Domingo tips cap to Ross ahead of scrum war

FRANCE prop Thomas Domingo insists the Grand Slam Champions are expecting a difficult afternoon at scrum time when they face Ireland at the Aviva Stadium on Sunday.

Alongside front-row team mates William Servat and Nicolas Mas, Domingo destroyed celebrated Scottish tight head Euan Murray at the Stade de France last weekend. However, he believes Ireland will be a sterner test, judging by his previous experience of Leinster and Ireland tighthead Mike Ross.

“I’ve played against him a few times,” recalled Domingo, who was part of the crack Clermont Auvergne outfit dismantled 24-8 in Dublin by Leinster in the Heineken Cup earlier this season.

“He’s a big guy, really solid. You have to take him quickly because once he’s set he’s very hard to move and that makes it hard to attack through the scrum.”

France’s Three Musketeers were labelled the best front row in the world in some quarters after their showing against the Scots, but Domingo played down the performance at the Stade de France.

“We did our jobs,” he said. “We didn’t lose any ball at scrum time and managed to put them under a fair amount of pressure so it was a positive. It also augurs well for the rest of the tournament. There were certain things we could have done better at the weekend but we won’t spend too much time on it during the week. We’ll try to be more aggressive at the engagement. We’ll try to be beefier than them.”

Standing at just 5ft 8ins and weighing in at around 16st 9lbs, Domingo is proof that propping is all about technique and power as opposed to sheer strength. Having scrummagers as powerful as Servat and Mas helps of course, something Ireland will be wary of.

“Our scrum works to destabilise (the opposition) a little,” Domingo explained. “It’s very solid and very strong. It works by disabling anopponent and then pushing up and through a second time. We try a few things to channel them … when they want to turn, we keep them in line to keep it alive.”

However, the 25-year-old admitted his last visit to Dublin for that match against Leinster was a day he’d like to forget. He added: “It was difficult. We conceded quite a few points over there. We were dominated in every sector, in aggression, in contact and in defence in a stadium where the public were really vocal. It isn’t a good memory.”

While Domingo’s on-field impressions were painful he was overawed by the new home of Irish rugby.

He said: “There was a great atmosphere there. You had a true image of the Irish supporters: always chanting and singing and roaring on their team.

“It’s a beautiful stadium, really impressive. The roof that dips is a bit unusual but it’s original. It’s a magnificent stadium.”