The post-match review was a tough watch, but there’s been no keening and wailing in the team room, just a resolution to ensure that there is no repetition of the individual and system errors that undermined Ireland’s performance against England.
Every member of the squad craves an opportunity to play against Wales at the Principality stadium this weekend, and John Ryan should be afforded one. The Munster tighthead prop enjoyed a 40-minute hit out against Italy when coming on as a replacement, and on Saturday is likely to be handed a starting jersey.
The Irish squad have adopted a pragmatic approach this week: look back, absorb the shortcomings, work on fixing them and then set about building towards something that is more representative of the talent in the squad.
Ryan explained: “At this level, there’s no shouting. Everyone knows the mistakes they made. People will look back themselves, coaches have looked at the footage, everyone is looking at self-improving, rectifying their own mistakes, and then it’s reiterated to the group as well, so we learn as a group.
‘Miles better’
“There’s nothing heated, it’s all calculated. Obviously, we can get miles better, but it’s a case of applying ourselves and getting back out this week and doing the basics well. As a group of players, we’re all hugely disappointed.
“We’re not a team that gets absolutely hammered by any team in the world. We can put it up to anyone, so we’re hugely disappointed. It’s about getting back out there and making sure we show the fans and everyone else that that’s not us, that’s certainly not us.”
He described the performance issues “as basic and fixable” but accepted that players have to take more ownership on the pitch.
“The problem-solving on the pitch wasn’t as good as it should have been. We probably should have come in for a chat after we leaked a few [points] and tried to play to our game, not to go after the ball, maybe fan out a little bit more; all of those things could have been done.
We need to get out there and prove that we are a top three in the world team
“We were probably a bit frantic in what we were doing and lads were probably nearly trying too hard and forcing a few things and making errors in that way.”
On-pitch communication is another area that will need to be rebooted, Ryan agreed. “Exactly. When a person is giving everything [but] he’s not in the system, that is going to be an issue. We are going back to more team-driven exercises where we’re a chain in defence, we’re set early in attack, and we’re just going to try to have more teamwork. I know that’s a cliche but we’re going to work as a team rather than individuals.”
‘Bit of a clip’
He said that there had been a “bit of a clip, a bit of an edge to training” and that “we need to get out there and prove that we are a top three in the world team”.
Saturday represents a final opportunity to earn a plane ticket to Japan but, as Ryan pointed out, one of the lessons from the England defeat was the importance of cohesion as a team. "Obviously lads are vying for positions, it's the last chance saloon for some boys and so we're going to go out and try and fit into the system and get a performance.
“If you execute your basics well, if you stick to your scrum, ruck, maul, that’ll go a long way in terms of selection across all the positions.”
He’s diplomatic when discussing the scrum law change introduced by World Rugby in July that precludes frontrow forwards placing the crown of their heads on the shoulders of opponents between a referee’s “bind” and “set” calls in an effort to try and safeguard against neck injuries.
“It’s inconsistent but we’ll see how we go at the weekend. Between the players and refs we’re all trying to find our feet. It’s a little rule change, but a lot of teams depend on putting weight across and it’s an advantage you get, but it’s not the case anymore. You just have to be a bit savvy.”
The are other more pressing concerns on Saturday.
