Ali inspires Ireland to stunning victory

RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD CUP/Ireland 34 Samoa 16:  IRELAND DREW inspiration for their stunning 34-16 World Cup victory over Samoa from Muhammad Ali. Andy Kelly's heroes pulled off the shock of the tournament with a resounding win over the highly-fancied Pacific Islanders and will take on Fiji next Monday for a place in the semi-finals against Australia.

Kelly revealed after their pulsating win at Parramatta Stadium that his players received extra motivation after watching When we were Kings, a film based on Ali's build-up to his 'Rumble in the Jungle' fight with George Foreman.

"We looked at how he prepared for his mission when he had the 'Rumble in the Jungle'," said Kelly. "They were inspirational things for the boys. We've left no stone unturned in our preparation.

"We came into the tournament believing we could win. We knew we had prepared well before we left England and we've conditioned ourselves for what was to come.

"We understood the physicality of the Tongans and the Samoans and that has been the common theme right through our preparations. We showed we could absorb a lot of pressure and score points."

Ireland went into their final Pool C match needing to win by six points to top the group on points difference and emerged from a bruising and, at times, brutal, encounter with a record victory that handsomely rewarded their courage and determination.

Samoa were physical from the start and not all the big hits were legal but England could learn a few lessons from the Irish, who stood up to the challenge magnificently in front of a passionate crowd of 8,602.

Ireland's shock success was followed by Scotland's equally surprise 18-16 victory over Fiji which provided another fillip for the British rugby league but Kelly insisted: "What we did was for Ireland, not for England".

Kelly received a poignant reminder in the post-match press conference that, while the England aristocrats flew out for the World Cup in business class, the Ireland squad were in economy on the same plane.

But the Irish are delighted to be underdogs and Kelly is not expecting any preferential treatment on today's flight to the Gold Coast. "We're staying in there with the chickens and the goats because it serves us well," he said.

"We're perceived as minnows of the competition but we relish the challenge of upsetting the bigger people."

Ireland's hero was Wigan's goalkicking winger Pat Richards, a former Parramatta player who was brought up in the western area of Sydney after his parents emigrated from Dublin.

Richards scored the first of his side's six tries on 11 minutes and two minutes from the end became the second Irish player to complete a hat-trick in the tournament following Damien Blanch's treble against Tonga. Richards rated yesterday's victory as a career highlight. "It's right up there," he said. "Tonight is very, very special, especially having my family here. I made my debut on this ground."

Ireland withstood an early onslaught and stunned the highly-fancied Samoans with a three-try burst in seven minutes that put them 14-0 up. Seán Gleeson and Simon Finnigan added to Richards' first effort while Liam Finn grabbed the clinching try 10 minutes from the end. Ireland's win would have been even more emphatic had Richards not missed five of his 10 kicks at goal.

The big incentive for Ireland in next Monday's sudden-death tie with Fiji is a dream meeting with the world champions and Kelly insists there is more improvement to come from his side.

"It does get better than this," he said. "We'll look at the video over the next couple of days. I think we can be better and more efficient in everything we do. I do think there will be an improvement."

IRELAND: Platt, Blanch, Gleeson, Littler, Richards, Grix, Finn, O'Carroll, Beswick, Haggerty, Harrison, Doran, Finnigan. Replacements: McIlorum, Fitzpatrick, Kerr, Tandy.

SAMOA: Samau, Utai, Talau, Carmont, Meli, Vagana, Roberts, McDade, Seuseu, T Puletua, Setu, Lauitiiti, Hansen. Replacements: Solomona, F Puletua, Paulo, Taulapapa.

Referee: Theirry Albert (France)