againstthehead wrote:BaggyTrousers wrote:OK DECISION DAY
Is the phoney war over now or is some chube of a gombeen man going to tell me that Ireland lost today because they prefer to play NZ in the quarterfinal rather than the final when we would obviously choke?
Is today the day that FibberJose emp'ies his bulging sleeve or are all you "phoneyists" just a bunch of halfwitted conspiracy theorists?
How many blinding moves will be revealed today? I suspect one, booting the crap out of it and chasing it. But it doesn't matter what I think, I'm not a phoney war proponent.
Answers please, you phoneyists & Fibberistas know who you are.
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Ooh , that was a lovely move that set up Earls. Just a shame that Ireland's 1st choice 13 was not fit and available to hold onto the darn thing.
I sincerely hope you are not suggesting that was not something we haven't seen regularly for Ireland. As it turns out he would still have been given his best to get their, the winger was closing extra quick, Jihad would not have had the gas to get there.
Shocking hands from Keet - but on the credit side, the performance of the pack ensured that my fear of Keet's death didn't come about, Bastareaud may as well not have been on the pitch. I don't think he had the ball in hand once never mind get a run at Keet.
Now, I'm not going to open an "in fairness" thread, but I have to say Hats off to many of FibberJose's Mexicans.
Seannie was superb, almost as good as O'Mahony, much more like himself for he has been way off recently. Heaslip was the hard working superb 8 he usually is except when facing Parisse, the Kearney brothers were like Kearneys possessed, I despise people who call Dave Kearney "Daverage", I never have and he was a Trojan thenight. Bob, well you looked at him during the anthems and knew he was inspired, loved that he picked out and snattered Freddie to win the game.
Fat Ross saw off two props and Healy worked very hard though still a distance from his best, Toner was absolutely superb and took the loss of aulie as a personal challenge. The loss of superman, the entrance of the new superman who did to a backrow what Stevie did to scrum half. With both Supermen, Toner battled away like the very good player he has blossomed into.
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. Very very sad to see Sexton in trouble and like Quiff he appeared to have a good gurn, FFS lads tighten up, we're not feckin; English. Only Fitzgerald was fecking clueless, fortunately his involvement was slight for he is one massive waste of skin & sinew never mind organs.
As for the Turnips, Murray, thank God, was back and brilliant, at the top of his game he makes clowns out of the many Munster-hating clowns of this forum who dismissed him as a chube not too long ago. O'Mahony yet again was supreme when the going was at it's toughest. Keet? I'm saying nothing, but he was not exposed, shame about the hands.
The Westies, well biys, the wesht is awake, Henshaw was a giant, I think he knew he would need to be massive for his lightweight partner and he was in spades, as good as I have seen him. Nathan White,what can you say about him, from nowhere to significant RWC player, the couple of scrums he had, he annihilated a prop as good as Mas.
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Brillaint to see the Westies contributing again since the occasional involvements of Dr.John O'Driscoll, Barry's Da & Ciaran Fitzgerald, the last decent Fitzgerald to play for Ireland, with no sign of that changing.
Then of course the Ulstermen, Rory Best is the greatest living Ulsterman after Trimble the GLU, you just have to love Rory Best for he never gives any team anything even slightly lower than his very best, in effect "The Rich Man's NIgel Brady". Tommy Bowe once more repaid my faith in him (& nore importantly Fibber's), those of you who bad mouthed him recently should be beheaded, the man is pure unadulterated class, only a fool would have dropped him.
Hendo was what Hendo is, a force of nature who, if fit, will not be omitted from any Irish match of importance for the next 10-12 years. You may now consider him a full time 2nd row. he won't play 6 if the IRFU are still paying his wages. He will be the new O'Connell, whether or not he achieves the same leadership role time will tell but he is exceptional as we have suspected for some time now and if example makes a leader, he is almost there. Chad, well I'll just say this, in the words of some young gamers I know, "He was a fu@king Boss". Brilliant, when he was needed he was superb.
A great performance, a great team performance, that has to lead to kudos to FibberJose and his men. Hats off.
Will they win next week? Well, they might, if they can replicate that spirit and sheer will, they will, so they will.
Sorry for being so long-winded and generally effusive, but that really was rather good. A very "proud and committed" Irish performance, despite my doubts before today.
One meanspirted caveat, I really didn't think France would be so toothless after a lengthy spell together, but all credit to Ireland who in all fairness demolished them with the power the Irish pack brought into play, I think that is what broke the French. They expected to win physically and they weren't within a beagle's gowl of it, not remotely close.
N.B. I love seeing that look in Bob Kearney's eye at the anthems, it is usually a harbinger of something good.