Duncan Casey: Valuable reminders of Irish fallibility and Fijian rise

Rob Herring steadied the ship at both lineout and scrum time in the final half hour. Often an unsung hero, Herring is an excellent player and stalwart at Ulster for over a decade

BIG IMPACT: Rob Herring of Ireland after his side's victory in the Rugby World Cup warm-up match against Samoa at Parc des Sports Jean Dauger in Bayonne. Pic: Harry Murphy/Sportsfile

We were only halfway through enjoying our double measures of smugness in the aftermath of England’s defeat to Fiji when we were served with a generous helping of humble pie. Ireland’s 40-25 thrashing at the hands of ‘Western’ Samoa in 1996 was the first test match I remember watching. While there was never any risk of that piece of history repeating itself, Samoa had more than one opportunity to snatch a victory from the top ranked side in the world on Saturday.

Had they pulled it off, it would have been as embarrassing a result as it was for that newly professional Irish side almost three decades ago. Poor execution at the death meant Samoa were unable to capitalise and our blushes were spared. We must tip our hats to the guts and determination Seilala Mapasua’s men showed to bring the contest down to the wire. In reality, this result was less to do with Samoa’s abilities and more so Irish sloppiness, ill-discipline and errors, much of which was the result of awful weather conditions.