Ireland Team Talk XII: Farrell's First Fifteen

eagle eye

UAEguy2020 wrote:

They’ll keep quite until he has a bad game and then come out and say “see told you he wasnt international standardâ€

I won't, if he plays well I'll admit it. His decision making is horrendous, he panics under pressure. Those are things you won't be able to fix.

nerd69

ujjjjjjjjj wrote: »

Watched every Ulster game this year, don't rate Burns at all. If I was coaching Ulster Madigan is my number one up there.

Carty is way ahead of Burns in my opinion but I have Sexton and the two Byrnes ahead of him just about, close call mind you. With JGP starting and the 12 and 13 from Leinster too that just pushes a close call for me.

Look good luck to Bully Burns today, hope he proves me wrong.

I'm not having a go just curious about others opinions carty would be my no. 2 also tbh but I think byrne has been playing very well

ujjjjjjjjj

nerd69 wrote: »

I'm not having a go just curious about others opinions carty would be my no. 2 also tbh but I think byrne has been playing very well

I would have no issue at all with Carty starting or sitting behind Ross. I think one way or the other Ross needs to be there as he is reliable and quite experienced at this stage. Carty or Harry Byrne sit in the other slot.

For me Harry is worth a gamble as I see huge potential there above Carty and only one way to find out.

Just find Burns a very strange call as I don't see huge potential and don't see him as a safe reliable Ross Byrne call.

nerd69

I worry about ross burned athleticism at international level but equally he's not really been given a fair shot yet (nor has anyone else really)

Richie_Rich89

Obviously they had to back young Burns once he was named in the initial squad, but it's interesting to ponder who Smith might have gone for in the halves. I think the answer is probably McGrath and Carty. He took them to the World Cup when Gibson-Park was eligible and Burns had already had a season at Ulster to settle in.

ujjjjjjjjj

nerd69 wrote: »

I worry about ross burned athleticism at international level but equally he's not really been given a fair shot yet (nor has anyone else really)

I think this is a good point, due to Sexton's dominace we really haven't given anyone else a good go which leaves us in a position where anyone is a risk.

For me Burns is the wrong risk as I don't see a high ceiling but that is just my assessment. Farrell things differently quite obviously.

Zzippy

Is awec doing the match thread again?

The Inbetween is mine

Zzippy wrote: »

Is awec doing the match thread again?

awec isn't allowed near the rugby today.... he's butt ass naked barring his sexy apron making a Sunday roast for his beloved on this valentine's day

Rugby4568

I know we’re gonna lose today but I’d be delighted if we could get a respectful score line. I’d be great if were to lose by no more than 10 points.

Banana Republic 1

30 meatheads bursting themselves of each other in an area the same size as a school boy soccer pitch, who cares

Mod: Banned

Scratchly

Perfect day to play the French. It's going to be a dirty, wet, miserable, stop/start game with lots of scrums and penalties.

thomond2006

Why hasn't awec posted the match thread?

prawnsambo

Banana Republic 1 wrote: »

30 meatheads bursting themselves of each other in an area the same size as a school boy soccer pitch, who cares

You clearly. Appreciate the effort you made to come no here and share your views.

lawrencesummers

What’s the story with John Fogarthy? Has he been let go by the Irish management and replaced by Paulie?

Lost Ormond

lawrencesummers wrote: »

What’s the story with John Fogarthy? Has he been let go by the Irish management and replaced by Paulie?

He's now National scrum coach. working with front rows within pathway at 19s/20s

Rugby4568

Burns doesn’t take the kicks for Ulster and he’s our first choice kicker at international level? Ringrose is a better kicker

Interested Observer

We're going absolutely nowhere with this coaching ticket.

Clegg

There's a lot of things to like about how Ireland are playing. Our set piece is becoming a weapon, our defensive lineout has been excellent and there's accuracy at the ruck.

But a side with gifted outside backs in Henshaw, Ringrose, Lowe, Earls, Larmour etc should not look so clueless with ball in hand. I have to question what Mike Catt is bringing to the team.

Tomtom364

How to prove you don't really trust the young player you've brought into the squad 101

Leave them unused on the bench when the guy on the field is having an average enough performance.

Not bad from JGP. But nothing Special from him and Farrell absolutely should have injected fresh legs and energy with Casey.

Natterjack from Kerry

Clegg wrote: »

But a side with gifted outside backs in Henshaw, Ringrose, Lowe, Earls, Larmour etc should not look so clueless with ball in hand. I have to question what Mike Catt is bringing to the team.

The halfback position is whats stunts their scope. JGP has to keep playing - even with an over the hill yet still best option Sexton - Murray compounds the problem. Bench material for the rest of the championship if fit.

The Inbetween is mine

Natterjack from Kerry wrote: »

The halfback position is whats stunts their scope. JGP has to keep playing - even with an over the hill yet still best option Sexton - Murray compounds the problem. Bench material for the rest of the championship if fit.

I'm not sure what is the question.......
..but, the answer isn't Gibson Park

clsmooth

The Inbetween is mine wrote: »

I'm not sure what is the question.......
..but, the answer isn't Gibson Park

Ridiculous comment. We were beaten by a better team today. Why the over reaction to him in particular? I thought he went well. Didn’t cover himself in glory for the first try but show me a player who hasn’t made a defensive mistake?

theVersatile

Redser talking a lot of sense post game.

Louis Friend

We need to avoid panic.

We would have beaten Wales if O’Mahony hadn’t been sent-off.

And France are the best side in the Championship.

Farrell should be give the full cycle to the next World Cup.

We made France very quiet today. Our work rate throughout was terrific and effective in keeping a really strong attacking team under stifling pressure.

Our pack look in very good form. Breakdown and set piece both terrific today and delivered more than enough of a platform to not just win that game but win it well.

Our backs though...

Ringrose and Keenan both had good games. Keenan is safe as houses at 15 but not as much of an attacking threat as I'd like to see back there - but for now safe as houses is more than good enough. Ringrose and Henshaw both went well for the 80 with Ringrose the stand out.

Earls and Lowe both had mixed games. Lowe's kicking was at times sensational albeit undersold himself a few times. Fell off a few tackles inconsequentially but should have done better for the French try (the damage was done at that stage however).

Gibson-Park similarly likely cost us a try albeit again the damage was done at that stage further in. He had absolutely no faith in our backline to hold onto the ball (and the last phase of play proved him completely right) so kicked pretty incessantly. Burns played conservatively but I felt the game passed him by. Ross Byrne had a steady game but he didn't create any opportunities for the team. His place kicking was terrific but he plays too deep and our predictability play made life easy for the French.

Few passages where our backs shunted the ball from wing to wing without threatening a break or fixing a defender. It's like being back in the Kidney era and it's really not good enough. Our attack is shapeless, ponderous and ineffective and it really does appear to be a coaching problem.

leakyboots

I think it's hard to not agree that Lowe is costing us defensively. He's missed 6 out of 10 tackles in two games, turned over ball 5 times. As well as making poor reads (which worries me the most). Other teams will be licking their lips.

He's had some nice stuff going forward (Keenan cost him a try today) and some good clearances but I get the feeling if he was any other player on here he'd be slaughtered for his showing in the last two games.

Was surprised Farrell subbed Earls and not him, was it injury?

briandebum

Louis Friend wrote: »

We need to avoid panic.

We would have beaten Wales if O’Mahony hadn’t been sent-off.

And France are the best side in the Championship.

Farrell should be give the full cycle to the next World Cup.

You're comfortable watching that dross for the next 2 years?

Farrells selections have been dubious at best, our backline seems setup to run into the opposition line. We kicked a lot, but for pretty much the entire second half couldn't escape from our own half. There was absolutely no variance in that kicking, which made it incredibly easy for the French. Where were the cross kicks or a chip over the rush defence?

The problem for me is that Farrell is a continuation coach from a setup, which by the end of it's tenure, was past it's sell-by date. You're never going to get anything radically different in that situation.

scott1974

Louis Friend wrote: »

We need to avoid panic.

We would have beaten Wales if O’Mahony hadn’t been sent-off.

And France are the best side in the Championship.

Farrell should be give the full cycle to the next World Cup.

Also, if Burns kicks his 1st penalty we win.. small margins..

Clegg

I think it might have been Venjur who mentioned in the match thread that none of our backs are fixing a defender before passing the ball. If a single player does that once in a game you say it's a bad mistake and brush it off. But when every back does it multiple times per game you have to attribute it to a serious coaching problem.

Our greatest attacking weapon was James Lowe's boot. He's the most dangerous attacking threat in the country and he barely gets his hands on the ball. Same with Ringrose really. He's as skilled as an outside centre can be, but he usually gets the ball 15 metres behind the gain line. It's a credit to him that he can spot a half gap and wriggle through it. But we shouldn't be using him in such a way.

Natterjack from Kerry

Clegg wrote: »

I think it might have been Venjur who mentioned in the match thread that none of our backs are fixing a defender before passing the ball.

He had a decent game, so slow to criticise, but this is what happened for the Lowe non try - Keenan passed to early, and didnt fix any of the three covering defenders fanning out to the wing.