[RWC2019][Pool A] Round 2 - Japan vs. Ireland (28/09/2019)

[Bada-Bing!]

Extended highlights. Enjoy!!

 

[Five Meters Out]

Cherry Blossoms - I just love them. What a game!
Ireland - I see them as a team that needs to find the lead and then suffocate the opposition. I never saw them coming back after they'd given up the lead.

 

[Leinster Fan]

Let's see what happens. I don't think Ireland have become a poor team overnight and Schmidt is a canny coach

The pessimist in me thinks that we might have become a bad team over the last year though.

But at the end of the day we're still good enough to beat SA/NZ, the required performance is in us, we just have two weeks to find it.

 

[Leonormous Boozer]

The pessimist in me thinks that we might have become a bad team over the last year though.

But at the end of the day we're still good enough to beat SA/NZ, the required performance is in us, we just have two weeks to find it.

The players are/were good enough but I don't think the collective is good enough to beat NZ right now. If we're lucky enough to face SA I'd give us slightly more than a puncher's chance.

I reckon the squad needs a heavy one on the beer or something similar in the hope of resetting or something. A short term quack-science fix!

 

[MikeTheNative]

The pessimist in me thinks that we might have become a bad team over the last year though.

But at the end of the day we're still good enough to beat SA/NZ, the required performance is in us, we just have two weeks to find it.

They aren't a bad team and I think they are good enough to beat anyone on their day, however as you said there seems to be an increase in the amount of poor games that this current team is having. Apart from the first 15 minutes, Ireland seemed to lack intensity in both attack and defence, with no Sexton to drag them back into the game, Murray again had a quiet game.

 

[Leonormous Boozer]

Murray again had a quiet game.

Murray isn't the leader he's made out to be, you still get talk that he's the most important player in the team when he's barely in the top half. With Sexton taking the reigns he can be the best 9 in the world but his only trophy without Sexton was the pro 12 in 2011 with ROG and POC running the show, his only big international win without Sexton was away to SA where we'd go on to throw the series away. Lose Sexton and you lose that extra 10-15% Murray can bring to make him a world class player too.

 

[Luke2009]

Cherry Blossoms - I just love them. What a game!
Ireland - I see them as a team that needs to find the lead and then suffocate the opposition. I never saw them coming back after they'd given up the lead.

They were 12-3 up and cruising and then got away from there game and got sucked into the game Japan wanted to play , I noticed the scots were finding the humidity tough against Ireland and Saturday the same thing happened to Ireland Saturday, when u are exhausted and things start to go against u strange things happen , hopefully we can learn from this and break the play up a bit more slow it down go down for injuries get ice packs on heads and bodies during games because humidity is brutal and will sap any energy u have.
Unfortunately Ireland just don't have World Cup pedigree and it looks like this team is no different.

 

[corny]

The pessimist in me thinks that we might have become a bad team over the last year though.

But at the end of the day we're still good enough to beat SA/NZ, the required performance is in us, we just have two weeks to find it.

Its hard to be optimistic given the results but the nature of knockout rugby will at least suit us. Everyone tightens up and plays low risk rugby. I remember France in 2007 flatly refusing to make even basic carries against NZ. Everything was kicked. This will suit us.

I've read that Murray box kicked twice against Japan. I can't for the life of me work out why we'd ask the best box kicker in the world to stop doing that but thats effectively whats happened over the last year. Interestingly Murray had his best game in an age against Scotland. He kicked the leather off the ball in that game. Coincidence?

Thats what keeping me going anyway. Its more than likely fanciful, wishful thinking but a part of me won't let go of the notion that Ireland are trying to paint a picture to the opposition that matter (SA/NZ and hopefully beyond). As in..... 'look we're trying to expand our game but we're not very good'. Then shock and awe box kick mayhem is unleashed.

 

[Bada-Bing!]

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[Umaga's Witness]

Apparently japan was aiming to push Ireland in this one, not beat them, but beat Scotland. According to what tony brown told Justin Marshall when they played squash pre tournament.

 

[Ferrari333SP]

Great game analysis by Squidge

 

[Jockstap]

Great game analysis by Squidge

The difference between the teams imo was Carty wilted under Japanese pressure in the second half and kicked away uncontestables everytime we managed to get possession, as a result we were defending the entire time and in the humidity we looked exhausted after 60 minutes. Carbery was much better when he came on except butchering a clear chance, I actually thought we played well overall and Japan were simply better on the day but our experience at 10 really told.