Perversely almost, the pressure is on the Irish team when they play Canada at Lansdowne Road tomorrow (1.45), more so than when they played the All Blacks. While defeat was uniformly expected against the mighty men in black, defeat in this one would be, if not a disaster, then at least a mini-disaster. It's time to start winning.
Mentally, this Irish team has to be spot on, and, more so than in the All Blacks' match, much of it will have to come from within. An improvement in the inclement weather is forecast, but there is nothing like the hype, and so a crowd in the region of 15,000 is not going to generate the same support from the stands.
Whatever about the public perception of Canada, the Irish team have to treat the visitors with due respect. They're a hungry outfit themselves, and, like all these less traditional powers, fixtures such as this one are gold dust. "We don't get chances like this too often," Canadian Gareth Rees pointed out yesterday, "so my objective as captain is that we win."
Ireland's preparations haven't been ideal. Predictably, the injury jinx continued to strike right up until yesterday when Eric Miller became the third Lion in the pack to be sidelined this season due to the ankle ligament injury he picked up against the All Blacks. The blow is softened by the maturing form of Victor Costello, who steps in to win his sixth cap.
Even Pat Whelan, who famously opined that Costello had not come on "one iota" when explaining his omission from last summer's Development squad, admits that the 27-year-old has progressed a few iotas this season.
"Victor has done exceptionally well this season for Leinster. He's recovered from last season when he had a lot of problems and was a long way off the pace of international rugby. But we know for a fact that he has upped his workrate this year and he gets another chance to prove himself at international level."
The match is likely to provide a searching enough examination of Costello's improved defence. Canada will be tough up front, strong in the set-pieces and will pummel away at the fringe defence all day long if given the chance. If Ireland don't get it right, and establish a lead by the first or second quarter, then it could be a long day at the office.
The bottom line is that there needs to be clear evidence of a new, Brian Ashton-inspired pattern of play emerging. In a way, this means doing unto the Canadians what the All Blacks did unto Ireland. By taking the game away from the set-pieces and on to fourth, fifth and sixth phase, and by moving the ball wide, the hope is that Ireland can stretch the Canadians to breaking point.
Accordingly, the coach has set loftier ambitions for this game. "We've got three aims this time. Number one is to win. Number two is to improve on our performance against the All Blacks and number three is to be far more pro-active in the way we play the game, so that the players take out on to the field of play and put into operation the things that we've done on the training pitch."
Canada will keep Ireland honest and will be a litmus test of sorts. Ashton has studied the video of Canada's 28-25 defeat to Wales last July in depth. "They're a physical side . . . They've got a big pack. They've got Gareth Rees at 10 who's a physical player, but also a very good ball-player . . . They're the sort of side, and we've stressed this all week, that if mentally you're not prepared, you could find yourselves in a bit of trouble."
Traditionally, this has been a bit of an Irish cliche - the ability to raise their game when underdogs against top-notch opposition, anti-climactically falling away against supposedly lesser outfits. One merely has to think back to this time last year, when Ireland produced their best of three pre-Christmas displays against Australia, and their worst in two defeats to Western Samoa and Italy.
Newly-installed captain Nick Popplewell missed the Samoan game, but hinted that the players had been overworked in the build-up to that encounter. "We're in a totally different management situation. Sure, the players may have been a bit complacent, but they went into that game very, very tired as well.
"We've no excuses on that front. Friday and Saturday are total rest days and it certainly won't happen again," added Popplewell, who will be seeking to extend his "100 per cent record" after captaining Ireland to victory over Japan by 50-28 in the 1995 World Cup.
Essentially, this game can probably go one of two ways, if that doesn't sound too Irish. Either Ireland aren't mentally right, and come down a level from the All Blacks' game, thereby giving Canada a foothold and ensuring a long, awkward afternoon. Or alternatively, they pick up where they started against the All Blacks, maintain that early level of performance, are really up to it and ultimately win in the manner they should.
In its way then, this is a bigger test. Canada will match the Irish pack for height and have a slight two-stone advantage in the scrum, but the hope would be that Kieron Dawson's speed and ability as a link will come to the fore, and that Ireland will attack the Canadians out wide.
If there is a clear Ashton imprint, and the first shoots of a new pattern emerging, if Ireland put together some good passages of sustained rugby and win by scoring a few tries in the process, then that will constitute a good day at the office.
