O’Gara stars as Ireland cut loose in Apia

Samoa 14

Not only did Eddie O’Sullivan’s side have to contend with an abrasive and physically charged home side, they also had to deal with the 35 degree heat and stifling humidity.

But each challenge was met with a firm answer by the Irish and as a pointer towards what exactly this extended squad are made of, it was extremely positive.

After the game O’Sullivan was visibly delighted with his team’s performance and he had every right to be. Ireland controlled this game for virtually the full 80 minutes, and in the conditions, this was no mean feat.

All around the uncovered areas of Apia Park, the locals used golf umbrellas to shelter them from the weather.

If the local population start to feel the heat it’s a sure sign that things are bad. And this is supposed to be winter time.

Eric Miller, Paul O’Connell and Ronan O’Gara were the key ingredients in the Irish success. Miller was an effervescent presence in the physical side of the game and the player gained a huge amount of yardage every time he won the ball.

O’Connell’s performance was of a similar vein. The second-row leapt at anything that moved in a blue shirt and some of his tackling and ball-carrying was awe-inspiring.

It’s difficult to see how Eddie O’Sullivan can leave him out of his best fifteen on this performance.

And then of course, there was O’Gara. The out-half left the field on 77 minutes with 32 points to his name and although not even the player himself knew it at the time, he had just broken his own Irish individual scoring record of 30, which he notched against Italy in the Six Nations back in 2000.

Aside from his almost immaculate goal-kicking, O’Gara played a key part in the Irish game-plan, constantly forcing the Samoans on the back foot with his right boot, and though at times his kicking was a touch predictable and off-target, Eddie O’Sullivan praised the player for his contribution.

“He had a couple of loose kicks in the first half,” said O’Sullivan, “but they were playing a very deep back three and they were hoping we would run at them and create opportunities. It was hard work at out-half and when you looked up, they had three full-backs looking at you meaning your kicks had to be inch perfect.

“There was a lot of pressure on Ronan to get the ball in front of the pack, and unless you got a quick ball, you had to really kick it unless you wanted to run the risk of a turnover.

To be fair to him when the pressure was on, he came through it really well.

Three penalties from O’Gara gave Ireland a 9-7 interval lead, but it was the second half of this contest when Ireland really cut loose.

The out-half got two tries during this period; the first a typical show and break after a great run by Mike Mullins, while the second came after Gordan D’arcy was stopped just short of the line and O’Gara was on hand to apply the finish.

Ireland’s other try, sandwiched in between, was credited to Eric Miller, although it wasn’t clear on first viewing as to who exactly got the first touch on the ball as Miller, Johnny Bell and Samoan centre Brian Lima raced onto a charged-down kick.

On the injury front, Leo Cullen left the field early after putting his left shoulder out of place, while both Anthony Horgan and Johnny Bell were forced to depart with sun-stroke as the elements took their toll.

The pair were given the all clear to travel home with the Irish party immediately after the match but after the final whistle, there were some concerns as to whether the players would be able to recover in time to cope with the marathon journey home.

So on this high note ends Ireland’s 14 match season and with 12 wins recorded in the record books, it would be unfair to label it as anything other than a huge success.

SAMOA: F Fili, L Fa’atau, D Rasmussen, B Lima, R Fanuatanu, E Va’a, D Tyrell; K Lealamanua, T Leota, J Tomuli, O Palepoi, L Lafaialii, K Viliamu, M Fa’asavalu, S Sititi (c) Subs: T Leupolu for Tomuli 45 mins, S Sooialo for Tyrell 52 mins, D Tuavi’i for K Viliamu 70 mins, J Meredith for Leota 65 mins, G Elisara for D Resmussen 74 mins.

Scorers: Tries: Fanuatanu, Va’a Cons: Va’a (2)

IRELAND: G Dempsey, J Kelly, M Mullins, J Bell, A Horgan, R O’Gara, G Easterby; M Horan, S Byrne, R Corrigan (c), L Cullen, P O’Connell, S Easterby, E Miller, A McCullen.

Subs: D O’Callaghan for Cullen 18mins, G D’arcy for Horgan 53 mins, P Shields for Byrne 70 mins, E Byrne for Corrigan 70 mins, B O’Meara for G Easterby 76 mins, P Burke for O’Gara 76 mins, D Wallace for Bell 78 mins.

Scorers: Tries: O’Gara (2), Miller Cons: O’Gara (2) Pens: O’Gara (5), Burke Drop Goal: O’Gara

Referee: Paul Honiss (New Zealand)

Attendance: 10,000