After a blistering first half display,
Ireland were lucky to finish on the right side of a 30-22 scoreline after a
lethargic and sloppy second half performance. Had it been against any of the
other Six Nations sides, Ireland may not have been so fortunate – Wales simply
just weren’t there psychologically.
Nevertheless, a win’s a win…
Woeful
Wales
In the Six Nations, you take your chances and
you take your points. If offered, Ireland would have taken a 3-0 win before the
game – to be honest, any side would in the Six Nations (just another reason for
the introduction of bonus points in the competition).
Ireland took their chances in the first half,
which proved the difference. A sublime pass from Brian O’Driscoll put Simon
Zebo through for the first try, then a bit of clever improvisation by Zebo kept
an Ireland attack alive long enough for Cian Healy to barrel his way over for
the second try. Two Jonny Sexton penalties kept Ireland’s advantage at 20 going
to half-time following a Leigh Halfpenny penalty.
It was a complete turnaround in the second
half however. Despite getting the first score through a Brian O’Driscoll try,
it was one-way traffic in favour of the Welsh. Tries from Alex Cuthbert, Leigh
Halfpenny and Craig Mitchell reduced the deficit to just eight points with five
minutes remaining. However, the deficit proved too much to overturn and the
Irishmen held on for a win that could set them up perfectly for a Grand Slam attempt.
What will worry Declan Kidney most, however,
is the fact that his side surrendered such a commanding position. They didn’t
completely throw it away, no, but it will tell him a lot more than the lead
they managed to gain. Complacency was definitely a factor in that second half
and if they hadn’t put together a superb defensive performance for around ten
minutes in the second half then the result could have been very embarrassing.
Next week, England won’t be as forgiving.
They are a side on the up and they won’t want that to come to an end in the
Aviva this weekend. They boast a very physical side, headlined by Manu Tuilagi
at 13, and with the injuries that Ireland contracted on Saturday, it will be a
very tough match for Ireland.
Kidney will draw positives from Saturday’s
performance though. The return of Brian O’Driscoll could not have come at a
better time and he proved he still has what it takes to play at the highest
level. The dominant scrum will also please him – England are a big scrummaging unit
and the front row will have to be on top form to even match them let alone beat
them.
There will be plenty of fluent rugby next
weekend in the Aviva. Sunday can’t come quickly enough…
Afoa
away?
He only came on a two-and-a-half year
contract, but hopes were high for Ulster fans whenever John Afoa signed from
the Auckland Blues. However only one year on, the dreams of him staying long
term were dashed after he announced he was looking forward to returning back to
New Zealand.
Whether he will see out his full contract or
not is another matter. Afoa’s family are all back in Auckland, and his wife is
set to give birth to their third child in April. There are strong rumours that
he will be leaving Belfast in the summer to be with his family, and to boost his
chances of being one of thirty-five players making New Zealand’s 2015 World Cup
squad (all of whom must play their club rugby in New Zealand).
Watch this space…
Super
Superbowl!
A power cut, two brothers battling it out and
a thrilling finale – it’s not rugby, but how could I not mention the Superbowl
this week? It really was a family affair in New Orleans as brothers John and
Jim Harbaugh faced off against each other in Superbowl XLVII.
They weren’t playing though, they were
coaching! John was the victorious coach, leading the Baltimore Ravens to a
34-31 victory over his brother Jim’s San Francisco 49ers. And the game was a
dramatic one.
After racing into a 28-6 lead just after the
half, it looked like the Ravens were home and dry. However, a power shortage in
half of the stadium caused a thirty minute delay, and when the power eventually
returned, the 49ers were sparked into life and scored three unanswered
touchdowns to trail just 28-26. The Ravens managed to score two field goals to
lead 34-26, but a 49ers field goal set up a nail-biting final few minutes.
With their final drive of the game, the 49ers
were 4th & Goal, needing a touchdown to win. However Colin
Kaepernick couldn’t find his receiver in the end zone and the Ravens took a
safety to win the game.
In my opinion, the Superbowl is one of the
greatest sporting events on earth, from the game itself to the brilliant half
times shows put on by the NFL. It’s worth staying up late to watch anyway – the
game didn’t finish until 3:30am on Monday morning! Hopefully next season’s will
be just as good…
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