Bad blood makes win even sweeter, says Donncha

DONNCHA O’CALLAGHAN has revealed the depth of hostility between Ireland and Argentina.

Argentina captain Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe bristled with menace as he summarised the latest instalment of one of Test rugby’s more unlikely rivalries.

“They won this time but there will be revenge,” he scowled as he stalked from the press conference following Ireland’s stormy 17-3 triumph at Croke Park on Saturday.

There would have been an element of pantomime villainy about the parting shot except it was spoken with genuine intent — and the animosity flows in both directions. Victory may have guaranteed a precious spot among the second seeds for the World Cup draw on December 1, but O’Callaghan is more interested in savouring a treasured Pumas scalp.

“A lot of the players weren’t thinking that far ahead to the draw or about the rankings,” he said. “There’s a fair bit of niggle between Argentina and Ireland. Personally I don’t like them and they’d probably say the same about me.

“Make no bones about it, when you play them you know it will be tough. I respect them but when you seek their players out after a match they look to keep their own company.

“We don’t like each other. They don’t like us either. They’re not totally at fault, at times we’ve given them reason not to like We’re both passionate about rugby and it’s not a bad thing to have teams who care about playing for their country.

“But the dislike does make it more satisfying when we beat them. A few times we’ve been beaten they’ve had no problem rubbing it in.

“When they’re in the dressing room they’ll remember all of the smart-ass comments one or two of the fellas made. We lost at the World Cup and experienced that feeling ourselves.”

Fate has repeatedly matched the nations at pivotal moments, creating the “bad blood” that fly-half Ronan O’Gara has spoken of in the past.

O’Gara issued a rallying cry in the build-up to yesterday by questioning why Ireland struggle to match the pride and passion of Munster.

“Ronan is a senior pro and when he comes out with lines like that it forces all of us to up our game. He sets the standard,” said O’Callaghan. “He led from the front and we have a lot of respect for him. He gave us the kick up the ass we needed. He wasn’t pointing the finger.

“Hunger and desire should be non-negotiable when you pull on an Ireland jersey.”