Ireland Team Talk/Gossip/Rumour Thread VIII - ** MOD NOTE POST #4781 **

Marina Old-fashioned Locket wrote: »

We can all agree that winning the grand slam and a winning tour to australia are the only outcomes that would make 2018 a successful year for Joe Schmidt. Anything less will be deemed a complete and utter failure.

You're right...anything less than 3 wins away from against Oz plus 5 on the trot will be a COMPLETE and UTTER FAILURE.

To be honest I'd go further and say we should win all our games by at least 60 points. We should also aim to not let the opposition score a point at all. In fact we should be aiming to not give away a single penalty in those eight games.
We should also aim for 100% line out and scrum stats in all of those games. We also need to have a ZERO error account.

Anything less will be a shambles and Joe should resign and go on tv to apologise to the general public. Then he should hand back his passport, climb into the liffey and swim back to NZ.

bilston wrote: »

Ah to be fair Keith Earls has had his detractors over the years as well and he doesn't play for Leinster.

Paddy Wallace used to get a fair bit of grief on the MBs back in the day too.

To be honest it just the fact it's moved from Heaslip to Kearney, for the most part I don't think it's provincial. But every time the AI's or 6N comes round it always lands on one player generating 20 or 30 pages of unwarranted criticism, it's just tedious.

mfceiling wrote: »

You're right...anything less than 3 wins away from against Oz plus 5 on the trot will be a COMPLETE and UTTER FAILURE.

To be honest I'd go further and say we should win all our games by at least 60 points. We should also aim to not let the opposition score a point at all. In fact we should be aiming to not give away a single penalty in those eight games.
We should also aim for 100% line out and scrum stats in all of those games. We also need to have a ZERO error account.

Anything less will be a shambles and Joe should resign and go on tv to apologise to the general public. Then he should hand back his passport, climb into the liffey and swim back to NZ.

I’m not going to be happy unless we win 12 of our 11 games this season myself. I’ve given Joe fair warning so he has no excuse now.

molloyjh wrote: »

In that analogy is Rob K the T-1000? No matter how many times he’s shot down he just seems to keep coming back even where previous iterations haven’t?

Perfect analogy.

Even when there are newer, more advanced models, the T-1000 always manages to defeat them.

Conway must be deemed the back up FB so. Wonder if Rob or himself will start this weekend.....

A bit like how Ireland hadn't even considered or trained with Payne at full back, I would guess.

prawnsambo wrote: »

Would Darren Sweetnam not be seen as an option there? That's where he came on during Saturday's match and he didn't (albeit in a short enough cameo) seem out of place.

I'm nearly sure Sweetnam came on to the right wing and Conway moved in to full back.

Madelynn Glamorous Range wrote: »

Carbery came on for Sexton.

Yes?

determinations wrote: »

Fairly certain Conway went to fullback.

Was there. Can confirm. He did move to fullback when Sweetnam came on.

prawnsambo wrote: »

Former Former wrote: »

Interesting piece in the Times this morning, Richie Murphy saying that Carbery is viewed as an out-half only and they've never considered him for FB.

Good to read that they've been working on his goal kicking too.

Also interesting that they see his playing at full back at Leinster being helpful to his development as a ten.

But Joe's made no secret of the fact that he sees Joey as a ten. The little tweaks to his kicking have clearly worked too. Two from two under that pressure with one from the sideline is pretty damn good.

They were good kicks but there was zero pressure on them. But still they were impressive. Straight through the middle as well.

prawnsambo wrote: »

There was no scoreboard pressure on them. But he hasn't kicked for a while and he's in front of fifty thousand spectators. It's all relative. I know my heart rate would be at cardiac arrest levels.

They were well struck which is the important thing though it was a good day for kickers with little or no wind.

Per the usual good source on PR:

McGrath
Herring
Porter
Dillane
Toner
Ruddock
Murphy
Conan
Marmion
Carbery
D Kearney
McCloskey
Farrell
Sweetnam
Conway

Only 2 starters, Toner and Conway, remain from South Africa.
Obviously the management see this as a throw-away game. I get resting someone like Henshaw given the Lions Tour but surely Aki would benefit from another cap. Ditto Stockdale.

Edit: Looking at the pack it's fair enough. The frontrow were always going to be changed. Henderson and the backrow are coming off Lions Tours (POM also got a nasty cut to his ear). Toner in there for an experienced head along with Jack McGrath.

thomond2006 wrote: »

Per the usual good source on PR:

McGrath
Herring
Porter
Dillane
Toner
Ruddock
Murphy
Conan
Marmion
Carbery
D Kearney
McCloskey
Farrell
Sweetnam
Conway

Only 2 starters, Toner and Conway, remain from South Africa.
Obviously the management see this as a throw-away game.

Any word on the bench

Burkie1203 wrote: »

Any word on the bench

No.