Shake-up needed - in strategy and selection

Ireland played sensational rugby from the 48th minute onward at Stade de France on Saturday. But why was it 43-3 before they responded with the precision and flair to unmask a French side that didn't have to be anywhere near their best to triumph?

Unfortunately, when a team wait that long to respond, it's difficult to avoid the conclusion that France contributed to the change in fortune. The home side mentally checked into the changing room for the last third of the game. In fact both sides were guilty of mental frailties.

Why did Ireland wait until they were 43-3 down before staging a fightback? There has to be something wrong. If you examine the Denis Leamy/Geordan Murphy collision, it's down to a breakdown in communication and is a microcosm of the general principle of not working as a team.

The defensive line was anything but straight and there didn't appear to be much rhyme or reason behind those structures.

Ireland didn't get their set-pieces right from the very start. If you take the first scrum as an example it is instructive for what ensued. The French got the hit on and bounced Ireland on contact, immediately grabbing the upper hand. They then simply shunted Ireland off their own ball.

In those circumstances, when Ireland got the hit wrong, they should have just gone to ground or stood up and had the scrum reset. That option though would require experienced heads or people really thinking about and concentrating on what they were doing.

You cannot turn over a set scrum at this level. It's not a new phenomenon for the Irish scrum to be under pressure but they appear no farther down the line in addressing the issue. There should have been decisions made beforehand about how Ireland were going to handle the French scrum but they seemed tactically and technically inept.

Shane Byrne would not have allowed that turnover at the first scrum. I would keep Jerry Flannery for the Welsh game because he's going to be a fine footballer and is very productive in the loose but I'd put Byrne on the bench. As I intimated here on Saturday, Ireland did not pick a team to beat France; they just picked 22 players for the first two matches of the Six Nations Championship.

Massive change is required if Ireland are not to repeat, in all their remaining matches, the mistakes they made in the defeat by Wales in Cardiff last season. Defence can be broken down into tackling and patterns but, more importantly, is the barometer of the resolve within a team. It is an indicator of attitude, focus and desire.

There are huge question marks about Ireland's preparation tactically and technically. They seemed to be poorly prepared, struggled in the scrum, floundered defensively - all characteristics of a team that isn't gelling.

My attitude is you pick a team to win matches, and so I thought selection for this match was flawed. Against Wales I would like to see Girvan Dempsey and Denis Hickie return - despite what some may suggest, I'm not looking at this through Leinster glasses - to the exclusion of Tommy Bowe (he'll eventually be a fine test player but is just not there yet), with Geordan Murphy dropping to the bench.

I'd play Shane Horgan in the centre with Brian O'Driscoll and switch Gordon D'Arcy - who was caught shooting out of the line a couple of times - on the wing. I'd retain Flannery and put Byrne on the bench.

As for John Hayes and Malcolm O'Kelly, I'd call them in and tell them they are not performing to the level that befits their ability. I'd put them on a warning and reckon that would have the desired effect.

Horgan and Peter Stringer were the pick of the backs in that they played consistently well throughout the game. Others vacillated between awful and brilliant and some never deviated from the former.

There are other ancillary issues, like the long-term development of players in certain positions, that aren't applicable to preparing for the Welsh match.

In the back row I'd introduce Anthony Foley and Keith Gleeson, retaining just David Wallace, who had a marvellous game in Paris.

There are too many constituent parts of this team that are malfunctioning. It's not a once off. Anyone can have a bad game or a bad couple of games. This though has been going on for too long to explain away.

It reminds me of the "try harder syndrome". This Irish team require more than simply redoubling their efforts. There are far too many technical, tactical and selectorial shortcomings to suggest everything will be resolved by trying a little bit harder.

It's now down to picking teams that can win games. There is no doubt that Ireland do have the talent, a fact reinforced by some of the fare in an incredible closing 28 minutes on Saturday. But it's not just about picking a bunch of exceptional individuals; rugby is a team game and it is the general cohesion of a team pulling together that wins games.

That means getting the balance right. Ireland haven't done it so far in this season's Six Nations Championship so they would want to start now or risk another calamity.