Clarke: tough task, but we can top pool

IRB Junior World Championships

Just five points separated the sides when they met in February during the Six Nations, and the two sides have been sharing a hotel this week as they prepare to face off in the opening match of Pool B.

As Six Nations champions, Ireland go into the tournament full ofconfidence, but Allen Clarke’s men face a difficult task in a difficult pool. The decision of the IRB to cut the Junior championships by four teams to 12 has seen the competition ratchet up with England and hosts Argentina making up the rest of the group.

Ireland face the English onWednesday, before taking on the locals on Sunday in what could be an all-or-nothing game, and while Clarke is aware of the perils that await in the group, he says his side can top the pool.

“We want to get out of our group as the number one seeds,” he said. “If you do that, anything is possible, that’s our goal.

“If you look at our group, youimagine that only one team is going to go through to the knockout stages of the tournament. All of the teams have the potential to beat one another so as a result of that if you lose one game then you can’t lose sight of yourambitions.

“Our focus has solely been on France and we’re not getting too far ahead of ourselves. Obviously we have knowledge of England this season as well, but that’s not on the lips of the players at present and by the third game we’ll have seen Argentina twice as well. It’s going to be a tight group and it’s going to come down to fine lines in games and the ability to deal with critical moments as well.”

Rhys Ruddock will lead an Ireland team that is unchanged from their last outing which saw them blow Scotland away to clinch the title in Athlone.

Conditions in Rosario are good with the sun shining and the temperature in the teens, but having lost to France already this year Ruddock is all too aware of the threat they pose and he says revenge is on the agenda.

“There’s probably enough incentive anyway in playing the first game of the World Cup,” the blindside said.

“But, certainly the fact that they beat us and the fact that we felt we under-performed in that game gives us extra incentive and point to prove.

“I think at the time it was easy for us to tell what went well. We struggled to change things on the pitch, we struggled to win our own ball at the set-piece and certainly their driving maul from the lineout hurt us.

“I think they’ll probably look to do the same again but we’re confident that we have the players and the attitude to stop them at source.”

FRANCE: B Dulin (Agen); C Lagain (Bayonne), R Lamérat (Toulouse), R Bartholomew (Toulon), J Sinzelle (Toulon); JM Doussain (Toulouse), A Bales (Agen); X Chiocci (Toulon), M Ivaldi (capt) (Toulon), S Abadie (Agen); J Souza (Lyon), G Often (La Rochelle); A Roulin (Clermont), T Molcard (Biarritz), A Erban (Agen).

Replacements: K Le Guen (Stade Rochelais), E Ben Arous (Racing Metro), R Taofifenua (Perpignan), K Gimeno (Beziers), G Bosch (Perpignan), M Lamoulie (Agen), H Bonneval (Stade Francais).

IRELAND: A Conway (Blackrock/Leinster); T O’Halloran (Galwegians/Connacht), E Griffin (Corinthians/Connacht), N Spence (Ballynahinch/Ulster), S Zebo (Cork Constitution/Munster); I McKinney (QUB/Ulster), J Cooney (UCD/Leinster); J O’Connell (Lansdowne/Leinster), N Annett (Belfast Harlequins/Ulster), S Maguire (Old Belvedere/Leinster); D O’Callaghan (Cork Constitution/Munster), B Marshall (UCD/Leinster), R Ruddock (capt) (UCD/Leinster), D Ryan (Lansdowne/Leinster), P Butler (Shannon/Munster).

Replacements: D Doyle (UCD/Leinster), B Cagney (UCC/Munster), B Hayes (Cork Constitution/Munster), B O’Hara (UL Bohemian/Munster), M Heaney (Belfast Harlequins/Ulster), N Reid (UCD/Leinster), D Hudson (St Mary’s/Leinster).