Ian Madigan: Johnny Sexton can build on performance

Ian Madigan watched from the bench as Johnny Sexton's effervescence allowed Ireland's backs to sparkle and fizz during the 50-7 victory over Canada at the Millennium Stadium.

It was a familiar vista for Madigan who has been privy to his Leinster team-mate's physical and mental well-being in pre-season training. Sexton, back at Leinster and ensconced with Ireland, is in a good place in every respect.

That was illustrated by the nature of his performance against Canada. So much of what he did was sumptuous in its execution, with just enough “works on”, as they say in the trade, to buff ahead of future matches.

Building momentum

“In fairness to Johnny he has been really good this week; he’s been building. He’s had a really good pre-season, probably the longest he’s had in two or three years. We are getting the fruits of that now,” Madigan said.

“He was brilliant, his passing was great, he kicked well out of hand, controlled things, his goal-kicking was very good and for him it’ll be about building momentum as the competition goes on.”

What might also please Ireland coach Joe Schmidt is the manner in which Madigan adjusted to the pitch of a fast-paced game when he arrived. It's an impressive quality.

“The pace was quick and a small bit frantic at times. I think having played in big games before you have that experience where you know to fit in first and try do one or two simple things well,” Madigan said.

“You are building your way into the game, feeling the tempo, what their line speed is like and you are getting information from the other players and making decisions based on that.”

Madigan was the catalyst for Ireland's seventh try, strong and nimble in stepping out of a couple of tackles, accelerating into the Canadian 22, and attracting the remaining cover before releasing Jared Payne.

“The thing I have been working on in training is drawing defenders to me and releasing players outside me. It’s been going well and it’s nice to see it coming into fruition in matches. It’s different in training; we wouldn’t be going full contact, it would only be grab stuff,” Madigan said.

Playmaker

“When the gap opened up for me there, the first thing is to get the foot down. Accelerating hard was drawing defenders to me; I felt them coming to me so as a playmaker I knew it was the time to pass.

“For me coming off the bench it was very satisfying to see the stuff we have been working on over the last three of four weeks come to fruition. It was nice to see some of our set plays and patterns work.

"It's about going back to the training park now, scouting Romania and seeing what threats they bring and how we can break them down. It's about building momentum as the tournament goes on."

Madigan was also full of praise for Payne.

"We saw Jared really stepping up. He is a player who reminds me a lot of Isa Nacewa; one of those guys who makes the right decisions, one of those guys you just want to pass the ball to," he said.

“He is good in defence, a pleasure to work with, knows the systems inside out, and he moves really well latterly.”