ON RUGBY:The fundamentals remain solid, yet there seems confusion as to whether they are a running and passing
team, or a kicking team (or a bit of both), writes GERRY THORNLEY

THIS IS all becoming a little tediously repetitive. An Ireland team so close yet so far from tearing up trees, and darned match officials, whose influence on games in this Six Nations has been far, far too pronounced. Ireland have had the rawest deal, and perhaps they are paying for incurring the wrath of the IRB and refereeing fraternity to a degree with their reaction to last season’s law amendments.

In any event, if you’re an Arsenal fan as well as an Ireland one, two disgraceful decisions by match officials at critical points leave a particularly sour taste. Match officials are human beings. They make mistakes, all the more so when they only have a split second. The key is probably to give themselves a time-out as much as they possibly can.

Ironically, in an interview in the Welsh newspaper Western Mail, Jonathan Kaplan said his perfect game is when virtually nobody notices him. Alas, again this didn’t apply in any of the weekend’s three games, and least of all at the Millennium Stadium (with Romain Poite too fastidious as ever at Twickenham, and Bryce Lawrence declining France a match-winning late penalty in Rome which many referees might have awarded, especially in Paris). To compound this, Kaplan simply abrogated his responsibilities, and Peter Allan underlined why he is not up to it in making a judgment call which he cannot be sure of simply because it didn’t happen as he said it happened.

Ireland were like a fighter ahead on points around about the eighth round only for their opponent to knee them in the groin, whereupon the referee merely gave Ireland an eight-second count. Groggy, Ireland eventually regrouped, and twice had their man on the ropes in the final rounds, but failed to deliver the redemptive blow.

Ireland had enough chances to win twice over, when you consider they probably butchered three tries, and only conceded one – which was illegal on three to four counts.

The fundamentals remain solid, yet there seems confusion as to whether they are a running and passing team, or a kicking team (or a bit of both), and they seem to have lurched from one to the other.

Central to this has been the half-back/outhalf issue, with Declan Kidney’s handling of the Jonathan Sexton/Ronan O’Gara conundrum appearing not to benefit either player or the team. You could argue both ought to have the experience to cope but, firstly, let’s look at it from Sexton’s perspective. He is removed just past the hour against Italy and France to see O’Gara come up with a match-winning drop goal in the first game but not quite pull the iron from the fire in the second. He is then omitted, having presumably played to orders mostly (even if he could have mixed up his game a little more) before being prematurely pitched into two tight games from the bench with Ireland leading by six and four points.

Now look at it from O’Gara’s perspective. He largely does what’s asked of him against Italy and France, and even more so when starting against Scotland, only to be removed with each match in the balance. Whoever starts on Saturday, and certainly whoever comes in from the bench, will feel they still have a point to prove.

Throw in the failed gamble on Tomás O’Leary’s fitness and form, which was then compounded by injuries to him and, last Saturday, Eoin Reddan, and Ireland have used six different half-back combinations to date. Given Ireland’s need to play their most physical combinations against England, and recalling how they played in the win at Twickenham last season, the strongest case is probably to start O’Leary, if fit, and Sexton this Saturday, with O’Leary also there to put some manners on Ben Youngs early doors!

As a contrast, it’s instructive to note how England coach Martin Johnson has been utterly vindicated in resisting media campaigns for showboating individualists such as Danny Cipriani and Shane Geraghty in sticking with Toby Flood, while having the experience of Jonny Wilkinson to call on. (A similarly consistent approach has been taken toward Youngs and his understudy, Danny Care). Likewise, Warren Gatland backed James Hook for the full 80 minutes last Saturday, even though he had Stephen Jones on 98 caps sitting on the bench. Even Marc Lievremont has backed Francois Trinh-Duc.

As ever, there is a tendency to over-react to defeat, with Luke Fitzgerald’s head first on the chopping block. Ireland do not have the playing numbers to emulate, even to the slightest degree, Lievremont’s self-preserving use of the guillotine; not that such an approach would be advisable. His tinkerman selections are at the root of French problems, and one wonders how any of his players or assistant coaches can trust him anymore.

For example, rewind a couple of games and there was a clarion call for Keith Earls to be dropped. But look at what retaining faith in Earls has achieved. Talking to three distinguished former back-three Ireland internationals, all ultimately came to the conclusion the best option may well be to stick with Fitzgerald, albeit perhaps looking to mix up the back three a little. They reasoned to drop Fitzgerald, say for Gavin Duffy as a stop-gap measure, would further undermine him, and that to move Tommy Bowe or Earls there would be an unfair ask. Fitzgerald’s confidence is a concern, and he will be targeted by an England team which, with a Slam at stake, may resort to kicking more. Fitzgerald is a gifted player who just needs to relax more (and maybe have a one-on-one session with that master of positional play, Girvan Dempsey), but whichever way Kidney goes, it will be a gamble.

Admittedly, the team’s enthusiasm looks a little low and they possibly could do with some young tyros to reinvigorate them. For example, Fergus McFadden’s palpable confidence would probably benefit the mix, as might Andrew Trimble say, Rhys Ruddock, or, from the start this time, Seán Cronin.

But it’s almost too late now, and having backed this team almost en bloc, save for another change or two at half-back, Kidney and co may feel compelled to stick with them. For example, Seán O’Brien or David Wallace hardly deserve to be omitted, and unless his ankle injury is hugely affecting him Jamie Heaslip is due a big game. You don’t drop one of your few world-class players when hosting a Grand Slam-seeking England for their first visit to the rebuilt Lansdowne Road.

While there is no silverware at sake for Ireland – when there should be – in terms of emerging from the Six Nations with self-belief and what they’re trying to do, beating England is almost imperative now.