REFLECTING on the International Championship match last Saturday between Ireland and England, it would not be inaccurate to suggest that the level of disappointment in the aftermath of the 46-6 defeat just about corresponded to the level of expectation prior to the game.
Nobody suggested, insofar as I am aware, that Ireland would go into the match as anything but outsiders, but I most certainly thought Ireland had a chance. So did many others including one former international and current radio and television pundit who is now expressing "amazement" that anyone could think Ireland would beat England, yet who a fortnight earlier had said he, too, believed Ireland had a definite chance. The Irish players believed they could win, the coach and management team also believed it and so did the generality of Ireland supporters. Nor, as the captain Philip de Glanville said, did England believe for a moment that they would win by such a margin.
For Ireland to win, they needed a share of good fortune, a really good start and to get the breaks. The very opposite happened. The loss of Eric Miller was a huge blow and one that Ireland could ill afford. He was always going to be a key man - as he was against Wales. There are suggestions that he was deliberately taken out. There is no evidence to substantiate that allegation.
Miller's departure was compounded by the fact that Eric Elwood also had to go off. Any side that loses the number eight and outside half so early in a match is severely handicapped - and Ireland could not afford any handicaps. Elwood seemed to be in trouble from the outset with his right knee. It was surprising to see him take the field with that knee heavily strapped. He had been troubled a fortnight earlier by a slight hamstring but he played without difficulty against Wales and he played extremely well without any apparent problem for Lansdowne last Saturday week.
There is a suggestion that he injured his right knee last week during a training session in Limerick. The Ireland manager Pat Whelan said yesterday that he was unaware that Elwood had any fitness problem prior to the England match. Elwood stubbed his right foot in the ground taking Ireland's first penalty after a few minutes. That certainly did not help him, especially if, in fact, he had got a knock on the knee in training. Some pertinent questions are, I understand going to be asked about that issue.
It is not seeking refuge in excuses to stress the severity of the loss to Ireland of Miller and Elwood nor could it be suggested that, had they both been able to play on, Ireland would have won. But their departures made things easier for England, who, to their credit, closed Ireland down very well up front, got a reasonable lead and then took advantage of Ireland's suicidal attempts to attack from inside their own 25 in situations that cried out for the ball to be put out of the danger zone.
In that and other respects, the captaincy of Jim Staples fell short and while he was not helped by a leg injury that, in ordinary circumstances, would surely have meant him being replaced. Yet again, his poor tackling was exposed. The decision taken by Ireland to go in with only two back replacements was also extremely unwise. That is not the wisdom of hindsight. This issue was raised a the press conference given in Limerick yesterday week.
Ireland had a specialist outside half and a specialist scrum half on the bench and it was inadequate cover as events proved all too conclusively. The decision to have four forward replacements was prompted by the finger injury that troubled David Corkery. There were two back five forwards on the bench, Gabriel Fulcher and Anthony Foley. With Paddy Johns in the second row and bearing in mind his experience in the back row, it would have been much more prudent to have left Foley out and to carry three back replacements.
We learned some hard lessons on Saturday and while I would not wish for a moment to be ungracious about England's win, the reality is that some of the mistakes made by Ireland and the naivety in the closing stages flattered England. I also agree with coach Brian Ashton that, in many respects, Ireland's first half performance was a major factor. Unforced errors were made, chances not taken and the concession of two needless penalties for indiscipline cost a very high price. I also felt that somehow Ireland seemed to lack the ability to get at England early on and make things uncomfortable for them.
How far behind France and England are we? A 40 points beating was hard to take and the Irish side was very inferior to England, but is there really that big a gap? Circumstances on a given day in a match can have a huge bearing. Furthermore, when one considers that Ireland beat Wales a fortnight earlier and then look at how close Wales ran France in Paris, it does not make it easy to get a really true perspective.
Ashton has a great deal to give Ireland and that is generally recognised. He, no less than the rest of us, was bitterly disappointed at the result and the performance. Circumstances certainly did not favour him or Ireland on Saturday. He did a splendid job prior to the French and Welsh matches. He has the support and the respect of the players and the management, is a very good communicator and despite the England setback, he will do a fine job for Ireland. No one expected him to perform miracles or a quick fix in three weeks. But the longer he is in the coaching berth I believe the better it will be for Irish rugby.
Nor can Irish rugby afford any despondency - nor should there be any. The Ireland side is a very young team. Three of those who played last Saturday are still eligible for the under 21 team. There are some splendid young players coming through. The win by the under 21 team over England last Friday was encouraging and that despite the fact that Miller, Brian O'Meara and Denis Hickie were taken out of the side.
The crop of players who will be eligible for that team over the next two seasons is such that Ireland will be very strong in that sphere. They must be given every possible help and encouragement. There is, too, a level of patience required with players such as James Topping and Dominic Crotty. Both of those players were on the under 21 team last season, as were Hickie, Miller and O'Meara. Malcolm O'Kelly, Kieron Dawson and Colin McEntee, who have played for Ireland at A level this season, were also on the under 21 a year ago. You cannot buy experience - it can only be obtained on the field. Topping and Crotty have been faced by two of the most experienced wings in the game in Ieuan Evans and Tony Underwood.
Right now we have a shortage of players of sufficient experience and quality in some positions to replace some who are in the twilight of their international careers. I am thinking in particular of full back, wing, centre, loose head prop and open side flanker. If Simon Geoghegan regains fitness, he will instantly solve one of those problems. So, too, can a player such as Sheldon Coutter in the centre once he gets a little more experience. That is why the tour to New Zealand is so important. Brian Ashton is the man to coach that side next May and take Ireland into the 1999 World Cup.
