Kangaroos thump Ireland

Australia 50 Ireland 0

An Irish side composed of largely second or third-ranked players was unceremoniously dismissed by Australia, traditionally the game’s dominant force, who ran in nine tries, seven of which they converted.

However, when it was suggested to Aussie coach Tim Sheens that the game was little more than a gentle training session, he clearly laid his priorities on the line.

“We had no injuries and we achieved the things we set out to achieve as a team,” he stated.

It took all of one and a half minutes for Jarryd Hayne to score the first of their nine tries and it remained one-way traffic from there to the finish. So, from the point of view of Irish coach Brian Aston what did it all mean for the future of the sport in this country?

“The boys had to dig and showed a lot of character and it’s something that doesn’t come together overnight,” Aston said. “Australia have been together for years and years whereas we have thrown a group of people together over the past three weeks and you could see that in the first few minutes. But we have bonded and this week has been a great week, we’ve been in Ireland, we’ve got around the place and been in a good environment again. The facilities have been outstanding and we’d like to thank the people of Limerick and especially those at the University of Limerick.

“So there are a lot of positives that have come out of it. We’ll review and look at what we’ve got. There are some players who will probably retire from international rugby and there will be younger guys coming through. That’s the next phase for Ireland Rugby League.

“Matty Hadden, who was the 18th man tonight, is the only domestic player, and we’ve got to sort that out. Ireland has about 20 teams domestically playing amateur rugby league and the big challenge as always is that rugby union is huge in this country. This facility here at Thomond Park is jammed every week and there are 48 development officers in this area alone. So how can you get people to play league? We’ve got to be smart. We’ve got to set up academies and develop them as rugby league players.”

Ireland captain Liam Finn pointed out that the game “was the biggest footprint we have put in the game in terms of spectators. We had to give them something to enjoy and make them come back over the next few generations.”

AUSTRALIA: B Slater, B Morris, J Morris, B Tate, J Hayne, D Cherry-Evans, C Cronk, P Gallen, C Smith, J Tamou, G Bird, S Thaiday, N Myles.

Subs: B Cordner, R Farah, A Fifita, C Parker.

IRELAND: S Grix, D Blanch, S Littler, J Toole, P Richards, J Mendeika, L Finn, B White, R Kostjasyn, A Mullally, T McCarthy, D Allen, S Finnegan.

Subs: B Beswick, Hasson, B Currie, L Ambler.

Referee P Bentham.