Ireland’s display in Paris and Andy Farrell’s harsh verdict of that performance, along with his much-changed selection, have raised the stakes for their Six Nations fixture against Italy at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday (kick-off 2.15pm).
This has echoes of an angry Farrell invoking a response, an approach which worked most effectively for the second Test in Durban in the summer of 2024, and in the wake of November’s loss to New Zealand in Chicago.
As a result above all, Ireland need to show a heightened intent and also improve their work in the air and on the ground in the scrap for “contestables”.
Having stewed on Farrell’s judgment for three days before reassembling on Sunday night, last Monday’s review, or honesty session, of Ireland’s opening 36-14 defeat, Paris was parked, but only to a point. Its aftertaste and Farrell’s evident displeasure lingered in the air at their base in The K Club and at the IRFU HPC in Sports Campus Ireland.
“Intent” has been the buzzword of the week, according to Caelan Doris.
“I think there was probably a little bit of a feeling of not wanting to make a mistake as opposed to going out to get it right and properly set down a marker last week,” said Doris of the somewhat passive Irish display in the Stade de France, when the focus on discipline may have limited the number of penalties conceded to six, but at a cost.
“So, it [intent] has been the word of the week and we’re hoping to see that tomorrow.”
As for Farrell’s message during this week, the captain added: “There’s been several chats throughout the week. The big thing has been about holding each other more accountable as a leadership group, as a wider group. Like I said, all of us taking full ownership and driving things in the right direction.
“We’ve kind of spoken a little bit about last week being a reference point that we will hopefully look back on from, a place of improvement over the next this week, but also going forward as well.
“There’s a realisation that we do need to improve,” said Doris, before stressing, “but there is still belief in what we’re doing, and just the need to do things properly.”
Much is made, perhaps way too much, of Irish players’ familiarity with GAA from their formative sporting years and how therefore they should be innately better served by rugby’s recent conversion to endless aerial duels and the ensuing battle for “the breaking ball”.
But as France showed in the Stade de France, no such early sporting education is necessarily a disadvantage or an advantage. Ireland reclaimed only two or three, depending on who is counting, of the 16 “contestables” they sent into the rainy Parisian skies last Thursday week.
Hence, when Doris was asked what as to the other main focus of Ireland’s week, his answer was not surprising.
“Off the back of last Thursday the high ball – the aerial contest – not only in the air but on the ground as well. I want us to take some responsibility as a forward pack in making it easier for the guys in the air around winning the races back, around being hungry to win the scraps on the ground.
“Out of a number of aerial contests, we didn’t win enough of them at the weekend and the way the game’s going there’s more and more of them, so that’s an area that needs a lot of attention.”
But, in continuing his answer, tellingly Doris reverted to the word of the week.
“Some of our defensive stuff, there wasn’t enough intent across the board really, attack as well. So bringing intent to what we do is the key. We’re hoping to see that tomorrow. That’s been a big focus point through the week.”