Ireland 33 Italy 17
These World Cup warm-up games can perhaps best be described as a necessary evil. The task is to emerge without any serious injuries, demonstrate both some continuity and some promise of more to come with plenty of achievable work-ons, increase options and combinations, and all ideally with a convincing win.
Viewed in that light, although Ireland lacked a cutting edge, this opening warm-up looks like it was just about a success, presuming that Jack Conan (foot), Craig Casey (hamstring) and Jimmy O’Brien (shoulder) will overcome their various ailments.
By contrast, Italy did not tick all those boxes amid the carnage of five injuries, including two failed HIAs. In addition to seeing their fine Saracens prop Marco Riccioni helped off, one of the day’s abiding images was of Italy’s influential centre Tommaso Menoncello, who’d had a fine game, departing in tears near the end with what he clearly felt was a serious injury to his left shoulder.
Players often know best so,from an Irish viewpoint, it was heartening to see Conan giving a reassuring thumbs-up on the sidelines despite wearing a precautionary moon boot.
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These preparatory games bring to mind the injuries that scuppered the World Cups of Geordan Murphy in 2003, David Wallace in 2011 and, to a large extent, Joey Carbery four years ago.
Yet, as Paul O’Connell said during the week and as Andy Farrell said afterwards, such fears cannot be countenanced beforehand.
“Otherwise you can’t play the game that you want to play,” explained Farrell.
“There’s a bit of luck involved, isn’t there? It is a physical game and we know that there’s injuries in most games that we play nowadays. It looks like there’s a few devastating ones for them. Hopefully for us, we just lick our wounds and then you know get back on the horse in a week or so.”
The rain had relented on a chilly August evening in front of an enthusiastic crowd which, one sensed, comprised plenty who might otherwise be denied access to Irish home Tests. Come kick-off, there were also poignant reminders as to how much water had passed under the bridge since the historic Grand Slam coronation on St Patrick’s weekend.
Sinéad O’Connor’s Mandinka was on the prematch playlist and there was a moment’s applause before kick-off in tribute to Herbert McCracken, Ronnie Lamont, Eddie Coleman, Roly Meates, Greig Oliver and Pat Casey, all of whom died in recent months.
This seasonal opener came at the end of eight weeks of preseason, six of which had been in camp, and while the players have not returned looking like incredible hulks, all the signs were that they were strong and fit, having achieved this through rugby-related training.
Much of Ireland’s supremacy emanated from the horse power and hard carrying of Iain Henderson and Joe McCarthy, who look like giving Ireland plentiful secondrow options.
Yet the emphasis on skills manifested itself in the manner Ireland sought to keep the ball off the floor, vary the point of attack and use the width of the pitch with tip-on passes and offloads. Invariably, there were plenty of balls spilt or not going to hand, but that was understandable.
Hence, although all five tries were ultimately completed by Ireland’s forward power and narrower power game close to the line, there was often very good rugby in their engineering. That Ireland actually left the red zone without reward on several occasions frustrated Farrell, but that’s probably preferable to something like the record 61-6 win over Italy in 2003.
One point of interest will be how O’Connell seeks to sharpen a lineout maul that didn’t quite deliver the return he and they would have wanted, notably because of the way lifters (David Kilcoyne and Ryan Baird) pivoted in front of the catcher to concede turnover penalties. Better to make these errors now than in the World Cup.
Jacob Stockdale looked sharp and tried hard, perhaps too hard at times, but both he and Keith Earls undid some of their good work with missed tackles for the Italian tries. The Irish attack had a better shape and fluidity with Jack Crowley at outhalf, but that was partly because the runners weren’t making as mamy metres beyond the gainline for Ciarán Frawley in the second half.
Yet no try typified this more than the fifth and final one - the second by Caelan Doris – even if it was a scruffy finish as the converted open side scooped up a loose pop off the base from Cian Healy, which still counts as an assist to add to the latter’s 12th Test try.
Doris had been as much a distributor (his 12 passes were bettered only by the halves) as a carrier and tackler, not to mention a couple of turnovers and a huge hand in two of the other Irish tries.
[ Ireland 33 Italy 17: How the Irish players rated in the opening World Cup warm-upOpens in new window ]
Frawley and Crowley had dovetailed nicely for Earls to put Stockdale away, while Doris had twice fed Ryan Baird and Cian Prendergast with deft passes in the multiphase attack; the latter steaming on to the ball and offloading to the supporting Calvin Nash.
“I’m sick of him getting man of the match! I’m sick of it,” quipped Farrell afterwards before acknowledging his delight that Doris has increased the options at seven.
“He just keeps getting better and better. We all know he’s good at jackalling but he took that through the roof because he had the number seven on his back.
“He epitomises what we’re trying to do insofar as being in control of his own thoughts and his own mind. It doesn’t matter whether he makes a mistake or two, he just gets on with the next job the whole time and just being himself. He’s growing all the time, not just in the way that he’s playing.
“He’s obviously playing extremely well but he’s certainly growing as far as his leadership role is concerned as well. So, he’s coming on leaps and bounds.”
Given Doris’s class, there’s a thought.
SCORING SEQUENCE – 3 mins: Allan pen 0-3; 13: Kilcoyne try, Crowley con 7-3; 29: Doris try, Crowley con 14-3; 36: McCloskey try, Crowley con 21-3; (half-time 21-3); 51: Pani try, Allan con 21-10; 65: Healy try 26-10; 69: Menoncello try, Allan con 26-17; 73: Doris try, Frawley con 33-17.
IRELAND: Jimmy O’Brien (Leinster); Keith Earls (Munster), Robbie Henshaw (Leinster), Stuart McCloskey (Ulster), Jacob Stockdale (Ulster); Jack Crowley (Munster), Craig Casey (Munster); Dave Kilcoyne (Munster), Rob Herring (Ulster, Tom O’Toole (Ulster); Iain Henderson (Ulster), Joe McCarthy (Leinster); Ryan Baird (Leinster), Caelan Doris (Leinster), Jack Conan (Leinster).
Replacements: Cian Prendergast (Connacht) for Conan (36 mins), Ciarán Frawley (Leinster) for O’Brien (h-t), Caolin Blade (Connacht) for Casey (45), Tom Stewart (Ulster) for Herring, Cian Healy (Leinster) for Kilcoyne, Tadhg Furlong (Leinster) for O’Toole (all 52), Tadhg Beirne (Munster) for Henderson (56), Calvin Nash (Munster) for Henshaw (62).
ITALY: Tommaso Allan (Perpignan); Paolo Odogwu (Benetton), Juan Ignacio Brex (Benetton), Tommaso Menoncello (Benetton), Montanna Ioane (Lyon); Paolo Garbisi (Montpellier), Stephen Varney (Gloucester); Danilo Fischetti (Zebre), Giacomo Nicotera (Benetton), Marco Riccioni (Saracens); Dino Lamb (Harlequins), Federico Ruzza (Benetton, capt); Sebastian Negri (Benetton), Manuel Zuliani (Benetton), Lorenzo Cannone (Benetton),
Replacements: Simone Ferrari (Benetton) for Riccioni (10 mins), Lorenzo Pani (Zebre) for Odogwu (23), Michele Lamaro (Benetton), for Zuliani (40+1), Alessandro Fusco (Zebre) for Varney (h-t), Niccolo Cannone (Benetton) for Lamb (46), Luca Bigi (Zebre) for Nicotera (56), Paolo Buonfiglio (Zebre) for Fischetti (60), Giovanni Pettinelli (Benetton) for Negri (74),
Sinbinned: Fischetti (28-38 mins).
Referee: Mathieu Raynal (FFR).
