Smal: We’ll have Goliath problem if pack can’t stop David

IRELAND forwards coach Gert Smal has issued a “Stop Pocock” order to his pack as he bids to clean up a problematic breakdown and counter Australia’s back-row menace.

The Irish struggled to deal with a committed and physical USA challenge at the tackle area in Sunday’s disappointing opening performance in New Plymouth and the Tri Nations champions, spearheaded by back-rower David Pocock, pose a far more dangerous threat this Saturday at Eden Park in Auckland in a Pool C showdown pivotal to the make-up of the quarter-final draw.

Ireland’s hopes of defeating the Australians and going on to win the group and earn a more favourable last-eight draw took a knock last Sunday when they laboured to a 22-10 win over the Americans with the breakdown a particular area of concern for head coach Declan Kidney and his assistant Smal.

“I think there were some good things but the latter part of the game they maybe weren’t as accurate and that’s the one thing we have to get right for next weekend, to get the breakdown sorted out,” Smal said.

“Especially with Pocock, because he is one of their key guys and what he does quite well is slow your ball down, even if he doesn’t get the ball. What he does is he takes the tackle and stands up in that space. So we have to get rid of him as quickly as we can and see that we get enough numbers to the breakdown.”

Ireland were hit by a double whammy on Sunday at Stadium Taranaki, initially not getting enough numbers to the breakdown and then sending in too many to rescue the situation — slowing up ball to the backs. A repeat of such a painfully slow tempo could be catastrophic against the Wallabies, with Smal aiming to fix the problem at source.

“Yes, we’re working continuously on that.

“You want to have the ball carrier plus three, so at least four to the ball all the time, with your scrum-half. So that’s one area we want to get right and it’s probably an area they will target, I think. They will target our backs and they’ll target our breakdown. Those are the challenges for us.”

Ireland’s forwards have certainly got the message following their bruising encounter with the Americans, with South African referee Craig Joubert happy to let chaos ensue where other referees, notably Bryce Lawrence who will take charge of the Ireland versus Australia clash, blowing the minute a player went off his feet.

Jamie Heaslip described the breakdown as “a bit mental at times” and blindside flanker Stephen Ferris recognised the Irish could have dealt better with the Eagles.

“We knew they were going tobe physical at the breakdown and they caused us a few problems,” Ferris said.

“It was tough. They were coming in, but it was our own downfall as well; we could have got the ball away a bit earlier.”

Ferris was not alone in noticing a very different policing of the tackle area on the previous night by Lawrence in the Argentina-England game in Dunedin.

“It’s weird, watching the England game, England were getting penalised for going off their feet a hell of a lot. We thought they may have been tightening up, considering the way England played against us a couple of weeks ago; they seemed to get away with it a lot more.

“They seemed to adapt to the referee and it probably took us a bit longer to adapt to Craig Joubert.”