Kidney facing one of his biggest challenges

ON RUGBY:It might not have had the sense of disappointment of Wellington but the latest defeat to Wales asks a lot of questions on just where this Irish side is going

ANOTHER DEFEAT to the dastardly Welsh didn’t compare to the Wellington World Cup quarter-final exit, not for sheer disappointment at knowing a core of outstanding players would most probably never play in a semi-final.

But there was something also profoundly disappointing about this latest loss, a third in a row for the first time since the 1970s.

Ireland could always nurse a justifiable sense of grievance over Mike Phillips’s try in Cardiff last season, given it was illegal on three counts.

Furthermore, Ireland played most of the rugby that day and left a host of chances behind. You could make a case for believing they were still the better team. But not so in Wellington, nor last Sunday. Admittedly, Ireland could again feel bitter over the two decisions regarding tip tackles but by any yardstick Wales were again the superior team.

From a position where Ireland had won seven out of eight meetings prior to the Welsh bloodless coup in 2008 at Croke Park, and often by considerable margins, this is quite an about turn. Born out of the achievements of the provinces, Irish supporters expect this to be transferred seamlessly to the Test arena, but as Sunday underlined, even the Heineken Cup and the Six Nations are two different ball games.

The loyalty and sheer passion felt within the provinces, by players and supporters alike, is a wonderful strength of Irish rugby, even if it means scaling heights more regularly. Not so for the Welsh team, who add up to way more than the sum of their regions’ parts.

Helped as they are by the achievements of their illustrious predecessors in their national sport, it’s doubtful even one Welsh supporter or player would ever put their regions on a par with their national team. Hence, all the more so after the World Cup campaign, Warren Gatland, Shaun Edwards and Rob Howley tapped into that zeitgeist.

They bear all the hallmarks of a Gatland side – strong and direct with a huge emphasis on big, physically well-conditioned athletes to win the collisions; a hard-pressing, outside-in defence and extensive, clever use of the blindside to not alone score, as they did when Rhys Priestland put Jonathan Davies over, but to keep the opposition guessing and widen the pitch.

Psychologically, the consequences of Sunday’s defeat also appear considerable for this Irish squad. Redemption for Wellington has been denied them. Ambitions for a Grand Slam and a Triple Crown are gone, and another defeat in Paris on Saturday would effectively scupper any hope of winning the Six Nations just two games in.

Doubts as to how Ireland can cope without Brian O’Driscoll, whose absence appeared to leave a huge void in leadership and sheer presence on Sunday, will only have been re-enforced. That was Ireland’s fourth defeat in six championship games without him. With him, they have a near 77 per cent winning ratio in the championship.

There was a defining moment of Sunday’s game in the build-up to Halfpenny’s 53rd-minute penalty which brought Wales back to within a score at 13-8. Phillips moved slowish ruck ball off the base two metres outside the Irish 40 metre line. By the time it was taken into contact in the outside centre channel, Fergus McFadden made the tackle three yards inside the Irish 40 metre line. Accordingly, Seán O’Brien has to retreat five metres to join the ruck through the gate. That was indicative of what appeared to be a deliberate policy of drifting across field rather than taking the space with more aggressive line speed, and the Welsh thrived on the space.

Although one cannot jump to conclusions on the basis of one game, the passivity of the defence does question whether Les Kiss – an outstanding, ultra-professional defensive coach and a highly respected part of the management – can effectively combine his role as defensive coach with the job of attack coach.

Ireland caused the Welsh defence the most problems when they availed of Davies’s sin-binning with some pick and go charges, and the first Irish try had been the product of some direct running close in or cutting back in, and enabled the backs to play on the front foot with quick ball.

In sharp contrast to Wales, Ireland rarely explore the blindside, but when they did, first through Conor Murray and then again Cian Healy, it utilised the full width of the pitch for Tommy Bowe’s try.

That was also an example of how Sexton effectively held his depth for Rob Kearney to be the link, but it appears the Irish approach is for him to lie deeper than he does with Leinster, where he certainly appears to play flatter and attack the gainline more. Given his running threat, this makes sense and might also have given him more opportunity to try even one chip over the advancing red line.

With only six days to orchestrate a significant upturn in performance, Declan Kidney now faces one of his biggest coaching challenges. The scope for change in personnel is minimal. There could be a case for starting Donnacha Ryan, though Donncha O’Callaghan played well. The argument about the balance of the backrow, and the absence of a breakdown specialist a la Sam Warburton (or Justin Tipuric) is a valid one.

But would it really make sense, say, to throw in Peter O’Mahony at the expense of last season’s European Player of the Year against the bruising French backrow?

The 76th minute replacement of the halfbacks looked either too late or shouldn’t have been done at all, and they will be looked at again, though in each instance Ireland would sacrifice more physicality if they made the change. Keith Earls will hopefully come back into the equation and would give something different. There’s a case for looking at Bowe in the midfield, but it would be a rushed job at this stage.

More pertinent, will be somehow generating a positive mindset and an upturn in intensity, and specifically more variety in attack, using O’Brien and Stephen Ferris in wider channels, and much more aggressive line speed in defence. If the green line stands on the gain line and drifts across field as monsieurs Rougerie, Malzieu, Medard, Picamoles et al come a charging at them, it’s going to be a long night in Stade de France.