Ireland V Australia

First topic message reminder :

ME-109 wrote:All water under the bridge now....Aus up next which will be interesting...someone start a thread

How hard was that..........

I like the look of this team. Beating Samoa well has given schmidt the chance to test different combos in his quest to have 2+ players vying for each position. Players need experience and they need game time if they are to become useful.

Will be very interesting to see what he does against the ABs. Playing them is a great litmus test to see if up and coming players are going to cut it. Equaly if we do manage to beat australia he'll be sorely tempted to put the best 15 out.

For those complaining about toner again i think he wants to see if POC and toner could work and also he has to draw a line on number of changes at some point!

Love this interview. What a difference from the tosh out of Steady Eddie and Elmer. Such a master at his craft. On and off the field. He has pressed reset on most positions. He is already mixing and matching units to see what works and who makes it work. That must help wake the whole squad up. There are only a few near certs for this team now. 3 or 4 maybe. This is so healthy sportzfanz.   He wants 30/35 players who can confidently play for their country and fit in to his plans. I'm up for that.

Believe.

http://www.independent.ie/videos/sport/joe-schmidt-names-his-team-for-match-against-australia-on-saturday-29755243.html

Sin é wrote:Yep, Schmidt is creating a squad of rotating Leinster players with the token Ulster & Munster players who take turns to rotate.

How come McCarthy wasn't rotated with Tuohy for instance, or Madigan with Trimble?

edit: he isn't creating anything. Just going back to the players he knows best.

From an outside perspective, it's an improvement on picking Munster geriatrics.


Score predictions lads? I'll go for Ireland by 5.

All right Saint?  

I'm thinking Sexton, BOD and Reddan are going to cut loose.

Ireland by 15.

Wow great interview Gibbo. He certainly knows the wallabies inside out.

Bowe, Marshall and Bestie to cut loose - Ireland by 12.  

Henshaw to cut loose - Ireland by 8

  

rodders wrote:Wow great interview Gibbo. He certainly knows the wallabies inside out.

Bowe, Marshall and Bestie to cut loose - Ireland by 12.  

Id love that mate. Really would. Best is a God.  

Sure lets all cut loose together. The 4 Proud Provinces will be out there. I'm so buzzed again about my country.  Like a phookin kid before Christmas.

Its a good team. He is shifting the bench around too. I like it.

Notch wrote:

ME-109 wrote:

Submachine wrote:Didn't Murray feed O'Brien for his try?

Not at all...that was Redden wearing a Conor Murray Halloween mask. Ah well Redden got the time when Samoa were falling apart. Lets just hope that the cavalry are coming on to close out the game rather than save it next weekend.

Dressing up as someone from Munster at Hallowe'en is just wrong. There's fun-scary and there is scary-scary and that's crossing the line!

Surprised I didn't see more Murray costumes at halloween actually...complete with Zebo and blow up doll in tow  

That replacement front row looks refreshingly young and explosive I have to say! I feel sorry for Conor O'Shea etc trying to get the whole 'players are being rotated not dropped' point across to the sensationalists on various radio stations this evening. Murray will start against the AB's barring injury, make no mistake. Madigan was always going to bench due to versatility. I am delighted to see Marshall start too even if it means my planned "Brian O'Driscoll and the peerless Gordon D'Arcy set to eclipse Conrad Smith and Nonu" thread has to be put on ice.

wolfball wrote:Henshaw to cut loose - Ireland by 8

Ja Woflie lad! That would really shake it up.

Love to see the lad score a try on his debut. Imagine.

Ballistic is the word.

Only downside with Joe is if he keeps this up we won't have anything to argue about! Bring back Deccie! ...

Irish fans VERY confident.

Good to see. It's been a while since you guys were upbeat

The Saint wrote:

Sin é wrote:Yep, Schmidt is creating a squad of rotating Leinster players with the token Ulster & Munster players who take turns to rotate.

How come McCarthy wasn't rotated with Tuohy for instance, or Madigan with Trimble?

edit: he isn't creating anything. Just going back to the players he knows best.

From an outside perspective, it's an improvement on picking Munster geriatrics.


Score predictions lads? I'll go for Ireland by 5.

Thats a bit harsh on Reddan & Ross  

Looking forward to seeing how Luke Marshall gets on too. Ulsters fans talk about it being a matter of time before Olding takes his place but he is still a quality player who runs good lines and is strong.


Henshaw is on the bench. To be honest, I don't have much of an idea what Henshaw can do. I saw him in a number of matches but he never impressed me. He never got much of a chance to impress in fairness. He is a good athlete and if Schmidt has picked him he must have decent handling and passing skills. Hopefully being around higher quality players and coaches will help his development and give us a chance to see what he can do.


Archer is another new man on the bench. He has improved greatly over the last 18 months. As a Munster fan I'm not 100% convinced yet but he is still young for a tighthead and has won numerous penalty tries. He is much better in the loose than Ross or Fitzpatrick though.

Great read guys.  

I wouldn't worry too much about this stage of the team re-jigging process. I think Ireland is in a good place at the moment. Quite a few options (or decent back-ups) depending on the game plan Schmidt wants to go with... leave the player location/origin bits for later.
It will all sort itself out and I reckon you'll have (or already are having) a better transition through the new coach stage than Australia had.  

Thrilled to see the Wallabies practising their scrum collapses with such dedication and precision yesterday. They'll never learn!  

Does anyone know where they are training? Was that at RDS or some school/college ground in Dublin or in the hinterland somewhere? Looked nice.

     here's a few night caps for yas.

I'm not certain Olding will take the 12 spot from Marshall at Ulster. I can see Anscombe using him elsewhere and also for impact in the same way he does Henderson this season

profitius wrote:Looking forward to seeing how Luke Marshall gets on too. Ulsters fans talk about it being a matter of time before Olding takes his place but he is still a quality player who runs good lines and is strong.  

Some on here seem to think that, but not all Ulster fans.  Marshall has both the playmaking ability and the bulk to make it as a top class 12, and personally I don't see him being replaced unless he is either injured or goes backwards in his development.  In other words I think it is Marshall's shirt to lose, so he will certainly have to work hard to keep it.

I have a feeling he will thrive under Schmidt and improve more and more as he gains experience.

Aussie were training at Wanderers FC, Breaker. They used have residency at Old Lansdowne. They shared it with Landsowne FC.  That old cottage in the corner was their clubhouse. Lansdowne FC had one at the other end. Wanderers had a whole new clubhose built, right beside Lansdowne,  in compensation for moving out. And got their own corporate box.  Bitta history for ya. Have had a few drinks there after games.. Top place roysh.

Standulstermen wrote:I'm not certain Olding will take the 12 spot from Marshall at Ulster. I can see Anscombe using him elsewhere and also for impact in the same way he does Henderson this season

Possibly 15 with Payne moving to 13 for Ireland practice

Who?

Gibson wrote:Aussie were training at Wanderers FC, Breaker. They used have residency at Old Lansdowne. They shared it with Landsowne FC.  That old cottage in the corner was their clubhouse. Lansdowne FC had one at the other end. Wanderers had a whole new clubhose built, right beside Lansdowne,  in compensation for moving out. And got their own corporate box.  Bitta history for ya. Have had a few drinks there after games.. Top place roysh.

Thanks mate. Yeah, your place is oozing history.

The Saint wrote:

Sin é wrote:Yep, Schmidt is creating a squad of rotating Leinster players with the token Ulster & Munster players who take turns to rotate.

How come McCarthy wasn't rotated with Tuohy for instance, or Madigan with Trimble?

edit: he isn't creating anything. Just going back to the players he knows best.

From an outside perspective, it's an improvement on picking Munster geriatrics.


Score predictions lads? I'll go for Ireland by 5.

I'm afraid Australia by 5, even though Schmidt has picked a decent team. Cooper and Folau are on fire, Genia is looking himself again and they have a nicely balanced back row with Fardy a beast of a tackler/hassler in at 6. Cooper has a great chance to show how much he's improved since his fall from grace.

Head says Australia by 5, heart says Ireland by 3. I think it will be a close game.

It won't all be about Irelands forwards and Aussie backs. The Australia pack are not too bad outside the scrum and Irelands backs are capable of outplaying the Australian backs.

It'll be pretty close but I think Aus will pull away by 8-10.

I feel people are under-estimating the Aussie's pack, Slipper, Moore and Kepu are not a bad front row unit. Horwill is a decent line out operator, and their backrow with Moven and Hooper isn't exactly weak.
However, in the same manor, I think people are over-estimating their backline. Genia and Cooper are soon becoming the most flaky half backs in world rugby. Kuridrani and Toomua wouldn't exactly scare me. Guys like Cooper, Falau will make for a talented back 3.However Cummins seems quite limited and 1 dimentional.
With Ireland, I truly believe with big man Joey's influence, they will be able to cut Australia open.I'd rate Sexton over Cooper,Bod over Kuridrani, Bowe over Cooper, Mcfadden similar to Cummmins, and Falau over Kearney-although on form, Kearney would be a more complete player(positioning,tackling,kicking).

How was the Australian scrum against England? I only caught the end of the match and they were giving away penalties. Will this be an area well target?

Golden wrote:How was the Australian scrum against England? I only caught the end of the match and they were giving away penalties. Will this be an area well target?

https://twitter.com/scotta_/status/397476069655072768

Standulstermen wrote:I'm not certain Olding will take the 12 spot from Marshall at Ulster. I can see Anscombe using him elsewhere and also for impact in the same way he does Henderson this season

Yeah - I think Olding will end up in the centre but can see him and Marshall playing alongside each other as they are different types of player. Either could play along side Payne and there's still Darren Cave there.

Its too early to speculate but one thing I am 100% sure of is that both Olding and Marshall will feature many times for Ireland - they are both too talented not too. The question is who will break the 50 cap barrier first.....

From an Ireland perspective I would say its Madigan who has most to worry about with Olding, not Marshall -  they would be similar game breaking players who can cover a number of positions.

rodders wrote:

Standulstermen wrote:I'm not certain Olding will take the 12 spot from Marshall at Ulster. I can see Anscombe using him elsewhere and also for impact in the same way he does Henderson this season

Yeah - I think Olding will end up in the centre but can see him and Marshall playing alongside each other as they are different types of player. Either could play along side Payne and there's still Darren Cave there.

Its too early to speculate but one thing I am 100% sure of is that both Olding and Marshall will feature many times for Ireland - they are both too talented not too. The question is who will break the 50 cap barrier first.....

From an Ireland perspective I would say its Madigan who has most to worry about with Olding, not Marshall -  they would be similar game breaking players who can cover a number of positions.

Madigan is suffering from a bit of a loss in form, granted, but I still think he's going to be first choice for Leinster at OH going forward, and unless there's another raft of injuries he's not going to be asked to fill in elsewhere. So for me, in a year or two, we're going to be looking at Sexton/Jackson/Madigan/Hanrahan vying for the OH spot with Ireland.

In short, yes Madigan is versatile and that can leave him in no mans land in the short term, but I don't think he'll be the jack of all trades for long.

Really looking forward to this match and I have full confidence in Ireland for the first time in a long time. I think that Ireland will get home by 9.

It'll be a hard day at the office because Australia won't quit, even if down.  Indeed, if they're down on the scoreboard at halftime, they'll go for broke and loosen up and offload all over the place.  A broken up game structurally might press the panic button with Ireland and a well planned gameplan might fall apart.

Defensively the Irish players have to be concentrating at all times and keeping their shape.  It's a close one to call.  I worry about some of our forwards ability to stick with a high pace and accuracy game that the Australians can bring if they settle.

I'd like to say an Irish win but I'm feeling Australia will sneak it by 6 or so.

I actually think they will fly - this Australian side is very talented but not mentally strong in my opinion.

If we can bully them and get on top in the scoreboard I think they will fall apart.

Likewise if they get ahead and we are chasing the game they could put us to the sword.

This is an intriguing game between two sides trying to find themselves. Its a good acid test.

I think that the substitutions will decide the match myself. I can see a fairly even first half followed by a cagey start to the second half. I think that the Irish subs will see Ireland to the win.

Madigan's performances in 2nd half of last season or Jackson's performances this season?

Haven't seen much of Jackson this season so genuinely curious to see what people think.

sin é wrote:As for Redser - sure he is from Munster (like 2 others that play for Leinster in the starting lineup this weekend). The fact that Reddan still isn't in Munster should tell you something about how he is rated there.
.

ME-109 wrote:You don't need to put forward his CV but Stringer/TOL and Murray were/are all better players than him. That's just how it is. He is ineffective internationally..

Good to see your judgement on a player is well balanced then

He allegedly wasn't good enough for Munster in 2005 so therefore isn't good enough for Ireland in 2013?? Despite playing for 2 HC winning teams and helping Ireland to their best performance in the Kidney era (vs England in 2011).

You really need to get that chip off your shoulders

gleesonisgod wrote:Madigan's performances in 2nd half of last season or Jackson's performances this season?

Haven't seen much of Jackson this season so genuinely curious to see what people think.

As a fan of Madigan I would go for him on his performances last season. However Jackson has become error free and very composed this year and would be the steadier pair of hands at the moment and is developing nicely. Madigan needs to own OH for Leinster specifically in the HC matches if he wants to progress. If Madigan hits form and continues on an upwards trajectory I believe he will come good.

Redden has grown as a player in Leinster and is more than deserving of his place. I still think that Murray is the No. 1 but its excellent to have this competition.

ME-109 wrote:

gleesonisgod wrote:Madigan's performances in 2nd half of last season or Jackson's performances this season?

Haven't seen much of Jackson this season so genuinely curious to see what people think.

As a fan of Madigan I would go for him on his performances last season. However Jackson has become error free and very composed this year and would be the steadier pair of hands at the moment and is developing nicely. Madigan needs to own OH for Leinster specifically in the HC matches if he wants to progress. If Madigan hits form and continues on an upwards trajectory I believe he will come good.

I think that it would be very interesting to have Jackson - Madigan at 10 - 12 at some stage. I think they would work well together.

Mickado wrote:

Golden wrote:How was the Australian scrum against England? I only caught the end of the match and they were giving away penalties. Will this be an area well target?

https://twitter.com/scotta_/status/397476069655072768

Cheers Mick, pity Alexander isnt playing then  

Or is Kepu any better?

rodders wrote:I actually think they will fly - this Australian side is very talented but not mentally strong in my opinion.

If we can bully them and get on top in the scoreboard I think they will fall apart.

Likewise if they get ahead and we are chasing the game they could put us to the sword.

This is an intriguing game between two sides trying to find themselves. Its a good acid test.

Yeah, rodders - I'm hoping that will be a big aspect of pushing Australia back into their box....and keeping them there.  But they're not dumb either and they'll know what is on Irish minds in that department.  So the challenge will be to ensure the 'bullying' is sustained - that we realise it'll have to be most of the 80 minutes, as they'll always feel they'll have a purple patch in any game and will feel they have the tools to utilise it better than we can ours.

Oh I think we can certainly pull off a win - I certainly think we could make them even suffer a little on the scoreboard if we got into a controlled rhythm... but I'm just going on feel of how much time Schmidt has had.  I think he needs more time and Australia and New Zealand hitting us so soon into his tenure is one massive test.

the-goon wrote:

sin é wrote:As for Redser - sure he is from Munster (like 2 others that play for Leinster in the starting lineup this weekend). The fact that Reddan still isn't in Munster should tell you something about how he is rated there.
.

ME-109 wrote:You don't need to put forward his CV but Stringer/TOL and Murray were/are all better players than him. That's just how it is. He is ineffective internationally..

Good to see your judgement on a player is well balanced then

He allegedly wasn't good enough for Munster in 2005 so therefore isn't good enough for Ireland in 2013?? Despite playing for 2 HC winning teams and helping Ireland to their best performance in the Kidney era (vs England in 2011).

You really need to get that chip off your shoulders

We were asked what we thought of him. Reddan offers speed of pass. He is very predictable. His best attribute is he throws the ball fast because he has to. His cover defence is poor.

His performance against the ABs is the worst performance I've seen by an Irish scrum half, not just in the Kidney era, but ever.

And that is the thing about Reddan, he is either very good or shocking.

Nachos Jones wrote:Redden has grown as a player in Leinster and is more than deserving of his place. I still think that Murray is the No. 1 but its excellent to have this competition.

Reddan's form has been poor this season. Ask a Leinster fan.

By the way, I don't have a problem with Reddan starting instead of Murray - thats up to Schmidt. But don't pretend Reddan is something he isn't - Murray is a better scrum half.

Sin É did you see Tolands article this morning....hilarious...

He was on Off the Ball the other night with Quinlan and they were asked about POM. Quinny was first up and gave a detailed analysis saying how he was improving all the time and giving some good examples. Toland was next up and couldn't say anything except that he should start next week (cos Chris Henry was out), he was nearly choking on it  

Sin é wrote:

Nachos Jones wrote:Redden has grown as a player in Leinster and is more than deserving of his place. I still think that Murray is the No. 1 but its excellent to have this competition.

Reddan's form has been poor this season. Ask a Leinster fan.

By the way, I don't have a problem with Reddan starting instead of Murray - thats up to Schmidt. But don't pretend Reddan is something he isn't - Murray is a better scrum half.

Hasn't Boss been preferred starter for Leinster in the HC games this year?

Sin é wrote:

Nachos Jones wrote:Redden has grown as a player in Leinster and is more than deserving of his place. I still think that Murray is the No. 1 but its excellent to have this competition.

Reddan's form has been poor this season. Ask a Leinster fan.

By the way, I don't have a problem with Reddan starting instead of Murray - thats up to Schmidt. But don't pretend Reddan is something he isn't - Murray is a better scrum half.

The times I have seen him he has been quite good, granted I have not watched a lot of Leinster.

I have said that Murray is the No. 1 so am not sure I am pretending that Redden is something he isn't? I just think that he is deserving of his place and that he has grown as a player in the last few years at Leinster.

I think Boss got short-changed on an Ireland call up. But then.............................................................. we've already had a bit of a party going here on the nature of Schmidt's favouritism so far.....

He deserved a shot though. The forgotten man.

SecretFly wrote:

rodders wrote:I actually think they will fly - this Australian side is very talented but not mentally strong in my opinion.

If we can bully them and get on top in the scoreboard I think they will fall apart.

Likewise if they get ahead and we are chasing the game they could put us to the sword.

This is an intriguing game between two sides trying to find themselves. Its a good acid test.

Yeah, rodders - I'm hoping that will be a big aspect of pushing Australia back into their box....and keeping them there.

Looking at the team fly - Reddan, Marshall, Toner it's an attack orientated selection. Almost the reverse of last week.

Schmidt is obviously banking on a fast start, taking the game to the wallabies and then tightening up later with Murray, McCarthy, McLaughlin on the bench.

He's obviously not thinking about containment, rather trying to play a bit of rugby.

rodders wrote:

SecretFly wrote:

rodders wrote:I actually think they will fly - this Australian side is very talented but not mentally strong in my opinion.

If we can bully them and get on top in the scoreboard I think they will fall apart.

Likewise if they get ahead and we are chasing the game they could put us to the sword.

This is an intriguing game between two sides trying to find themselves. Its a good acid test.

Yeah, rodders - I'm hoping that will be a big aspect of pushing Australia back into their box....and keeping them there.

Looking at the team fly - Reddan, Marshall, Toner it's an attack orientated selection. Almost the reverse of last week.

Schmidt is obviously banking on a fast start, taking the game to the wallabies and then tightening up later with Murray, McCarthy, McLaughlin on the bench.

He's obviously not thinking about containment, rather trying to play a bit of rugby.

I should hope so too Rodders...it is an er...rugby game after all.

ME-109 wrote:

rodders wrote:

SecretFly wrote:

rodders wrote:I actually think they will fly - this Australian side is very talented but not mentally strong in my opinion.

If we can bully them and get on top in the scoreboard I think they will fall apart.

Likewise if they get ahead and we are chasing the game they could put us to the sword.

This is an intriguing game between two sides trying to find themselves. Its a good acid test.

Yeah, rodders - I'm hoping that will be a big aspect of pushing Australia back into their box....and keeping them there.

Looking at the team fly - Reddan, Marshall, Toner it's an attack orientated selection. Almost the reverse of last week.

Schmidt is obviously banking on a fast start, taking the game to the wallabies and then tightening up later with Murray, McCarthy, McLaughlin on the bench.

He's obviously not thinking about containment, rather trying to play a bit of rugby.

I should hope so too Rodders...it is an er...rugby game after all.

If only Kidney knew that too..