ON RUGBY:The Ireland team's conditioning was phenomenal on Saturday evening, especially in that end game
THERE WAS a pivotal moment in Saturday’s game at Twickenham that for me encapsulated the difference between the teams. England wing Mark Cueto tapped down the ball from a kick-off. Danny Care took off in possession and chipped the ball ahead. It was a poor decision but it wasn’t primarily about his choice.
The Ireland player that caught the ball and made the mark inside the visiting 22, thereby averting the danger, was Tomás O’Leary. It was just one of a hundred things the Corkman did but that cameo reinforced for me how Ireland won the key duels.
O’Leary out-thought and outfought the volatile English scrumhalf and it went far beyond getting that penalty reversed for Care’s belligerence.
It was a scenario played out right across the pitch. England captain Steve Borthwick prides himself on being a shrewd lineout tactician but he was completely eclipsed in that facet of the game by Paul O’Connell.
Ireland employed the five-man lineout on several occasions, a great tactic in the conditions, first in terms of winning ball but also in orchestrating a driving maul. It was a gambit that worked a treat and England found hard to defend against.
All over the pitch Ireland won the individual contests: Stephen Ferris over James Haskell, Jamie Heaslip over Nick Easter, David Wallace over Lewis Moody, Jonathan Sexton/Ronan O’Gara over Jonny Wilkinson, the Irish midfield against their counterparts in white as well as those battles that I have already mentioned.
Ireland were sharper, more streetwise and had that cutting edge that England, for all their possession and territory, never managed to replicate. The visitors displayed character, mental resilience, discipline and ruthlessness in abundance.
Ireland coach Declan Kidney also showed his tactical nous both in changing up the team and the timing of those substitutions. The team’s conditioning was phenomenal, especially in that end game. The statistics are staggering: 99 tackles made (over double England’s tally) and just one missed.
In examining Ireland’s performance it should also be noted they were never going to come to Twickenham and dominate England in their backyard. The home side were well prepared for this game. They had no injury concerns, had the five-week lead-in period they wanted prior to the Six Nations and went into the game on the strength of two victories. Essentially they had no excuses.
Where England fell down a little on the day was to be suckered into playing a more expansive game in the opening 20 minutes, almost as if they were pandering to media criticism of previous sterility. How many yards did they make and how many chances did they create? They posed more problems when they reverted to a more direct style.
Saturday’s international means more to me and I suspect the greater Irish Diaspora over here than any other international during the season.
There are 800,000 Irish-born people living in the UK and for us beating England provides those platinum bragging rights.
I mentioned in a previous column how I could identify with the BBC television series Three Men in a Boat and specifically the time when Dara Ó Briain took Griff Rhys Jones and Rory McGrath to the Irish waterways. Ó Briain was very sensitive to any slights, perceived or otherwise, about Ireland or things Irish.
You can see the latent patriotism.
I appreciate his perspective all the more since moving to London. I love where I come from, love the fact I am Irish and those feelings have been heightened by moving away. People left for England in the 1950s and 1960s out of necessity and later generations sought opportunities here.
In moving within the Irish community in London I am struck by how much more they seem to express their pride in Ireland.
For those that live at home there is no need, but here it defines you within the environment in which you live: a small enclave within a massive population. England have 1.2 million rugby players, Ireland’s playing contingent numbers about 114,000; figures that reinforce the magnitude of the task on an annual basis.
Whether it’s going to work – in my case playing rugby with London Irish – or going out socially, a victory at Twickenham represents precious currency in any conversation. One thing I noticed when I first arrived in London was that English people’s sense of humour was different: I’m not saying better or worse just different. You’d have to tailor the slagging slightly.
It’s also important for me to stress I have a lot of English friends, who are great company, but that merely ups the ante when it comes to the annual Six Nations clash: it can be a long 12 months. I didn’t go to the match primarily because I had to play for London Irish yesterday.
As a spectator I become too involved, find it emotionally very draining and it’s certainly not conducive to a relaxing day ahead of a match. In fact the last time I was at Twickenham for an Ireland game, I was playing and that certainly doesn’t hold too many fond memories.
I’d like to point out at this point that I do not have a printing press in the apartment and even if I did I wouldn’t have been able to satisfy all the requests for tickets this weekend. The system here is completely different to Ireland in that I do not receive a chance to buy a ticket through the club. It doesn’t stifle the inquiries, though.
One in particular amused me ahead of last year’s Grand Slam decider in Cardiff. A guy who I hadn’t seen or spoken to since we played for Ireland at schools level rang me, looking for four tickets because someone had let him down. I said to him, “Look why stop at four, why don’t I just put you down for a corporate box?” It took a little time for the penny to drop.
I’m glad in some respects I couldn’t go on Saturday because it was, as I say, emotionally draining and I was agitated enough just watching it on television. Speaking of which, I texted my good buddy, secondrow partner at London Irish and England international Nick Kennedy that it’s going to be a long 12 months for him if he dares to step out of line verbally: those bragging rights are just so sweet.
