What do you mean exactly. It is an experimential side that is been given their chance and they are not taking it. If they put in these performances in the WC then i’d have an issue with it. I’d blame the players here more than Kidney.
Why’s he persisting with a charlatan like Eoin Reddan when Conor Murray needs to be fast-tracked into the team? He probably won’t even give him a chance to make the squad. I’m seething.
Fair enough, I’d like to see Murray get his chance as well. He still has a chance. Reddan or TOL haven’t done much Stringer is gone i’d say, he still can get the 3rd spot. Hopefully he can get a bit of time in this game.
I overreacted at half time and withdraw my remark about Kidney.
:huh:
ROG again showing his class here tonight.
15/8 on Ireland here in running is more than generous.
Sorry lads. I just want Ireland to win so much and sometimes speak out rashly when my emotions get the better of me.
Good 2nd half performance. Best has to go, we need a fit Flannery. Buckley has to go as well, offers nothing only free kicks and penalties. How important is Ross. POC was fantastic, Cullen didn’t take his chance either. Reddan I taught was terrible, Murray deserves a proper chance. Earls is better off on the wing. Another assured performance from Kearney.
This boy reminds me of Mike Phillips. Thought he did well tonight when he came on and would like to see him start in Dublin next weekend.
Another glorious defeat on French soil. [quote=“Bandage, post: 588398”]
This boy reminds me of Mike Phillips. Thought he did well tonight when he came on and would like to see him start in Dublin next weekend.
[/quote]
After a very lacklustre first half performance against France in Bordeaux, Ireland recovered to put a decent second half together and answered some more questions about selection ahead of the forthcoming World Cup.
http://www.thefreekick.com/blog/?attachment_id=2423" rel="attachment wp-att-2423]
Backs:
Kearney - Another steady performance from the Leinster full-back. Assured again in attack and defence and seems to have put his indifferent form of the past year behind him. Very much in pole position now.
Trimble - Called into action more in defence than attack but coped well nonetheless. Released Kearney with one very well timed pass and did all that might be expected of him with confidence and competence.
Earls - Quiet in attack and unconvincing in defence. He didn’t link with Wallace inside to much effect and was responsible for a couple of poor turnovers. Impressed more in the second half when Ireland played more enterprising rugby but he doesn’t appear robust or steady enough to play centre regularly yet.
Wallace - Mixed the good with the bad. One or two well placed and well weighted kicks at the start of the second half in particular but with no running threat inside he was superfluous in too many attacks. He remains an option in a varied gameplan outside Sexton but that’s not where Kidney seems to see his worth.
Fitzgerald - Nothing too cause concern for Irish management which indicates he’s well on his way to re-establishing his form. A little isolated in attack sometimes but his high workrate meant he was frequently involved.
O’Gara - Will take some blame for the insipid first half display as he didn’t bring the game into French territory and created nothing in attack. The turnaround in fortunes was either the cause of or result of Irish dominance in the second half but either way he was impressive for the second 40 minutes.
Reddan - A sluggish performance. Never threatened to make a break, his passing was neither inventive nor lightning. Passed on whatever ball he was getting without adding much.
Forwards
Healy - A typically boisterous performance from Healy. More than held his own in the scrums and contributed around the park with some dynamic running. Particularly conspicuous in the first half when forward momentum was so hard to come by.
Best - Hard to be anything other than scathing of Best’s contribution. Responsibility for the lineout will be shared with the second rows but the crooked throws were down to the hooker alone. Not much of an impact in general play to apply any polish to his efforts.
Ross - Could be more energetic and enthusiastic with the ball in hand but he’s primarily picked for his scrummaging and he did that very well. His withdrawal coincided with France taking complete control of that area. Becoming a vital part of Irish plans.
O’Callaghan - Made far too many handling errors and comprehensively outplayed at lineouts.
Cullen - Not as prominent as you’d expect from someone trying to force their way off the bench.
Ryan - Credit for his workrate, his efforts in carrying the ball and a number of defensive interventions but he was badly exposed as a blindside forward. France strolled past him at scrums (embarrasingly untouched near the Irish line just after the interval) and he doesn’t have the athleticism or speed to be anywhere near an international back-row. A specialist back row or second row cover would be better.
O’Brien - One or two untypical handling errors in contact, but like Healy he was noticeable in the first half for at least breaking the gainline. Had to cover Ryan around the pitch but has had far better games.
Leamy - A very quiet performance from the Munster forward. Part of a backrow that were anonymous in the first half and weren’t a huge part of the renaissance after the interval.
Replacements
Murray brought a bit more pace to his passing than Reddan had exhibited.
O’Connell was very effective in his time on the pitch and lifted the performance levels around him.
Jones didn’t get a chance to do much in attack but put in one horrible kick.
Buckley was miles off the pace at scrums.
http://www.thefreekick.com/blog/?p=2422]Read the full story here
Good balanced analysis TFK agree with nearly all of it. Only a couple of things that we would differ on. Reddan was shocking and made O’Gara look bad with the passes he was giving. He showed no enthusiasm at all. I taught O’Gara was exceptional. Fitzgerald is miles behind Trimble, Bowe and Earls on the wing, their is only so long you can live on pass glory. Earls is a better fullback than him, so his versatility, should not be looked on as a positive, for a place to the WC.
.
We were ok I suppose but frustrating we didn’t get anything out of it. Agree with much of analysis above. Kearney and Trimble both looked sharp. O’Gara was good but still offers us limited gameplan. Wallace kicked very well for first 50 but then overdid it. Reddan, Best and DO’C were very poor. Reddan just seemed to lack basic skills, Bests throwing was nowhere near good enough and DO’C was very poor at everything. Bar the odd display he hasn’t looked up to it for a fair old time now and I really think it is time PO’C and Cullen were given a chance together. This match will be useful if selection policy in the future is influenced as a result of it. I fear it will not be.
Very impressed with Australia last night.
SA looked somewhat impressive and were a far better team than their last 2 games and looked like they were in control and the Aussies were giving away penalties within kicking range. The game looked to be made for the SA’s, a slower pace with a few scrums and pretty structured play.
Then Australia upped their game and made it a more flowing game and got an excellent unconverted try from McCabe who impressed in the centre. The game was played at a better pace from then on with both teams having a go. The Aussies have really worked on their scrum and sealed the game by winning a penalty from a scrum against the head. It was quite impressive.
For the Aussies, the front row is improving in all aspects with Moore very impressive in the loose. The 2nd row of Sharpe and Horwill were immense and upset the set piece and worked their balls off. This is the Aussie best 2nd row. The back row struggled at times especially in the first half with Spies especially, but eventually took over and dominated at the breakdown. Pocock having a great 2nd half and Rocky is getting back to his best. SA were busy and tried hard, but maybe they didn’t have enough miles on the clock in the back row.
Genia was class, best No.9 in the world by a long shot, although Du Preez was also impressive. Cooper was mixed again, does seem sometimes to be a little afraid of the big players, but then surprised me with some bravery and great tackling. The SA half backs were mixed, but Genia outshone all here.
The 4 Centres probably drew even with all 4 showing glimpses of class. McCabe was possibly the most impressive making yards, while Flourie was impressive in patches.
Out the back Habanna was as dangerous looking as i’ve seen him in a long time, but didn’t get any clear cut chances. The Aussie back 3 always looked dangerous, but O’ Connor had some poor kicking, both from play and penalty.
Overall the most impressive thing was Australias coolness under pressure and the improvement in their pack.
Larry our problems lie further than DOC. At the end of the day he will do a job. Cullen is not good enough in my opinion. We have bigger problems at hooker, hopefully Flannery gets back to full fitness. If Ross gets injured we are fucked, Buckley and Court aren’t good enough. Hayes has to travel at least he can lock the scrum. Reddan and TOL are starting to worry me, i’d love to seev Murray get a proper chance. The Fitzgerald fasinacting has to be put to bed, not good enough. Our back up centre hasd to be a worry as well. Wallace did okay, but he is not the answer, hopefully McFadden steps up next week.
Would agree with most of that, O’Callaghan seems to come in for a lot of criticism these days and a lot of it is wide of the mark, Cullen may be an improvement in the setpiece but O’Callaghan is a far better defender and a far more prominant player in the loose. Best was poor again last night but he is an average player and has had far more average than good games for Ireland. Flannery can’t get fit quick enough
Woul like to see the following team play next week
Jones
Trimble
Bowe
O’Driscoll
Earls
Sexton
Murrey
Heaslip
Wallace
O’Brien
O’Connell
Cullen
Ross
Flannery
Healy
Now thats a team Puke, i’d love to see that, but fear there is little chance.
[quote=“Anto, post: 588404”]
Larry our problems lie further than DOC. At the end of the day he will do a job. Cullen is not good enough in my opinion. We have bigger problems at hooker, hopefully Flannery gets back to full fitness. If Ross gets injured we are fucked, Buckley and Court aren’t good enough. Hayes has to travel at least he can lock the scrum. Reddan and TOL are starting to worry me, i’d love to seev Murray get a proper chance. The Fitzgerald fasinacting has to be put to bed, not good enough. Our back up centre hasd to be a worry as well. Wallace did okay, but he is not the answer, hopefully McFadden steps up next week.[/quote]
Oh I don’t think dropping DO’C is a panacea to all our problems. I do think Cullen and PO’C should be given a shot together however. As an Ulster fan I can say Best was lucky to regain his place when he came back from injury last year. He has been poor since returning unfortunately. Flannery’s lack of gametime and poor form is a concern also. I think your being little harsh on Fitzgerald. I thought he was a lot better than Earls for instance.
I’d like to see something like Pukes team given a shot. Would be interesting to see how Murray would do in particular.
What are the French like? Have they any chance of causing an upset?