He needed to focus more on the transition.
2011 in my book was the biggest lost opportunity in a World Cup for Ireland.
On a more genersl point, the competitive advantage that Ireland enjoy during a Championship campaign, effectively having those players in camp for 9-10 weeks is more or less in a World Cup campaign. One the Northern Hemiaphere club season ends in late May/early June, everyone is pretty much on camp until the World Cup starts in September.
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What has been noteworthy about Ireland last four World Cup quarter-final defeats (France 2003, Wales 2011, Argentina 2015, New Zealand 2019) is that they’ve had to play catch up almost from the word go, conceding early tries every time. It smacked of groups of players who didn’t have the cojones or genuine belief they could do it on the biggest stage.
You can give some excuse to a team who have had a tough schedule or have a significant injury list and who still give as good as they get for most of a World Cup quarter-final but end up getting worn down by a fresher/stronger opponent. Wales in 2015 would be a good example, they’d had two titanic tussles with England and Australia in the group stage and the Wales v Australia game was the final group game, just seven days before the quarter-final. Wales were missing key players through injury. Yet they still gave as good as they got and only ended up being edged out by a teak tough South African team very late on.
The only performance Ireland have managed like that in a World Cup quarter final was against Australia in Dublin in 1991.
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Very true, everything tightens up with the pressure of a deficit in cup rugby. Ireland aren’t great chasers.
Need Klairon Davis on the team.
I was at it. Unlimited heartbreak.
So was I.
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I was not.
But I was at this.
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It’s all coming out now.
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Bandwagon is gathering pace with the “I liked them before it was cool” gang
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No bloody foreigners playing for them that time
Seen as it seems to be confession time i was at Ireland v Australia in 91 too. Campese was brilliant in that world cup but quiet enough that day.
He scored two sublime tries but Jack Clarke did him up like a kipper.
Had Australia lost that game he’d always have been remembered as a bottler by the rugby equivalents of Fluvio.
I was at the semi final as well
I’m afraid you’ve reached this week’s quota for bot interactions
He was unreal. His no look pass over the shoulder for horan in the semi stands out as was there in awe.
Moved to aust in 1992 and a work colleague if my dad was an ex wallaby winger ross hanley. He introduced me to Campo after a match in ballymore. Came across nice.
Turns out he’s a fully fledged wanker
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Gonzaga would expect nothing less.
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Actually, Brian Smith ?
Campese is a cunt.