RUGBY ANALYST: IN IRELAND there's eight months of crap weather and then winter comes.
During the perfect storm in Limerick my mind drifted to the Wales versus South Africa fixture in Cardiff earlier that afternoon and I recalled the adage that Ireland would be a great country if we could only roof it!
Limerick last Saturday was an opportunity for all concerned to flex their muscles but the conditions simply spoiled the chance. The purpose of this fixture was simple; answer several key questions for Declan Kidney that would allow him and his staff to plan strategically for the future.
There were obvious winners but Les Kiss was a definite loser.
This morning he will have no idea whether his players bought into his defensive systems. There were tackles made but his system wasn't tested. The highly-experienced Alan Gaffney will realise also that although his back line was stunted by the weather they will have to get players running on to the ball consistently, forcing better opposition into decisions.
Your back three scoring five tries, with your backrow scoring three, indicates a free-flowing match of counter attacking and well-designed patterns. A game of fun, the fruits of hard work, if you will. Although a nice opener, these are games any coach dreads because there's far more to lose than to win.
Unfortunately, bad habits can creep in unnoticed in such fixtures, where it's almost impossible to judge the performance of the team but especially the individual. For instance, Stephen Ferris had an outstanding opening where his football and physicality were spot on. However, as the game drifted along, the pattern and shape slowly ebbed away. So how does this affect Ferris?
His entire career he's been close to the action, running lines that are natural to him and his team. He's understood what the opposition are trying to achieve and can alter his game accordingly. To clarify; there's a simple predictability about most fixtures. Canada's ineptitude took the predictability from the fixture, making it impossible for Ferris to find a rhythm when Canada had the ball, ditto for Shane Jennings and Jamie Heaslip. All three worked extremely hard and achieved but they'll recognise last Saturday was about being professional and getting the job done.
All week Kidney will have put his charges through a variety of drills and scenarios built to maximise Ireland's key strengths. He would assume a basic understanding of rugby from his opposition that, for instance, by taking a ball off the top from a lineout would result in Canada doing something specific to counter but alas, they couldn't even do that.
For another instance, late in the second half Ireland performed a complicated backrow move from the base of a very solid scrum which involved David Wallace, Peter Stringer and eventually Shane Horgan, who cut a hard, aggressive line back in field. Instead of racing into a carefully created gap, Horgan found a pile of Canucks loitering in places they simply should not have been. A laboured point, I know, but have you ever wondered why at the lower levels, nobody buys your dummies? Strange as it may seem it's because poorer players often don't notice you have dummied. In other words, you can't dummy a dummy.
So what questions needed to be asked and more importantly, what were answered? Clearly Kidney has a conundrum at tighthead. Tony Buckley is an extraordinary specimen who treats international rugby players with total disregard. I couldn't believe my eyes last season when he'd swat grown men out of his way. But he's been confined to club rugby this season and needs more rugby. It's also very easy in the professional era to expect instant results so we have to be patient with him. It's a long time ago but John Hayes was learning for a long periods on his way to 87 caps.
Backline selection for Kidney is another major question, where Keith Earls should buy a lottery ticket, or better still, bank shares. We could all do with a lift! What impressed me most with Earls and Luke Fitzgerald last Saturday wasn't their obvious skills and courage but their feet. When watching them, concentrate on their footwork and you'll notice the speed at which they get pumping their feet.
Neither player is huge but they generate so much power from their quick feet and attitude when in traffic it magnifies their strength.
Assuming the conditions against New Zealand will be less harsh but similar there is need for focus this week. It's very understandable that for stretches last Saturday Ireland appeared disjointed. But come Saturday, Ireland must develop a pattern off slow ball. Remember Richie McCaw will be prowling. Each provincial team have their own method of restarting from "dead" ball and Ireland need to ensure a successful slow down by McCaw doesn't scupper our ambition.
