SIX NATIONS:WELSH SECONDROW Ian Gough believes it always comes down to the front fives, and winger Shane Williams expects to feel some ball in hand. Ireland coach Declan Kidney says it might not be the spectacle people want while Welsh outhalf Stephen Jones feels the struggle between himself and his opposite number, Ronan O'Gara, is the key to winning Saturday's final match of the Six Nations Championship. Sometimes we see what we want to see.
The Scarlets player, Jones, who brings 79 caps and 678 points for Wales into the Cardiff endgame, thinks the battle of the kicking statistics will be the most influential factor in how the game will break.
“Just look at his [O’Gara’s] stats, his record for Ireland or Munster. That says it all,” says the Welshman.
Jones and O’Gara are fellow travellers. Both share an interest in horse racing and last week Jones, who was rested for Wales’ near disastrous run-out with Italy in Rome, was a keen observer of the Cheltenham festival.
His horse, Ski Sunday, came close to glory, finishing second in the Fred Winter Juvenile Novices’ Hurdle, three lengths behind winner Silk Affair.
The outhalf part owns the four-year-old gelding, along with club-mate and former Irish captain Simon Easterby, centre Regan King and Scarlets’ chief executive Stuart Gallacher.
Jones was happy with second place in the Cotswolds but in the Millennium Stadium, he knows that won’t be enough for Wales to come away feeling that this season has been a terrific success.
At the heart of it, he and O’Gara will play out a high-profile cameo in their private battle for points, position and supremacy. The veteran is wily and honest enough to acknowledge O’Gara’s influence in the Irish team. From 92 international matches the 32-year-old Munster outhalf has racked up 912 points.
“A great kicker of the ball, O’Gara is a great kicker of the ball,” adds the upbeat Jones. “The kicking battle is going to be interesting. Look at the stats and whoever wins the kicking battle wins the game. It’s about the variety of kicks, when to kick and when it is best being clever, isn’t it?
“That’s the way I think Ireland will go. I think they’ll probably put the ball up the park. They have got a very good defensive lineout haven’t they? You play to your strengths.
“How many years has O’Gara been at the top? He’s been brilliant hasn’t he? He dictates things well, a very, very good tactical kicker. He complements that pack well. He keeps them going forward. He keeps them on the front foot. Distribution game is good.”
Not even Ireland’s flawed run against England at Croke Park could deflect the effervescence of Jones. O’Gara’s worst return in an international match for a long time, converting only two of six kicks at goal, was a brief wobble and not the lustre dimming on his golden boot.
“He bounced straight back, didn’t he. How good is that? He did his job well. He’s mentally tough. He’s proved that time after time,” Jones snaps back in an enthusiastic defence.
But with such effusive praise there usually comes a flip side. Wales are not about to admire the record-breaking goal-kicker in front of a probable 60,000 home supporters in the 75,000-capacity stadium. O’Gara can expect the usual large chunks of debris to be dumped on his head and in his way. “We’ll obviously try to put pressure on him defensively because we can’t allow him to dictate things because he does it well,” explains Jones. “And that’s going to be a challenge for us.
“You look at where Ireland is strong. They are very good up front, aren’t they? They want to play forward as much as they can in the game. They are very efficient. The fact the lineout is very good, I think they will probably be direct and obviously with O’Gara and [Tomás] O’Leary they will probably try to kick. O’Leary kicks more box kicks.
“We [Wales] have got to up the tempo, throw the ball around. But kicking is a huge part of our game. For us it’s trying to get that balance right. That’s the big challenge we’ve got.”
For all of the praise about O’Gara as well as glowing reports on Brian O’Driscoll and Gordon D’Arcy there is an underlying but firmly-held notion around the Welsh camp in the Vale Resort in Glamorgan that Ireland should beware. Jones doth possibly praise too much. “Ireland have put themselves in an absolutely fantastic situation,” he says. “From our perspective we are looking for a performance. We’ve got a lot of stick. We’ve only played England at home in this Six Nations.
“This has been building from the Welsh public’s perspective and that of the Welsh players. We know Ireland are a good side but if you don’t get excited about this, you might as well forget playing rugby.”
A Grand Slam of mind games. If only the rugby can measure up.
