Relief all round as Ireland hang tough

Pool A / Ireland 16 Argentina 15: Relief is the operative word. Relief amongst team, management and supporters alike that Ireland squeezed through to the quarter-finals and relief also that Ireland did so after not playing particularly well, writes Gerry Thornley in Adelaide.

You couldn't say that Ireland were lucky, per se, or that they just about managed to get out of jail. They scored the game's only try and at the business end of the game they got busy. They hung tough and pulled through when they had to.

Yet for much of the first hour Argentina had looked the more purposeful, more composed, more penetrative team. Their line-out, supposedly an achilles heel, had survived and what's more, their maul frequently had Ireland backpedalling.

Ireland, try as they might, couldn't get rumbling to the same extent and for a brief spell of three successive throws, actually started coughing up their own ball.

In mitigation, no matter how much video work and pre-match analysis was done by Eddie O'Sullivan, forwards coach Niall O'Donovan and video analyst Mervyn Murphy, it usually takes at least 20 minutes for a defensive lineout to start gelling, and this was doubled by an injury to Alan Quinlan - their prime weapon here.

Across the gain line, especially close to their pack, Argentina were the superior team. Apart from Kevin Maggs on a couple of occasions, Ireland made little penetration and the only back who looks like he can create something out of nothing is Denis Hickie.

By contrast, whether through rumblers such as the remarkable 35-year-old amateur Rolando Martin and Gonzalo Longo, or the trickery of Felipe Contepomi, Argentina made more inroads into a stand-offish Irish defence.

Their rucking was better, as they got more men to the breakdown, and hit the rucks harder and lower. Ireland conceded too many turnovers in contact or had to wait longer for the ball to emerge, and the 7-3 first-half penalty count in Argentina's favour (Ireland ultimately conceded 13 to eight) was mostly inflated by handling at the breakdown or not releasing.

After 18 months' build-up, and a plethora of handsome wins against lesser opposition, it was perhaps understandable that the performance was betrayed by nerves, as evidenced by a couple of wayward kicks out on the full by Denis Hickie, heretofore striking the ball sweetly, and from the otherwise ultra-reliable Girvan Dempsey.

David Humphreys's restarts are not the best part of his game, and with the wind behind him, they tended to set too far a target for his chasers. Ireland did have more of the territory but only a 10-9 lead to show for it and the half-time stats said it all: Argentina won the ruck and maul count by 49 to 30, and had a 59 per cent share of the possession.

That they had even a one-point lead was almost entirely down to a moment of inspiration from Keith Wood. Argentina were deservedly leading through a Gonzalo Quesada penalty when they failed to control a loose tap-down at the tail of a lineout by Longo. In a flash, Wood snaffled the ball and broke free.

Most hookers, indeed most forwards would have off-loaded before the tackle or just taken the tackle. Instead Wood sold the sweetest of dummies to Quesada and then deftly off-loaded to Quinlan, who had 20 metres to make but always knows where the try line is.

He made it, but in taking Ignacio Corleto's tackle dislocated his shoulder. If you're going to go out of a World Cup, then that's the way to go out, but it's a cruel blow for him.

Thoughts that Ireland would relax, start playing their rugby and build a lead were supported when Shane Horgan intercepted a slow skip pass by Quesada and Brian O'Driscoll's relieving kick along the line bounced fortuitously into touch about 70 metres upfield.

But Quesada landed a drop goal and, after Malcolm O'Kelly had handled in a ruck, a second penalty. The Pumas looked livelier and more alert as evidenced by the quick throw by Federico Mendez to Rimas Alvarez and their combined drive up the narrow side.

The tension, if anything, intensified during an unexceptional third quarter, and things still didn't look much better for Ireland, who were relieved to see Quesada miss, albeit from 50 metres, after Paul O'Connell had been guilty of handling in a ruck.

O'Connell's response was an inspired chase and catch to make water into wine off a Humphreys restart, and a brilliant counter-attacking run from deep by Hickie. O'Sullivan brought in Ronan O'Gara and Marcus Horan for Humphreys and Reggie Corrigan, who looked thoroughly unhappy about it.

But coming toward the hour mark, the Pumas moved into the lead. O'Gara, who had turned over the ball in contact with his first touch, was also struggling with his line kicking and when he missed touch again, Diego Albanese passed infield to Corleto. The full back, cool as a breeze, steered a massive 45-metre drop goal between the posts.

Critically, Ireland now began to do some damage to the Puma lineout, taking another four against the Mendez throw. O'Gara's response was to run hard and straight onto the ball, enabling those outside to do likewise. Maggs, Dempsey and O'Driscoll all took it up, the Pumas were offside and O'Gara landed a huge, pressure penalty.

Having taken the Pumas on at their own game, not with much success, Ireland finally started playing with more width. They were invited to do so by Corleto's sliced attempt to find touch, which instead found Wood. He linked with Horan, who made remarkable strides up the left wing. Blink, and it could have been Hickie. From the recycle, the tiring Pumas (seven of whom are amateurs) were offside in a near replica of a penalty they conceded in the opener.

O'Gara duly made it 16-12 and it seemed we could all breath a little easier, all the more so as Marcelo Loffreda was again ultra-conservative in not using his bench.

But no, it could never be like that for long. It was Simon Easterby's turn to handle in a ruck and Quesada nailed the penalty from 40 metres. Now, one had visions of the Pumas putting Quesada into drop-goal range, as they had done when beating France in Buenos Aires in June.

When their pack rumbled to the Irish 10-metre line, he lined himself up on halfway, but Peter Stringer led the charge up. Still there was time for one last Puma throw of the dice from a lineout in their own half. Contepomi bounced off Maggs, and Corleto eluded the outstretched O'Driscoll to link with Jose Nunez Piossek up the right touchline, whereupon Dempsey hammered him into touch.

With that, the majority of 28,803 heaved a collective roar of relief. It was a rather fitting finale.

Scoring sequence: 7 mins Quesada pen 0-3; 20 Quinlan try, Humphreys con 7-3; 28 Humphreys pen 10-3; 29 Quesada drop goal 10-6; 35 Quesada pen 10-9; (H-T: 10-9); 59 Corleto drop goal 10-12; 63 O'Gara pen 13-12; 68 O'Gara pen 16-12; 76 Quesada pen 16-15.

IRELAND: G Dempsey (Leinster); S Horgan (Leinster), B O'Driscoll (Leinster), K Maggs (Bath), D Hickie (Leinster); D Humphreys (Ulster), P Stringer (Munster); R Corrigan (Leinster), K Wood (Munster, capt), J Hayes (Munster), M O'Kelly (Leinster), P O'Connell (Munster), S Easterby (Llanelli), A Quinlan (Munster), V Costello (Leinster). Replacements: E Miller (Leinster) for Quinlan (21 mins), M Horan (Munster) for Corrigan (17-22 mins and 57 mins), R O'Gara (Munster) for Humphreys (56 mins).

ARGENTINA: I Corleto (Stade Francais); J M Nunez Piossek (Huirapuca), J Orengo (Grenoble), F Contepomi (Leinster), D Albanese (Leeds Tykes); G Quesada (Beziers), A Pichot (Stade Francais, capt); R Grau (Mendoza), F Mendez (Mendoza), M Reggiardo (Castres), I Fernandez Lobbe (Castres), R Alvarez (Perpignan), L Ostiglia (Hindu), G Longo (Narbonne), R Martin (San Isidiro). Replacements: M Scelzo (Narbonne) for Reggiardo (74 mins).

Referee: A Watson (South Africa).