AS BRIAN O’Driscoll told the rest of the Ireland squad beforehand, it’s the way a team responds to defeat that defines them. Saturday’s 20-16 win against a seriously fired up England, who wanted Ireland’s scalp desperately, was a significant win for all manner of reasons.
Not alone did it confirm much of what we should long since have known about this group of sportsmen, it steadied the good ship Ireland and validated everything Declan Kidney and his coaching ticket are about at a key moment in their tenure.
It also said as much about the squad’s resilience, resourcefulness, strength in depth and sheer quality as any performance in Kidney’s 16-match reign. Losing is part of any team’s development, and as hoped and even expected by some, Ireland responded positively to their unusual looseness in Paris with a much more focused, physically committed and cleverer performance.
You sensed there was too much honesty and quality in this group of players for there not to be a serious backlash in terms of their intensity and unwavering physical bravery, and also mentally and tactically.
Also desperate to win for John Hayes, as with all epic, sleeves-rolled-up Irish or Munster wins on the road under Kidney, everybody contributed. For two-try Tommy Bowe, man-of-the-match Jamie Heaslip, for his monumentally selfless defensive performance, and the awesome Stephen Ferris the plaudits, but the work-rate and toiling of the unsung Cian Healy, Rory Best, Donncha O’Callaghan and Gordon D’Arcy were just as significant.
“For an Irish team it will never be easy,” said Declan Kidney. “Unless we play full tilt, like we did today, what happened to us in Paris can happen us again. We have to play to our limit all the time, which is a big ask of fellas.
“A major thing is how you respond to adversity,” he added. “Sometimes momentum builds and it can carry you through and I think the way we met the adversity we met when we played over in Paris, we didn’t play as well as we could and it turned out to be a tough day out. But today our defence held up when they had their chances, which I was delighted with, and, on the other side, we were able to take most of our chances.”
Tomás O’Leary and Jonathan Sexton executed the game plan perfectly. Targeting Ugo Monye unmercifully, they kicked in the right areas, and ran the ball in the right areas.
Much sharper on the ball generally, Ireland also kicked better and chased better than England. In Paris, Ireland had run almost everything beyond the first receiver up the middle or out wide, and duly learned from that somewhat loose, if relatively one-dimensional approach by making better use of the blindside and the blindside wingers. Indeed, their second and third tries came from these respective routes.
Another aspect of the display which particularly pleased Kidney was the way Ireland stuck at it. “We didn’t get too impatient, I think we probably went for something inside the 22 once, but I’ll back guys to go for it. I think (also) our defence at the fringes because with the law, the hindmost foot, the way England play it was extremely difficult to get the ball back within the laws of the game.
“We said to the players at half-time this wasn’t just going to happen, we were going to have to go after it,” admitted Kidney. “The lads on the touchline were fresh and I have belief in those lads as well.”
His selection from virtually one to 22 was vindicated, right down to recalling Tony Buckley to the bench, though he would never claim as much. Evidently delighted with the impact of his replacements, Kidney said: “It’s a 22-man game. Paddy Wallace and Kevin McLaughlin were around in case they were needed and that’s what I like about rugby. Maybe I go on about it, the generosity of spirit, the way those fellas came over, do the warm-up, they feed in.
“Brian’s okay to go and there’s no problem with Paddy, and that sense that he gives around the dressingroom. It’s incalculable, and that’s what we need in Ireland, we have to make our collectiveness stronger than our individuality.”
Ireland now probably need a miracle from Italy or, ironically, a massive favour from England against France to retain the title, but a good campaign and the consolation of a fifth Triple Crown in seven years is in the offing, though with the wild, free-scoring, comeback men from Wales up next, it doesn’t get any easier.
“It’s huge,” said Kidney of the penultimate Irish game in Croke Park a fortnight hence. “Wales have been really unlucky not to win all three. I don’t see them giving us the points that England and France got and they are a side that makes you play for the 80 minutes, as was shown last year when it was really just the kick of a ball, and we have to get that right.
“Last time they were in Croke Park they won, they seem to like it. They are playing a good game and I’m sure they will go after us. That’s the pleasing thing too, we were seen as a scalp at the start of the season and we’ve answered two out of three calls now and we’ve another two to answer but the Welsh one is the only one we’ll be concentrating on.”
Asked if it will it be high scoring, Kidney sighed: “Unfortunately.”
Ireland ought to have no additional casualties from such attritional warfare, with Kidney insisting that O’Driscoll, tripped by Riki Flutey, had not suffered concussion after the Ireland captain had taken Paul O’Connell’s knee in the side of his head, though one imagines he’ll be scanned nonetheless.
As punishment for ending O’Driscoll’s game, O’Connell not only inherited the captaincy but the post-match press conference. After Kidney quipped that they’ll have to fine the miscreant who was at fault for Ireland’s only missed tackle out of 100, O’Connell dryly noted that “knowing my luck it was probably me”.
In truth, with his old mucker O’Callaghan restored alongside him, this was much more like the real O’Connell, and his lineout brilliance was central to the second and third tries, even if it was also blighted by a couple of spillages. Two knock-ons and a knock-out, you might say.
