Ireland showed good discipline
Ireland’s discipline was excellent for the most part apart from a little spell in the second half when they conceded three in quick succession, punished for cumulative transgressions as Sam Illo received a yellow card. As an offence, adjudicated as coming in from the side, it was nondescript and marginal, but Luke Pearce was on the lookout.
To only concede six penalties reflected Ireland’s dominance in possession and territory, the set piece, scrum and lineout and the patience that the home side showed in choosing to go after opportunities at the breakdown. They did get turnovers but were judicious in going for the poach for the most part.
Argentina conceded 14, two of which led to yellow cards, one in each half but it also gave Ireland access to the Pumas 22 from which they helped themselves to points at crucial times.
Simple and effective set pieces
The work of Andy Farrell’s team on their own ball in set piece was simple and effective with a high point in the first half, Dan Sheehan’s try. The hooker started and finished the move with a clever variation, as he threw an inside pass to the supporting Nick Timoney.
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The flanker demonstrated good technique in straightening and then stepping against the grain to take out the last defender. It guaranteed a quick ruck, and Craig Casey was on hand to hit his captain. Ireland went after the Argentinian throw contesting most, and nicking three in the opening half and five overall as they pillaged possession and destabilised that platform.
Ireland’s scrum work was tidy and passed the scrutiny of referee Luke Pearce, who decided that they were more sinned against than sinning.
Ireland’s defence was sloppy at times despite win
There is perhaps some mitigation in the changes, enforced and otherwise and perhaps too much of a comfort provided by the scoreboard, but Ireland fell off too many tackles in the second half. This wasn’t a unit or system issue per se, more a failure to make the first effort stick and bring the man to ground.
It wasn’t Craig Casey’s fault that he was caught out on a crosskick for the visitors first try. He had tried to summon support to no avail and pitching him in as the last defender there, as he was on several occasions, made it a tough remit for him, given the discrepancy in height.
When Argentina worked around the fringes and used the short passing or pop passing game, they were able to break the first Irish line and shrugged their way out of too many tackles. In those circumstances it is to the credit of the Irish scramble defence that they manage to limit the damage but there were several close escapes, notable in a handful of crucial turnovers in the Irish 22.
There’s always going to be an element of rustiness that’ll compromise cohesion in a first outing since the summer, but Ireland will want to bring up a tackle completion rate of 79 per cent. The Pumas collectively beat 26 defenders but scored just 12 points, while Ireland beat 28 and amassed 42. That highlighted the gulf in maximising opportunities on the night.
Ireland showed diversity in attack
The main thrust initially was to try and go to width and if stymied there, Ireland went to the air. In that respect they won their fair share of scraps and tap backs thanks to the work of Rob Baloucoune and man-of-the-match Hugo Keenan in the main.
Baloucoune had a fine game and caused consternation in the Pumas defence every time he touched the ball. He played a pivotal role in Ireland’s first try working off his wing and this was a gambit that the home side tried to employ several times, albeit not to the same effect.
Mack Hansen received ball and men on several occasions on the touchline, when it was crying off for a team-mate to straighten earlier and use footwork to get the drift defence to check even for an instant. Six tries is a decent return, especially in the diverse nature in which they were created.
Casey and Prendergast enjoy some sublime moments
Craig Casey and Sam Prendergast did a decent job of managing the game and putting their team in the right places. The Munster scrumhalf was sharp in his work and accurate in his kicking while his halfback buddy enjoyed some sublime moments, not least in the try he scored. There are two or three kicks that Prendergast might like again, where the option or execution weren’t ideal, but they were far outweighed by his general performance.
What might please Farrell is that Jamison Gibson-Park and Ciarán Frawley also enjoyed some good moments when introduced.
