Italian job can give us the perfect launch pad
Traditionally, the opening weekend of action is never great, as teams seem terrified of losing that all-important first encounter as opposed to grasping the nettle and going out with a positive attitude. Momentum is a word you will be hearing a lot about over the course of the tournament, as the Six Nations is all about trying to build it, especially over the opening two weekends.
On the eve of this championship, injuries have dominated every squad, highlighting even more forcibly just how physical the game has become in recent times. Rounds five and six of the Heineken Cup seem to have taken a serious toll on all the international squads which suggests that the country with the greatest playing resources are at a distinct advantage, perhaps an early pointer towards the gifted but unpredictable French.
Friday night clashes may have got the thumbs down from the Six Nations committee from next season onwards and if so the opening game of this year’s tournament in Cardiff on Friday night between Wales and England has all the ingredients for a fitting finale.
Warren Gatland has stoked the fire already for that one with his derogatory comments about England hooker Dylan Hartley, not to mention the suggestion that he was headhunted by the RFU for Rob Andrew’s director of rugby job and also for Martin Johnson’s role of head coach.
I just don’t understand why he does that type of thing.
As usual, he is left trying to explain it away this week and has even imposed a media ban on himself. Far easier if he put a bit of thought into his public utterances in the first place. He has learned very little from his jibe before the Irish Grand Slam game in 2009 when he claimed that the Welsh hate the Irish more than any other side. One thing is certain, it won’t have had any impact whatsoever on Johnson and little on Hartley either, one suspects. Wales have not exactly been setting the rugby world on fire lately either and I think it is time Warren and his team did their talking on the field.
Gatland’s approach is alien to the way Declan Kidney goes about his business and while he will be certain in his own mind that Ireland have the players and approach to beat Italy this weekend, you will hear nothing but diplomacy emanating from the mouth of the Corkman over the next few days.
Given his long list of casualties, Kidney will be happy that the Italian game has been scheduled first up and not France who arrive eight days later. In any case but especially in a World Cup year it is no harm that the depth of the squad is tested to the full and that the responsibility for performing on the big stage is shared between a core group of about 26 players. With the attritional nature of rugby now, you can discount the luxury of ever fielding what you perceive to be your strongest 15 with any degree of regularity.
The thing about playing Italy is that you know exactly what to expect from them in advance. They can only play one way and unfortunately the forward-dominated game they favour is far too one dimensional to succeed with any level of consistency.
Last weekend the Italian A side played their English counterparts at Worcester and were stuffed 45-17.
AGAIN Italy sought to grind out a win up front and were badly exposed in their efforts to move the ball.
The problem about playing Italy first up in the championship, especially in Rome, is that they will start full of enthusiasm, fresh and hungry for a scalp. On the back of a series of defeats, that level of fanaticism normally dilutes as the tournament runs its course.
Physically they seek to smash the opposition, with or without the ball, which means that it takes longer to recover from the Italian test than a lot of others. With France next up that is an issue for Kidney but he will be delighted with an extra day of recovery with the French game scheduled for Sunday week.
It’s not often Kidney makes nine changes to a winning side but with injury forcing his hand that is what he has done for the trip to Rome. Despite all the disruption it still looks a decent side capable of kickstarting Ireland’s campaign with a win.
The inclusion of Mike Ross ticks all the right boxes. With Italy and France first up, Ireland’s scrum is an obvious target. Consequently the management will have a fair idea within the next 10 days if the Corkman has what it takes to compete at this level.
The other area of debate was the composition of the back three and specifically who would wear No 15. Luke Fitzgerald was the obvious candidate in normal circumstances but given that he has struggled to find his form after his most recent knee injury, Gavin Duffy was well in contention. Kidney is happy from what he has seen in training that Fitzgerald’s confidence is back and likewise the inclusion of Fergus McFadden is a positive selection. Despite the fact that there are so many wounded warriors in this sector, the chosen combination of Fitzgerald, McFadden and Keith Earls has an exciting look about it.
Saturday’s game offers an interesting subplot given Ireland and Italy are due to meet in the final game of Pool C in the World Cup in Carisbrook, Dunedin on October 2. At that stage both should still be in the hunt for qualification to the quarter-finals with everything to play for.
The best game of the weekend could well be Scotland’s visit to Paris also on Saturday where the French will be under pressure to atone for their sins in their last international at the Stade de France against Australia. Andy Robinson’s men will fancy their chances of causing a shock and all the pressure is on Marc Lievremont and his team.
At least the side he announced yesterday has a far better balance to it and looks quite menacing. Either way, we will all be a little bit wiser after the events of the weekend.
