Rugby World Cup: Five things we learned from this weekend in France

Mack shows world class with knifing run through Tonga

Ireland winger Mack Hansen has shown what a cutting edge he has become. Against Tonga his first-half try reinforced and added to his growing reputation as a dangerous player at this level.

The ball delivered to him on the right wing bounced before it got to him, momentarily standing him still before he took off. Hansen beat two Tongan defenders in one move, stepping in field to his left. He then accelerated past another still bearing in towards the posts and finally left three for dead, two players in front of him and another running back to try and grab hold of his shirt.

It’s a rare talent to be able to find windows of space in such a compact and crowded area. Hansen showed composure and spatial awareness as acute as the very best finishing wingers in world rugby. His gliding movement and apparent insouciance in the execution adding a veneer of class.

Yes minister, the priority is make sure the beer doesn’t run out

At first it looked like a joke piece on Saturday. Then, maybe it was just the rugby way of saying we are not football and our sensibilities are different. The first line of a report ran: ‘French sports minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra is to attend England’s Rugby World Cup match against Japan in Nice to monitor security, transport and make sure there is enough beer for the fans.’

The Counter Ruck: the rugby newsletter from The Irish Times

---

The Counter Ruck: Does rugby need the 20-minute red card?

---

Johnny Watterson: Is this Ireland team in danger of flattering to deceive?

---

Rónan Kelleher: ‘The lineout clicked last weekend, but there was no major revamp’

---

Rugby is a sport where the fans get angry when there is not enough beer to buy rather than get angry when there is too much beer. It follows problems before England’s opening match against Argentina at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseilles when fans faced major delays and congestion entering the ground. The last thing France wants is a World Cup crisis a year before the Olympics. So, yes minister, more beer for the fans please.

Ireland’s bench presses home the advantage in Nantes

Andy Farrell should be feeling pleased with the way his team finished the match against Tonga. At half-time he took off players and gradually emptied the bench without any real negative impact to the Irish performance.

Ireland went into the break at half-time having scored 31 points. Andrew Porter, Rónan Kelleher, Tadhg Furlong, Johnny Sexton, James Ryan, Garry Ringrose, Caelan Doris and Conor Murray had all been replaced by 56 minutes.

Teams do tire and sometimes loosen up but Ireland kept with the pressure and scored 29 points after that group were removed from the game. James Lowe’s try arrived three minutes later followed by two from Bundee Aki and one from replacement hooker Rob Herring. At that point after the match late on Saturday night Aki was the leading try-scorer in the tournament with four from the opening two matches.

Henshaw: Ireland must be wary of Springboks surprises

Tonga was not a bad match to play before facing South Africa in the third Pool B game next weekend in Paris. Robbie Henshaw made reference to what the Irish team is about to face from the reigning champions.

“It’s just about knowing what they are going to bring. Their power game is massive up front and then they have some exciting backs, new guys who are lighting it up on the edges. But what we learned in November was to expect anything from their defence. They come hard off the line and they leave two or three players out on the edge. We have to be accurate and we have to have balls to go for it and play.”

Performance anxiety is just one of the things Gary Keegan has been working on. It was Keegan who helped transform Irish boxing into an Olympic medal machine and he is now full-time with rugby. Watch this space.

Let’s hear it for the great entertainers

There is one thing that cannot be overestimated in a pragmatic, success-driven tournament like the World Cup and that’s the entertainment value teams give. So far two of the most entertaining matches have been triggered by sides that have lost the match and coincidentally both of those matches have been against Wales.

Last weekend Wales played Fiji in a thrilling game that saw how the Fijians can turn on a switch and light up the field. More structured now that before but with the same athleticism, they brought Wales to the brink, a knock-on during the last play by one of their star players Semi Radradra leaving them short on points but not on action.

Similarly, Portugal against Wales on Saturday. If they had a reliable kicker, who knows what could have happened for this high-tempo, action-packed team that lost 28-8 but won on entertainment value.