Kidney opts for tried and tested

CHANGING a successful formula has always been anathema to Declan Kidney, so it was with little or no surprise that Saturday’s starting XV against England will be the same as kicked off against France and Italy.

Apart from informing the country’s record caps holder, Malcolm O’Kelly, that he had been replaced on the bench by Mick O’Driscoll, Kidney’s call was as straightforward as these things can be.

The Irish coach said yesterday that leaving O’Kelly out of the 22 was a tough call, but said it was a reward for O’Driscoll’s recent endeavours.

He explained: “The second row is one of the most sought-after positions; Michael (O’Driscoll) played well in the Magners League at the weekend, Bob (Casey) and Ryan (Caldwell) played well in the Ireland A game; Malcolm is the most capped player and has been going well, but it was important to keep an eye on everything, from matches to training, and I just thought he (O’Driscoll) deserved the nod.

“It’s always disappointing when a player has to drop out, Mal is a model professional and he took the news on the chin; he’ll move on and will try to work his way back into the side.

“We went through the whole team to consider everything; we needed to do that on the basis of what we saw in training, as well as Magners League and Ireland A games in the last couple of weeks.”

The public perception of this selection will surely be Kidney, aside from debate about the merits or otherwise of the O’Kelly omittal, has taken the right option to retain the starting XV.

There had been suggestions that Gordon D’Arcy would jump ahead of Paddy Wallace, that Rory Best might slip past Jerry Flannery and that Denis Leamy could overtake Stephen Ferris. All were unlikely on the basis that Kidney always supports players who produce the goods.

Wallace has been horribly unlucky to sustain bizarre head injuries in successive games, Flannery did nothing wrong and a lot right, and Ferris, despite huge pressure from the classy Leamy, has been at the top of his form.

The upshot of O’Kelly’s exclusion is that he will now be joined at the top of Ireland’s list of internationals. A cameo appearance in Rome brought O’Kelly his 92nd cap but veteran prop forward John Hayes will match that on Saturday, a day when the captain, Brian O’Driscoll, moves to 91 and Ronan O’Gara to 90.

Said Kidney of Hayes: “He’s a professional in the very best sense of the word; I’ve seen people who are paid but are not overly professional, and I’ve seen people who don’t get any money for doing something but are very professional. He’s so professional in the way he has managed to look after himself, and the way he has kept himself as fit as he has — to play in arguably the toughest position on the rugby pitch (tight head prop).

“He has immense prowess in line outs and has kept a mobility that’s needed to go beyond the set pieces; that takes a lot of personal care and professionalism. He’s not one for talking about himself or having people talk about him — he has limited me to six sentences — but his professional approach can’t be overstated.”

Looking forward to Saturday’s crunch tie, Kidney is convinced England will be well up for the game. “Their improvement in performance from the Italian to the Welsh match was huge; I suppose the other thing to concern me is the influence of Mike Ford, whom we worked with before in Ireland, and Martin Johnson’s will be huge. It’s unknown what sort of improvement they will have, but I’d expect to see more from them and we have to be prepared for that.”

Kidney warned of England ‘s ability to improvise and dictate the speed of the game from tap and go penalties. “We have to ensure we don’t give up soft penalties and free kicks. If we do, we’ve got to be vigilant to combat what they will try to do.”

Penalties, he said, can be given away in three different ways. “They can be conceded through downright stupidity, they can come down to the view of a ref in a situation where you can be unlucky, or they can come through pressure exerted by the opposition. The first type would be under your control and you have to work your way to combat the other types.”

Meanwhile, Brian O’Driscoll also expects a rough and tumble encounter. He believes England could easily have upset the odds with a win over Wales. “You wonder (what would have happened) if they got that breakaway try; it just shows how tight calls can determine the result.

“England would be one of the better teams in the world more often than not, so it’s always good to take them on. The country always sit up and take notice whenever we meet England in whatever sport. It’s always a game we look forward to, but it’s going to be hard, that’s for sure.”