Quarter Final Number 1 - Ireland vs Wales - WALES ARE IN The Semis

First topic message reminder :

Well played Ireland...!

BlueNote wrote:I just checked the teams from that game - Ireland will be very close to the same team except Kearney and Murray in

Ferris was missing then too and O'Brien was playing blindside with Wallace at openside.

D24tress wrote:

RubyGuby wrote:Gethin Jenkins will probably be the fittest forward on the field - Gatland described him yesterday as someone who appears to be playing with a fire cracker up his arse - Do not underestimate this guy or think he is not match fit. He is our 5th back row player

Did he not say he was tired after 20mins though against fiji

super player but on the way back, hopefully our scrum can keep him at bay

Yeah but what about your backs...?

Did you see his try last week, any world class centre would have been proud, he beat seven men, five clinging to him helplessly as he dragged them the last few meters to the line.

maestegmafia wrote:

D24tress wrote:

RubyGuby wrote:Gethin Jenkins will probably be the fittest forward on the field - Gatland described him yesterday as someone who appears to be playing with a fire cracker up his arse - Do not underestimate this guy or think he is not match fit. He is our 5th back row player

Did he not say he was tired after 20mins though against fiji

super player but on the way back, hopefully our scrum can keep him at bay

Yeah but what about your backs...?

Did you see his try last week, any world class centre would have been proud, he beat seven men, five clinging to him helplessly as he dragged them the last few meters to the line.

Sounds like Dallaglio against Wales (twice)

Ireland announced....

15. R Kearney (Leinster)

14. T Bowe (Ospreys)

13. B O'Driscoll (Leinster, capt)

12. G D'Arcy (Leinster)

11. K Earls (Munster)

10. R O'Gara (Munster)

9. C Murray (Munster)

1. C Healy (Leinster)

2. R Best (Ulster) or S Cronin (Leinster)

3. M Ross (Leinster)

4. D O'Callaghan (Munster)

5. P O'Connell (Munster)

6. S Ferris (Ulster)

7. S O'Brien (Leinster)

8. J Heaslip (Leinster)

Replacements: S Cronin (Leinster) or D Varley (Munster), T Court (Ulster), D Ryan (Munster), D Leamy (Munster), E Reddan (Leinster), J Sexton (Leinster), A Trimble (Ulster)

maestegmafia wrote:

D24tress wrote:

RubyGuby wrote:Gethin Jenkins will probably be the fittest forward on the field - Gatland described him yesterday as someone who appears to be playing with a fire cracker up his arse - Do not underestimate this guy or think he is not match fit. He is our 5th back row player

Did he not say he was tired after 20mins though against fiji

super player but on the way back, hopefully our scrum can keep him at bay

Yeah but what about your backs...?

Did you see his try last week, any world class centre would have been proud, he beat seven men, five clinging to him helplessly as he dragged them the last few meters to the line.

And the chip for Halfpenny's try the week before...

roddersm wrote:

Sin é wrote:
ROG was not the major offender with regard to kicking the ball away - the problem was that everyone else was at it.

Sin it's not about the volume of kicks but the quality. I'd have to rewatch the game but my feeling at the time was that ROG put in a lot of poorly executed touch finders that were picked up by Byrne and booted back with interest. For whatever reason ROG struggled with his range that day. I'm not saying that he was the only offender.

Reddan getting concussed was another factor that day. Anyways the point is that if Byrne, Halfpenny or Williams are playing then any tactical kicking needs to be perfectly executed as they are all great kickers and good counterattackers.

Eh, Rods - you just claimed in your post above at 2.20pm : "Thats interesting because ROG kicked a lot against Wales in March and we came off worse in a game of arial ping-pong but then we had Fitzgerald at the back.

The major problem was that when Byrne/Williams or whoever booted the ball back down, Luke booted it back instead of running it back.

Sin é wrote:
Eh, Rods - you just claimed in your post above at 2.20pm : "Thats interesting because ROG kicked a lot against Wales in March and we came off worse in a game of arial ping-pong but then we had Fitzgerald at the back.

The major problem was that when Byrne/Williams or whoever booted the ball back down, Luke booted it back instead of running it back.

What I mean is that the problem wasn't the number of times ROG kicked but that the execution wasn't as good as it needed to be and Byrne was very well positioned to cut off the spiral kicks to the touchline. Clearly Wales had done their homework as ROG was motm with a very good kicking display against Scotland the week before.

Fitzgerald kicking the ball away poorly was a big problem and I've already said this.

Don't remind of that 6 Nations game. I don't even care about the controversial try. Both teams played poorly. Ireland played worse and deserved to lose. It was the worst example of kicking away possession for 80 minutes I've ever seen from either team. I was shocked at Ireland's tactics that day. But Deccie seemed to think that was the right way to play against Wales. Do you think Ireland will try to play a kick chase game again? I hope not. Both teams are in much better form now so hopefully it'll be a far better game.

My main worry about the Welsh is the number of tries they've scored in the last two games. I know they were against minnows. But nothing gets Welsh tails up like scoring tries. They're a confidence team that is now full of confidence. I've seen it so many times with Welsh teams. When they get the wind behind their sails they can start playing irresistible running rugby. I remember Scarlets playing London Irish in 2009. They were absolute shoite that year. But once they were given a sniff in the 2nd half they ran in three tries in about 20 minutes to win the match. It's the Welsh way. When they're confident they can score heavily, even with less possession. That's why I wanted Sexton to start this game for his superior tackling.

But overall I'm quite confident in the Irish. The game against Italy was done so professionally and clinically. They weren't put off by the cheap shots. They ground Italy down in the first half. Kicked themselves into a lead, and then finished them off with three tries when they tired. I think that composure as well as the boost they'll get from a large Irish crowd, will be the difference in a tight game against a very good Welsh side. I really do think the Heineken Cup winning experience will be helpful to Ireland psychologically. The players have battled their way out of many tight contests before. Composure under pressure is something they've learned over many years. Having said all that, I wouldn't even be a bit surprised if the Welsh did something special and took us down.

Interesting post FR

enjoyable read that i think succinctly covers the integral points. Ireland displayed their skill at closing a tough game out against the Ozzies.

They are not so good at coming back into games they are loosing, and if Wales can get a few tries in the first half Ireland may struggle to claw their way back in to it.

That's an honest post Feckless and it illustrates what's likely to be a fascinating contest here - Ireland must keep their discipline. This Wales side is very different IMO, - most welsh sides have been able to run the ball for fun but this team seems to have a good backbone and it doesn't panic if it goes behind. This welsh team is also happy for the other team to have most of the ball (similar to the 70's side) - We know what Ireland can bring to the table and that is formidable in itself if executed right. However I dont think we really know what this welsh team can bring to the table and whether it will be good enough. I'm looking forward to it

Feckless I don't agree with the 2nd paragraph. This Welsh side is not playing the 'Welsh' way of 2005 and 2008 i.e. throwing the ball around and running their opponents of their feet. They are playing a much more structured and direct game with their new found confidence in their physicality and fitness.

Their performances have been built on a solid set piece and an excellent defence. I don't think they have the threat out wide in the backline that some are making out and this game will come down to forward play, defence and place kicking.

Robert, Phillips, Falateau and North will attack that 10-12 channel and that is were we will have to front up.

This fixture will take over from England France as the one to watch in the NH in my view. Whoever wins on Saturday, the Dublin match in the spring will be intense as there will be an added edge to the match caused by this one, whatever the situation.

The powers that be must be rubbish if they can't convert that into decent attendances at Prod2 (newly renamed by Mick TEFC) matches.

Wales vs Ireland for the Record

Games played: 116 18.30%

Games won by Wales: 63 54.31%

Games lost by Wales: 47 40.52%

Games drawn: 6 5.17%

Most wins in a row for Wales over Ireland: 5

Most losses in a row for Wales to Ireland: 5

Largest points for Wales: 34 9 - 34

Largest points against Wales: 54 54 - 10

Largest winning margin for Wales: 29 29 - 0 : 09 Mar 1907
Largest losing margin for Wales: 44 54 - 10: 03 Feb 2002

Total points for Wales: 1,348

Total points against Wales: 1,229

Average points for Wales per game: 11.62

Average points against Wales per game: 10.59
Average points difference per game between Wales and Ireland: 1.03



How the games went since the start:

Wales won 2G 0G +2G - - v Ireland Lansdowne Road 28 Jan 1882
Wales won 1G 0G +1G - - v Ireland Cardiff 12 Apr 1884
Wales won 1G 0G +1G - - v Ireland Birkenhead 12 Mar 1887
Wales lost 0G 2G -2G - - v Ireland Lansdowne Road 3 Mar 1888
Wales lost 0G 0G 0G - - v Ireland Swansea 2 Mar 1889
Wales draw 3 3 0 0 3 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 1 Mar 1890
Wales won 6 4 +2 6 1 v Ireland Llanelli 7 Mar 1891
Wales lost 0 9 -9 0 7 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 5 Mar 1892
Wales won 2 0 +2 2 0 v Ireland Llanelli 11 Mar 1893
Wales lost 0 3 -3 0 3 v Ireland Belfast 10 Mar 1894
Wales won 5 3 +2 5 3 v Ireland Cardiff 16 Mar 1895
Wales lost 4 8 -4 - - v Ireland Lansdowne Road 14 Mar 1896
Wales won 11 3 +8 5 3 v Ireland Limerick 19 Mar 1898
Wales lost 0 3 -3 0 3 v Ireland Cardiff 18 Mar 1899
Wales won 3 0 +3 - - v Ireland Belfast 17 Mar 1900
Wales won 10 9 +1 5 9 v Ireland Swansea 16 Mar 1901
Wales won 15 0 +15 - - v Ireland Lansdowne Road 8 Mar 1902
Wales won 18 0 +18 9 0 v Ireland Cardiff 14 Mar 1903
Wales lost 12 14 -2 3 6 v Ireland Belfast 12 Mar 1904
Wales won 10 3 +7 10 3 v Ireland Swansea 11 Mar 1905
Wales lost 6 11 -5 3 8 v Ireland Belfast 10 Mar 1906
Wales won 29 0 +29 6 0 v Ireland Cardiff 9 Mar 1907
Wales won 11 5 +6 5 5 v Ireland Belfast 14 Mar 1908
Wales won 18 5 +13 - - v Ireland Swansea 13 Mar 1909
Wales won 19 3 +16 3 3 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 12 Mar 1910
Wales won 16 0 +16 5 0 v Ireland Cardiff 11 Mar 1911
Wales lost 5 12 -7 5 0 v Ireland Belfast 9 Mar 1912
Wales won 16 13 +3 8 8 v Ireland Swansea 8 Mar 1913
Wales won 11 3 +8 3 3 v Ireland Belfast 14 Mar 1914
Wales won 28 4 +24 17 0 v Ireland Cardiff 13 Mar 1920
Wales won 6 0 +6 - - v Ireland Belfast 12 Mar 1921
Wales won 11 5 +6 3 0 v Ireland Swansea 11 Mar 1922
Wales lost 4 5 -1 4 5 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 10 Mar 1923
Wales lost 10 13 -3 3 8 v Ireland Cardiff 8 Mar 1924
Wales lost 3 19 -16 0 8 v Ireland Belfast 14 Mar 1925
Wales won 11 8 +3 3 8 v Ireland Swansea 13 Mar 1926
Wales lost 9 19 -10 0 11 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 12 Mar 1927
Wales lost 10 13 -3 5 5 v Ireland Cardiff 10 Mar 1928
Wales draw 5 5 0 0 5 v Ireland Belfast 9 Mar 1929
Wales won 12 7 +5 6 7 v Ireland Swansea 8 Mar 1930
Wales won 15 3 +12 4 3 v Ireland Belfast 14 Mar 1931
Wales lost 10 12 -2 3 3 v Ireland Cardiff 12 Mar 1932
Wales lost 5 10 -5 0 7 v Ireland Belfast 11 Mar 1933
Wales won 13 0 +13 - - v Ireland Swansea 10 Mar 1934
Wales lost 3 9 -6 0 6 v Ireland Belfast 9 Mar 1935
Wales won 3 0 +3 3 0 v Ireland Cardiff 14 Mar 1936
Wales lost 3 5 -2 3 0 v Ireland Belfast 3 Apr 1937
Wales won 11 5 +6 3 5 v Ireland Swansea 12 Mar 1938
Wales won 7 0 +7 - - v Ireland Belfast 11 Mar 1939
Wales won 6 0 +6 - - v Ireland Swansea 29 Mar 1947
Wales lost 3 6 -3 3 3 v Ireland Belfast 13 Mar 1948
Wales lost 0 5 -5 - - v Ireland Swansea 12 Mar 1949
Wales won 6 3 +3 - - v Ireland Belfast 11 Mar 1950
Wales draw 3 3 0 3 3 v Ireland Cardiff 10 Mar 1951
Wales won 14 3 +11 9 0 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 8 Mar 1952
Wales won 5 3 +2 - - v Ireland Swansea 14 Mar 1953
Wales won 12 9 +3 6 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 13 Mar 1954
Wales won 21 3 +18 3 0 v Ireland Cardiff 12 Mar 1955
Wales lost 3 11 -8 3 0 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 10 Mar 1956
Wales won 6 5 +1 3 6 v Ireland Cardiff 9 Mar 1957
Wales won 9 6 +3 6 0 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 15 Mar 1958
Wales won 8 6 +2 0 6 v Ireland Cardiff 14 Mar 1959
Wales won 10 9 +1 5 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 12 Mar 1960
Wales won 9 0 +9 3 0 v Ireland Cardiff 11 Mar 1961
Wales draw 3 3 0 0 3 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 17 Nov 1962
Wales lost 6 14 -8 3 8 v Ireland Cardiff 9 Mar 1963
Wales won 15 6 +9 5 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 7 Mar 1964
Wales won 14 8 +6 5 0 v Ireland Cardiff 13 Mar 1965
Wales lost 6 9 -3 3 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 12 Mar 1966
Wales lost 0 3 -3 0 3 v Ireland Cardiff 11 Mar 1967
Wales lost 6 9 -3 3 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 9 Mar 1968
Wales won 24 11 +13 8 6 v Ireland Cardiff 8 Mar 1969
Wales lost 0 14 -14 - - v Ireland Lansdowne Road 14 Mar 1970
Wales won 23 9 +14 9 6 v Ireland Cardiff 13 Mar 1971
Wales won 16 12 +4 6 3 v Ireland Cardiff 10 Mar 1973
Wales draw 9 9 0 6 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 2 Feb 1974
Wales won 32 4 +28 7 0 v Ireland Cardiff 15 Mar 1975
Wales won 34 9 +25 10 9 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 21 Feb 1976
Wales won 25 9 +16 0 6 v Ireland Cardiff 15 Jan 1977
Wales won 20 16 +4 13 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 4 Mar 1978
Wales won 24 21 +3 12 9 v Ireland Cardiff 3 Feb 1979
Wales lost 7 21 -14 3 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 15 Mar 1980
Wales won 9 8 +1 3 8 v Ireland Cardiff 21 Feb 1981
Wales lost 12 20 -8 9 8 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 23 Jan 1982
Wales won 23 9 +14 12 6 v Ireland Cardiff 5 Mar 1983
Wales won 18 9 +9 9 3 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 4 Feb 1984
Wales lost 9 21 -12 - - v Ireland Cardiff 16 Mar 1985
Wales won 19 12 +7 4 12 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 15 Feb 1986
Wales lost 11 15 -4 8 6 v Ireland Cardiff 4 Apr 1987
Wales won 13 6 +7 0 6 v Ireland Wellington 25 May 1987
Wales won 12 9 +3 3 9 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 5 Mar 1988
Wales lost 13 19 -6 6 0 v Ireland Cardiff 4 Feb 1989
Wales lost 8 14 -6 0 10 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 24 Mar 1990
Wales draw 21 21 0 9 9 v Ireland Cardiff 16 Feb 1991
Wales won 16 15 +1 6 9 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 18 Jan 1992
Wales lost 14 19 -5 6 13 v Ireland Cardiff 6 Mar 1993
Wales won 17 15 +2 8 9 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 5 Feb 1994
Wales lost 12 16 -4 6 13 v Ireland Cardiff 18 Mar 1995
Wales lost 23 24 -1 6 14 v Ireland Johannesburg 4 Jun 1995
Wales lost 17 30 -13 7 15 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 2 Mar 1996
Wales lost 25 26 -1 10 20 v Ireland Cardiff 1 Feb 1997
Wales won 30 21 +9 13 15 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 21 Mar 1998
Wales lost 23 29 -6 6 16 v Ireland Wembley 20 Feb 1999
Wales won 23 19 +4 10 6 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 1 Apr 2000
Wales lost 6 36 -30 3 15 v Ireland Millennium Stadium 13 Oct 2001
Wales lost 10 54 -44 3 24 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 3 Feb 2002
Wales lost 24 25 -1 7 14 v Ireland Millennium Stadium 22 Mar 2003
Wales lost 12 35 -23 5 14 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 16 Aug 2003
Wales lost 15 36 -21 3 24 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 22 Feb 2004
Wales won 32 20 +12 16 6 v Ireland Millennium Stadium 19 Mar 2005
Wales lost 5 31 -26 5 11 v Ireland Lansdowne Road 26 Feb 2006
Wales lost 9 19 -10 9 12 v Ireland Millennium Stadium 4 Feb 2007
Wales won 16 12 +4 3 6 v Ireland Croke Park 8 Mar 2008
Wales lost 15 17 -2 6 0 v Ireland Millennium Stadium 21 Mar 2009
Wales lost 12 27 -15 6 16 v Ireland Croke Park 13 Mar 2010
Wales won 19 13 +6 9 13 v Ireland Millennium Stadium 12 Mar 2011

A lot of red nearer the top and a lot of green nearer the bottom.

It's quite Christmassy too

roddersm wrote:Feckless I don't agree with the 2nd paragraph. This Welsh side is not playing the 'Welsh' way of 2005 and 2008 i.e. throwing the ball around and running their opponents of their feet. They are playing a much more structured and direct game with their new found confidence in their physicality and fitness.

Their performances have been built on a solid set piece and an excellent defence. I don't think they have the threat out wide in the backline that some are making out and this game will come down to forward play, defence and place kicking.

Robert, Phillips, Falateau and North will attack that 10-12 channel and that is were we will have to front up.

That's true about their structure rodders. I was mainly talking about the psychological boost scoring all those tries gave to the Welsh. They've always been a confidence side. And I think they do have a threat out wide. The "Welsh way" isn't something that they ever sustain for a whole match. They don't run teams ragged for 80 minutes. But it's something that appears in burst if they get a sniff.

I've seen the Welsh being beaten many times, but then the opponent eases off and they can mount great try scoring comebacks. Sometimes it isn't enough but remember they snatched victory from Scotland in that Six Nations match. We have to keep them under pressure for the whole match. Because in my experience, all Welsh rugby teams are capable of scoring heavily if you give them a chance to get into their rhythm and their confidence is up.

But there's also an "Irish way". The incredible controlled ferocity they can bring to the breakdown. They can start to smash players back and get into a pattern of powerful rucking and counter rucking that causes even good opponents all sorts of problems. Like that game against England in the 6 Nations. It seems to be the default Irish style that comes out when they're on top and enjoying themselves.

Thanks maestegmafia for that. Good post. 116 games played over 129 years. A long rivalry. And none of those results will matter a jot when the whistle blows at the weekend. To the winner the spoils.

Feckless Rogue wrote:Thanks maestegmafia for that. Good post. 116 games played over 129 years. A long rivalry. And none of those results will matter a jot when the whistle blows at the weekend. To the winner the spoils.

Aye I think your right... Wales aren't the same team they were six months ago, Ireland have more or less the same players but are regularly playing to their potential....!

maestegmafia wrote:Interesting post FR

enjoyable read that i think succinctly covers the integral points. Ireland displayed their skill at closing a tough game out against the Ozzies.

They are not so good at coming back into games they are loosing, and if Wales can get a few tries in the first half Ireland may struggle to claw their way back in to it.

Really ... you missed the Heineken Cup Final this year then? One of the great comebacks in recent years. Even against the ABs last year, down to 14 men, Ireland got back in the game in the 2nd half.

I don't think they would allow International sides play in the HC

Cymroglan wrote:I don't think they would allow International sides play in the HC

And Ireland didnt beat the All Blacks

maestegmafia wrote:

Cymroglan wrote:I don't think they would allow International sides play in the HC

And Ireland didnt beat the All Blacks

No, but that was unlikely with 14 men. They didn't give up which is what you are implying will happen if Wales get a couple of scores.

Did you see the Heineken Cup final, by the way?

Cymroglan wrote:I don't think they would allow International sides play in the HC

No. But neither do Liverpool play rugby, which is what inspired Sexton that they could come back.

Average points difference 1.03. Close then.

Sin é wrote:

Cymroglan wrote:I don't think they would allow International sides play in the HC

No. But neither do Liverpool play rugby, which is what inspired Sexton that they could come back.

Have you been reading Eric Cantonas book ?

Sin é wrote:Really ... you missed the Heineken Cup Final this year then? One of the great comebacks in recent years.

Sin é, I'm shocked. Did you just...............give Leinster a complement?

You lot are so nervous you have put aside interprovincial bickering?

That's blasphemy Glas. We'll NEVER put aside interprovincial bickering. I'm just about to go onto another thread and declare to those turnip munching, bog trotting rural FREAKS, that Sexton has more talent in his little finger, than O'Gara could ever dream of. FACT!

And if we do win the World Cup, and a million people people turn out in Dublin to welcome our heroes home, and BOD lifts the trophy over his head, and the crowd cheers wildly, there will be one southern accent heard in the background declaring "I bet the atmosphere is better in Cork".

Feckless Rogue wrote:That's blasphemy Glas. We'll NEVER put aside interprovincial bickering. I'm just about to go onto another thread and declare to those turnip munching, bog trotting rural FREAKS, that Sexton has more talent in his little finger, than O'Gara could ever dream of. FACT!

And if we do win the World Cup, and a million people people turn out in BELFAST to welcome our heroes home, and [u]PADDY WALLACE lifts the trophy over his head, and the crowd cheers wildly, there will be one southern accent heard in the background declaring "I bet the atmosphere is better in Cork".

Everything is always better in Cork. Fact. *






























































*Not a fact,Dublin has some good qualities.

They dont have an opera house in Dublin...fact

Leigh Halfpenny (Cardiff Blues); George North (Scarlets), Jonathan Davies (Scarlets), Jamie Roberts (Cardiff Blues), Shane Williams (Ospreys); Rhys Priestland (Scarlets), Mike Phillips (Bayonne); Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues), Huw Bennett (Ospreys), Adam Jones (Ospreys), Luke Charteris (Dragons), Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys), Dan Lydiate (Dragons) Sam Warburton (Cardiff Blues, capt), Toby Faletau (Dragons).

Replacements: Lloyd Burns (Dragons), Paul James (Ospreys), Bradley Davies (Cardiff Blues), Ryan Jones (Ospreys), Lloyd Williams (Cardiff Blues), James Hook (Perpignan), Scott Williams (Scarlets).

Halfpenny to Fullback, Lydiates back on the blindside, Shanes on the wing, Steve Jones is out of the 22, as is Powell, Knoyle and Byrne.

There actually are a few surprises in this team.

As well as that I am kind of concerned about Halfpenny at fullback. But then again he is a very good counter attacker and I guess the tactic will be to run instead of aerial ping pong.

Halfpenny at fullback? Interesting.

The forecast is for rain.

I must admit I am surprised that Halfpenny got the nod there...

Regarding Halfpenny at full back, it's clear to me that they've looked at the pros and cons of all the candidates; Lee Byrne would probably be a safer option under the high ball, but apart from that, what does he offer? A big boot? So does Halfpenny, and he can use it to kick goals too. As for counterattacking, Halfpenny's the better bet.

I would have thought Byrne is a safer option under the high ball and generally just better positioning for defending kicks. Maybe we won’t be dropping Garryowen’s or pinging the corners all day, maybe that will now become our tactic?

I don't like the way Lee Byrne takes high balls with his studs sticking out... Anyway, not a bad team at all, pretty much what you'd expect with exception of 1/2p at FB. Hopefully that's a pleasant surprise.

Leigh Halfpenny is the biggest shock decision to me... Not a huge one, he deputised well at 15 for Hook against Samoa.

And that performance might be the key to what Wales are thinking tactically.

O'Gara will be looking to pin Wales back and hope Wales kick back to them so that Ireland can release big runners at them.

Wales are very good at absorbing pressure in defence with out giving away penalties...

Kicking to a back three like Halfpenny, Williams and some bloke no one has heard of called North could work well to Wales.

The pack looks like a first choice pick, this should be an interesting match.

O'Gara will be looking to pin Wales back and hope Wales kick back to them so that Ireland can release big runners at them.

I don't think that would be the tactic at all. Why would we kick to that back 3? Surely we'd look to turn them and put the ball out of play.

You have to make sure it goes into touch...

The Welsh back three have plenty of experience against O'Gara, the Welsh back row and centers do too...

I imagine that Wales will be going all out to disrupt the Irish halfbacks... Pressurise them and make O'Gara have one of his infamous shockers, wayward kicks straight to the pacey welsh backline.

maestegmafia wrote:Leigh Halfpenny is the biggest shock decision to me... Not a huge one, he deputised well at 15 for Hook against Samoa.

And that performance might be the key to what Wales are thinking tactically.

O'Gara will be looking to pin Wales back and hope Wales kick back to them so that Ireland can release big runners at them.

Wales are very good at absorbing pressure in defence with out giving away penalties...

Kicking to a back three like Halfpenny, Williams and some bloke no one has heard of called North could work well to Wales.

The pack looks like a first choice pick, this should be an interesting match.

do you know if he is any good?

Too many o's BB, take one out

andy powells minder wrote:Too many o's BB, take one out

touche my friend.

maestegmafia wrote:The Welsh back three have plenty of experience against O'Gara

Has George North ever played against a side with O'Gara at ten? If he has, it can't have been more than once or twice. I wouldn't call that 'plenty of experience.'

O'Gara hardly kicked at all against Italy and I think he'll be keen to keep the ball in hand.

We have a fitter and more mobile pack and I think he'll try and move the ball around and wear down Jones and Jenkins, neither of whom are in the best shape, no matter what Gatland says. They will have an edge in the early scrums I'm sure but after 50-60min of being run ragged I think they may struggle.

The up and under and cross field kicks could be a good tactic as Kearney and Bowe will have the edge over Halfpenny and Williams respectively in the air.

I think Gatland has a made a big mistake not selecting a recognised fullback in the 22 as all our back 3 are so strong in the air.

I think Ireland are going to strangle the game and turn it into a dig fight, with O'Gara keeping the score board ticking over to build an Irish lead. However I think Wales will hit Ireland on the counter and be clinical, though I doubt they will score more than one try to be honest.

Provided both teams turn up on the day it will be a tight win, though I expect Ireland to be in the lead for most of the game with Wales playing catch up.

It won't be pretty or a classic though and if it rains it will nullify Wales attacking threat which could badly hurt us. I think Ireland will be aggressive and practically live off side to get in and disrupt the Welsh back line.

Alyn, Warburton needs to (in the politest terms possible, of course) make sure Craig Joubert enforces the back foot at rucks if that's the case.

Ireland just need to do what south africa did in defence against wales. If they do a rush umbrella type defence then wales has to come inside with their attack and be forced to attack channel one, that is where Ireland should be stronger, with their backrow.

What wales really need to be careful of is the belly flop and not releasing the tackled player. Joubert is a SH referee and they penalise belly flops and holding on.

Warburton and co won't get away with the same tactics as they did against SA when they had a NH referee.

AlynDavies wrote:
I think Ireland will be aggressive and practically live off side to get in and disrupt the Welsh back line.

Why would we need to live offside? I don't think the Welsh backline posses much threat out wide.

Earls, BOD, Kearney and Bowe will have no problem dealing with their opposite numbers.

If Wales can threaten Ireland anywhere it will be using North and Roberts attacking ROG and D'arcy's channel with Warburton running off their shoulders.

Out wide Ireland have more pace and attacking ability IMHO.