Irish reputations are back on the line again

RUGBY ANALYST:The character of each man will be rigorously examined today at the Stade de France, writes MATT WILLIAMS

WHEN PLAYING elite sport it is the toughest days you live for and any success gained on those days is remembered for the rest of your life.

I firmly believe in the cricket term of a Test match. It becomes a test of skill, fitness and endurance but more importantly it becomes a test of mental endurance.

The character of each man will be rigorously examined today at the Stade de France with the collective mindset of each team exposed for the world to judge. It may sound remarkable, especially considering what has already been achieved by these Irish players, but once again reputations are on the line.

In my opinion, whoever wins today will take the championship simply because these are the two best teams.

Winning in Paris has evaded the current Irish side. To do so requires the equalling of France not only physically but tactically and psychologically.

Character is honed from adversity. Many Irish players can remember being humbled by England in 2003 after Martin Johnson insulted the President, Mary McAleese. They’ll remember the Triple Crowns that were soured by failure to capture the championship. They have stored the humiliation of the 2007 World Cup. It all provides fuel for today’s performance.

We can see Ireland have belief, having overcome so much last season. This doesn’t guarantee victory but it does make it a distinct possibility.

For the last two Six Nations trips to Paris the team lacked that belief and only started to play rugby when the game was gone.

The French must be put under early pressure in order to silence the traditionally fickle Parisian crowd. The formula for victory in Paris remains unchanged from past generations: attack with passion and hold the ball for long periods. Tackle everything that moves, frustrating their advances, so the crowd boo their own team and wait for a return to natural French indiscipline.

Referee Wayne Barnes is a banker for technical penalties at the breakdown (see the Grand Slam game in Cardiff last March) and the French were guilty of several last week against Scotland.

Then it is over to Ronan O’Gara to rack up the points.

Despite the loss of Fabien Barcella, Damien Traille, Sebastien Chabal, Romain Millo-Chluski, Jean-Baptiste Elissalde, Benjamin Fall, Aurelien Rougerie and Luc Dulcacon to injury, while Julien Dupuy (that’s three scrumhalves, two props, two locks, a centre and two wingers!) is suspended for eye gouging Stephen Ferris, they remain formidable opponents. Just consider Louis Picamoles (best number eight in the world last November), Lionel Beauxis and Cedric Heymans were not deemed good enough for selection by Marc Lievremont.

The young coach, and his union, much like the IRFU, understands the concept of long-term player development. Lievremont has taken time to bring players through, trying combinations and while his selection policies have been questionable the team plays attacking rugby and there is no doubting his stewardship has developed a frighteningly deep talent pool.

In modern rugby most phase attacks saw Scotland, Italy and Ireland last week forget the basic principles of depth, alignment, pace and change of angle in the pressurised game situation. Not France.

Their phase play will pose the most serious threat the currently airtight Irish defence has faced. Basically, off set-play, their backs have a crack. Then they use hard running forwards. On the next play, scrumhalf Morgan Parra delivers a long, flat pass to Franois Trinh-Duc who holds the defence before firing another long pass to either of the deep lying centres. The French three-quarters realign quickly to maintain a depth to keep generating pace.

Against Scotland, France consistently got four or five passes wide to out-flank the defenders. There is a flaw, however, as this approach will tempt the intercept king of Ireland, Brian O’Driscoll, to pick one off. Max Evans showed it was possible at Murrayfield.

We would call this Sydney or the Bush in Australia because if a player bolts and misses the intercept it is a certain concession of five points.

To counter this Ireland must get their defensive width correct and fan out across the field. Scotland were too bunched and paid the price. Mathieu Bastareaud and Imanol Harinordoquy, in particular, must be ganged tackled on the gainline to deny the killer offload. Otherwise Les Bleus’ free-spirited running, on a sunny afternoon in Paris, could turn into a familiar nightmare.

Ireland will be given opportunities in attack. From scrums the French backline has adopted a classic Australian alignment from the 1990s. The 10, 12 and 13 are within 10 metres of the number eight. I have no doubt Al Gaffney has spotted this. I have seen Al coach backlines to rip this type of D apart so I am looking forward to seeing Ireland exploit this old-school pattern.

The French defensive line will not slide or drift; they come up fast with each player responsible for his own lane. The Ospreys have an identical system. The French defence must be attacked by direct running with switches to create space.

Seeing this, Scotland made some line breaks last week but lacked the class to finish it off. Ireland’s strike runners and support play do possess that quality.

Another caution is the kicking game. The French will always have five players in the back field eager to counter usually Harinordoquy and a centre assisting the fullback and wingers. The selection of Clement Poitrenaud, one of the great attacking fullbacks, and Vincent Clerc, by default, makes this an even more intimidating prospect.

That’s why I’m still scratching my head about the exclusion of Shane Horgan. His Leinster form would have him in any other team in Europe, including France, but instead we see Denis Hurley, Johne Murphy and Gavin Duffy at squad training this week. His recall after two seasons would also create an element of excitement within the camp. That’s the kind of guy Shaggy is.

This is not a criticism of Keith Earls, who I believe is the heir apparent to O’Driscoll. That’s my point – Earls is an outside centre and Munster are rightly nurturing him in midfield. Most of his defensive errors for Munster and the Lions were down to not trusting the players around him or the system. Today he will be thinking of the correct positional play required for a wing rather than using his excellent instincts. Earls is a real talent and he needs to be allowed focus on his primary position.

What happens if a winger gets injured today? It looks like Gordon D’Arcy will shift wide as Paddy Wallace comes in, either way, two positional switches are required which is another concern. Cian Healy also needs to be on his guard. Last week he aimed to bind under the armpit of the Italian tighthead which leaves him very exposed to attack. The French have been targeting and destroying opposition tightheads recently. They do their video work and if they smell any blood they will attack him viciously. Healy is an excellent young player, the binding is simply a concentration issue.

I expect a classic Test match that will present only fleeting opportunities. The team with the strongest emotional response will prevail. No tears at the national anthem to betray your emotions, only a steely resolve, character and a calm head are needed.

Win in Paris for the first time in 10 years, which Ireland can, and the Slam is back on the table.