“It’s been the same football team for the last five years.”
Former All Blacks winger John Kirwan was cautious ahead of the Test Series, last week, and stuck the favourites’ tag on Ireland. Kirwan declared that Ireland and France had taken the New Zealand rugby template and improved on it.
One week on and a relieved Kirwan was in much better form. “I love it win the underdog wins,” he remarked on the weekly Sky Sport NZ show, The Breakdown.
The past fortnight was a strange experience for Irish rugby supporters and players, in New Zealand and watching on from afar. There was a genuine sense of trepidation heading into the Test Series, with the All Blacks knowing defeat at Eden Park would mean three losses in a row, following their November 2021 reversals at the hands of Ireland and France.
On Saturday night in Auckland, though, the likes of Ardie Savea, Beauden Barrett and Sam Whitelock were purring, cutting and disrupting. New Zealand scored six tries in a performance that will rock the already wobbling confidence of a touring side packed with Leinster stars. For players like Tadhg Furlong, Caelan Doris and James Ryan, they have gone from long winning streaks to three defeats in their last four games [for province and country].
Ardie Savea of New Zealand celebrates with Quinn Tupaea after scoring a try against Ireland. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)‘We know Ireland are going to get better’ – Jeff Wilson
Munster and Ireland legend Alan Quinlan was special guest on the show and he explained how he was shocked to find so many Kiwis believing Ireland would start off at Eden Park with a victory.
Jeff Wilson, another former All Blacks winger, said it was tough to really go hard on any player from the Ireland and New Zealand sides as it was such a hard-fought contest. The 42-19 final scoreline ‘didn’t really reflect how close it was’, said Wilson.
“We expect the All Blacks to get better [for the Second Test], but we know Ireland are going to get better.”
There was praise for Crusaders captain Scott Barrett, who had a good game at blindside and disrupted Ireland well, but no mention of his shoulder to Peter O’Mahony’s head in the final 10 minutes. Barrett, it has transpired, was not cited for the collision.
Kirwan then touched on a topic that has been swirling around rugby circles here for the past five or six years. He turned to Quinlan and asked:
“Is your Irish team too reliant on Johnny Sexton?”
Quinlan acknowledged that the Sexton question has been out there for the past five years, and stated how ‘incredibly resilient’ and reliable the Leinster outhalf has been, over his 13-year Test career.
“Ireland never change anyone,” Kirwan remarked. “It’s been the same football team for the last five years.”
Quinlan countered that Ireland had fed hookers Rónan Kelleher and Dan Sheehan, and back-row Caelan Doris into the pack, over the past two years, with Andrew Porter now back at loosehead and starting ahead of Cian Healy. “We’d like to have a few more second rows,” he added.
When it came to predictions for the Second Test at Dunedin, Wilson, Kirwan and Justin Marshall all went for the All Blacks. Quinlan said, “If you want a quick answer, I don’t know!”
Over in the New Zealand Herald meanwhile, Gregor Paul noted an area of the game that proved crucial in the hosts winning so handsomely.
‘Ireland weren’t so far behind the All Blacks in the core facets of winning the ball and the collisions,’ Paul wrote. ‘But they were light years behind in being able to sniff and exploit even a half-chance and the ability of the All Blacks to pounce on counter-attack and sense where an opponent is weak remains the gift that they alone possess.’
