6 Nations 2023 - Ireland

[matt]

32 players played for Ireland in the 6N.

LHP: Porter, Healy, Kilcoyne
THP: Bealham. Furlong, O'Toole
Hooker: Kelleher, Sheehan, Herring
Lock: Baird, Henderson, Ryan, Beirne, Treadwell
BR: Conan, POM, vd Flier, Doris

SH: RTP, Murray, Casey
FH: Sexton, Ross, Crowley
Centre: McCloskey, Aki, Henshaw, Ringrose
B3: Lowe, Keenan, Hansen, O'Brien

33 man squad for the RWC. Definitely need one more added to both the back-row and back 3. Probably lose one of the locks or centres,

30 of them should go plus Larmour, Frawley and Penny. Crowley and Threadwell will need to be in top form to go. A late run from Osborne could put pressure on McCluskey but unlikely and would be harsh.

[Oldschoolsocks]

Guardian player ratings always interested to see how the opposition rates us:

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/ ... va-stadium

They’re pretty silly when you read them for example “Josh Van der Flier’s quick thinking setup Sheehan’s first try”

Almost as if the journo had no knowledge of the game

[blockhead]

Guardian player ratings always interested to see how the opposition rates us:

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/ ... va-stadium

They’re pretty silly when you read them for example “Josh Van der Flier’s quick thinking setup Sheehan’s first try”

Almost as if the journo had no knowledge of the game

That stuff was probably done at the stadium by some journo gagging for a few pints and so typing as fast as they could.

[Oldschoolsocks]

Guardian player ratings always interested to see how the opposition rates us:

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/ ... va-stadium

They’re pretty silly when you read them for example “Josh Van der Flier’s quick thinking setup Sheehan’s first try”

Almost as if the journo had no knowledge of the game

That stuff was probably done at the stadium by some journo gagging for a few pints and so typing as fast as they could.

Pretty forgivable if that’s the case

[Oldschoolsocks]

That scrum before Henshaw’s try was crying out for Chelsea ball, just saying

[sunshiner1]

by wixfjord


TOT in particular really, really surprised me. If he can keep up this form he'll be a really important player for Ulster & Ireland.

He was excellent and John Ryan coming back will have a hard time shifting him. People have been talking about Baird and TOT's potential for a few years and it was great to finally see them come of age and deliver.

[bronxbull]

I agree about James Ryan.
He was immense in every game in particular when we needed him.
Ryan has really grown into a true World Class second row.

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[OneLungDavy]

Doris will get player of the tournament, deservedly.

[Xanthippe]

Guardian player ratings always interested to see how the opposition rates us:

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/ ... va-stadium

They’re pretty silly when you read them for example “Josh Van der Flier’s quick thinking setup Sheehan’s first try”

Almost as if the journo had no knowledge of the game

The one that really annoyed me was the part about Hugo Keenan

Taken off just before the break for a head injury assessment and sadly missed the second half if not the celebrations

It reads like he’s suggesting (tongue firmly stuck in cheek) that we were pretending with Hugo’s failed HIA

[enby]

Doris will get player of the tournament, deservedly.

He was really great but I'm afraid that Dupont was consistently brilliant and he'd get my vote.

Toss up between Dombrandt and North for worst player

[Hippo]

Doris will get player of the tournament, deservedly.

He was really great but I'm afraid that Dupont was consistently brilliant and he'd get my vote.

Toss up between Dombrandt and North for worst player

Can't argue with Dupont. I'd suggest Van Poortfliet might be in the running for worst.

[jimbobjoe]

Haouas must be the worst of the tournament

[riocard911]

Haouas must be the worst of the tournament

He'd certainly get my number 1!

[enby]

Haouas must be the worst of the tournament

Good shout

[hugonaut]

Amazing tournament from the lads. You're always going to get nerves when you're playing for a trophy – if you didn't care about the result, you wouldn't, but you also wouldn't be playing for the trophy.

We knocked the ball on six times in that game, compared to eight times combined in the four other games. We were obviously nervy and threw some bad passes. That can happen. You can change how you play and go very conservative and go to a one-out, ruck-based game and you will probably cut out a lot of those knock-ons ... but is that going to win you the game, or is it just going to invite a lot of breakdown pressure and cut down our own chances of making linebreaks and follow-ups against broken defences?

There was no question as to whether England would turn up full of p*ss and vinegar. They were always going to, and they did. Of course they going to be fired up after taking a drubbing against France. The question hanging over them was where their points were going to come from to actually win the game, rather than just stop Ireland taking them apart like the French had. They didn't have an answer to that. They scored one try when the match was already decided, and hadn't made a try-scoring chance in the 70+ minutes before that.

[Dave Cahill]

Only team in the tournament not to receive a card and we conceded the fewest penalties. Serious discipline from the lads

[hugonaut]

There are so many positives to take from the tournament. One of them is the amount that the coaching staff were able to/made to expose fringe players to the top level of international rugby, and how well those players responded.

It just struck me yesterday that Tom O'Toole played in every game of the championship, averaging 24mins/match. He had never played in the Six Nations before this year. Ryan Baird [157 mins] played more in this tournament than either Iain Henderson [137 mins] or Tadhg Beirne [99 mins].

Finlay Bealham did us a great job for the first three games, before his injury. He had played in four wins against New Zealand, but had never started in the Six Nations. Ross Byrne fitted in very comfortably at No22, after half a decade of navel-gazing about Joey Carbery.

Conor Murray was a huge plus. He is not back to his best form, but he looks like he has thrown off the doubt and second-guessing that has plagued his game since his neck injury – a long time. Conan also showed up particularly well in the last two fixtures ... another player who has had to find form.

[Ruckedtobits]

Steve Hanson, former NZ Coach continues on his traditional behaviour of undermining Irish World Cup prospects, as he did in 2019.

Hansen is on record after the 3rd Test in July as confirming that the Ireland Series win had lifted them to a different level than previously and made them "real contenders for RWC".

However, he's now reverting to his 2019 comments (and also generating ticket sales for Ba-Bas match) by saying Ireland's performance on Saturday was that of "chokers".

https://www.the42.ie/steve-hansen-irela ... 3-Mar2023/

[blockhead]

James Ryan-most lineouts stolen(5) 2nd year in a row
Also, joint most turnoverswon.
What a tournament he had!

[artaneboy]

Steve Hanson, former NZ Coach continues on his traditional behaviour of undermining Irish World Cup prospects, as he did in 2019.

Hansen is on record after the 3rd Test in July as confirming that the Ireland Series win had lifted them to a different level than previously and made them "real contenders for RWC".

However, he's now reverting to his 2019 comments (and also generating ticket sales for Ba-Bas match) by saying Ireland's performance on Saturday was that of "chokers".

https://www.the42.ie/steve-hansen-irela ... 3-Mar2023/

Well Steve would know; sure didn’t New Zealand choke for a 24 years at RWCs, and barely fall over the line with one the scabbiest wins at home to France in the 2011 final. He was there on the AB staff for that “slow bicycle race” with France.


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