Patient Wallace primed to deliver

PADDY WALLACE has had to serve a longer apprenticeship.

Now he feels it’s time he graduated.

One of the U-19 World Cup winning class of 1998, Wallace has endured a frustrating professional career, mostly down to the presence of David Humphreys in the Ulster squad.

To say he has been patient is an understatement, but that patience at last appears to have paid off. Finally, at the age of 27, he’s ready to cut loose and announce to Irish coach Eddie O’Sullivan that he can prove himself at the highest level.

At least, he will get that chance in the coming few weeks as the first choice number 10 in the squad to play Argentina in Santa Fe and Buenos Aires. Number 10 is where he always wanted to be.

To date, he has three Test appearances for Ireland, having played against South Africa and England as a replacement, while his one start was against the Pacific Islands last November when he scored 26 points.

But he is under no illusions he’s merely a support player at the moment. Though Humphreys may be safely out of the way, there’s an even bigger obstacle to clear in Ronan O’Gara.

So, right now, Wallace has just one ambition – to do enough to win a place in the World Cup squad.

The thoughts of starting Test matches against such an accomplished side is exciting Wallace. “Once I knew Ronan wasn’t travelling, I figured I had a reasonable chance of starting at least one of the two games. That has been a focus for me for a number of weeks now; it’s something I’ve been relishing and I’ve been happy to have got more game time with Ulster at 10 in recent weeks.”

Whilst pleased to get game time with Ulster at any time- much of it has been at 12 — there is no doubt where Wallace’s preference lies. “Playing 12 is all well and good, but you’re not the main man, you’re not the decision-maker, so it’s hard to just switch at a whim.

“But these last three matches playing out-half have been good. I was also training to play in the position and, of course, these couple of weeks preparing for the tour should be a major benefit for me. There’s a lot of things you need to be able to do well from the out-half position; your concentration certainly has to be spot on for the entire game because much of it will centre around you.

“Then there’s a question of how you react to pressure and what you choose to do with the possession that comes your way. There’s probably no other position on the pitch quite like it.”

Wallace might be within his rights to dislike Humphreys for keeping him out of the limelight for so long, but it’s not the case. In fact, Humphreys has always been supportive, more so in the last few weeks.

Wallace admitted to one possible weakness, an issue he struggled with in the past. “I’ve sometimes had a problem with my positioning in the red zone (defence), and he has been helping me out in the last few weeks.”

Pressure is something he expects on this tour, noting the ability of Argentina to turn over the very best of opposition on home soil. “They’ve had some really amazing results at home over the years and even if they’re not going to be at full strength, we expect them to come out as if they are.”

Wallace is likely to be entrusted with the bulk of the goal kicking duties, even though Ulster coach Mark McCall had Humphreys or Paul Steinmetz to call upon.

In the first of a three match run at 10, Wallace suggested to McCall that he would also like to undertake the kicking duties. McCall declined and told him to concentrate on his play first. Then, McCall relented and Wallace has since got back into the groove.

“I’ve had two solid weeks of goal kicking work, so things are coming right for me now,’’ he said.

O’Sullivan will surely hope so, because Ireland will likely have to take every score they can get against the Pumas. Argentina head coach Marcelo Loffreda has made two changes in his 22-man squad to face Ireland on May 26.

Biarritz prop Gaston De Robertis and SIC full-back Federico Serra will not be able to take part in the first of the two Tests .

De Robertis is unable to play due to club commitments, while Serra is still recovering from injury.

The first Test will take place on May 26 at Santa Fe’s Brigadier Estanislao Lopez stadium. One week later, on June 2, the Argentinian and Irish squads will meet again in Buenos Aires.

ARGENTINA (sqaud): M Avramovic (Worcester Warriors), M Ayerza (Leicester Tigers), P Bouza (Leeds), F Contepomi (Leinster), M Cortese (Northampton Saints), T De Vedia (Saracens), M Durand (Montpellier), JM Fernandez Lobbe (Sale Sharks), JC Fernandez Miranda, H Agulla (both Hindu), G Fessia (Cordoba Athletic), P Gambarini, E Lozada, J Stuart (all CASI), S Gonzalez Bonorino (Capitolina), JM Leguizamon (London Irish), F Leonelli (Glasgow Warrios), L Lopez Fleming (Edinburgh Gunners), H Senillosa (Hindu), B Stortoni (Bristol), N Vergallo (Jockey Club Rosario), A Vernet Basualdo (Alumni).