Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has admitted that it's more than likely the end of the road for the current Irish rugby team.
Last night, Ireland were once again knocked out of the Rugby World Cup by New Zealand. A close game was decided by fine margins and Will Jordan's second-half try.
The win also means that Ireland will have to move forward without the likes of Johnny Sexton and Keith Earls in the future. Both have played their last games in an Ireland jersey.
Speaking after the game, Farrell admitted that things were about to change for Ireland.
“The sad thing for us now is, it’s probably the end for this team,” said Farrell after the quarter-final defeat. “It is for Johnny, and Keith Earls is going to retire as well. Things are going to change.”
On another day, Ireland could have broken their quarter-final curse, but New Zealand's outstanding defence and cynical nature was the difference on the day. A driving maul near the All-Blacks' try-line was held up; Ireland thought they had touched down with the score 24-25 at that stage. The All-Blacks held on to record a famous victory in Paris.
When asked what the difference between the sides was, Farrell claimed it was 'fine margins' on the day.
"We don't want to sit here and have sour grapes... we don't want to be bitter losers. We want to hold our head up high."
- The Andy Farrell reaction to Ireland getting pushed out of the Rugby World Cup by the All Blacks. #Ireland #AllBlacks #IREvNZL #RWC2023 pic.twitter.com/VB27LP86og— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 15, 2023
“Fine margins and all that. We got held up over the line from a maul very close to the end, which could have sealed it," he added.
“At the end of the day, two good teams were out there playing some outstanding rugby. Unfortunately, we came out on the wrong side of the scoreboard. Sport can be cruel; that’s why we love it so much. I’m unbelievably proud of the group, not just today, but all through the tournament.”
Ireland were penalised at the scrum a number of times in the game; Andrew Porter was often the guilty party pulled up by Wayne Barnes.
Farrell was asked about his view of the scrum issue and refused to criticise Barnes for his interpretation of the rules. Instead, Farrell congratulated New Zealand for their win and stated that there were no 'sour grapes' on Ireland's behalf.
“We have a different view of the scrum out there. But we don’t want to sit here with sour grapes,” said Farrell.
“The scrum was part of the equation, and Andrew [Porter] was frustrated with what was going on out there. But congratulations to New Zealand. I mean, if you go out with a whimper, it’s pretty hard to take, isn’t it? We deserve a little bit more of ourselves than that and we didn’t, did we?"
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