Duncan Casey: As Wallabies found to their cost, Ireland aren't that predictable

Ireland didn’t light up the rugby world in this series but found innovative ways to exploit their opponents.

30 November 2024; Ireland players celebrate as teammate Gus McCarthy, partially hidden, scores their side's third try during the Autumn Nations Series match between Ireland and Australia at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile

I remember lining out for Shannon on the morning of December 27th, 2010, to play a training match against Corinthians in Coonagh. There was a clear divide between the guys on both teams who had been out on the piss the night before and those who hadn't. The match was pockmarked with outbreaks of laughter every time the game was delayed because a player was bent double somewhere, dry-retching and making sounds that wouldn’t be out of place in a horror film.

The opening quarter of Ireland’s win over Australia on Saturday reminded me of that morning 14 years ago. It looked like an end-of-season tour fixture between teams who had been on the batter together the night before and were suffering through the formality of the match itself. There were dropped balls, bad passes, clumsy penalties and general sloppiness that had many of us sighing and resigning ourselves to another frustrating afternoon ahead.