Great effort and Ireland's best world cup performance wise
What a game for the casual viewers!
Ireland needed the set piece to work well and it didn't. Well targeted by Nz. Congrats to them
Crowley should have been number 1 out half in my view with Sexton backing him up perhaps.
your actual words. So what did they mean? Because the only logical reading of that is that Crowley should have been starting 10 and maybe Sexton backing him up.
It's not hard to know. Sexton was one of our best players while we went on an unprecedented winning streak. Crowley wasn't in the picture 2 years ago.
I mean, AF gave chances to RB, HB, even Frawley. It's not like he didn't try! Carbery got lots of time but frankly just wasn't good enough. If anything he should be the perfect example of how picking a player and sticking with them doesn't necessarily make them good enough.
Sexton is (was 😭 ) just way, way better than everyone else.
Ireland have blooded plenty of players during the AF era. He even has a history of giving time to players who aren't even first choice at their province - JGP. Other players he has brought in quickly, Hansen pretty much straight off the plane and Crowley has more Irish starts at 10 than he has Munster starts in the CC at 10.
Experimenting for the sake of experimenting is worthless and absolutely pointless if there isnt a desire to use the wider squad. The Irish coaching ticket clearly made the decision prior to the tournament that they weren't going to rotate. It explains some of their selections over the past few years and the WC squad itself and means that additional experimentation would have been of zero benefit.
That shortsighted unwillingness to rotate proven capable squad players is far more an issue than any 'experimentation' that didn't happen.
No, I didn’t say that.
Why do some posters here insist on making stuff up and try to make out that others they disagree with are saying something that they actually didn’t? Seems to be a common theme with those who don’t like views that they disagree with. Unable to argue on what was actually said so just pretend that they said something more extreme and then argue on a false premise. Usual stuff and poor form.
i didnt think henderson was that great tbh
right after the 2019 rwc, o gara suggested that if sexton were to keep playing then maybe he should move to being a bench player who could help bring on the younger options while being there to close out games and thus prolong his career. now, he also said JS would almost definitely not be happy to do that but it might be (have been) the best option all round
tbh it was my way of thinking at the time too but in fairness JS has put in some unbelievable performances since then so its hard to know
I remember after we were dumped out of the last world Cup, O Gara, saying that we needed to forget about 6 nations etc and build for 4yrs time. By the time the 2nd six nations came round he was back pushing for a win. Its ingrained in the IRFU psyche, the scarcity mentality, win now, later might never come.
So there's no building towards the future. No real strength in depth. No real trust in the supposed back up players. We were the only team with decent prospects in the tournament who failed to rotate their squad and that alone is an indictment of the management and a receipe for failure in an attritional sport.
Perhaps? Like maybe drop him down to 3rd choice?
You're entitled to your view, but I suspect not a single coach or player in world rugby would agree with it. Take what you will from that, but I suspect that is why almost no one will take your views on Sexton in good faith.
Hard to know when he was not available. TBH I wound not be critical of either lock but rotation of players was an issue and these decisions highlights the lack of thinking around rotation.
The Scottish game was a particular bruising game
Was James Ryan a factor?
Crowley really only burst onto the scene this year. He showed his metal in matches against Leinster and Stormers this year.
However starting him would have been a huge call. However he should have been on with 15 minutes to go. Sexton was out on his feet at that stage.
Not only that he should have been considered to start against Scotland with Sexton rested for the NZ game. We knew the order in which the games were going to be played.
The over dependance on certain players was crazy. Take the bringing on of James Ryan at the end of the Scotland match. Had we other options. We only needed a bonus point against the Scots. Ya you want to keep momentum going but management of rotation is important
Its interesting. It certainly wasn't a typical bottle job, down 13 points after 20 minutes and then roll over...
Would be very interesting for those in the camp, who have far more insight... like what the hell is uo with the scrum ? Loyalty to players, at rugby and soccer here , is there too much loyalty? Does it result in laziness at times from the first choice ?
Just before the break off it looked like Sexton had his arm out to go wide.
I was very surprised that Kelleher broke off, after forcing them into giving away a penalty try the previous maul, they ought to have been staying tight and forcing the call. Thought it was a banker initially, as they were moving well towards the line
I don’t think anyone blamed Sexton solely for exiting the competition. A factor in us going out that he was struggling and not replaced is what some would suggest but don’t let that stop you using the usual gaslighting (suggesting others have said something in a way they actually didn’t) tactic when arguing with something you disagree with. It undermines any other points you make.
Will France think this World Cup was a failure? Will South Africa, England, New Zealand or Argentina treat it as a failure to the 3 who don’t win?
Farrell expecting he can win a World Cup starting mid 30’s year players every game will rarely work. Some bodies will not recovery fully in time for the next game. You need a squad and just didn’t seem we had the trust in the squad to change the starting line up to make sure players starting were fully ready to battle. That’s on Farrell and his team. Maybe just looking at the next game instead of World Cup was the reason not having that squad where he could pick a different team if needed be. Any on the borderline to make it next time I’d be having them as back up players and not starters. Need to start it now not months out
Blaming Sexton is comical, clueless even. Not a single criticism of his game other than his age. The fact of the matter is we didn't speed up ruck ball the other night, our 8 forwards didn't do their job at ruck time and we had painfully slow ball. I'd be point at Van Der Flier and O'Mahony rather then Sexton because they got dominated in their matchups IMO.
The suggestion that Prendergast should be Leinster's first choice outhalf this season is also silly. I'm his biggest fan as a player but he has to physically develop a good bit before he starts big games, need to be patient with him and build him up gently. He is pretty clearly 3rd choice at Leinster at the moment, thats a huge leap from last year where he was 6th choice. It also means he will get a good bit of gametime this season which he can learn and develop from. If he manages to push himself of either of the Byrnes this season fair play but I think some patience is needed. The amount of criticism the guy got when our u20s were smashed was ridiculous.
The SH proposal wouldn't have killed the Six Nations. It would have opened it up so that nations like Georgia get a shot from time to time, and jeopardy is introduced for the larger nations to avoid relegation. This is healthy and necessary for the growth of the game (a similar concept would be introduced to the SH Championship). Traditional dates and the Lions tour would have been maintained. You have pitched this in an entirely disingenuous fashion - that the SH are the ones running from change, when it is them bringing potential solutions to the table that are rejected out of fear by Unions like Scotland.
As for a single rule example or saying 'everyone should play the same season' - well weather is weather lad. The seasons (weather) alternate so the seasons (rugby) need to also. But give over telling me this is a reason the World Cup is unfair. Ireland had their holidays and preseason and were together as a group preparing for a couple of months leading up to Saturday. They kept winning and had beaten South Africa so the idea we are not on a level playing field due to the time of a year is a nonsense. They are just better than us when it counts, the SH / NH record across the history of the tournament speaks to that.
Yeah. They're going to have to replace Sexton now anyway, I think that should have been done on a more phased basis over the last few years.
I disagree. I think over the last few years Sexton like Murray should have been cast in a supportive role, or certainly it should have been the case that others (like Crowley) were promoted more so that there wasn't the same reliance on Sexton as there had been in previous years when he was younger.
I think France might regret that 'ferocious' start.
I think they had the tools to take SA apart if they hadn't decided on a free chaotic start. And I think it was them who set the tone of the game.
They thought they would blow SA away and it bombed on them.
Very different with the situation with Murray, Murray was second choice behind a player who has been better than him.
Not the case with Sexton.
Seriously??
Yes I agree, as I said earlier he could have been very useful with his experience coming on late in games when he was fresh. Like the way Conor Murray was used.
I disagree. Not recently he isn't. Crowley should have been number 1 out half in my view with Sexton backing him up perhaps.
Crowley was perfectly fine when he came on vs Scotland. (He setup a try with a perfect kick). The game was over.
We really needed a ferocious start (like France last night) to lay down a marker.
In all three games last year in NZ, we got off to a flyer. Had we scored a try inside the first 5 mins after tearing into them, then psychologically we'd have won half the battle. Hopefully, NZ players going "here we go again!". Instead, we ambled into the game and let them build up a 13 point lead. Was this down to fatigue, gameplan, NZ aggression.
In 2019, the gap was 32 points at the end with a 34-0 score line until we scored a try in the 69'.
In 2023, a 4 point gap having come back from the dead twice and the width of a hand which would have put us 3 pts up with 6 mins to play.
Can't understand why we didn't maul a few more metres to make sure of the grounding.
Who knows in 2027. With the domestic game in NZ/AUS struggling financially and RSA less invested in TRC, remains to be seen how many more world class NZ will be able to produce.
People dismissing the 6 Nations must have short memories. We have 4 Grand Slams in 140 years! There was a time where a win (home or away) against France wasn't even contemplated as a possibility. I had posters of the '82 and '85 Triple Crown on my bedroom wall.
It wasn't about Sexton. Hmmm, Farrell says to himself " Sexton is 38, I must select him, despite numerous other 10's being vastly better. It's about the other 10's, who couldn't get past Sexton.
Sexton would still be the best out half if he didn't retire.
You were attacking his time in France and the treatment he got too, you are not just going on about last nights game.
The last few minutes needed experience and the coaches made that call. Crowley was poor when he came on against Scotland. The majority would have taken Sexton for those last few minutes.
Silly comment. I don't hate him and he had a great career, I just think he was left in place too long and along with other factors I think it cost the team in a very close game the other night.
Its kind of sad, how much hate you are trying to throw on Sexton.
It seems that you are the lone wolf on this and rightly so
