Where the game will be won and lost

1. SET PIECE ASSAULT

AUSTRALIA won the Tri Nations against all the odds this season despite having the most vulnerable set piece in the tournament. They were facilitated by South Africa fielding a severely weakened forward unit in their opening game and that gave them momentum. Given the quality of the Australian back line, if Ireland have any chance of winning tomorrow morning they have to deny them any semblance of quality, go forward ball from the scrum and lineout.

Australia’s scrum has been struggling for some time and they usually do just about enough to survive by clever manipulation of the referee and getting the ball in and away as quickly as possible. The injury to first-choice loose head Ben Robinson on the eve of the World Cup was a massive blow and one Ireland need to capitalise on. The emergence of Mike Ross at tight head has not only helped to stabilise the Irish scrum but turned it into an attacking weapon. Given the Corkman’s limited contribution outside of the set piece, he must maximise his value to the team by putting the inexperienced Sekope Kepu under severe pressure on the Wallaby put-in. That will be the first step in Ireland’s quest to negate the brilliance of Will Genia and Quade Cooper at half-back.