Many of the World XVs compiled late last year accommodated Ben Smith on the wing yet found no room for Keith Earls or Jacob Stockdale.
On Saturday, at Kingspan Stadium, Jacob Stockdale showed the world, in case folks have switched off the last 18 months, that he is the best finisher in the game. In last year’s Six Nations, Stockdale scored seven tries in five games as Ireland won the Grand Slam. This season, he has scored six tries in five Champions Cup games.
On the BBC’s Rugby Union Weekly, former England and Lions star Ugo Monye had the Ulster winger as his pick of the Irish players in Champions Cup action, last weekend. That is ahead of Garry Ringrose, Tadhg Beirne and Joey Carbery, who scored 26 points (including two tries) against Gloucester. After raving about Ringrose, Monye declared:
“Speaking of another young player for whom the game looks almost too easy, at times, is Jacob Stockdale… honestly, the bigger the stage the better he plays. He’s just a phenomrnal player. For me, he’s just the best winger in the world.”
“He’s so incredibly difficult to tackle,” Monye added, “and I don’t mean that in a Jonah Lomu sense. He was quite obvious in what he brought – he was a big, big man that was hard to stop. Stockdale is a big, big man that’s hard to stop but I think there is a genuine fear factor about him now… and what that does is put an element of doubt into defenders…
“He did that chip and chase [score] against New Zealand and there was nothing lucky about it. That was pure skill, identification of space and execution. At the moment, everything he’s doing is sheer quality… you get guys that score tries and contribute to matches, but he’s winning matches [with his tries] and that’s why, I think, he is the best player in the world.”
Barry Murphy and Andrew Trimble also spoke about Stockdale on Baz & Andrew’s House of Rugby [from 4:00 below] and they mentioned a moment from his latest outing where it looked as if his fortunes may have changed for the worse.
“Stockdale again, man, two brilliant tries,” said Murphy as he looked back on Stockdale’s brace in the win over Racing 92. “The man is just unstoppable.”
Trimble touched on a moment in the first half, coming off a lovely Will Addison cross-kick, that saw Stockdale denied a try by the ball taking a cruel bounce. He said:
“When have you ever seen Jacob not get the bounce of the ball? That’s the first time I’ve ever seen him in a try-scoring position and not get a try. I was thinking, ‘What is happening?!’
“And then, sure enough, the chip for his second try and it just bounces up perfectly for him, business as usual.”
It is that innate confidence that the 22-year-old is taking with him onto the pitch that is coming through each time he plays. Because he believes he will score, the chances are coming for him and he is taking advantage. Very much like Tommy Bowe when he was in his pomp.
This continuation of his impressive form makes it all the stranger that many World XVs – pundits and fans – included Smith and Ioane and left Stockdale out. Perhaps another hatful of Six Nations tries will convince people once and for all.
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