Tasty, tense and tight

FOR Ireland’s World Cup hopefuls, Saturday’s first test against Argentina was a throw-back to Lions tours of a bygone era when teams were banished to various backwaters to promote the game and have their physical prowess tested by hostile natives both on and off the field.

Santa Fe was such a place.

To their credit, despite the agony of a last-gasp defeat this young and comparatively inexperienced Irish side displayed commendable courage and commitment. In the end they were undone by a man who knows more about Irish rugby than most opposition international players.

When this game was in the balance with five minutes remaining it was Leinster’s Felipe Contepomi who stepped up to the mark with an outstanding drop goal. At the final whistle he was treated with a reverence from the crowd that one associates in this country with Diego Maradona.

The pity from an Irish point of view was that the winning score resulted from a turnover from a lineout maul after an outstanding take from Mick O’Driscoll. At that stage it looked as if Ireland had weathered the storm having responded with heart warming character when the Pumas took the lead for the first time with only five minutes remaining with a class try orchestrated by Contepomi from Hernan Senillosa.

When Gavin Duffy converted the ultimate pressure kick one minute later you felt Ireland had done enough. Contepomi had other ideas.

Ultimately, Eddie O Sullivan’s men were undone by a lack of discipline in the opening 15 minutes of the second half when they presented Contepomi with three penalties, two of which he converted to drag his team back into the game. Given that O’Sullivan had stressed the need for discipline prior to kick off, he will be disappointed.

That said, there was much to be proud of in this Irish performance. Before the game, with only one of the Munster pack in situ for the first time in years, it was imperative that the Irish front five survived the anticipated physical onslaught. They did more than that. The scrum was solid throughout, even when captain Simon Best switched to the loose head side to accommodate debutant tight head Tony Buckley. The Shannon man did well when introduced.

The line-out was also productive with Ireland producing ball of a far superior quality than that of Argentina. In this respect Malcolm O’Kelly did well on his return to the international arena, putting enormous pressure on the Argentine throw.

Most encouraging was the manner in which Ireland succeeded in nullifying the famed Argentine maul which was stopped at source. The ultimate insult to the home forwards was the concession of a penalty try that stemmed from a beautifully choreographed lineout maul which Argentina were forced to halt by coming in from the side. Credit referee Lyndon Bray for having the composure to award it in such an imposing cauldron.

For the first hour, Ireland looked more likely to score tries, as, Contepomi apart, Argentina were bereft of ideas behind the scrum. The visitors relied on their excellent defence which had the measure of Argentina for most of the game.

In attack the familiarity and awareness that exists between Brian O’Driscoll, Gordon D’Arcy and company, that has come from years of playing together, was understandably lacking. Time and again promising attacks broke down when the vital pass was spilled at key moments.

The gamble of starting without any recognised cover at out-half on the bench was put under the microscope when Paddy Wallace was forced off injured with 17 minutes to go. Wallace had performed well up to the point of his departure, but was subjected to a physical pummelling for most of the second half. He is now a doubt for next week’s second Test, a headache the coach would have been particularly keen to avoid.

His replacement, Geordan Murphy showed what an outstanding footballer he is when he stepped into the pivotal role for the crucial closing period. His drop goal attempt with the last kick of the game was within a finger tip of securing victory. However, starting a game at No 10 is an entirely different ask as the opposition have the opportunity to cater for this. It will be interesting to see what route O’Sullivan takes if Wallace is ruled out.

Ireland must now regroup for the second test in Buenos Aires. While O’Sullivan is likely to make anything up to 11 changes in order to present other World Cup contenders with their opportunity, he can do so in the knowledge that several players have put their hands up for inclusion. He will also be consoled by the fact that Contepomi will be unavailable as he graduates as a medical doctor.

New cap Brian Carney has already shown that he has what it takes at this level. His intercept try after only seven minutes as a Union international showed a sharp rugby brain.

Overall it was a historic day for Munster with four new caps awarded when Tomas O’Leary and Barry Murphy made late cameo appearances to compliment the presence of Carney and Buckley. It must be a long time since three Munster backs won their first caps on the same day.

Elsewhere, Jamie Heaslip had an outstanding game, characterised by big hits and explosive ball carrying. Likewise Jerry Flannery had his best game since surgery on his shoulder. Gavin Duffy also showed why O’Sullivan was keen to get him back to Connaght with a polished performance from full-back.

The last three games between these two sides have now been decided by a cumulative margin of five points from their global clashes in Adelaide, Dublin and Santa Fe. Next week in Buenos Aires will be no different. After that, Paris in the autumn will be a defining moment for both sides.