Byrne looks forward to bruising Italian job

IT took just five minutes for Shane Byrne to realise Ireland could actually beat England in Twickenham a fortnight ago.

But the historic triumph is now consigned to the memory bank. There will be no looking back because there is work to be done, an RBS Six Nations Championship title and Triple Crown to chase.

Today, back in Lansdowne Road, Italy stand against the possibility of one of these notable achievements and Byrne is looking no further than that.

Still, he did dwell momentarily on Ireland’s great achievement a couple of weeks ago.

“It all came down to a few things, good preparation, the ability to carry out the game plan and a bit of guts.

“In the opening minutes we figured we had them. Everyone was doing their job and whenever there was a loose ball it seemed we had two or three guys competing to their one.

“There were great moments in the game, great tackles by Mal O’Kelly, Gordon D’Arcy, Peter Stringer but for me the defining moment was when England scored their try and the way we reacted to it.

“It was almost the exact same time in the game that they scored the previous year in Lansdowne Road and in similar circumstances, a mess up at the back of a scrum.

“This time our feelings were different, there was no panic, nobody getting upset because we had been playing the game in their territory up to then. It was like, ok, so what, we’re living in their half, let’s go back up there and score again, get back on top. At half-time, we were ahead and felt we would win the game. All the pressure was on them.”

As Ireland prepare for what many believe will be the toughest physical challenge of the current campaign, Byrne has promised Ireland will be ready.

“A lot of people hailed us for our work in the lineout at Twickenham but pointed to a weakness in the scrum.

“I don’t agree that we’re weak in that area. I think there were 15 or 16 scrums in that match. We didn’t settle properly for one and that led to a score and maybe there was one other scrum that didn’t go well. Otherwise we coped quite well.

“Italy will probably target us in that area but I think we will be ready for them. Scrummaging is about timing as much as ability and we have quality scrummagers. We’ve done a fair bit of work in that area to ensure that what happened once or twice in Twickenham doesn’t happen again.

“One thing though, is that Italy are a hugely physical side. You can be sure that we’ll feel the pain on the morning after the match. We will definitely be battered and bruised.”

Whilst acknowledging Italy’s capabilities and the strides they have made since entering the Six Nations tournament, he is determined that Ireland won’t lose sight of their now lofty goal. He believes, for instance, that Ireland will dominate the lineout yet again. “I can say with conviction that it’s the best lineout in the competition, certainly the guys there are the best I’ve every thrown to.

“The lineout is now probably the single most important source of possession. Sure, you’ve got to get your scrum right but if you can’t win lineouts then it’s game over.

“The important thing against Italy is to deny them possession. They’re good defensively but much better going forward, very much like the French in terms of style. We’re going to have to deny them possession and keep them on the back foot for the whole afternoon. The same level of performance will be required because home advantage simply won’t be enough.

“In a sense, the pressure is now all back on us. We’ve beaten the World Champions and Italy would be delighted to beat the team that beat them. They’re on a high themselves after turning over Scotland and we can’t afford to take them lightly.

“We won’t.”