Ireland v New Zealand

First topic message reminder :

Right what's done is done regarding Aus. Time to move on and look forward to the ABs. This could be one to watch from behind the couch.

I don't expect any major changes in the team. Murray for Redden being the only obvious change, possibly at tighthead, possibly in the second row. Sexton is doubtful, maybe Earls is available.

My only expectation for this game is for an improved performance as the required level of aggressiveness was just non existent last Saturday. Otherwise we are looking at some hammering.

Without stating the obvious...I would like to see our players try to copy the All Blacks in certain aspects of the game. Namely
1. Passing the ball to another Irish player who is moving forwards and preferably in space
2. When running with the ball try to avoid the opposition players as much as possible instead of seeking out contact.
that is all.

Suas an bothair agus ar aghaidh an tarbh.

Updated with Teams
All Blacks
15 Dagg,14 jane, 13 B Smith, 12 Nonu, 11 Savea, 10 Cruden, 9 A Smith
8 Read, 7 McCaw, 6 Luatua, 5 Whitelock, , 4 Romano, 3 Faumoina, 2 Hore , 1 Crockett

Ireland
R Kearney; T Bowe, B O’Driscoll, G D’Arcy, D Kearney; J Sexton, C Murray; C Healy, R Best, M Ross, D Toner, P O’Connell, P O’Mahony, S O’Brien, J Heaslip.
Replacements: S Cronin, J McGrath, D Fitzpatrick, M McCarthy, K McLaughlin, I Boss, I Madigan, L Fitzgerald.

Totally depressing - a damage limitation team with no thought of developing the side.

At least PJ will not get blamed for the coming massacre

I would have liked to have seen Touhy at least on the bench. Its safe to say Toner is barely HC level let alone international.

Hopefully Hendo will come good but the worrying thing is that besides Henderson we don't have many promising 2nd rows coming through.

SecretFly wrote:

clivemcl wrote:

LeinsterFan4life wrote:

Notch wrote:

LeinsterFan4life wrote:

LeinsterFan4life wrote:We really are badly short on 2nd rows.

Well that just shows how much trouble we are in that we are relying on an guy from England to solve our problems.

Blah, blah, blah. Jamie Heaslip was born to two Irish parents living overseas. Ronan O'Gara was born to two Irish parents living overseas. Dan Tuohy was born to two Irish parents living overseas.

But because one has an English accent we're relying on 'some guy from England'  

I didn't know he had two irish parents. Thats fair enough then.

And for the record, Bent had no irish parents...
 

He's as close to being one as Tom Court...how many caps did we give that lad?

At least Tom Court has lived here for 8 years not the 5 mins Bent was here before he got a cap.

Geoff thats what I'm afraid of happening again. We don't want a Bent repeat in the 2nd row.

I wonder how many people after this game will come on asking 'why did we not blood/have confidence in new players?' or some such?

http://www.oddschecker.com/rugby-union/internationals/ireland-v-new-zealand/winner

If you are going to get cleaned out, why not get get cleaned out with salvageable assets?

"Thornleys prediction;

IRELAND (possible): R Kearney; T Bowe, B O’Driscoll, G D’Arcy, D Kearney; J Sexton, C Murray; C Healy, R Best, M Ross, D Toner, P O’Connell, P O’Mahony, S O’Brien, J Heaslip. Replacements: S Cronin, J McGrath, D Fitzpatrick, M McCarthy, K McLaughlin, I Boss, I Madigan, L Fitzgerald."

cf 1998 England 'tour of hell' Oz 76 England 0
Fullback

Tim Stimpson (Newcastle Falcons), Matt Perry (Bath), Nick Beal (Northampton Saints).
Utilities

Josh Lewsey (Wasps), Spencer Brown (Richmond), Austin Healey (Leicester Tigers).
Wingers

Tom Beim (Sale Sharks), Matt Moore (Sale Sharks), Paul Sampson (Wasps).
Midfielders

Stuart Potter (Leicester Tigers), Dominic Chapman (Richmond), Steve Ravenscroft (Saracens).
Five–Eighths

Jonny Wilkinson (Newcastle Falcons), Alex King (Wasps), Jos Baxendell (Sale Sharks).
Halfbacks

Matt Dawson (Northampton Saints), Scott Benton (Gloucester), Peter Richards (London Irish).
Loose-Forwards

Tony Diprose (Saracens), Steve Ojomoh (Bath), Richard Pool-Jones (Stade Francais Paris), Ben Sturnham (Saracens), Ben Clarke (Richmond), Pat Sanderson (Sale Sharks), Lewis Moody (Leicester Tigers).
Locks

Dave Sims (Gloucester), Rob Fidler (Gloucester), Garath Archer (Newcastle Falcons), Danny Grewcock (Saracens).
Props

Phil Vickery (Gloucester), Will Green (Wasps), Darren Crompton (Richmond), Graham Rowntree (Leicester Tigers), Duncan Bell (Sale Sharks), Tony Windo (Gloucester).
Hookers

Richard Cockerill (Leicester Tigers), Phil Greening (Gloucester), George Chuter (Saracens).



One or two players were saved from a total, utter wreckage.

The Oz coach scalded/derided England for sending a ridiculously understrength side.

Joe's reasoning for Marshall was a tad poor. We brought in Gordon because we thought these guys wouldn't make it. Now they have. I feel very sorry for Jackson who he admits is our 2nd best 10 but I understand the rationale behind that one. 

It's brave from Joe because if they do get massacred he is going to get it for selecting 17 Leinstermen. I really hope we put in a performance. I do think a win is out of the question though

Kiwi lock Luke Romano has never heard of Paul O'Connell:

"O'Connell continues to be the rock of their pack, but he might not enjoy hearing that Luke Romano didn't really know who he was.
"Good question. What one is he?" replied the All Black lock when asked how much he knew of O'Connell.
It wasn't meant to be discourteous or signal a lack of respect, as Romano explained.
"We do our analysis on who we are playing. If I am lucky enough to play he'll be the man opposite me. We watch how they play and get their general trends. I focus on my own game and because I haven't had a lot of rugby, if I focus on the opposition it will detract from my game."

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rugby/news/article.cfm?c_id=80&objectid=11160932

Reminds me of the last time SA played Ireland Pieterson thought David Skrela played on the wing for Ireland.

Interesting quote in that piece...regarding Joe

"This will be the third game of his tenure and already he's asking for patience - a bad sign indeed"

I agree with Portnoys on D'Arcy but its not like O'Connell and O'Driscoll have ready made replacements waiting in the wings. They are still the best players in those positions in Ireland.

ME-109 wrote:Interesting quote in that piece...regarding Joe

"This will be the third game of his tenure and already he's asking for patience - a bad sign indeed"

I think it's realistic, he didn't exactly take over a good team.

Notch wrote:

ME-109 wrote:Interesting quote in that piece...regarding Joe

"This will be the third game of his tenure and already he's asking for patience - a bad sign indeed"

I think it's realistic, he didn't exactly take over a good team.

I guess. But then again he has coached the majority of players in the team for the last few years. Also you usually get a bounce with a new coach...

Having said that I have no intent on criticising Schmidt until he has had a fair crack of the whip. I fully expect us to run the ABs close tomorrow if not win.

Very much so notch. The only thing I didn't like was overuse of the word 'experience' for me. Our inexperienced guys will only get experience by being picked although Joe seemed to suggest the benefit to henshaw and Jackson would be longer term.

As things stand though no matter what Jackson does between now and the 6N, unless he overtakes sexton or the latter is injured he won't see gametime

Notch wrote:He spoke about how earlier in the week they had Jackson at 10 and Henshaw at 13 and there was a good chance that those two would start if Sexton and BOD didn't pass fitness tests so they wanted experience- their mind was made up for them.

The bolded part makes me quite happy.

Also seeing Luke in the 23 makes me happy.

But BOD's a gonner, Notch. And to be frank POC is definitely on the steeper slopes now on his inevitable decline.

Maybe a 0-76 loss is what Ireland need just now.

I'm optimistically hoping that the patience isn't stretched as far as Decky Kidney did when he kept asking for it. No, scrap that, Kidney tore the arse off Irish patience or at least those who allowed him to continue brainlessly in post did.
I believe Joe will deliver with Ireland and will get the best out of any side he coaches but I was just disappointed at this selection simply because it's what Decky would have selected. Well apart from Deccy would have started Earls injured or not.

I just hope it's not a massacre, I pray for one huge performance if there is one in this side.

Pete330v2 wrote:I'm optimistically hoping that the patience isn't stretched as far as Decky Kidney did when he kept asking for it. No, scrap that, Kidney tore the arse off Irish patience or at least those who allowed him to continue brainlessly in post did.
I believe Joe will deliver with Ireland and will get the best out of any side he coaches but I was just disappointed at this selection simply because it's what Decky would have selected. Well apart from Deccy would have started Earls injured or not.

I just hope it's not a massacre, I pray for one huge performance if there is one in this side.

This has nothing to do with Kidney and your stupid comments about him. I see its a way of distracting from Schmidts little kinks in terms of his selection policy (although Kidney would have started Marshall and would certainly not have started Toner). Lets see if you are right regarding Joe going forward I certainly hope so but disparaging the past is a bit backward...

Patience gentlemen! Please!

but don't expect any from the ABs.................

To be fair Schmidt is putting himself under pressure by giving every 50/50 call to a player he's coached before on the basis that they know the systems... only to have a performance where all our structures in attack and defence seem to go wrong.

But I suspect he'll be unhappy after this game but under less pressure as we lose but perform much better.

Dealing with the legacy left by the muttering half wit IS the present, it's what Schmidt has to deal with now and find a solution to.
ME-109, your comments on here are always brimming with such wit and intelligence so suffer fools such as I who don't think Kidney was the second coming.

SecretFly wrote:Patience gentlemen!  Please!

but don't expect any from the ABs.................

Indeed...however for Schmidt to be a success as a coach he needs to do the following in the next 2-4 years...

1. Win a grand slam (or win a 6ns outright)
2. Go unbeaten through the group stages of a World Cup (first time under Kidney) and get to a WC semi.
3. Beat one of the SH top three away from home.
4. Win in Paris and Twickenham.

If he does all that I will be happy.

Pete330v2 wrote:Dealing with the legacy left by the muttering half wit IS the present, it's what Schmidt has to deal with now and find a solution to.
ME-109, your comments on here are always brimming with such wit and intelligence so suffer fools such as I who don't think Kidney was the second coming.

Neither do I pete regarding Kidney. And am happy he is gone (for himself if anything else)...but now everyone has got what they wished for don't denigrate the past as even the last world cup was our most successful ever..yet its is fools like you who don't even realise it...

I think we've got a really good chance to go unbeaten through the group stages of the next World Cup with France and Italy... it should be our minimum target!

For all Kidneys flaws it was after the 2011 RWC the wheels came off- big time- as Alan Gaffney left and wasn't replaced. Kidney always relied on technical coaches working under him and no-one adequately filled the void. Les Kiss double jobbing for instance. How on earth was that ever perceived as a good idea.

ME-109 wrote:

SecretFly wrote:Patience gentlemen!  Please!

but don't expect any from the ABs.................

Indeed...however for Schmidt to be a success as a coach he needs to do the following in the next 2-4 years...

1. Win a grand slam (or win a 6ns outright)
2. Go unbeaten through the group stages of a World Cup (first time under Kidney)  and get to a WC semi.
3. Beat one of the SH top three away from home.
4. Win in Paris and Twickenham.

If he does all that I will be happy.

If he does that... I'll want his head on a plate!  Can't be copying mediocre pasts, ME

Nothing less than a WC Winners trophy and a hatrick of 6Ns will satify me.  I've got my standards to sustain.

DArcy was picked because he has the sniffles. Schmidts hoping to pass it on to the all blacks when he sneezes in their direction after the haka.

Let's get past this bloody game first before we even dream of easy/hard rides in the WC!

We always overshoot our wishes and then die a thousand deaths of shame in the process of trying to realise them.

ABs is more than enough for now. I'm worried because my senses still won't even give me a hint of an outcome yet.

Golden wrote:DArcy was picked because he has the sniffles. Schmidts hoping to pass it on to the all blacks when he sneezes in their direction after the haka.

Speaking of the HAKA I hope they do something confrontational Sunday in response. Maybe get Willie Anderson to drop his trousers so the Irish players know what a pair of b..ls are...because they certainly seem to have lost theirs.

ME-109 wrote:

Golden wrote:DArcy was picked because he has the sniffles. Schmidts hoping to pass it on to the all blacks when he sneezes in their direction after the haka.

Speaking of the HAKA I hope they do something confrontational Sunday in response. Maybe get Willie Anderson to drop his trousers so the Irish players know what a pair of b..ls are...because they certainly seem to have lost theirs.

 

People love to go on about Willie Anderson's response to the Haka but I have watched it a good few times now and still think it looked pretty lame especially the part after the haka where he danced around like a GAA player celebrating a goal in a effort to rile up the crowd. Why cant the Ireland team just ignore the Haka get into a huddle of their own and get riled up themselves or something.

Best response surely would be just to ignore it.

GunsGerms wrote:People love to go on about Willie Anderson's response to the Haka but I have watched it a good few times now and still think it looked pretty lame especially the part after the haka where he danced around like a GAA player celebrating a goal in a effort to rile up the crowd. Why cant the Ireland team just ignore the Haka get into a huddle of their own and get riled up themselves or something.

Best response surely would be just to ignore it.

Donal Lenihens comments on it are funny...willie apparently headed off up the field himself dragging the whole team. Still I think if they want to get the crowd going they should do something.....why not, nothing to lose.

Shocking selection.. seriously what is Schmidt at, I thought he was going to pick players on form and build for the future.

Toner is just useless and I dont even feel the need to back that statement up.

Kearney, darcy and ross have no form. BOD - injured, 33 and playing poorly - where is the logic in starting him?

3 games in and Joe is making a balls of it with unbelievable team selections.

BlueMuff wrote:Shocking selection.. seriously what is Schmidt at, I thought he was going to pick players on form and build for the future.

Toner is just useless and I dont even feel the need to back that statement up.

Kearney, darcy and ross have no form. BOD - injured, 33 and playing poorly - where is the logic in starting him?

3 games in and Joe is making a balls of it with unbelievable team selections.

Name your ideal 15. Who would you start ahead of BOD for example?

The Hooley Versus the Haka?

Yeah, good one - boxoffice.

GunsGerms wrote:People love to go on about Willie Anderson's response to the Haka but I have watched it a good few times now and still think it looked pretty lame especially the part after the haka where he danced around like a GAA player celebrating a goal in a effort to rile up the crowd. Why cant the Ireland team just ignore the Haka get into a huddle of their own and get riled up themselves or something.

Best response surely would be just to ignore it.

Always liked Richard Cockerills in '97, get in their faces and urine them off even more

Supporters of Schmidt on here have touched on this, however - doubters take heed :

Schmidt is trying to coach a team into playing a first class attacking system, something alien to a lot of us after Kidney's headless tenure. This demands a lot of skill and critically familiarity.

He has not had nearly enough time to enjoy the luxury of playing whoever he wants. At the very least, the backbone of the team must consist of players who know the system inside out. It's easy for us armchair critics to sit back and point to players we would have picked. However, in reality most of our ideas would end in disaster.

With Joe, every single player has to be singing off the same hymn sheet, otherwise it's catastrophic. However, we have certain players who are too good not to play, (i.e. Bowe and O Connell). The reality is, they're not yet able to play fluidly in this team.

Look at the amount of loose balls last week - the players were just not there yet. Its most important to get these impact players up to speed first, by having them play with players who know what they're doing (Leinster backbone) before he can introduce more young guns. If we play everyone at once, its a pointless exercise. His hand is forced.

Granted, some may argue that any new coach has to implement his strategic framework onto a body of players that aren't yet familiar with his ideas, and Schmidt should be able to teach all players to excel at once, and you'd have a point. However, Schmidt is undeniably at the forefront of coaching attacking rugby. No other coach has transformed a team, nor enjoyed the success that he has in the club game during the past 3 years. It's fair to assume that what he's trying to teach, takes time.

The failings Leinster endured during Schmidt's introduction to the team (early season losses to Glasgow, Edinburgh, and a heavy loss to Treviso) would be unacceptable at international level. He has to keep the public interested, as he has stated time and time again in interviews. Ticket prices, sponsorship deals, and national pride are at stake during these games. Bearing this in mind, he simply cannot sacrifice massive losses for the good of team familiarity. He faces a more gradual ascent to cohesion.

Word from camp is that he tore into the team this week, calling them out as underachievers. He clearly believes in the team, and although picking players who may not be our most potent, he isn't picking them merely to achieve a valiant loss. He demands success at the final whistle, something most Irish don't.

Part of the reason England of late have been competitive is they truly believe they can win. This goes beyond what they say in interviews, its engrained in their consciousness. They won't settle for a valiant loss. It is unfortunately engrained in our Irish psyche that a strong effort will be enough to merit a pat on the back. Players will never admit it, but it goes beyond rugby. It's just the way Irish people are. Schmidt is the man to snap us out of it. He'll take us forward, no doubt.

marty2086 wrote:

GunsGerms wrote:People love to go on about Willie Anderson's response to the Haka but I have watched it a good few times now and still think it looked pretty lame especially the part after the haka where he danced around like a GAA player celebrating a goal in a effort to rile up the crowd. Why cant the Ireland team just ignore the Haka get into a huddle of their own and get riled up themselves or something.

Best response surely would be just to ignore it.

Always liked Richard Cockerills in '97, get in their faces and urine them off even more

The best one ever was Munster's Maori contingent. It was genuinely hairs on the back of the neck as those few guys stood in front of their mates in Red (one an ex-AB himself with I think still the highest try scoring record for them) and did a mini ABs back at the ABs.

Poetry in sport.... and they say the Haka has no meaning for outsiders. It did that day.

SecretFly wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

GunsGerms wrote:People love to go on about Willie Anderson's response to the Haka but I have watched it a good few times now and still think it looked pretty lame especially the part after the haka where he danced around like a GAA player celebrating a goal in a effort to rile up the crowd. Why cant the Ireland team just ignore the Haka get into a huddle of their own and get riled up themselves or something.

Best response surely would be just to ignore it.

Always liked Richard Cockerills in '97, get in their faces and urine them off even more

The best one ever was Munster's Maori contingent.  It was genuinely hairs on the back of the neck as those few guys stood in front of their mates in Red (one an ex-AB himself with I think still the highest try scoring record for them) and did a mini ABs back at the ABs.

Poetry in sport.... and they say the Haka has no meaning for outsiders.  It did that day.

The English should try that sometime the number of Kiwis they have in their squad

kunu wrote:

Part of the reason England of late have been competitive is they truly believe they can win. This goes beyond what they say in interviews, its engrained in their consciousness. They won't settle for a valiant loss. It is unfortunately engrained in our Irish psyche that a strong effort will be enough to merit a pat on the back. Players will never admit it, but it goes beyond rugby. It's just the way Irish people are. Schmidt is the man to snap us out of it. He'll take us forward, no doubt.

I think this is the biggest problem. Its not just the players though, the crowd too seem showed no belief in the team last week. It might take until the first couple of games of the 6 nations til the confidence comes back.

BlueMuff wrote:Shocking selection.. seriously what is Schmidt at, I thought he was going to pick players on form and build for the future.

Toner is just useless and I dont even feel the need to back that statement up.

Kearney, darcy and ross have no form. BOD - injured, 33 and playing poorly - where is the logic in starting him?

3 games in and Joe is making a balls of it with unbelievable team selections.

Well said muff. POC is 34.

Take the long term gains and the inevitable short-term stuffing.

Golden wrote:

kunu wrote:

Part of the reason England of late have been competitive is they truly believe they can win. This goes beyond what they say in interviews, its engrained in their consciousness. They won't settle for a valiant loss. It is unfortunately engrained in our Irish psyche that a strong effort will be enough to merit a pat on the back. Players will never admit it, but it goes beyond rugby. It's just the way Irish people are. Schmidt is the man to snap us out of it. He'll take us forward, no doubt.

I think this is the biggest problem. Its not just the players though, the crowd too seem showed no belief in the team last week. It might take until the first couple of games of the 6 nations til the confidence comes back.

Maybe I was watching the wrong game...or indeed too heavily and emotionally involved in it (I was cooking blood with the tension) but I felt the crowd last week were okay as long as they were given something okay to work with - namely the first half.  I might be entirely wrong but I really do seem to remember they were vocal enough in the first half but then the team came out with grim "we're beaten" faces on them after half time and the crowd wilted with them

The crowd Must be given something to cheer about - they've lost the habit of getting high because frankly Ireland in recent years have been teaching the crowds how to be quiet.
It needs to be learned again so that it becomes habit - and that one is truly the responsibility of our team.  From the ground up, the crowd noise has to come from honest, ballsy, courageous and bloodthirsty full-on International perfrormances.

All Blacks to choke. They never win all of their games in a season.

GunsGerms wrote:

BlueMuff wrote:Shocking selection.. seriously what is Schmidt at, I thought he was going to pick players on form and build for the future.

Toner is just useless and I dont even feel the need to back that statement up.

Kearney, darcy and ross have no form. BOD - injured, 33 and playing poorly - where is the logic in starting him?

3 games in and Joe is making a balls of it with unbelievable team selections.

Name your ideal 15. Who would you start ahead of BOD for example?

3.Fitzpatrick (Anyone other than Ross, he also has experience playing the AB's)
4.Tuohy (The form 2nd row)
12.Marshall (The form 12)
13.Cave (The form 13)
11.Fitzgerald
15.Dave Kearney

kunu wrote:Supporters of Schmidt on here have touched on this, however - doubters take heed :

Schmidt is trying to coach a team into playing a first class attacking system, something alien to a lot of us after Kidney's headless tenure. This demands a lot of skill and critically familiarity.

He has not had nearly enough time to enjoy the luxury of playing whoever he wants. At the very least, the backbone of the team must consist of players who know the system inside out. It's easy for us armchair critics to sit back and point to players we would have picked. However, in reality most of our ideas would end in disaster.

With Joe, every single player has to be singing off the same hymn sheet, otherwise it's catastrophic. However, we have certain players who are too good not to play, (i.e. Bowe and O Connell). The reality is, they're not yet able to play fluidly in this team.

Look at the amount of loose balls last week - the players were just not there yet. Its most important to get these impact players up to speed first, by having them play with players who know what they're doing (Leinster backbone) before he can introduce more young guns. If we play everyone at once, its a pointless exercise. His hand is forced.

Granted, some may argue that any new coach has to implement his strategic framework onto a body of players that aren't yet familiar with his ideas, and Schmidt should be able to teach all players to excel at once, and you'd have a point. However, Schmidt is undeniably at the forefront of coaching attacking rugby. No other coach has transformed a team, nor enjoyed the success that he has in the club game during the past 3 years. It's fair to assume that what he's trying to teach, takes time.

The failings Leinster endured during Schmidt's introduction to the team (early season losses to Glasgow, Edinburgh, and a heavy loss to Treviso) would be unacceptable at international level. He has to keep the public interested, as he has stated time and time again in interviews. Ticket prices, sponsorship deals, and national pride are at stake during these games. Bearing this in mind, he simply cannot sacrifice massive losses for the good of team familiarity. He faces a more gradual ascent to cohesion.

Word from camp is that he tore into the team this week, calling them out as underachievers. He clearly believes in the team, and although picking players who may not be our most potent, he isn't picking them merely to achieve a valiant loss. He demands success at the final whistle, something most Irish don't.

Part of the reason England of late have been competitive is they truly believe they can win. This goes beyond what they say in interviews, its engrained in their consciousness. They won't settle for a valiant loss. It is unfortunately engrained in our Irish psyche that a strong effort will be enough to merit a pat on the back. Players will never admit it, but it goes beyond rugby. It's just the way Irish people are. Schmidt is the man to snap us out of it. He'll take us forward, no doubt.

I don't buy the argument. Playing Fitzpatrick/Moore, Tuohy, Marshall, Fitzgerald, will in no way effect Schmidt's effort to get the team playing a certain way, if anything it would enhance it.

gleesonisgod wrote:

kunu wrote:Supporters of Schmidt on here have touched on this, however - doubters take heed :

Schmidt is trying to coach a team into playing a first class attacking system, something alien to a lot of us after Kidney's headless tenure. This demands a lot of skill and critically familiarity.

He has not had nearly enough time to enjoy the luxury of playing whoever he wants. At the very least, the backbone of the team must consist of players who know the system inside out. It's easy for us armchair critics to sit back and point to players we would have picked. However, in reality most of our ideas would end in disaster.

With Joe, every single player has to be singing off the same hymn sheet, otherwise it's catastrophic. However, we have certain players who are too good not to play, (i.e. Bowe and O Connell). The reality is, they're not yet able to play fluidly in this team.

Look at the amount of loose balls last week - the players were just not there yet. Its most important to get these impact players up to speed first, by having them play with players who know what they're doing (Leinster backbone) before he can introduce more young guns. If we play everyone at once, its a pointless exercise. His hand is forced.

Granted, some may argue that any new coach has to implement his strategic framework onto a body of players that aren't yet familiar with his ideas, and Schmidt should be able to teach all players to excel at once, and you'd have a point. However, Schmidt is undeniably at the forefront of coaching attacking rugby. No other coach has transformed a team, nor enjoyed the success that he has in the club game during the past 3 years. It's fair to assume that what he's trying to teach, takes time.

The failings Leinster endured during Schmidt's introduction to the team (early season losses to Glasgow, Edinburgh, and a heavy loss to Treviso) would be unacceptable at international level. He has to keep the public interested, as he has stated time and time again in interviews. Ticket prices, sponsorship deals, and national pride are at stake during these games. Bearing this in mind, he simply cannot sacrifice massive losses for the good of team familiarity. He faces a more gradual ascent to cohesion.

Word from camp is that he tore into the team this week, calling them out as underachievers. He clearly believes in the team, and although picking players who may not be our most potent, he isn't picking them merely to achieve a valiant loss. He demands success at the final whistle, something most Irish don't.

Part of the reason England of late have been competitive is they truly believe they can win. This goes beyond what they say in interviews, its engrained in their consciousness. They won't settle for a valiant loss. It is unfortunately engrained in our Irish psyche that a strong effort will be enough to merit a pat on the back. Players will never admit it, but it goes beyond rugby. It's just the way Irish people are. Schmidt is the man to snap us out of it. He'll take us forward, no doubt.

I don't buy the argument. Playing Fitzpatrick/Moore, Tuohy, Marshall, Fitzgerald, will in no way effect Schmidt's effort to get the team playing a certain way, if anything it would enhance it.

the marshall decision was explained by schmidt earlier. tuohy is a decent shout alright, but i think toner is in there to be a lineout option, and stay out of the way. tuohy likes a carry, and we definately need no more potential carriers in the pack. fitzy is a headless chicken at times and hasnt done anything to merit being picked. fitzpactrick/ moore decision is hard to criticize given his willingness to play mcgrath . he's shown hes not against playing those he thinks are up to it. In his eyes those 2 just arent good enough.

This is a weaker team than lined out against Australia and that is a worry. I'm particularly worried about Sexton. Hamstrings aren't held together with hopes and prayers and he could hobble off with 20mins on the clock.  As unlikely as it is, I only hope that he was taken off early as a precaution with the coaching staff having targeted this test more than anyone suspected...but I don't really believe that.

Kearney, Bowe, O'Driscoll, D'Arcy, Sexton, Murray, the backrow, POC, Toner and Ross all need to front up. The crowd isn't going to get rowdy when theyre freezing cold and the team is conceding soft tries like its going out of fashion while trying to narrow the gap kicking penalties.

We need somebody to make this game their own and inspire for this even to be close;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q32PHkL1U-c

Bring back the Humph

Wow that new zealand backline is choc full of attacking intent. If i was Schmidt i would be doing too things:

Attacking around the 10 channel is the obvious one but not confident we'll have quick enough ball to have mismatches there, but worth having Sob, Healy and sexton test Cruden out.

Secondly while Ben Smith is a fantastic attacking player he's still getting to grips with defending at 13 and i've seen him miss quite a few tackles. Those are the only weaknesses i see.

What not to do: Kick aimlessely to their lethal back 3, really chase every up and under and give the receiver no time to move the ball, dont get isolated and dont look for the contact with ball in hand.

Wow that new zealand backline is choc full of attacking intent. If i was Schmidt i would be doing too things:

Attacking around the 10 channel is the obvious one but not confident we'll have quick enough ball to have mismatches there, but worth having Sob, Healy and sexton test Cruden out.

Secondly while Ben Smith is a fantastic attacking player he's still getting to grips with defending at 13 and i've seen him miss quite a few tackles. Those are the only weaknesses i see.

What not to do: Kick aimlessely to their lethal back 3, really chase every up and under and give the receiver no time to move the ball, dont get isolated and dont look for the contact with ball in hand.

Big Mac Michael wrote:the marshall decision was explained by schmidt earlier. tuohy is a decent shout alright, but i think toner is in there to be a lineout option, and stay out of the way. tuohy likes a carry, and we definately need no more potential carriers in the pack. fitzy is a headless chicken at times and hasnt done anything to merit being picked. fitzpactrick/ moore decision is hard to criticize given his willingness to play mcgrath . he's shown hes not against playing those he thinks are up to it. In his eyes those 2 just arent good enough.

is this a typo?

I think people have to be more patient with Schmidt. Remember after a few weeks of taking over Leinster George Hook and many LEINSTER FANS were calling for him to be sacked.


Ireland is going through a transition period and to be honest I can see it lasting at least a year.


As bad as Ireland were against Australia they made twice as many line breaks and were harshly penalised by the ref on occasions. Australia also should have had about 2 more yellows because every time Ireland got in behind them they made professional fouls. They outsmarted Ireland which was disappointing.


Irelands mentality is as bad as the French. The same team is picked all the time but the performance differs wildly. Look at their last 2 performances against NZ. Also under Kidney they blew many a game. The recent draws against France for example could be described as defeats snatched from the jaws of victory.


Expect a backlash against NZ. Ireland are much better team than last weeks performance suggests and now that the pressure is off you can expect a decent performance. They won't win but might keep the scores down to about 10pts.


If they get well beaten by NZ then it might be time for a clean sweep of the squad. Of course the provinces' reluctance to take a chance on youth (Leinster and Munster mainly) is another stumbling block to over come. I'd like to see David Nucifora knock a few heads together when he gets into office. Hopefully he is not too friendly towards the provincal coaches and does whats best for Ireland. After all these years and provincal success its time to focus on helping Ireland strengthen to become a feared team. If the provinces continue to sign journey men players from abroad then you'll need even more patience.

We'll give the All Blacks a fright for an hour at the least.

The Saint wrote:All Blacks to choke. They never win all of their games in a season.

True. Though this is the first time theyve set it as a goal. Last year it was winning the first R Championship and retaining the Bledisloe. This year theyve added one more to that and are on track so far.

Savea looks to be out through injury?