I do, however, believe that a team containing Somerville, Hayman, Jack, Collins, Holah, Kelleher, Evans, Howlett, Mauger, McAlister and Gear would have a head start on most teams, especially when we consider how easily the NZ B/C team destroyed Scotland.

Besides that, are you really saying the above team would be better than anything another country could throw at them?

In Ireland’s case, playing NZ at home is happening at the beginning of the season, it’s their first real test at the start of the season. The ABs, are completing the end of their season. Ireland compete with NZ for the first half and concede a penalty try to finish 10-3 for the half. They concede two more tries in the second half. O’Gara is off-form and O’Connell goes off injured.

When NZ play Ireland on their home turf earlier in the year, Ireland are coming to the end of a long season but they have been paying together for a while and are more battle-hardened and consistent. NZ are finding their feet with their first tests of the season. It’s a more closely-fought game, but NZ still win. And some of the recent results have been close. But NZ have still won them.

With the Grand Slam bogey finally nailed by Ireland in the modern professional era, there’s only one bogey left for any Ireland team, now or in the future. Beating New Zealand – whether at home or away. It doesn’t matter. By one bloody point. It doesn’t matter. By a penalty kick to nil, it doesn’t matter. Just win. That’s all that matters.

Oh – and get it done before the next World Cup, please, Deccie……

van der Merwe – Matfield is no different to any other lock and those rules apply to them too – I think he is being kept in cotton wool for the Lions tour. As is John Smit (surely the best captain a team could wish for, up there with Johnson, but for different reasons).

I already agreed with your point that this team won’t beat them. I said that in a year’s time, it may be different for some of the reasons stated above by others. But it ain’t guaranteed.

Enough already.

True. I do recall reading something, somewhere that NZ always felt slightly more comfortable against Ireland than against England, and so have always kept their gears down. Plus, Ireland always catch them early doors.

Re: your 2nd para. The ML is shorter than the GP and prior to the current EPS agreement the Irish provinces have very much been geared toward the national team. A bit like NZ, but without the NPC.

I suppose that’s what happens when you land from 7 or 8 feet directly on your shoulder.

Ireland does tend to compete better than other NH teams in NZ, they always send a full strength squad (unlike say France) and tend to have less players injured (as always seems to plague England – I’m not sure why this would be the case, perhaps the Magners League is less of a grind than the Premiership or perhaps the Irish clubs are more co-operative and don’t schedule player surgeries or procedures for June).

The 2008 match was close, but I don’t think you could say Ireland let it slip. They didn’t lead at any point in the second half – the match was still up for grabs in the final 1/4 but to say Ireland let it slip would indicate they were on top and let the AB’s back into the match. Ireland had opportunities to win but the AB’s took the initiative – I’d say there’s a difference between “were competetive” and “almost won”.

That’s a bit of revisionist history right there, considering it was an understrength All Black team (with a bunch of first stringers already in Argentina) and also that Ireland only lead for about 15 minutes in the first half of one match. Ireland competed well, but were a long way from winning either match.

I would say that O’Connell plays a completely type of game to Matfield. O’Connell is utilised heavily as a ball carrier, Matfield isn’t. Matfield jumps in the middle and O’Connell jumps at the front.

Pothale, IMO Shane Horgan was a fine servant for Ireland. Good hands, great under the high ball, very clever but only a little slow.

Ok the easy ones. Chris in Sydney – O’Connell has 60 minutes at best in him. Complete and utter uninformed horseshit – you clearly do not watch any Heineken games featuring Munster whatever about the 6N. O’Connell is very much in his prime. I said above already that I don’t believe he’s the world’s best lock. He actually got a similar tag a few years ago as the form lock in the world. He has work to do – still.

James B – you make an assertion – that’s easy to make given history. Unfortunately, Ireland won’t get to play ABs in the next 12 months – so you’re right, this team won’t beat them. If two or three key players are developed in he meantime, then I think they have a good chance, but that’s as far as I’m willing to go. ABs have history and track record on their side, but there’s always a first time.

James M – your explanation leaves me somewhat confused. If you’re saying that the team suffered from a lack of belief in their ability – evidenced by their poor performance against ABs – fine. However, we know Kidney said it after the AIs, and I suspect thousands of others prior to that. The key intervention he made at the Athenry get-together was to get the senior members of the team to talk through that, and address the issues underlying the lack of belief. As a result of that, the team gained belief in themselves, and the results followed. So it’s not incongruous, if Kidney identified the key problem, found a solution, and following victories said that was the key difference for the team – built around principles of trust, honesty and integrity. That’s logical, not out of place or mis-matched at all. Maybe your editing threw this out of whack.

I like Dublin Dave’s selection, but I’d nitpick with one or two.

I’d have Girvan Dempsey in there. Kearney is a newbie compared to him, and Dempsey was there consistently and rock-solid for most of the decade, and kept Murphy out of the 15 jersey a lot of the times.

Horgan at 14 is a tough one. He had some fine performance with the Leinster boys as well as with Ireland, but I’d go for Fitzgerald if I have speedy Hickie on the other wing.

Given O’Driscoll played 12 in his earlier years, I’d half be tempted to put him in there as he had some of his best performances in that position. But that would disrespect what Darcy achieved in partnership with him.

Agree about having Axel Foley as captain – the team would follow him through the Gates of Hell and back.

I’m interested to see the mix of the Lions side. I suspect a heavy Anglo-Welsh influence. I believe the Irish will be ignored in some positions. This feeling comes from the predictions of the British media. Some may say they don’t select the team but they are definitely trying to influence the process. The Scots. won’t get many but that not exactly surprising.

Why is that? Because he’s so old, or so unfit, Chris? Watch a lot of his games do you? Damn.. these Australians really know their world rugby!

Completely disagree with you James. Stephen Ferris and David Wallace were comfortably Ireland’s best backrowers, and the best lineout performance in the 6N came from Tom Croft. O’Connell had one very good day against a very mediocre thrower. It wasn’t unexpected, I recall detailing it pre-game. He is undoubtedly an excellent player, nonetheless.

Sheek, Eric Miller. What a player. I miss him (sob).

Matfield is the one who is hardly getting any game time, not quite sure if de Villiers has some secret contract with Frans Ludeke to keep him fresh for the Lions tour but he is warming the pine far too much for my liking. Not that SA are short of quality locks however.

Ireland under Eddie O’Sullivan almost beat the Blacks in NZ twice – under Kidney this now looks more likely. Nothing wrong with a bit of ambition.

Sheek almost agree with your XV but I think O’Kelly has to go at the expense of the mongrel O’Callaghan. Otherwise it’s pitch perfect (pardon the pun!)