Ireland Team Talk XII: Farrell's First Fifteen

that wasn’t his third start.

He has started the last two 6n games against Italy, Furlong has not even been on the bench.

That’s an impressive amount of errors in such a short post. Fair play.

this team had already peaked even when sexton was around , about March 2023 would be right.

Bealham effectively playing the 80 cost us , but wasn’t a selection issue as TOT got a bad knock. This had a big impact on our plans for the last 20 mins.

Our back row was very subdued , i think partly down to our front 5 being ineffective at the breakdown (13 pens conceded)

Our back play was on the back foot all night and were generally handled comfortably by the AB’s

JGP saved our bacon on more than one occasion with some last ditch try/2 v 1 tackles .

What’s with the embarrassing Ben Earl/WWE impressions from McCarthy/Lowe, etc ?

Why Murray/POM/Healy on the bench ? Give Casey/Prendergast(the other one) etc a chance .

Frawley had a bit of a more and made Crowley look half decent , even though he was very subdued , like the rest of the team.

Too many quiet players the team, no one with a bit of a bite

I admit I know virtually nothing about rugby but as an armchair supporter watching the game, I thought James Lowe's reaction to kicking the ball a long distance into touch was bizarre. It looked disrespectful to his team and the game itself. The manager should immediately deal with that type of nonsense in my humble and probably ill-informed opinion.

Bang on the money. Ireland games aren't for rugby fans any more - they're for corporate event junkies. The atmosphere at home games has been atrocious for years now. It's a big p1ss up for the corporates and people connected to them.

The only people I know getting tickets these days are getting them as gifts off business partners /clients etc. The last game I was at (a few years ago now) involved getting up and down off my seat about 20 times a half to let people out to the bar-no interest in watching the game. Rant over.

What a bizarre game/performance. I posted that there was a strange lack of energy prior to the game and I thought the atmosphere was the same inside the stadium. Felt like the players were trying to force it at times to get to that emotional pitch.

I have a few concerns about some players since the season began. Beirne to me looks like a tired man. I'm not sure he's mobile enough anymore to play 6. I'm not for a second suggesting he needs to be dropped but there is something askew with him I think. The drop off at tighthead is alarming behind Furlong

That was a night to forget for both Crowley and Frawley. It's not often we hook a flyhalf before 60 mins.

That's about as bad as we have been on attacking breakdowns as I can remember. Could not secure our own ball at all. So messy

I'd expect a reaction next week.

Frawley had 10 nightmarish minutes last night. Like you said behind a pack that had lost the breakdown. Very different to starting Prendergast. Who will ask a lot of different questions to a defence. If he has a stinker we persist.

As for who else we change? Perhaps start with players who don't understand or learn what the referee wants. Who can't catch a ball. Who can't pass a ball. It's a start.

We will have to define 'stinker' and 'poor' before this discussion can go forward.

I have a life to live and I know you will defend Crowley at all costs. Therefore we will never agree. I've said my piece. Like it or lump it.

Saturday morning and I've work to do outside. I bid you good day.

Poor game from Crowley.
Lowe was trying to get the crowd going with his celebration and lift the team, no idea why some of the old heads in here have a problem with it. It’s the least of our concerns. The team absolutely needs his personality.