Sport operates on a short-term memory cycle with the most recent outing muscling to the forefront of analysis/opinion/postulating/gaslighting. Take your pick or pick your side of the discussion.
Ireland’s lineout against Australia brought the sort of redemptive figures that everyone, coaches and players, craved as that particular set piece had misbehaved for 120 minutes, or a game-and-a-half, in the opening two November Tests against New Zealand and Japan.
Ireland won all 10 throws last weekend, a couple scruffily, but also pilfered four on the Wallaby throws and forced Joe Schmidt’s side to cough up another couple with crooked or overthrown deliveries. The Irish ascendancy did more to destabilise Australia’s launch plays than any other single element in the Test match.
Ireland’s record win over Australia sets up Springboks clash perfectly
There were a couple of crucial turnovers that enabled Andy Farrell’s side to win back possession inside the Irish 22 at a time when the Aussies had closed the gap on the scoreboard to a one-score game. None did more to restore the service than Ryan Baird.
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In the build-up to the match, Ireland’s blindside flanker had taken umbrage with a line of questioning that threw a little shade on the lineout and, by extension, assistant coach Paul O’Connell. Baird fired back: “Paul’s brilliant, Paul’s amazing, it’s on us as players to do a better job to execute. He doesn’t put a foot wrong, he’s so meticulous in his detail, his plan.
“It’s an absolute privilege to work with him, so I won’t have a bad word said about him, please.”
So, in defending the lineout realm, there was pressure to ensure that the endorsement was through actions, not rhetoric. Baird fulfilled that remit handsomely, nicking three Aussie throws as well as being his team’s go-to player.
It’s a responsibility that he’s carried easily through 2025, leading the Irish lineout in winning possession out of touch 46 times in nine matches, including steals. The market leader is New Zealand’s Fabian Holland with 75 in 11 games.
Baird is in sixth place, and one behind him is South Africa’s Ruan Nortjé, who returns to the starting line-up in the absence of the suspended Lood de Jager and Franco Mostert, whose red card was overturned.
Baird ranks second in the global list for steals with nine from as many games, Nortje in fourth with 10 from six matches, while Springbok flanker Pieter Steph du Toit has eight in four games.
The Springboks have caused Ireland lineout problems in the three most recent meetings. In the World Cup pool match, which Farrell’s side won, Ireland lost six throws, while in the 1-1 drawn series in South Africa, the Irish lineout was firing at just under 80 per cent.
Ireland’s lineout in 2025 is running at 89.1 per cent, which is higher than the 85.9 per cent of the Springboks, who have had issues in this facet of the game too. As a platform, it’s so important for both teams, but it’s fundamental to the way that Ireland launch attacks and that’s why they’ll want to maintain the quality work for another 80 minutes on Saturday.
