Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
NZ NZ

The warning from history this Ireland side can't ignore going into a World Cup year

By Liam Heagney
Jamie Heaslip during the 2015 Rugby World Cup Quarter Final match between Ireland and Argentina (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Joe Schmidt’s hint that he just might be leaving Ireland at the end of the 2019 World Cup wasn’t the only post-match quip to catch the eye when the curtain came down on Saturday on the November Test window.

ADVERTISEMENT

Over in London, a line arrived from England’s Eddie Jones that should help keep Schmidt and his players fully on their toes between now and the eagerly-awaited tournament in Japan. ‘You can be the best team now and not win the World Cup,’ warned the English coach.

Very true.

Regardless of what materialises in the upcoming Six Nations, Ireland will travel to Japan heaped with an expectation far in excess of the excess hype they travelled with to the 2007 edition… and every Irish supporter frighteningly knows what happened on that occasion in France.

After obliterating both South Africa and Australia in November 2006, Eddie O’Sullivan was suddenly fielding questions about Ireland lifting the trophy 11 months later. This giddiness didn’t dim with the loss of the championship title to France on points difference. It only ramped up further.

Video Spacer

However, rather than create history, Ireland arrived home prematurely from the finals, their berets rammed between their tails after they were embarrassingly knocked out at the pool stages. Meanwhile, the South Africans, whom they had buried the previous autumn in Dublin, went the whole way and lifted the trophy.

It’s a painful history lesson every Irish fan must not forget in this run-up to Japan 2019. Nothing in set in stone just because of what a team does the previous November, so stones on the road can be very much expected.

It’s one thing going undefeated in a four-game November programme mostly played in Dublin, quite another aspiring to go seven weeks undefeated in a country as unfamiliar as Japan will be.

ADVERTISEMENT

That said, Ireland are shaping up nicely. It was lack of squad depth that left Schmidt all at sea at England 2015. The coach was unable to cope at the quarter-final stage minus injured quartet Paul O’Connell, Peter O’Mahony, Johnny Sexton and Jared Payne while Sean O’Brien was suspended.

Three years later, he has taken great strides to lay foundations to ensure Ireland won’t be as exposed again if that type of major emergency materialises.

Ireland after their 2007 Pool exit (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images

Ireland’s four-match November programme was the equivalent of a World Cup pool and their dry-run was a useful exercise with the challenge of Scotland, Japan, Russia and Samoa in mind. Thirty-five players were given starts, six more capped as replacements. There were three debutants, Schmidt’s appetite to have a fresh look remaining healthy.

ADVERTISEMENT

This squad is now very definitely his own. Unlike in 2015, when he travelled with a selection that was much inherited from the previous regime, only a dozen of the 41 players that played this month were capped before he took over in November 2013.

With a World Cup campaign in mind, it was pleasing to see the curveballs tossed their way in recent weeks dealt with efficiently.

Look at how there was no loss of midfield focus with Robbie Henshaw a last-minute withdrawal against Argentina. How there was no back row panic with seeing the luckless O’Brien bundled out of the series with a broken arm versus the Pumas.

Brian O’Driscoll after Ireland crucial loss to France in 2007 (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images

And how there was no big drama that Dan Leavy had to cry off from the No7 berth to face the All Blacks. Josh van der Flier stepped up at the captain’s run and didn’t flinch from the gargantuan responsibility he was suddenly handed.
Certain positions still demand more attention than others, though. None more so than out-half given how Ireland went from Ian Madigan’s tears of joy to tears of despair in the space of seven 2015 days in Cardiff.

The back-up No10 had the high of successfully stepping off the bench for Johnny Sexton against France followed by the career low of starting against Argentina and not being able to exert the necessary play-making influence.

Madigan’s club situation was to blame, his lack of match time as Leinster out-half leaving him underprepared when handed the keys of the Ireland kingdom.

Lesson learned, it was Schmidt who levered Joey Carbery out of Leinster last summer to ensure he would get ample time as Munster No10. That is exposure now consolidated in the Test arena, the youngster being just one of two players in the Ireland November squad to appear in all four matches (Luke McGrath the other).

Battered BOD (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images

Having Carbery up to speed in case of a Sexton emergency is of paramount importance, but there is still work to be done. Carbery’s involvement in the big two against Argentina and New Zealand was only fleeting, so there is a debate to be had about giving him a Six Nations start to further ramp up his experience. The round three fixture away to Italy in Rome at the end of February is a perfect opportunity to give him a first championship start.

Conor Murray’s November absence can now also be considered a blessing in disguise. In Schmidt’s 58 games prior to this month, the Sexton/Murray partnership had been relied on to start on 36 occasions, so the sight of Sexton twice pairing up with Kieran Marmion, a player he had only ever started with once before, was another step forward in positively bringing the squad along.

Other excellent developments were the continued growth of fearless young duo James Ryan and Jacob Stockdale. They have each become inspiring players in a short space of time, standout examples to the multiple rookies Schmidt now has on his books as to what can be quickly achieved if the hard work is put in.

Important, too, was Niall Scannell’s on-going emergence as the starting back-up No2 to Rory Best, the veteran whose place at the top of the pecking order is secure.

With so many resources, Schmidt will have a few headaches cutting his choices down to the permitted 31 for Japan and the way he selects through the Six Nations will be intriguing. Does he go all out with his best team every week or mix it up as if it is a World Cup assignment?

He will spend his winter satisfied that most of the November stats stacked up nicely. Four wins for a 100 per cent record. Twenty tries scored, just four conceded. Forty-one clean breaks created, just 19 given up.

An immaculate scrum, with all 27 won; excellent discipline of just 19 penalties conceded in 320 card-less minutes, unlike the opposition who gave up 40.

Only the lineout, where eight throws were lost, was a cause for concern, particularly the pressure it comes under when its prime jumpers and hooker Best have been replaced near the end of a big game.

That’s a teaser to mull over, but it’s a nice one for Schmidt to have after his team came through a November programme undefeated for the third time in his fifth – and likely last – autumn series.

Video Spacer
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 2 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”?

34 Go to comments
j
john 4 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

15 Go to comments
A
Adrian 6 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

15 Go to comments
T
Trevor 9 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING Diamond demands law change while accusing Tigers of illegal activity Diamond demands law change while accusing Tigers of illegal activity
Search