With Ireland scheduled to play France this Saturday, February 14 — there will inevitably be a St Valentine’s Day massacre of the English language.
Tired old phrases referring to French flair, and craft opposing graft, will re-appear along with the French dictionary as people try to be smarter than they actually are. Thankfully from an Irish perspective, in Joe Schmidt, Ireland have a coach who actually is a hell of a lot more intelligent than he cares to let on.
As a tactician, the New Zealander is arguably the best in the world right now, capable of devising a completely different game plan for whatever opposition is thrown in front of him.
So whereas his predecessor, Declan Kidney, ultimately fell on his sword because he failed to move with the times, Schmidt is constantly evolving. And so is his team. Saturday’s win over Italy was their eighth successive test victory. Hopes of a ninth are high, notwithstanding Ireland’s mediocre record against the French.
Last year’s victory in Paris impressed. Yet the stats don’t. Since Brian O’Driscoll’s coming-of-age moment in 2000, Ireland have played France 18 times and won just four of those games. Yet they’re big favourites this weekend.
Clearly the bookmakers are hugely influenced by Schmidt’s record whereas his opposite number, Philippe Saint-Andre, has delivered patchy results since replacing Marc Lievremont.
This is his fourth Six Nations as head coach. And it could be his last unless there is a dramatic improvement in results.
For a country that won the Grand Slam in 2010, a year before they reached the World Cup final, their mid-table finishes under Saint-Andre are embarrassing. A wooden spoon in 2013 is sandwiched in between two fourth place finishes, meaning Saint-Andre arrives in Dublin this weekend needing a win. He got one last weekend. But beating Scotland, with their predictable backline moves, is one thing and doing the business against Ireland is another.
For starters, Ireland’s tactics-book has far more pages on it than Scotland’s, especially when Johnny Sexton is the one calling the shots. Secondly, Ireland’s set-piece has improved immeasurably under Schmidt. Saturday saw them win 12 out of 14 lineouts on their throw and return a 100 per cent record from put-ins at their scrum.
Yet the French forwards also had a good evening on Saturday, losing just two of the 20 lineouts they were awarded, conceding just eight penalties and offloading more than any other team last weekend.
Where it went wrong was when the ball left their hands and made its way to the backs. Going try-less against Scotland is one thing but you can’t do that in Dublin.
It helps that Camille Lopez, who scored five penalties from six attempts on Saturday, is sorting out their age-old problem at number 10. Naturally skillful, and able to get his backline moving, Lopez’s attacking instincts will provide Ireland with problems. “He has got everything,” said Johnny Sexton. “He has a break, he is a lovely passer and a decent kicker. When he played against Munster, he kept on taking difficult penalties even after he had missed a couple. That showed a lot of bottle.”
Sexton will also need to show some bottle this weekend. Three months away from the sport with a concussion injury can leave some deep emotional scars. And yet his former nemesis, now friend and kicking coach, Ronan O’Gara, doesn’t think the prolonged absence will matter. “The gap won’t be an issue,” argued O’Gara last Saturday. “He’ll cope. He will be ready.”
Ireland need him to be, for while Keatley did a reasonable job in Rome, particularly from the kicking tee, his nerves were evident when he had the ball in hand. Aside from what he offers with the ball, Sexton is also a key asset to a team without it.
“Johnny Sexton has performance, ambition, hunger and desire,” said former international, Victor Costello. “You can say the same about Robbie Henshaw and you could go through the squad and come up with so many players like that. There is a depth to the squad that was missing before too.”
Yet for all their depth, some players remain key. Sexton is one. Conor Murray is another. Largely overshadowed by the bigger names in this Ireland team, Murray is quietly developing into one of Schmidt’s go-to guys. “He was immense against the Italians,” said Schmidt. “He really has grown into a mature player.”
To win, Ireland need to see that maturity. They need other things too, another strong scrummaging performance, another good day at the lineout office, another defensive masterclass. Above all else, though, they need to be creative.
Tries will win this game and if Ireland can get more than one then more than a mere win over the French is on the cards. If they go two from two, they can start dreaming of a Grand Slam.
