Tournament ball bounces into focus amid errant displays

AMONG the numerous fixes needed in Ireland’s play this week as the team flies to Auckland today ahead of Saturday’s clash with Australia is some wet-weather training with the new Rugby World Cup ball.

Ireland copped the worst conditions of the tournament so far yesterday in New Plymouth as the rain poured on their opening 22-10 victory over the USA and a series of dropped balls and missed passes meant Declan Kidney’s side left a big score out on the field rather than on the scoreboard.

Full-back Geordan Murphy was among those having difficulties in the wet weather and he said that was in part down to the new ball in use at the tournament.

“It’s a Gilbert but we haven’t really seen it before because it’s the World Cup ball,” Murphy said.

“It just seems particularly tough to handle in wet conditions. Seems to be a bit greasy. It’s nice to kick out of hand. It flies. It’s just tougher to handle and catch. Even Rog [Ronan O’Gara], a pass went straight through his hands. We’ll just have to wet them up when we train with it.” Errant goal-kicking was another area where the ball might be blamed, given the remarkable number of failed attempts by England’s Jonny Wilkinson against Argentina on Saturday — he converted only two of seven kicks — and Jonny Sexton’s tally of two from six.

O’Gara missed one conversion from the left touchline but slotted another from a similar position following Tommy Bowe’s second try of the night but he believes that the ball was not the issue.

“Mike Ross asked me the same inside, and no, there isn’t. I suppose it’s pressure. I’ve watched Jonny Wilkinson for 13 years and haven’t seen that ever before. I was talking to Jonny inside and we all go through it.

“Some days it’s very easy and other days it’s so difficult, that’s the beauty of being a goalkicker. You don’t know what’s involved and there are very few of us understand what it takes.

“He’s just got to wipe the slate clean from his point of view and move on. I’ve been there before and that’s exactly what you need to do, just don’t read too much into it.

“These things happen at strange times in World Cups, because World Cups come once every four years and they are the biggest and pressure gets to people in different ways. It can happen to any of us.”