Samoa are the ideal opposition to atone for the Springboks display and to prepare for the All Blacks

THE IRELAND squad are currently undergoing a culture change regarding how they play the game of rugby. That means they are on the J Curve.

The letter J represents the performance of a group when change is being introduced. From the starting point your performance drops dramatically but when it bottoms out (hopefully represented by last Saturday at the Aviva Stadium) improvements inevitably follow.

But this can only occur when the new systems are embraced and understood by the players and implemented on the field.

Only then can the upward part of the J begin.

That is where the Wallabies currently find themselves (the parallel between Ireland and Australia should be maintained as both are fighting two superior rugby nations in either hemisphere – successfully as it turns out in both cases. As Australia continue to perform well against the All Blacks and the Springboks so too must Ireland maintain recent standards against England and France).

Last June I watched a very poor Australia lose to England at the Olympic Stadium in Sydney. That was the bottom of their J Curve. No doubt about it.

The cathartic journey this Wallaby team has undergone since has been fascinating to witness.

Their coach, Robbie Deans, and players have remained true to the old mantra: get the process right and the outcome will look after itself.

This now applies to Ireland.

Both teams are developing a ball-in-hand game under the guidance of excellent and experienced coaching organisations. Both have a deep desire to achieve great things at the World Cup in New Zealand next year.

This requires new and effective systems to be put in place.

A system in rugby is the process that delivers the athlete to the ball.

This year alone intercept passes have led to tries conceded against Scotland, Australia and most recently South Africa. This statistic alone tells us that the attacking systems are not yet embedded in the Irish players’ minds.

This is to be expected as they adapt to the massive change in how teams attack. Time and patience are required. They should be afforded this latitude.

Samoa are the ideal opposition to atone for the Springboks performance and to prepare for the All Blacks. When you play against a team that is weaker than your previous opponents it should provide an opportunity to get the new systems flowing.

Munster’s performances this season are an identical transformation. Under Tony McGahan they have been developing a running game for some time. Against London Irish they could only play one aspect of that style – a wide, side-to-side attack.

A week later against a weakened Toulon, back in Limerick, the players seemed to finally understand what was required.

The cornerstone of the attack was a dominant maul as forwards ran hard lines off Peter Stringer and short kicks from Ronan O’Gara yielded tries for his wingers. Johne Murphy was denied a try at the corner flag, by a Felipe Contepomi tackle, after a counter-attack was initiated by Paul Warwick on his own try line.

Munster are evolving. All we have seen from Ireland, so far, is an attempt to go wide.

I said it last week and I have to say it again: Ireland must get their counter-attacking structures in place. If they don’t, New Zealand will destroy them in seven days’ time. They will show no mercy.

The back three must be brought into a position to run or pass the ball. Rob Kearney and Keith Earls at fullback had little or no support when they caught the ball.

South Africa kicked it back to Ireland 35 times.

Against Wales, the Wallabies constantly had players sprinting back to support the catcher. James O’Connor alone caught and passed the ball to Kurtley Beale six times. The Irish back three caught and passed the ball to each other once. It was Tommy Bowe to Kearney, who then kicked it.

Luke Fitzgeralds frustration on the wing was obvious last week. His body language was screaming for the ball. At fullback he can demand the pill while bringing his wingers into play and punishing any sloppy kicks by Samoa. Fitzgeralds switch to fullback should force Rob Kearney to bring other players into the counter-attacking system when his knee heals and he returns to 15.

The selection of Paddy Wallace is a positive one. Paddy is a hugely under-rated player in the Republic. I regard both Paddy and Gordon D’Arcy as friends, but I always feel that Paddy didn’t get the recognition for his contribution to the Grand Slam. He is only reminded of that last penalty he condeded, which is very unfair.

His displays on tour last summer, in both attack and defence, were of the highest calibre. He is a great ball player and an ideal foil between Brian O’Driscoll and O’Gara.

Speaking of O’Gara, there is a saying that champions get up when they can’t. O’Gara is a champion. I have watched his passion for the game for more than a decade. His reaction to Jonny Sexton’s arrival on the scene has merely confirmed his place in the pantheon of great Irish sportsmen. When challenged he has refused to walk away, in fact, he has improved his game.

A gentleman with a great sense of humour, I have enjoyed his company away from the field, and as he runs out for cap number 101 the arm wrestle with Sexton is currently going his way.

We need to see a drastic improvement in how Ireland intend to play the game going forward because New Zealand are on the horizon and you must have your act together for them.

We may have to wait until the Six Nations for the Irish J Curve to straighten again but it must start today.