Campbell tips in-form Ronan to inspire Lions

RONAN O’GARA has been tipped to head the Lions challenge in New Zealand next summer by one of the best out halves the world has known.

Ollie Campbell gave O’Gara a five star rating for his role in securing victory over Argentina at Lansdowne Road on Saturday, and described his match-winning drop goal as ‘the stuff dreams are made of.’

“It was as good a drop goal as I have ever seen, seconds left on the clock, pressure on but a perfect strike. It’s not the first time I’ve seen him do it and it should be remembered that he rescued Ireland in similar circumstances against Wales two years ago,” said Campbell.

“He is absolutely and without doubt the best out half, the most in-form out half, in these islands right now and has to tour with the Lions. If he keeps up that type of form he could also be the man for the test games.

“He has added a new dimension to his game. It’s about maturity, confidence and it seems nothing bothers him, conditions or anything.

“He held Ireland together in the first half and controlled the game in the second. It was a magnificent performance in desperately difficult conditions.”

If Irish coach Eddie O’Sullivan wished that O’Gara might have been closer to the target when he struck the winning score, the number 10 himself never had any doubts.

“I wasn’t worried about the distance. The important thing about drop goals is not to push it. I knew my range and knew that the wind would do the work for me. All I had to do was to make sure I was accurate.

“I aimed for just inside the right hand upright and was confident the wind would carry it left and to the centre.

“I suppose we intended carrying the ball through another phase but I reckoned we weren’t going anywhere, and the time was nearly up. I signalled to Strings to let me have a shot and his pass, to be fair, was absolutely perfect.

“You practice these things in training but you have to be ruled by instinct in match situations. I’m just happy that my strike was good and we got the right result.”

O’Gara’s five penalties and two drop goals, allied to his 17-point haul against South Africa a fortnight ago, have done wonders for his confidence and he admitted it was partially the product of very hard work.

“When we prepare for internationals, Wednesday is normally a day off for the players but it’s not for me or Humphs. We normally spend a lot of time those days trying to perfect our kicking style, so it’s nice that on days like this you can look back and say all the hard work was worthwhile.

“We work hard on technique, and practice is obviously a requirement. When you get to match day you’ve just got to trust that technique.”

It was a close call, closer than O’Gara would have liked, but he stressed: “I think it was a game we deserved to win over the 80 minutes.

“There wasn’t any real panic out there but we did probably push things at certain stages and I felt we maybe needed a try to win it. As it happened we had to rely on getting points through other means because they were such a difficult team to break down.”

O’Gara is confident, despite the close call, that Ireland have grown in stature throughout these autumn internationals.

“We have to give Argentina the respect they deserve - they’re a good team - but I thought we showed good character to get back into it and then take the win at the end.

“It’s a nice feeling to win; nicer that we had the composure to win the way we did.”

Campbell too was impressed, and believes Ireland can build on the autumnal success.

“They’ve had experience of a variety of opponents that posed different types of problems. They will learn from that experience and I think they will have a good feeling going into the Six Nations Championship. They have every right to be happy.

“This team has come a long way. They’re now used to winning and, more importantly, know how to win in difficult circumstances.

“In my day, our guys would probably have loved those weather conditions but it’s clear that the present team like better weather.

“Equally though, it was clear against South Africa and now Argentina that they are capable of adapting. They have really come a long way and I’m confident they will go a long way further.”