Donal Lenihan: Eddie's England have already done Ireland a big favour

Like the French in Cardiff, Ireland will be better for coming through such a serious test

Ireland’s Hugo Keenan on the charge against England in the Six Nations match at Twickenham. Picture: Inpho/Billy Stickland

With a final round of Six Nations action to go, few will dispute the fact that favourites France, followed closely by Ireland, have confirmed their pre-tournament billing as the two best sides in the championship.

France sit on the cusp of a first Grand Slam and championship success in 12 years, which is hard to fathom given the strength in depth throughout the French Top 14. Once the French Federation started working in tandem with the Top 14 clubs, which is exactly what has happened when former international coach Bernard Laporte became president of the FFR, it was inevitable the national team would be the big winners.

Ireland too have had their moments in the championship but, regardless of what transpires against England and Scotland respectively on Saturday, it’s the two wins generated in very testing circumstances last weekend that may yet prove seismic for both countries on the road to next year’s World Cup.

France were pushed all the way in Cardiff by a Welsh side that continues to paper over the shortcomings of their regional teams. Wales have improved in every outing since being dismantled by Ireland in the opening game in Dublin and were always going to make life difficult for France at the Principality Stadium.

The reaction on the faces of the French coaches on the final whistle reflected not only their relief at a hard-earned win but, even more so, at the manner of that win. This was a victory that would have proved beyond them before defence guru Shaun Edwards came on board. The defensive resilience and work rate displayed, under pressure throughout the final quarter, had Edwards stamped all over it.

France are a team capable of playing rugby from another planet. Yet, to succeed in international rugby sometimes requires more basic requirements such as an unrelenting work rate and a desire to get back on your feet and man the defensive line when you feel completely knackered.

Edwards has instilled that non-negotiable element in this French squad. In many ways, it was necessary to get someone outside the traditional French coaching mindset to drive this. Edwards, despite his reputation as an uncompromising character, has a marvellous way of getting players to play for him, even in the most unglamorous aspects of the game. Players crave his respect and there’s only one way to get it.

Tackling someone doesn’t need any great level of skill. An effective defensive system requires a willingness to communicate well, to understand your link in the overall defensive chain and, most of all, a drive and desire to close the space available to the opposition attack.

These are traits beyond so many French teams since they last won the championship back in 2010. That element, when combined with the individual brilliance brought to bear by the likes of Antoine Dupont, Romain Ntamack, Gael Fickou and Damien Penaud make this French outfit a joy to watch.

Having survived a spirited Welsh onslaught last Friday night, France were able to sit back and relax at their purpose-built rugby base as Marcoussis on Saturday and watch the Twickenham game in the knowledge that their greatest rivals England are the only obstacle left towards achieving a long overdue Grand Chelem.

The pressure and expectation levels that follow them to the Stade de France this Saturday night will provide another great learning experience. If they want something to replicate what contesting a World Cup final in their own backyard might feel like then this is about as good a dress rehearsal as you could manufacture 19 months out from the real thing. It will be interesting to see how they cope.

Circumstances dictated that England were back to their belligerent best last weekend. Having Charlie Ewels sent off after 82 seconds offered them an even more fundamental cause to fight for. Not that they needed it.

England always see themselves as superior to Ireland, regardless of what form suggests. The crowd's reaction to the red card, correctly produced by French referee Matthieu Raynal, for the England second row’s high hit on James Ryan served to lift them to new heights despite the numerical disadvantage.

We’ve all been in Thomond Park on days like this, when a perceived injustice against the home team sends the crowd into a frenzy and drives the players to achieve great things against superior opposition.

However, there should be no debate whatsoever surrounding the red card. The tackle by Ewels, no different to the similarly clumsy effort from the Italian hooker Hame Faiva in Dublin, cannot be tolerated in the game. Forget intent. It doesn’t come into it. Most modern day forwards are in excess of 18 stone of raw power, honed and primed for an explosive impact after years of painstaking work, lifting weights, in the gym.

If that power and energy isn’t channelled in the right direction then the damage could be catastrophic. James Ryan is a marvellous rugby player, a very likeable and approachable young man who has dedicated much of his life to date preparing to play at the highest level of the game.

The game has a duty of care to all players. The full time professional nature of their preparation has changed the sport to such a degree that it has become unrecognisable to its amateur equivalent. It’s incumbent therefore on the authorities to protect players from themselves.

Ryan has already suffered a worrying sequence of concussion incidents over the last year alone. The minute he was hit on Saturday, he stumbled and wobbled to such a degree that you knew immediately his race was run. 

Players must become more aware of the consequence of their actions. Faiva and Ewels have both endured the walk of shame from a packed arena that no player wants to experience. Referees have to continue calling the ultimate sanction until such time as players learn to change their tackle technique.

It’s not that long ago since we had a plethora of red cards for tip tackles or for taking players out in the air when contesting for a high ball. Those incidents have all but been eradicated from the game now. Over time, players learned that if they’re not in a realistic position to compete for the ball in the air, you wait for the catcher to return to ground before attempting to tackle him.

How many bombs did the magnificent Huge Keenan pluck from the air last weekend, despite the brilliance of England’s chasers, without being taken out in the air? The England players knew that if they weren’t in a position to compete for the ball then they had to wait to stress Keenan on the ground.

That’s exactly what they did and were rewarded on a few occasions when Keenan was penalised for not releasing. It’s taking far longer for players to change their body height in the tackle. Yet, the penny will eventually drop and the game will be safer as a result.

For the second game in a row, a sending off had an impact on the way Ireland sought to play. Against Italy, it took them far too long to work out how best to exploit the two-man advantage. On Saturday, a desire to deliver the miracle pass in traffic, in order to find the space available elsewhere, led to a litany of handling errors, resulting in scrums, which given their dominance there, only served to feed the English psyche even more on the day.

Like the French in Cardiff, I believe Ireland will be better for this experience. In the end, they emerged from one of the game's most atmospheric arenas, where England don’t tend to lose too often, with a bonus-point win.

Ireland have reached the final day of the tournament exactly where they wanted to be, still in contention. They have absorbed the defeat to France and remain in a position to win the championship outright. The fact that a Triple Crown is also on offer against Scotland presents the team with a target firmly within their own grasp.

Outright championship success requires the English to do us a favour in Paris. In some ways, Eddie Jones’s men have already done us a favour, by highlighting elements of our game in need of attention. A year out from the World Cup, that’s no bad thing.