Ireland’s Indispensibles

A THIRD Triple Crown in four years followed by the World Cup? The first proposition is more or less in the bag, the second no longer a pipe-dream after this amazing 43-13 walloping of the “auld enemy” at Croke Park on Saturday.

It serves to deepen the regret that a Grand Slam is not on the agenda after that heart breaking defeat by France a fortnight earlier. The damage caused by one split-second lapse in concentration.

Is talk of a serious challenge for the World Cup bordering on absurdity? It’s not an entirely unrealistic prospect after the blitz of the holders although it is essential that four or five key men are fully fit at the right time. For now, though nobody could be blamed for revelling in a thirty-point thrashing of England that set a whole host of new records.