Andy Farrell on defeat to All Blacks: 'We should have given a better account of ourselves'

Ireland's tour came to an end with a loss at Eden Park. 

Ireland's Ciaran Frawley dejected after the match. Pic: INPHO/Ben Brady

Having shot themselves in the foot during their big miss against the All Blacks on Saturday, Andy Farrell says Ireland has 15 months to turn it around and be able to cope with the pressure and intensity of Test match rugby.

But it’s not all doom and gloom, according to Farrell, with the Irish boss believing his side can still be a massive threat at next year’s World Cup.

A season of highs and lows finished with a giant thump on Saturday as the All Blacks extended their 32-year unbeaten run at Eden Park to 53 Tests by beating Ireland 40-21.

The loss was Ireland’s first defeat since their Six Nations opener against eventual champions France, as well as their first defeat on tour after Nations Championship victories over Australia and Japan.

Although the All Blacks were threatening all evening, ruthless inside the opposition 22 and benefited from more than a slice of fortune by a series of perplexing officiating calls, Farrell’s men were miles away from where they needed to be to beat the All Blacks at their “Mecca”.

Indeed, Ireland turned the ball over on 18 occasions, missed 40 tackles and conceded 15 line breaks during the 19 point defeat.

While the stats, particularly the linebreaks Ireland conceded, painted a picture, it certainly didn’t tell the whole story as some of the nation’s best players, including New Zealand-born halfback Jamison Gibson-Park, failed to handle the pressure.

The usually pin-point accurate halfback struggled to pick the ball up cleanly despite the marvellous conditions and his pass failed to hit the mark on several occasions, particularly in the first half.

The struggles set the tone for the meek effort, where they were always kept at arm's length by Dave Rennie’s building All Blacks.

Farrell’s “oh my gosh” comment inside the coach’s box in the 35th minute after Ireland gifted the All Blacks their third try in the first half was another moment that showcased the Six Nations heavyweights failing to handle the pressure.

Reflecting on the performance and, indeed, the wild ride of this year’s campaign to date in the game’s aftermath, Farrell said they needed to handle the pressure better if they wanted to finally win a World Cup knockout fixture at next year’s tournament in Australia.

“I was excited about this tour because of the Southern Hemisphere and the differences in that and the personnel that we're leaving at home and coming out here,” he said.

“So, in that regard, it's been good, it's been great because it's given people a taste of the difference. You don't know until you know but having said that, you'd be a fool not to learn the lessons from it.

“We bigged this up and we always do because we want to put pressure on ourselves to be able to deal with big occasions and we built this up to be a big game and the uncharacteristic errors that we're talking about is something that we need to address because if you want to be at the right end of where you want to be in 15 months’ time, then that's what you've got to deal with.

“So therefore, there's a big lesson there.” 

The feeling inside the Irish camp was poles apart from that of the history-making side that left the Shaky Isles four years ago, having come from behind to beat the All Blacks 2-1 on New Zealand soil one year out from the 2023 World Cup.

But having arguably peaked too early for the second straight tournament, Farrell agreed that there could be a silver lining from the miss at Eden Park given next year’s ultimate goal of winning the World Cup.

“Well, that's what it should be,” he said. “Otherwise, it's for nothing, all of this. So, that has to be the reflection. We have to scrutinise what's happened over the last 12 months, take all the good and the bad and see what we can do with it.” 

Farrell said he wouldn’t overlook their shortcomings on the tour, including the inability to handle the pressure at Eden Park.

“You have to, because you don't want to get to a World Cup knockout stage, round 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final and be worrying about the outcome of those type of mistakes,” he said.

“You want to be nice and calm and calculating in the way you go about your business, and that's the way to be accurate. And unfortunately, we weren't tonight.” 

Nor did Farrell see the error-strewn performance coming.

“No, no, I didn't,” he admitted. “I think the lads always prepare well, and I don't say that lightly. They're unbelievably diligent in their work, but obviously, we need to find a little bit extra to make sure that they're able to cope, not just physically. They cope physically, they’re fit, but I suppose it's the mental side of things.” 

Despite the gloomy feeling in Auckland, Farrell said there were still plenty of rays of hope and added that Ireland still had the quality of player, including the necessary athletes to stretch the best in the world, to make a real run at next year’s tournament.

“I believe we've got to be the best team in the world - emphasis on team and all the variations of what makes that in our opinion,” he said. “There's unbelievable athletes in our team, but you can see the magic that some of these athletes can do. But that doesn't say that we can't beat them. We can. We're here sat in the dressing room again and probably reflecting on what should have been, never mind what could have been. It could have been better obviously, but we should have given a better account of ourselves if we're being honest.” 

Ireland was also missing a handful of regulars, including props Andrew Porter and Finlay Bealham, lock Ryan Baird, captain and number eight Caelan Doris, out-half Jack Crowley and wings Mack Hansen and Tommy O’Brien. Ireland also lost Japan-bound James Lowe, the 47-Test winger, on the eve of the tour.

Asked whether he really believed that this can be the best team in the world, Farrell unequivocally said they could but added it was up to him and his coaching team to get the cream to rise to the top.

“I definitely do,” he said. “And it's up to us as coaches to come to the party on that and challenge the players and show them how to do that, and make sure that the players have got the hunger to come back into pre-season and show that they're willing to take that challenge on.” 

Farrell said that Ireland’s character and refusal to go away, even during the Eden Park, was one of the real positive aspects displayed on the three-week tour.

“I still think the Australian win, first off because of the pressure that Australia were under and the billing of the game and the full stadium and all of that and the way that they (Ireland) played, the character,” Farrell said.

“It wasn't a perfect performance. But the fight and the character, it was a hell of a win. And then therefore giving people the experience of coming over here and putting an Irish jersey on last week, that's not to be sniffed at for us going forward.” 

The ease with which the All Blacks opened up Ireland’s defence was also another warning sign ahead of next year. Farrell said he anticipated international teams to continue to chance their arm and use the ball despite World Cups historically lending themselves to be tighter, lower-scoring affairs, especially come the knockout stages.

“I think everyone can see now where the game has gone or where it's going. People can reflect on that and adapt and get better at what they see is going to be their advantage in the way that the game is going to be played,” he said.

“I don't see too much change over the next 12 months within that. So, I suppose we know which direction the game is going, so we need to find our way within that.” Whether Ireland have the threats to land the shots they need remains to be seen, especially with Farrell’s squad one of the oldest in world rugby.

Just who wears the No.10 jersey at next year’s World Cup also remains one of Farrell’s big questions.

While 23-year-old Sam Prendergast kicked well out of hand and from the tee, the out-half didn’t necessarily challenge the line in the same way that most of the game’s best playmakers, including All Blacks duo Ruben Love and Damian McKenzie, did throughout July.

Asked what he learned from Prendergast’s performance against the All Blacks, Farrell somewhat sidestepped properly appraising the out-half’s effort and said he needed to use the Test and opportunity to his advantage.

“Like we always do, we know what his qualities are and the lad coming over here for the first time and having a taste of all this, there's always going to be stuff to learn,” he said.

“So, therefore, it has to be priceless for him and he needs to use that to his advantage as far as confidence is coming in the future.”