Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
NZ NZ

The Irish player that is striking fear into the hearts of Welsh fans

By Josh Raisey
Ireland players sing the national anthem (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

Joe Schmidt has named a very strong Irish side to travel to Wales this weekend with the hopes of derailing their pursuit of a Grand Slam.

ADVERTISEMENT

A victory would give the men in green a chance of a Championship win, providing England lose to Scotland at Twickenham in the succeeding game.

One particular selection that is drawing a lot of attention is the starting berth for Tadhg Beirne, who replaces Iain Henderson. Beirne is earning his first Six Nations start after some sensational form for Munster this season. While this selection is pleasing many Irish fans, it is causing a lot of concern for Welsh fans on Twitter.

Welsh supporters will know a lot about Beirne’s prowess after his two years with the Scarlets, where he won the Pro14, as well as the Pro14 Players’ Player of the Season award in the 2016/17 campaign. Many Welsh fans are happy that he is getting the start that he deserves, but frustrated it comes against them in such a crucial match.

Continue reading below…

Video Spacer

Beirne has been one of the form forwards in Europe over the past couple of seasons, and many Irish fans feel he is worthy of a starting place for Ireland on a regular basis, and many are expecting him to prove his worth at the Principality Stadium.

Wales have displayed a remarkable ability to retain the ball for sustained periods of time this season, none more so than their try against England after 35 phases. The addition of Beirne, and his formidable presence at the breakdown, could curtail the Welsh attack and prevent them from keeping hold of the ball. Beirne is one of the most dangerous locks over the ball in Europe, and his partnership with James Ryan is a worrying prospect for Welsh fans.

This is what they are saying:
https://twitter.com/Rhysj37/status/1106221430168043522
https://twitter.com/bigfilljewell/status/1106213530859159552
https://twitter.com/ffimthomas/status/1106209328149815296
https://twitter.com/denisohora/status/1106208564438290435
https://twitter.com/lloydmaliphant/status/1106204486387798016
https://twitter.com/JeffPhillips6/status/1106204169235517440
https://twitter.com/Samboevans/status/1106223000830070784
https://twitter.com/Dman_Casey/status/1106203628120039426
https://twitter.com/rewilliams85/status/1106208859125891072
https://twitter.com/tomascarrio/status/1106209294779891714
https://twitter.com/Annepop01/status/1106206917494558720

ADVERTISEMENT

Wales will still be confident going into this game, but many fans will know first hand what Beirne will be able to do to them.

Schmidt is possibly the most analytical coach in world rugby, and every decision he makes seems meticulously thought out. While the addition of Beirne will be a chance to see how he performs before the World Cup, the New Zealander will be acutely aware of what he brings, and so are the Welsh fans.

ADVERTISEMENT

Join free

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | Episode 6

Sam Warburton | The Big Jim Show | Full Episode

Japan Rugby League One | Sungoliath v Eagles | Full Match Replay

Japan Rugby League One | Spears v Wild Knights | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 10 | Six Nations Final Round Review

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | How can New Zealand rugby beat this Ireland team

Beyond 80 | Episode 5

Rugby Europe Men's Championship Final | Georgia v Portugal | Full Match Replay

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

J
Jon 9 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

35 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING 'It's an All Black discussion': The pair of young Hurricanes tipped for black jerseys The pair of young Hurricanes tipped for black jerseys
Search