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Ex-Irish fullback on what Ireland 'would love' about facing the All Blacks
The All Blacks 96-17 win over Italy made some viewers uncomfortable but Ireland won’t be one of them according to former Irish fullback Rob Kearney.
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Whilst a range of outcomes is still possible with neither pool A or pool B determined yet, Ireland face the prospect of facing New Zealand in a do-or-die quarter-final.
After watching Italy get demolished, Kearney said the thing his former team ‘would love’ about the All Blacks is the difference in defence with South Africa and France.
“I think if there is one weakness to this New Zealand team, it’s the defence,” Kearney told Virgin Media Sport.
“They are very passive, they give the opposition a lot of time and space on the ball that the Irish attackers would love.
“They are not nearly as aggressive as South Africa or France are.”
Despite conceding 96 points Italy still managed to produce two tries out wide through well-constructed play.
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The first to Ange Capuozzo came from a strike play that manipulated the All Blacks’ edge and the shifty finisher took advantage.
Monty Ioane managed to combine with former England prospect Paolo Odogwu to score late in the exact same corner.
Defence 
108
Tackles Made
125
16
Tackles Missed
33
87%
Tackle Completion %
79%
Kearney explained that it was Italy’s ability to score 17 points that will have Ireland confident that they can exploit the same space more effectively.
“We saw Italy get around them three or four times tonight and quite early on in the first five minutes they just didn’t have the skillset to do anything with that space that they manipulated,” he said.
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“Certainly, defensively from this All Blacks team, I think Ireland, should we get there in a quarter-final, will be able to exploit quite a bit of space.”
The All Blacks have seen the capabilities of Ireland’s attack which dismantled them in the final two Tests in New Zealand last year.
Ireland were able to score the first try in all three Tests, each time in the first 10 minutes after breaking through the line early.
Australian coach Matt Williams agreed that the time the All Blacks’ defence offers teams is ‘huge’ for a team like Ireland.
During Ireland’s battle with South Africa their attack failed to really get going for multiple reasons, one of them was the slow ruck speed and the oncoming rush from the Springboks line.
“The South African defence is the unique defence in this tournament. They are so compact and so hard,” Williams said.
“Harder and faster and more compact than any other team, where Scotland’s defence is similar to New Zealand’s but not identical.
“Any defence that allows Ireland time to get in three passes, we saw the New Zealand defence allow the Italians to get in three passes, that will cause them trouble.
“Because if Ireland can get three passes in, they are very creative.
“Very, very creative on space and attacking that space. We saw against the South Africans, Ireland just couldn’t get to three passes very often, when they did they did a good job.
“If they can multiply those opportunities, especially if they get their lineout working, it doesn’t make it easier but it’s less awkward.
“They give you that extra second, which is huge. Huge in decision-making in international rugby.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Dear Robbie, Please return to the Crusaders next season. Sincerely, Scott
1 Go to commentsDid the big E call the Irish the ‘White Can’ts’? That would’ve been good
28 Go to commentsDalton Papalii will be lucky to be selected on the Matchday 23. Ardie Savea, Ethan Blackadder, Luke Jacobson, and Peter Lauki are all as good or better openside flankers
9 Go to commentsScott Barrett is a lock and they have a much longer shelf life than a loose forward. Far more likely that Barrett will still demand a starting position based on performance at age 33 at RWC 2027 than Savea, whose explosive athleticism will have declined and he will in all likelihood have been surpassed by Hoskins Sotutu, Wallace Siti, Peter Lauki and Brayden Iose.
9 Go to commentsExtremely frustrating to get yet more speculation over whether or not Eben actually counted 12 players or not, but honestly big respect to McCloskey for keeping it classy and not pointing out Etzebeth’s hypocrisy. The Irish are a popular team outside of Ireland because they do their talking on the pitch, and its honestly a PR masterclass that they’re keeping it that way following Etzebeth’s provocation.
28 Go to commentsGood option for the lineout lost there.
1 Go to commentsIt’s not like Saffas have a long history of spouting absolute shite at any & every occasion. Oh wait… The dangers of an inferior third world education strike again.
28 Go to commentsI’m so glad we’re revisiting this. Really needs to be dissected further. I’m also so glad that a guy in the stands who wasn’t anywhere near the field when any of it would have been said (and even confirms this) has taken the lead and commented as Ireland. Definitely cleared it all up. This article would be hilarious if it wasn’t so misleading.
28 Go to commentsits such a shame he hasn’t achieved more success at club level. He’s really not been a potent finisher for a while now, but he’s still excellent in the kick chase. That’s the kind of skillset that generally only gets appreciated when you’re playing in premiership and european finals. I’m not sure whether the challenge cup counts given the quality of the competition seems lower than in previous years, but his duel with Mapimpi should be enthralling.
1 Go to commentsThe point is the irish players were arrogant,call it like you want sugar coat it aswell but they were you could see it in their way they handeled themselfs on the field when they got something right so dont tell me it was not arrogance it was,you can fool other people but not me,and to say to one of our players see you in the final put a nail in the coffin for this bullsh@t,just be grown men and accept it that you were arrogant,you could if seen it from a mile away, and then you lost to the allblacks what a cocky move that didnt work out for you ,Eben was right when he said u were arrogant,the point is you will deny it because you lost it all just grow some balls and move on we had won you lost accept it.
28 Go to comments“summer tour of North and South America” so its a summer tour of america?
1 Go to commentsEverybody is giving the Irish players the benefit of the doubt in ‘what they meant’, but none of these pundits or commentators offer the same courtesy to Eben. I don’t think Eben went, 1, 2, 3… etc. What might have happened is he didn’t count and when the 3rd or 5th guy said he went, hang on why are so many of them saying this… and then started to concentrate on it more and more as players continue to say it. So no, he didn’t count it, he realised many Irish players said it and made an assumption based on that… The Irish team was VERY confident at the time and I do believe they believed they were going to win the World Cup, which borders a bit on the arrogant side…
28 Go to commentsI can see how some of the Irish players would have said”see you in the final” as a gentle comment after a victory. It’s open to interpretation but it’s clumsy language. I don’t know the fella but I assure you Eben doesn’t have an axe to grind with Ireland. He has never been the media seeking pro. Oh and BTW it is I’ll be our winter in July so won’t be wet.
28 Go to comments*McCloskey*: _I saw this clip. Like, I wasn’t playing that game; I was in the stands…so you don't know sh!t in other words, infact you know just as much as Goode on this matter. I will believe the guy who was on the pitch when things were said as appose to two people speculating over what was said._
28 Go to comments@ turlough dream on buddy. Your boys are in for one tough time down in sa this summer…
28 Go to commentsI think Goode is looking to establish a platform for himself. Eben said “Probably” so that suggests he wasn’t counting. It’s an estimate Goode. I think even with your short and uneventful experience with the Sharks you probably realise winding up Saffas will get you some airtime. It’s a none event. Move on
28 Go to commentsRugby has never been as structured and synthetically pleasing as it is at this moment. The game is simply beautiful and messing with it too much will ruin it for everyone. I can't help but feel that over the past decade or so many rules have been changed to accommodate a certain hemisphere and counter another. Perhaps I am wrong but I somehow don’t think so.
2 Go to commentsNoted some excellent defensive steals from the Rebs last week against the Reds, largely J Canham, I think. It’s not a Rolls Royce but they are a real threat with their defensive line out at the beginning matches. What do you make of Canham Nick, WBs squad material?
86 Go to commentsCoin flip between Ardie and Scott Barrett. Both have their pros and cons, and both would probably be decent. Ardie has way more passion on the field, but that hasn’t always translated into the best decisions. They will both turn 34 at the next World Cup, so both will most likely have their best days a few years behind them. It’s hard to imagine now, but looking at young players coming through Ardie will probably be under the most pressure to retain his place in the team. Beauden Barrett also an outside chance if Razor sees him as the first choice 10.
9 Go to commentsQuality stuff from Flats. Rugby can’t replace football nor should we want it to. I think the ‘product’ (awful term sorry) now is absolutely fantastic. Growing the game shouldn’t be at the expense of losing its brutal beauty.
2 Go to comments