basic movement skills aren't developed by year 10 then they may be lost forever.
Remember this is the computer age and our young are sitting when they should be playing. So it's vital to coach the basic continuity skills to the young.
So to the match of the weekend or indeed the season if you're from Connacht or Ulster. Connacht have in the recent past been hampered by the fixture list.
The Magners League fixture list has not been kind to them. Over the years Munster, Leinster and Ulster have fielded full sides against them. But due to the international fixtures these teams have had reduced sides against Connacht's competitors from Scotland and Wales.
For Connacht to achieve their season goal - Heineken Cup qualification - they must end this season ahead of Ulster or ahead of both a Scottish and Welsh side. Ulster's deserved victory against Munster a few weeks back will have hurt Connacht badly. Therefore tonight's game takes on mammoth proportions. So where can Connacht exert dominance?
Their lineout has been their strength over the years, but particularly in defence. I expect Andrew Farley to push the ever-improving but ill-disciplined Ryan Caldwell every inch of the way. He'll need to as Mick McCarthy, a 6ft 4in (1.93m) backrow will be under pressure to combat the range of options in Ulster's lineout.
Johnny O'Connor will sorely miss John Muldoon tonight, particularly with Stephen Ferris returning to an Ulster backrow that includes David Pollock and South African recruit Robbie Diack.
The Portumna captain leads from the front, where his aggression at the breakdown would somewhat balance the physique of the Ulster backrow. I'd love to see his ability tested in a red or blue jersey where his other skills could come to the fore.
The game tonight will centre around the lineout with Ulster's options causing Connacht's normally excellent defensive lineout trouble. The breakdown, without Muldoon, will also be dominated by Ulster and that will allow Ulster to attack the 12 and 13 channel. Gavin Duffy and Keith Matthews will have to tune in very quickly and Matthews' lack of matches may tell against him.
