No changes as Kidney stresses need to cut out errors

2009 SIX NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP:IN THE circumstances, an unchanged Ireland side following on from a first victory over France in eight attempts hardly registers on the Richter scale.

Nevertheless, such has been the injury toll and vagaries of form – both individual and collective – with the side in recent years this was the first time Ireland have selected an unchanged side since the back-to-back games in New Zealand in June 2006, fully 29 Tests ago.

From the outset of yesterday’s press conference, Declan Kidney tried to convince us the Irish brains trust had examined, long and hard, the possibility of making changes. And, flanked by his head honchos, Brian O’Driscoll and Paul O’Connell, who’d be inclined to argue? True to his oft-stated word that he was endeavouring to build a true squad ethos, no doubt they did. Even so, you’d guess it was as much for the consumption of the squad themselves as the public at large, for it would have been hard to make any changes in the light of last Saturday.

Most likely, the Ireland management went into the opening two games with an open mind towards making fuller use of the squad, a la Wales last season.

Then, Wales made three changes to the team which beat England in their opener at Twickenham and another half-dozen changes to the team which beat Scotland 30-15.

In November, admittedly in vastly different circumstances, Ireland made six changes from the team which beat Canada 55-0 for the game against the All Blacks, but unless they were going to adopt a similar approach then Kidney deduced “on the balance of everything, I just felt it was best to go with the team the way it was because they had done well”.

It’s clear this management are striving to keep everyone feeling involved, and Kidney cited the advantages of competition for places, especially coming from a bench that boast 336 caps between them.

The performance of Jamie Heaslip (his best of the season and in an Ireland shirt) was probably in part due to having the breath of Denis Leamy down his neck.

“Everybody knows they can’t switch off because if they do some guy will step him or he might drop a pass or something like that,” said Kidney. “We saw what our error count was yesterday (Monday) and reduced that by 70 or 80 per cent this morning just by acknowledging it and that only happens if there’s competition for places.”

Friday’s A game is another example of that and although Keith Earls is fit again Kidney has kept changes to a minimum there also, with Donncha Ryan starting at blindside flanker in place of Neil Best (Ed O’Donoghue is on the bench) and Isaac Boss recovering from illness to reclaim his place on the bench instead of Chris Keane.

After a 12-week suspension, Best felt obliged to play for his club Northampton this weekend.

More pertinent than the selection then will be replicating the basics in set-pieces and restarts as well as the accuracy in the contact area and in making the most of the considerable talents out wide, but at the same time, Kidney acknowledged, improving their kicking/territory game.

“It’s a bit nit-picking, but if you don’t try to improve you regress. Obviously we spent a long time in our own half the last day. Some of that was due to maybe the way we approached it, some of it was due to the way that France counter-attacked so effectively.

“We’d be hoping, like every side every week, not to spend so much time in our own half, but it’s easier said than done. So maybe that’s one of the areas – ball in hand and phases of play.

“There were probably two phases, one in each half, that we took a good look at where we put ourselves under pressure – some of it due to good play by France and some of it due to our own play. So we’ll be trying to avoid those little spots in the matches.”

More inexperienced sides than the Italians might have wilted after such a discouraging first 25 minutes at Twickenham last Saturday, he reckoned, and pointed to their ability to retain possession.

“I wouldn’t say we’ve planned it, but you can’t be too surprised if, maybe, we only have 40 per cent possession because when they get it they hold it for long periods of time, and you mightn’t see it for five or six minutes, which is a long time in a game of football.

“And if your discipline isn’t right up there, they’ll pick off their points either by field goals or penalty goals, and it can become a very difficult day.”

Highlighting their very strong scrum and lineout, and retinue of ball-carriers up front, Paul O’Connell is expecting as physical a match as ever, and he was at pains to play down speculation as to what this team might now achieve.

“We want to be positive and all that about it but we’ve just won our first game so there’s a long way to go yet. But I think the gameplan that we played was quite simple and we all knew what we were doing and we were all able to buy into it.

“Sometimes the simpler it is the better. I think we did our basics very well, we took our scores when we were down there – sometimes we failed to do that in the past – and ’cos of that we got off to a good start. But, as I say, it’s only one game.”

IRELAND A(v Scotland A, RDS, tomorrow, 7.30pm): Gavin Duffy (Galwegians, Connacht); Andrew Trimble (Ballymena, Ulster), Darren Cave (Belfast Harlequins, Ulster), Keith Matthews (Buccaneers, Connacht), Mark McCrea (Malone, Ulster), Jonathan Sexton (St Mary's College, Leinster); Eoin Reddan (Wasps); Cian Healy (Clontarf, Leinster); Seán Cronin (Buccaneers, Connacht), Mike Ross (Harlequins), Bob Casey (London Irish, capt), Ryan Caldwell (Dungannon, Ulster), Donnacha Ryan (Shannon, Munster), Shane Jennings (St Mary's College, Leinster), John Muldoon (Galwegians, Connacht). Replacements: John Fogarty (Leinster), John Andress (Exeter), Ed O'Donoghue (Instonians, Ulster), Seán O'Brien (Clontarf, Leinster), Isaac Boss (Ballymena, Ulster), Ian Humphreys (Ballymena, Ulster), Barry Murphy (UL Bohemians, Munster).