IRELAND

News | Profile | Anthem | Fixtures | Results

State of the nation - Ireland

Tuesday 02nd December 2008

One for the future: Stephen Ferris

The future does not look good for Ireland at the moment. A 50-point whitewash of Canada did not disguise the shortcomings evident in defeat to New Zealand or in victory over Argentina, nor the sense of unease still hanging round the team from last year's World Cup.

Focussing on the two non-Canadian games (an inexperienced Canada team taking on a top eight side for the first time was always going to be given a harsh lesson), the glaring deficiency is in attack. Nobody scored a try against New Zealand, but other sides threatened to. Ireland were rarely near the All Black line; against Argentina they fell foul of being sucked into the opposition's negativity instead of rising above it.

Fact is, nobody seems to be emerging as a future star at the moment. Luke Fitzgerald, Rob Kearney, Tomas O'Leary, Jamie Heaslip, Stephen Ferris... all are bedding into the team and playing well, but nobody seems to be possessed of the necessary x-factor to turn a game.

For all his ability and experience, Brian O'Driscoll's pace has dropped off as the years catch up, so he is no longer the go-to man. Ronan O'Gara's match direction still tends to creak alarmingly if his pack is not clearing a path for him. Shane Horgan's presence on - and particularly coming off - the wing is sorely missed.

The team lacks flair, which has now to be Declan Kidney's priority. Either a new back-up for O'Gara needs to be found, or Paddy Wallace needs to get significantly more game-time. The same goes for O'Driscoll - Tommy Bowe's performance at centre for the Ospreys could be an alternative, as could Keith Earls. Experimentation and change must soon be the order of the day; too much continuity is what brought Ireland's 2006 juggernaut to a standstill last year in France.

Up front, there are fewer problems, but the scrum is still susceptible at times and the loose play is not as quick or as physical as it used to be. A positive would be the way the Pumas were eventually worn down though - a healthy reaction from the way they had been dominated by the All Blacks.

But unless Kidney begins to think outside the box, the Ireland team will go nowhere soon. He may be hamstrung by the lack of club options, and the Irish provinces must have a serious think about the number of foreign players taking to Magners League and Heineken Cup pitches, for the good of the national side.

Star man: Stephen Ferris arrives on the blindside flank in the nick of time, as the years advance with more and more meaning on Alan Quinlan's body. The Ulsterman has been around the fringes for some time now, but burst onto the scene against Canada, and backed that up with a fine display in Quinlan's absence against the Pumas. He deserves an extended run.