Luckily that did not happen and Ireland were
able to hold on for a famous win in Paris which won the Six Nations for them
and cemented their place in Irish rugby history, and to be honest they probably
did deserve it overall considering the performances they put in over the last
eight weeks. With a new coach in as well it’s a very impressive achievement
too.
In fact, the majority of the credit has to go
to Mr. Schmidt who has transformed Ireland from the misfiring outfit that we
were so accustomed to under Declan Kidney to a formidable outfit that has
delivered the first trophy they’ve played for, as well as turning them from a
team to a squad with several top quality players competing for every shirt
available – the promotions of the likes of Jack McGrath, Martin Moore and Iain
Henderson to the bench is testament to that.
And when the final whistle went, not only did
it win the Championship for Ireland, but it also denied the English, and after
all the build up put on by the English media, I’m not gonna lie, it was good to
see them finish second for a second year running. Now don’t get me wrong, I
admire Stuart Lancaster for the work he is doing with the English team, and if
you remember correctly I did predict England would get the Grand Slam at the
start of the tournament. But from a fan’s point of view, this competition could
not have gone better.
Actually I lie – the Grand Slam was one step
too far for us this year. And unfortunately that’s probably the correct result
because we were a bit too sloppy in Twickenham and we paid the price for it. In
fact, there are many things to point at in that game as to why we didn’t get
the Grand Slam, but that’s all in the past and considering the competitive
nature of this year’s competition as well as the difficult fixture list, the
Championship win is a great achievement alone.
That makes the win at the Stade de France all
the more impressive. Ireland came up against probably the best French
performance of the tournament and combined with their record in Paris, to come
away with the win is a monumental achievement. You can single out individual
players to praise from that game, Andrew Trimble and Paul O’Connell to name but
two, but in actuality it was definitely a 23 man effort. Every player put their
body on the line (in Jonny Sexton’s case literally) and they were rewarded for it
with a winners’ medal.
And of course, it had to be an Irish win for
BOD’s last game in an Ireland jersey. Had Damien Chouly’s last minute try stood
then it would have been a case of the France not sticking to the script – in
the legend’s final Six Nations it could only have been Ireland who could have
won the tournament, couldn’t it? Of course, there’s no point in talking in
“ifs” or “buts” anymore, BOD will go into Test retirement with another medal to
put in his cabinet. Not a bad career.
One thing I will contend is many people
saying this surpasses 2009. For the sheer drama that the final game that year
produced, as well as the fact it was a Grand Slam winning year, this season’s
isn’t just as good. From an Ulster perspective it possibly is considering how
much of an influence we had on the squad as a whole with Rory Best, Chris Henry
and Andrew Trimble starting all five games, but from an Irish perspective
overall it probably ranks second.
Still, you can’t deny it will be a great St.
Patrick’s Day for all Irish people. Even though attention will now switch back
to the provincial side of Irish rugby and the hotly anticipated Heineken Cup
quarter-finals to come in just three weeks’ time, this week will probably be
dedicated to celebrating our first Championship win in five years, and let’s be
honest, the rest of this season could be remembered for this moment alone.
So next season Ireland will be the defending
Six Nations champions. Nice to say, isn’t it? Obviously England will be out for
revenge – they probably still have the best squad on paper and having come
second the last two years they will be desperate to finally turn their
consistency into trophies. In a World Cup year next season’s Six Nations will
be of paramount importance to all six nations as preparations step up
considerably.
One thing’s guaranteed: Ireland won’t give it
up without a fight.
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