Grand Slam glory is within Ireland’s reach, says O’Sullivan

FORMER Ireland head coach, Eddie O’Sullivan, reckons Ireland are good enough to win a second Six Nations Grand Slam in three years.

This year’s Championship looks more evenly balanced than any other in a very long time, but O’Sullivan thinks that if Ireland can win their first two matches against Italy and France, they’ll have a great chance of sweeping the boards.

“It’s wide open competition and a lot depends on what happens in the first two or three games. If you get on a roll, then anything is possible,” said O’Sullivan yesterday at the launch of the new website www.ruckingball.com.

“When Ireland won the Grand Slam in 2009, no-one was saying that was a possibility when we started out in Rome in the first match.

“But we beat Italy and then we beat France and suddenly we were on a roll. And it was only after we beat England that it began to dawn on people that there was a Grand Slam up for grabs here. That’s how it works. It was the same for Wales in 2007 and 2005.

“We’ll need a little bit of luck and we need to get guys back from injuries, but if we can beat Italy and then beat France in Dublin, I really think all bets are off.

“Then you’d have England at home and Wales and Scotland away between you and a Grand Slam and I really think that’s do-able.”

He might think they have what it takes to win another Grand Slam, but O’Sullivan also warns that the first match of the tournament next weekend against Italy will be a seriously bruising match.

A trip to Rome is never a picnic for Irish teams, but O’Sullivan says that Ireland’s injury woes have made an already difficult task much harder.

“The first match of the Six Nations is always a big one but the match against Italy looks particularly tough now because we have so many injuries.

“Italy will be looking to upset the apple-cart — as they always seem to do on the first week of the Championship — and it’ll be a really bruising match.

“I still think we’ll win it but it won’t be easy. We’ve had these sorts of matches in Rome before though where we’ve had to put our head down and work hard to get out the other side with a win.

“I’ve no doubt that we’ll do that but no-one should think for a minute that it’s going to be an easy day out.”

O’Sullivan doesn’t believe Declan Kidney’s focus for the Six Nations should be distracted by keeping one eye on the World Cup later this year, arguing that a successful Championship can only help our cause in New Zealand next autumn.

“People ask you should you focus on the Six Nations or the World Cup. I think that you can do both.

“England won the Grand Slam in 2003 before they won the World Cup, and I think that a successful Six Nations can only benefit you in the run up to a World Cup.

“Every coach will try to make this the biggest Six Nations they can knowing that it’s fuel in the tank for the World Cup.”

Now head coach of the USA team, O’Sullivan will be in the unusual position of plotting Ireland’s downfall at the World Cup and says he has mixed feelings about the prospect.

“It’ll always be very strange to coach a team against Ireland. I did it in Santa Clara back in 2009 and it was weird,” he admits. “I’ve no doubt it’ll be weird again to do it at the World Cup, but I have to be fair to the American boys because it’s nothing to do with them.”