Injury list gives cause for concern

On any other occasion the Irish team management would have been entitled to bask in the reflected glow of a fine evening's work. However, a spiralling injury situation, and particularly the hamstring twinge suffered by Ireland's captain Dion O'Cuinneagain, will be the main preoccupation for coach Warren Gatland prior to Wednesday's World Cup play-off match in Lens.

An inspirational figure against Romania, O'Cuinneagain hobbled to the sideline just a couple of minutes short of the final whistle, immediately icing his hamstring. The player is relatively unconcerned: "I just tweaked the hamstring so I came off straight away. It's not a big deal, I should be fine by tomorrow. I had to let everybody get a cheer," the last comment a reference to the crowd reaction to Keith Wood.

Team manager Donal Lenihan provided a comprehensive insight into the walking wounded. "We are hopeful that Eric Miller (hamstring) will be able to train on Monday. Peter Clohessy tweaked his back while doing lineout work and we felt that there was no point in risking him. It's the sort of thing that usually clears up in 48 hours.

"Justin Bishop suffered a hamstring strain on Thursday, so again there wasn't much point in asking him to play. Eric Elwood received 11 stitches in a badly gashed head, but it's not a problem and Trevor Brennan is away on his holidays."

Ireland now faces the possibility of playing two matches in four days and Gatland acknowledged the pitfalls of such a schedule. "That's a concern. We have done a great deal of work on scrummaging and calls, making sure that everyone knows what's required. I think that we will only have one specific training session before Wednesday and the same with regard to Saturday.

"The emphasis will be on quality. We have done the hard work and it is now a question of keeping the legs fresh. I thought we were very fit tonight, the fitness levels of the team are excellent and we got around the pitch well."

In discussing fitness levels the performance of openside flanker Kieron Dawson deserves special mention. Playing his first 80 minutes of the season, the London Irish flanker played a pivotal role in continuity and defence, forcing several turnovers.

Gatland enthused: "I think in the last 20 minutes Kieron was blowing a bit, but for his first full game he was very good. His lines of running were excellent, he covered the ground well and supported intelligently. I think it was a very promising performance."

The general display pleased the Irish coach, hard work completed on the training ground was beginning to bear some fruit.

"I thought we scored some very good tries, we moved the ball well. Some of the substitutions did not help the continuity, but you have to expect that. I was especially happy with Dion's try, we are trying to get runners in behind the opposition backs."

Another who deservedly drew the plaudits was out-half Eric Elwood for his polished all round display, quite aside from exceptional placekicking. "He's been jumping out of his skin all week. I think that was Eric's best game for Ireland for about three seasons."

The emphasis then switched to Ireland's potential opponents come Wednesday and Gatland's preference. "Both teams (Argentina and Samoa) pose problems. We played Argentina here recently and we dominated them up front: they don't pose the same threat behind the scrum. Samoa are more lively, but I feel we can put them away in the scrum.

"I think we would play a more territorial game than Wales did. I would also look to put their lineout under pressure. I suppose my preference would be to play against Samoa."

Last night's game marked O'Cuinneagain's first try for Ireland, a moment he savoured. "It's great to get that first try. I have been stopped short a few times, so it was great to get over the white line. We face a big challenge on Wednesday whether it is Argentina or Samoa. It'll be a very physical game."