France 25 – Ireland 3
This was the first knockout match of the 2007 RWC, and because it was in a pool round it aroused tremendous interest in France and Ireland. The losing team is probably out of the tournament, probably because if Ireland defeat Argentina and score four tries (which they couldn’t do against Georgia), there is a mathematical chance of them making the finals.
The build-up during the week for the match was intense and nasty. The French media dredged up some scandal concerning the private life of Ronan O’Gara. Eddie Sullivan, the Irish coach, was described as the sort of man who’d plunge a table knife through your shoulders blades.
The nastiness of this personal abuse of the Irish team reflected the French fear that they might be out of their own World Cup, even before the finals. A rugby magazine I read had a story headlined: CRASH TEST. And the opening words of the article on the match read: ‘Une generation de joueurs, un entraineur et un mondial de rugby sous la menace … (a generation of players, a coach and a rugby community under threat …)
The odds, though, were stacked against Ireland. The team, especially the pack, is over the hill. Brian O’Driscoll, the only genuinely great player in the team, remains a very good player, mainly as a defensive player, but the incisive dash in his game has gone. And then there is the pathetic record of Ireland winning only once at Paris in the last 34 years.
Ireland kicked in the Pumas manner, high up-and-unders, at the beginning of the game. But there was little pressure on the catchers and France, not as nervy as they were against Argentina, was able to defuse all the bombs.
For their part, France played mainly in the English manner, a lot of bashing the ball up, rolling mauls and the backs kicking away most of the ball they got. Jean-Pierre Rives, as it happened, had made this point at the meeting in Montpellier. And in the English manner they kicked their penalties, five in fact, before scoring their first try from a superb kick off the outside of his boot (in the Andrew Johns manner) by Frederic Michalak.
A second try was scored, again off a kick by Michalak, took France to an impregnable lead. But even with Ireland a man done to a yellow card, France did not have the pace or wit to chase two more tries for a bonus point. One could only imagine what Jo Maso, an assistant coach to Bernard Laporte, would have done to the clumping Ireland defence in his heyday.
For the French a win was a win, and let tomorrow in the form of how Argentina and Ireland resolve their match look after itself. The crowd at the Stade de France was happy enough to start singing ‘La Marseilles’ with about 20 minutes of play left in the match.
I got an email from a knowledgeable and well-connected friend immediately after the game. ‘Ireland awful. Eddie Sullivan will be sacked. No idea.’
I emailed him back that a week or so ago the Irish Rugby Union just signed a four-year deal with Sullivan. Irish rugby can’t win a trick, let alone a crucial RWC match.
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martin doyle said | September 23rd 2007 @ 7:22am | Report comment
The yellow carding and penalties for the softest of the Irish boot making contact with the French forward got a linesman’s flag out intervention. Tell us Spiro what is the reaction of the decision makers of the IRB heavyweights to that style of game adjudication. Also I could have bet a carton of xxxx that the first “converted “penalty by the french went just outside the sticks not inside???????????
matta said | September 23rd 2007 @ 7:42am | Report comment
mmm interesting call I agree on that coversion.
Anway, i have to say that once again O’Gara has proven he doesnt have the head for World Class rugby. Surely they will not persist with him anymore? David Humphreys has been a better option for years even though age is not on his side.
And who the hell was that Halfback? if there has been a worse performance by a number 9 in any WC game I would (not) like to see it! just poor!
And for christ sake… Neil Best is the ‘best’ backrower the team has yet he spend his life on the bench.. his agression and poer on the ball is up the with anyone going around… wit him and O’Connell (who plays around the prk like a backrower) working together the paddys would be a much better tem
Spiro Zavos said | September 23rd 2007 @ 11:08am | Report comment
One of the things I can’t understand is that before the RWC tournament the IRB officials to have a crackdown on what they called violent, illegal play. I think there is a fear that the worldwide audience, especially the millions of women/mothers will be put off rugby if it is seen as being too rough a game. The same sort of thing happens at the Football World Cup when extra restrictions on tackling from behind are imposed.
The problem for the rugby officials is that rugby is a rough and tough game. It is a body contact sport and is being promoted, in fact, as such with the tag line here in France: ‘Allez au contact.’
In a way I support any initiative that takes illegal tackling, like head-head shots out of the game. There is a legal implication, too. If head-high tackles are condoned by referees, and if someone is badly injured he may have a compensation case against the appropriate rugby union.
Now getting back to Martin’s point. I thought the yellow card for so-called stamping was ridiculous. And this is the problem with the instruction to stamp out illegal play. There must some understanding that players can slide into high tackles and that tackles can ride up around the shoulders. Having said that, I think that consistent hed-high tackles specialistis, and we know who they are don’t we?, should receive the full weight official punishment.
Andrew B said | September 23rd 2007 @ 12:09pm | Report comment
Re: boots on men – its a shame that these guys were penalised. Yes, we get it, don’t tear into a bloke on the deck, but really!? These were soft penalties (at least the ref was consistant…).
From what I’ve seen this year at local games, the smarter kids and men know that rucking is out, so they place their boot on the man on the ground. No pressure. Just place the boot there. The ref usually will see this and get the point. i.e. I could have rucked the heck out of this guy, but didn’t, so please penalise him for being on the wrong side of the ruck.
Dublin Dave said | September 24th 2007 @ 8:07am | Report comment
Matta,
David Humphreys retired from international rugby two (European) seasons ago. He has not been an option for some time. O’Sullivan’s neglect of back up options at half back, and in this part of the world that means both the number 9 and 10 positions, is the big black mark on his record.
Irish rugby has had its share of “miracle matches” in the past and it is going to need another to get through this group. There are no grounds whatsoever for believing that they can apart from the hope that a random selection combining some proven (Murphy, Neil Best, Quinlan, Hickie) and unproven (Reddan, Paddy Wallace, Carney) can click magically on the night and score four tries against a defence that has yet to be breached in this tournament.
The demise of a side that was rightfully expected to make an impact on this world cup has been painful. It could be said that we read too much into achieving record margins of victory over England, S Africa and Australia in the past 12 months.
Granted, England are still floundering after losing their World cup winning generation of players, S AFrica were very under strength, but Australia were pretty much first choice with a team that contained Latham, Tuqiri, Mortlock, Larkham, Giteau, Sheperdson, Elsom and Palu. I refuse to accept that thumping a team like that should induce delusions of grandeur. Something has gone badly wrong with the preparation for this world cup squad.
Still, while there’s life there’s hope. But a painful march back to the drawing board is in order whenever this team comes home from the World Cup.
Sam Taulelei said | September 24th 2007 @ 8:40am | Report comment
Matta
I’ll have to differ with your opinion on Ronan O’Gara’s ability. Since his return from the 2005 Lions tour he has played excellent rugby for Ireland and on their end of season tour to NZ last year was instrumental in Ireland’s stirring performances with his tactical kicking, goal kicking and general play. He outplayed Luke McAlister in both tests and impressed the NZ public and media and was rated one of the top 3 flyhalves in the world leading into this world cup. He continued this form in the November tests last year and during the Six Nations.
He does have a weakness in front on tackling but he has proven his worth as a world class player over the past couple of seasons and it would be an injustice to belittle his ability on the evidence of last weekends match.
His dip in performance reflects the rest of the Irish team who so many pundits had expected greater things at the world cup. I agree with Dublin Dave that something has gone woefully wrong in their preparations since the end of the Six Nations and with the contract extension of coach Eddie O’Sullivan for another four years I would imagine his performance and selections will come under intense scrutiny.
Albopictus said | September 25th 2007 @ 3:29am | Report comment
In one of NZ-born Fay Weldons’ novels, the protagonist spots a sign in a Paris hotel that says, “Defense d’emettre des cris de jouissance.”
This was the management’s attempt to cut down on the sounds of marital, or otherwise, bliss in the dead of night. Well, there were quite a few cris at the France/Ireland game last Friday night in Paris, but very little jouissance.
In short, it was a dismal example of two teams desperate not to lose.
The way they repeatedly kicked the ball to each other was most revealing. They hated that ball, a ball similar to the one that had treacherously laid France low against the Pumas, and had caused Ireland such pain against Georgia. So they kicked it, not on cunning angles to the side lines, but in the manner in which men kick at a savage dog that’s bitten them. Even setting up a penalty shot, when they had the ball at their mercy, O’Gara and Ellisande lashed at it with their boots, then shook their fists at it as it sailed wide.
Chris White, recognizing that he was refereeing a dogfight, blew his canine whistle as hard and as often as he could. One offense was for “standing on a player.” Not lying on, sitting on or leaning against but standing on. (If the IRU is serious about cleaning up the game, they’ve got to crack down hard on this promiscuous standing on.)
Yes, Freddy’s banana kick was pretty, and his kick through for Clerc effective, but bottom line is this: if if anybody wants to make the case that an international game of rugby can be, repeat, can be, totally awful, and the counless laws, if even notionally bent, applied with a heavy trowel, this match will serve as exhibit A.