Beating the All Blacks later this year and preparing for the 2011 World Cup loom large for the Ireland coach

AS STRANGE as it may seem, preparation time is running out for RWC 2011. On October 23rd, 2011 in Eden Park, New Zealand someone is going to raise the William Webb Ellis Trophy. Brian O’Driscoll will want to be that man. Declan Kidney is a leader and has vision and although he’ll never, ever, ever admit it, he has a plan.

With a Grand Slam and buckets of other trophies in the bag what does Kidney want from this Six Nations, and by extension the remainder of the year? It is never easy trying to read his mind. His selection of both Jerry Flannery and Rory Best in the match day 22 tells us Kidney wants his best players playing. He clearly wants them ready for the battles ahead in Twickenham and Stade de France.

Therefore, the Six Nations is a must win competition. Tomorrow, the trouble remains their lack of match fitness. So why not put Seán Cronin on the bench and give Best another run-out with fit cover for Flannery? Again, Kidney wants to win the Six Nations.

As crazy as it may seem there are bigger fish to fry this year. Ireland have a Six Nations, a summer tour and an Autumn Series, 11 Tests in total. They play New Zealand twice. As the last remaining outpost, the All Blacks must be the target. Therefore Ireland have five games (the Six Nations) before this June’s Yarrow Stadium All Black Test. There are three further Tests before the return fixture in Dublin this November.

History has shown us Ireland can’t beat New Zealand playing the same rugby that brought them so much success over the recent past, including the Grand Slam. Hence Kidney’s slight move away from the high pressure game of that series towards the freedom of last year’s autumn series. We should witness a further development of this tactic over the coming weeks, in preparation.

Ireland will have to get through some traffic but they could meet the All Blacks again in the RWC 2011 semi-final. That, however, is immaterial at this stage. What remains very material is that Ireland must beat the All Blacks in 2010 and the best chance is in November, in the Aviva Stadium.

The key to unlocking how is deep in Kidney’s head. His methods should unfold in front of our very eyes over the coming two months. Team selection is one criterion. The big one has been avoided but can’t be ignored. Ronan O’Gara is back at his game-managing best and certainly deserves selection whether Johnny Sexton is fit or not.

But can Ireland beat New Zealand with O’Gara at 10?

Yes, but a bigger question is more pertinent. Can New Zealand beat Ireland if O’Gara’s at 10?

Unfortunately the answer is also yes. With his added bulk in defence and ball carrying in attack Sexton looks the better bet for the All Blacks. O’Gara has the experience, class and the pedigree so Kidney will have to make that call sooner rather than later as victory over the All Blacks is key to Ireland’s growth towards RWC 2011.

Why Kevin McLaughlin over Alan Quinlan, Shane Jennings or Seán O’Brien? All three options would have added real value in Stephen Ferris’s absence. Tomorrow will tell much about McLaughlin’s lineout, defence and big-boy ability.

But the recent weeks have been very interesting. Much was made of the famous Shane Horgan-inspired try Brian O’Driscoll scored at the death against Brive. The bonus point certainly changed the pool. But the Isa Nacewa try on 44 minutes of that game tells much about McLaughlin.

Eoin Reddan launched a box kick which Brive number eight Antoine Claassen spilled into Gordon D’Arcy’s hands. McLaughlin cleared the subsequent ruck on the right-hand side of the pitch. The line he took for the next play was very interesting. Sexton attacked the gain line while McLaughlin headed for the opposition corner flag, way ahead of the ball! Spotting a slowdown in attack he glided back into position to take a pass from Rob Kearney down the left hand touchline. He then changed angle and attacked the weak shoulders of Jamie Noon and Nicolas Jeanjean before offloading a perfect circle pass to O’Driscoll, who fed Nacewa for the touchdown.

Brilliant natural understanding of field position from McLaughlin, which he followed with an excellent offload in traffic. He doesn’t have the Ferris dog in him but he has an Eric Miller-type presence, doing the simple things with quiet class, which is yet another option for Kidney.

Selection for key positions aside, Ireland have a glorious opportunity to build on last autumn. The focus should remain performance-centred on Ireland’s backrow and back three. In last season’s Championship both remained somewhat impotent, ball in hand. My hope for Ireland over the coming five matches remains strong on performance with further development of the subtle balance between kicking and running. The backrow and back three must be at the fore.

A winning culture takes years to create and should not be cast away this Six Nations but the big one remains the All Blacks. Ireland have the brains, experience and ability to win the tight games of this Six Nations. So let’s not forget how tight it was last year.

I really cringe at the thought that teams will target Ireland this year. What did they do last year? Ireland beat England, Scotland and Wales by one score. That said, I fear the Grand Slam will not be won this time round by any team. Ireland will come in joint top, with possibly France and/or England.

This Ireland team is happy, well organised, and knows what it needs to do but the Six Nations isn’t big enough. It must be the Rugby World Cup and the All Blacks stand in their way.