Players must concentrate on Argentina, warns Kidney

IRISH coach Declan Kidney yesterday demanded a week of total effort from his mentally drained troops after Saturday’s ego-bruising defeat by New Zealand.

Kidney said the team could “sob” for an hour or two, but they had to “cop on” and ready themselves for the crucial clash with Argentina at Croke Park on Saturday, with World Cup ranking points at stake.

Kidney insisted: “We’re very disappointed but we have a huge game on Saturday and getting into the top eight (World Cup rankings) is in our own hands. We will be trying to beat a team that’s ranked above us and we haven’t done that for a while.”