Mark Anscombe: Rookies will keep top players ‘honest’

Eight debutants is a lot of inexperience to field in a Test match, not to mention the seven other players in the Ireland 23 with fewer than 10 caps each to their name. Yet having come through their baptisms with an eight try to three victory over Canada, head coach Joe Schmidt was satisfied he had laid down some more foundations for the rest of his three-year term and beyond the 2019 World Cup in Japan.

The 52-21 victory for a group of players given just two training sessions to forge some sort of unity and cohesion spoke volumes for the quality of that limited preparation and the rude health in which Irish rugby seems to be thriving.

To get two Test victories in successive weeks using 30 different starters is an impressive feat, not least given the first of those was over New Zealand. It did not go unnoticed by Canada’s Kiwi head coach Mark Anscombe.

“The big thing that’s standing out with Ireland is the talent that’s starting to come through,” former Ulster boss Anscombe said.

“You need to keep your top players honest. Squads that have that become more competitive, more successful.”

There may not be too many of the rookies forcing their way into this week’s squad for the rematch with the All Blacks on Saturday but those frontliners who performed heroics in Chicago do have cause to start looking nervously over their shoulders as the lines become increasingly blurred between supposed first, second and third choices in each position.

Three made their debuts in the starting line-up and put in solid 80-minute performances, Leinster’s Garry Ringrose at outside centre and Munster’s Jack O’Donoghue at No.8 signalling very bright futures while fellow forward and provincial team-mate Billy Holland, 31, justified his selection at lock having been rewarded for some outstanding form over the past two seasons.

There were more first caps off the bench, with Leinster hooker James Tracy scoring Ireland’s final try, and fifth of the second half, in the last play of the game having joined Munster tighthead James Ryan, Leinster back-rower Dan Leavy, scrum-half Luke McGrath and Connacht wing Niyi Adeolokun in making the leap to Test rugby.

“You look at that energy in the last quarter and a lot of that is down to those guys,” Schmidt said of his replacements. “They’re the guys who bring the energy off the bench and the five guys who were making their debuts off the bench did a really good job I thought.

“I’m not sure how many ball carries Dave Kilcoyne (a near-veteran now with 17 caps) had getting close to the line and then for James Tracy to get over the line was superb. Luke McGrath gave us good tempo after Kieran Marmion played well in the first three-quarters of the match.

“Unfortunately, Niyi didn’t get too many opportunities but at one stage I thought when he hit the accelerator, I thought he was going to sneak right through fading right to left. It would have been great to see him in full flight. Dan Leavy managed to steal a ball and get some really good pressure on them when they were carrying. You’ve got to be happy with them all getting a little bit of confidence and a little bit of experience.”

Now the trick is to kick on and earn a second appearance in green. Holland spoke before the game of not wanting be a one-cap wonder and that desire has only been reinforced by the Munster man’s experience on Saturday.

“There was a huge buzz out of it,” he said, “it’s where you want to be, you want to be on the top of your game, playing international rugby for your country. I loved it out there.You play European games, they’re all at that really high level and obviously playing the All Blacks and Australia in two weeks time, that’s another step up again.

“But you’ve got to have a bit of faith in yourself and trust you can get there and make an impact. I was quite happy with how it went.”