World Cup News

[Russ]

The cup will be at Belfast Harlequins and Banbridge Kofi if you want to get your picture taken with it.

Can't wait. Good to see banbridge getting an event other than welly throwing and ploughing

And Ravens games

That investment in the pitch has been a big success

[BaggyTrousers]

I'm painfully reminded of 2007 when they were to kill dead things & told everyone so.

I feel like Schmidt's Ireland are a different beast. He won't tolerate "nerves", or players using "favourites not being Ireland's natural status" as an excuse.

Blinkers off time. What about the non-performance in Wales? That can & will be replicated, we are decent/competitive on our limited gameplan we are not "great".

I wouldn't call that a complete non-performance, though. It was our worst of the 6Ns, but we were within 6 at the end. There were a few mitigating factors:

Sexton had a nightmare (as will happen on occasion, particularly when only on his 3rd game back from lengthy lay-off);
the 3/4 line ballsed up a vital stretch (albeit against phenomenal defence), which highlighted the absence of BOD;
Barnes used the first 15 minutes to educate the defending team on how he would be handling the breakdown, which unfortunately was us;
Barnes knows as much as Britney Spears about the scrum (we were so dominant in the scrum that we broke Samson Lee's leg , with no reward).


Wales beat us at our own game, which we were not ready for. The fault for that ultimately lies at the door of the coaching team, not the intrinsic psychic doubts of the players - though it should be emphasised that even with all of this, we only lost by 6 points.

Baldy, I missed this a while back & Buck's subsequent post about the glories of Murrayfield. Excuses is about the height of what you have posted, frailty that you or someone said Schmidt would not tolerate. Then Scotland, a team shamed in their own backyard, of course they had to go for it, nothing magical or mystical.

Let's put it this way, if Fibber Joe had sent them out to grind out a win their, I'd have been calling for the return of Deccie Kidney, they knew they needed to win by 21 or something like it, it was not a tactical stroke of genius.

Anyway, I want them to do well obviously but the reality is they will fail as they always fail. If anyone sees a semi-final as great, I disagree, it's just another failure. I see no point in entering something you can;t win & will soon start lobbying UR to boycott next season's SDC on the basis that it is now firmly above our pay grade & a waste of time. We are in it for filthy lucre, not to win.

[Cap'n Grumpy]

Any of this on TV?

[rorybestsbigbaldnoggin]

I'm painfully reminded of 2007 when they were to kill dead things & told everyone so.

I feel like Schmidt's Ireland are a different beast. He won't tolerate "nerves", or players using "favourites not being Ireland's natural status" as an excuse.

Blinkers off time. What about the non-performance in Wales? That can & will be replicated, we are decent/competitive on our limited gameplan we are not "great".

I wouldn't call that a complete non-performance, though. It was our worst of the 6Ns, but we were within 6 at the end. There were a few mitigating factors:

Sexton had a nightmare (as will happen on occasion, particularly when only on his 3rd game back from lengthy lay-off);
the 3/4 line ballsed up a vital stretch (albeit against phenomenal defence), which highlighted the absence of BOD;
Barnes used the first 15 minutes to educate the defending team on how he would be handling the breakdown, which unfortunately was us;
Barnes knows as much as Britney Spears about the scrum (we were so dominant in the scrum that we broke Samson Lee's leg , with no reward).


Wales beat us at our own game, which we were not ready for. The fault for that ultimately lies at the door of the coaching team, not the intrinsic psychic doubts of the players - though it should be emphasised that even with all of this, we only lost by 6 points.

Baldy, I missed this a while back & Buck's subsequent post about the glories of Murrayfield. Excuses is about the height of what you have posted, frailty that you or someone said Schmidt would not tolerate. Then Scotland, a team shamed in their own backyard, of course they had to go for it, nothing magical or mystical.

Let's put it this way, if Fibber Joe had sent them out to grind out a win their, I'd have been calling for the return of Deccie Kidney, they knew they needed to win by 21 or something like it, it was not a tactical stroke of genius.

Anyway, I want them to do well obviously but the reality is they will fail as they always fail. If anyone sees a semi-final as great, I disagree, it's just another failure. I see no point in entering something you can;t win & will soon start lobbying UR to boycott next season's SDC on the basis that it is now firmly above our pay grade & a waste of time. We are in it for filthy lucre, not to win.

"Excuses" is probably an accurate summation of half of the points I offered, Baggy: the scrum and the co-incidence of Barnes laying down the law when we were without possession were factors beyond immediate control (ie, excuses). Sexton playing terribly and the 3/4 line having their first (and hopefully only) "where's BOD" moment were 2 problems that were within the realms of tactical work.

We were also reluctant to move away from a kicking game against an aerially excellent back 3, which hurt. Whilst that is understandable, it was a tactical failing by Schmidt - one which I hope he has learned from (see the Scotland match).


Re the semi-finals; I don't think anyone is saying "if we get to the SF, job done, the semi is only an exhibition match." I think the point is, if we get to a semi, we would be playing one of England/Australia/Wales; we'd have a 40-60% chance of beating one of those teams, approximately. Then we're potentially into a final against SA/NZ, which is a one-off game where we are massive underdogs, but not without hope. One game is one game, after all.

In the end, though, my prediction for Ireland this autumn is to get to the semi-finals, or possibly the final, but fall short. It is too much to expect all of Heaslip, Murray, Sexton and O'Connell to perform at 100% for five consecutive matches, without injury or drop-off, and that is what we would need to have a strong chance of winning the World Cup.


EDIT: Additions

[Russ]

Whist!

2007 fell apart at Murrayfield when we got humped by the Scots in a friendly

[rorybestsbigbaldnoggin]

Whist!

2007 fell apart at Murrayfield when we got humped by the Scots in a friendly

In 2007, Eddie O'Sullivan decided that the rugby players didn't need to play rugby in order to play in a Rugby World Cup . . .

[BaggyTrousers]

The cup will be at Belfast Harlequins and Banbridge Kofi if you want to get your picture taken with it.

Can't wait. Good to see banbridge getting an event other than welly throwing and ploughing, bit surprised at Quinns getting the Cup as at this time of the year their all running around in their Antrim tops at Pairc St Deramore

Steady on Kofi, the father of one & father-in-law of another of my mates has an MBE (or similar) for services to ploughing. The man is a King.

[BaggyTrousers]

"Excuses" is probably an accurate summation of half of the points I offered, Baggy: the scrum and the co-incidence of Barnes laying down the law when we were without possession were factors beyond immediate control (ie, excuses). Sexton playing terribly and the 3/4 line having their first (and hopefully only) "where's BOD" moment were 2 problems that were within the realms of tactical work.

We were also reluctant to move away from a kicking game against an aerially excellent back 3, which hurt. Whilst that is understandable, it was a tactical failing by Schmidt - one which I hope he has learned from (see the Scotland match).


Re the semi-finals; I don't think anyone is saying "if we get to the SF, job done, the semi is only an exhibition match." I think the point is, if we get to a semi, we would be playing one of England/Australia/Wales; we'd have a 40-60% chance of beating one of those teams, approximately. Then we're potentially into a final against SA/NZ, which is a one-off game where we are massive underdogs, but not without hope. One game is one game, after all.

In the end, though, my prediction for Ireland this autumn is to get to the semi-finals, or possibly the final, but fall short. It is too much to expect all of Heaslip, Murray, Sexton and O'Connell to perform at 100% for five consecutive matches, without injury or drop-off, and that is what we would need to have a strong chance of winning the World Cup.

EDIT: Additions

I accept your confession of simply making excuses with my usual good grace

Thing is you hit the nail on the head eventually. Ireland are a wafer thin squad quality wise and to win the RWC would require the best of them to be uniformly at the top of their games whilst lesser players like Payne Kearney and others excelled themselves. It would require an absence of injuries and if they ended up facing NZ, it would need an act of God & he doesn't exist.

we would be playing one of England/Australia/Wales; we'd have a 40-60% chance of beating one of those teams

that bit is somewhat curious, does not compute.

[Russ]

Are there bonus points?

[Kofi Annan]

Are there bonus points?

yes

[Russ]

Are there bonus points?

yes

French ones or normal ones?

[Kofi Annan]

Are there bonus points?

yes

French ones or normal ones?

Oui

[rorybestsbigbaldnoggin]

we would be playing one of England/Australia/Wales; we'd have a 40-60% chance of beating one of those teams

that bit is somewhat curious, does not compute.

I mean to say that if we get a situation where we have

Ireland v England OR
Ireland v Australia OR
Ireland v Wales,


in each of those semi-finals, I would approximately and subjectively give Ireland anywhere from a 40 to 60% chance of winning.

[BaggyTrousers]

we would be playing one of England/Australia/Wales; we'd have a 40-60% chance of beating one of those teams

that bit is somewhat curious, does not compute.

I mean to say that if we get a situation where we have

Ireland v England OR
Ireland v Australia OR
Ireland v Wales,


in each of those semi-finals, I would approximately and subjectively give Ireland anywhere from a 40 to 60% chance of winning.

Or near enough even money I read you as making Ireland strong second favourites against each, that if course should be a nonsense but in a RWC wee semi I'd state exactly a 40% chance at very best, given we have a long history of choking in the RWC and I'm not talking tackles.

[rorybestsbigbaldnoggin]

we would be playing one of England/Australia/Wales; we'd have a 40-60% chance of beating one of those teams

that bit is somewhat curious, does not compute.

I mean to say that if we get a situation where we have

Ireland v England OR
Ireland v Australia OR
Ireland v Wales,


in each of those semi-finals, I would approximately and subjectively give Ireland anywhere from a 40 to 60% chance of winning.

Or near enough even money I read you as making Ireland strong second favourites against each, that if course should be a nonsense but in a RWC wee semi I'd state exactly a 40% chance at very best, given we have a long history of choking in the RWC and I'm not talking tackles.

Even money, that's the one They're three very awkward teams, but they're better than the alternative (NZ or SA ) . . .