RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland

@mariner4life said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

Right. Everyone has their opinions on coaches and players. But the time for that has passed. This week is all support. Shove the negativity. Come fozzie, Sam and the lads!!

100% the above. These are World Cup knockouts. The ABs and their coaches deserve our total support for this next bit.

Go Fozzie! Go Sam! Go the Men in Black!

This is the time to build up further the glorious legacy.

@mariner4life said in All Blacks 2023:

But I think Cane will start, and I hope that means Paps comes on absolutely fizzing

That worked against the Boks in the RC (IIRC Cane was outstanding at the breakdown) but we may need to try something different against the Oirish.

We can't let them dominate from the start and end up playing catch-up.

Yep I would love to see us send Ireland out of the WC,Put a dent in their ego and get some revenge from past losses.
If we can we are in the Final as we will win the SF.
Meet SA in the final and make it a SH final how good.

@gt12 ABs were the clear best in the world in 2007. They had smashed France twice in France several months before. France won.

If Wayne Barnes is the ref, maybe he’ll let the underdog ABs have a clear forward pass try to close the circle on 2007

@Victor-Meldrew you mean like allowing them to score a try in the first 5 mins like they did in the NZ series in 2022?

Eddie Jones laid the blueprint in 2018/2019 to play the current ABs. Score first and force the ABs to play catch up. Sometimes they can (vs England in 2019, Ire in test 1 2022) but sometimes they can’t (vs Fra 2021, Ire in 2021, 2022, SA test 1 in 2022 2019).

Ireland haven’t been behind so far in this World Cup, have they? We don’t know how they react to scoreboard pressure.

@Chris pretty much what most fans opposing the ABs over the years have said

Put Ireland under scoreboard pressure. Increment in 3s. Turn the screw. Make them chase for once. They are capable of chasing. They are v good. But pressure turns good players into average ones and cracks form in once thought perfect systems.

Ireland will go after Ioane. But NZ can go after Gibson-Park and Sexton. Force Sexton to put his physical all into the game and watch as he whinges and whines and loses his focus. La Rochelle did it to him. No surprise that O’Gara knows how to get under his skin.

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

Put Ireland under scoreboard pressure. Increment in 3s. Turn the screw. Make them chase for once. They are capable of chasing. They are v good. But pressure turns good players into average ones and cracks form in once thought perfect systems.

We are often guilty of trying too hard to win the game in big plays. I want to see a little bit of grind, play the game in their half and try to get some early scores, even if they are in 3s.

@canefan said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

Put Ireland under scoreboard pressure. Increment in 3s. Turn the screw. Make them chase for once. They are capable of chasing. They are v good. But pressure turns good players into average ones and cracks form in once thought perfect systems.

We are often guilty of trying too hard to win the game in big plays. I want to see a little bit of grind, play the game in their half and try to get some early scores, even if they are in 3s.

Test rugby you mean

@canefan first half vs France was good. Stay in touch and if the opportunity to play with penalty advantage or their mistake comes, execute.

@canefan said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@bayimports whatever they did before Ellis Park 2022…do it again.

One of the hallmarks of the Foster era is the inconsistency. If we simply didn't have the cattle and were clearly just not good enough I could begrudgingly accept that. But we show glimpses of how good we can be, which is infuriating

Well said that man. This is going to be tough but we can do it. If not then good luck to the Irish. That is where my family is from originally. You just have to love the support they bring.

@MiketheSnow teams know to beat the ABs is by scoring tries. Where Ireland and France have improved, less so SA, is that they know they don’t have to do it from minute 1. But they do need to take their chances when they have good territory.

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

Gibson-Park

That's the key. Ireland are a shadow of the usual without him.

@MiketheSnow said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@canefan said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

Put Ireland under scoreboard pressure. Increment in 3s. Turn the screw. Make them chase for once. They are capable of chasing. They are v good. But pressure turns good players into average ones and cracks form in once thought perfect systems.

We are often guilty of trying too hard to win the game in big plays. I want to see a little bit of grind, play the game in their half and try to get some early scores, even if they are in 3s.

Test rugby you mean

Yes, I miss it sometimes . A reunion on the weekend would be great

@Bones Aaron Smith put Dupont in his pocket for the majority of the French test in game 1 of World Cup. He can do the same to Gibson-Park. Roigard will hopefully be the bench option to come in and bring the intensity and harass.

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@canefan first half vs France was good. Stay in touch and if the opportunity to play with penalty advantage or their mistake comes, execute.

Yup. Problems started when they wanted to run them about by going wide. Just got too cute

There will be a yellow card in this game. Both teams are cynical in the red zone.

Shelve the 50:50 passes unless they come off.

@BerniesCorner said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

Shelve the 50:50 passes unless they come off.

In the right part of the field, okay maybe. But not in our own half

@canefan learnings . Uruguay wasn’t a bad test for the ABs as they were super competitive at the breakdown (like Ireland) and disrupted ball. ABs had to work through and around it to be able to play.

Their overall play isn’t the same standard as Ireland, but they are similar in many facets.

ABs will need to dismantle the Irish line out or force them to have poor ball. Line out is a weakness of Irish in this World Cup. SA had lots of possession and territory as a result, but SA showed in Twickenham test and in Ireland test that they lack the ruthless edge to convert their many opportunities.

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@Bones Aaron Smith put Dupont in his pocket for the majority of the French test in game 1 of World Cup. He can do the same to Gibson-Park. Roigard will hopefully be the bench option to come in and bring the intensity and harass.

Swap Havili for Kirifi and send him out on a mission.

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@Chris pretty much what most fans opposing the ABs over the years have said

Not now though is it,they say we would prefer to play the ABs in the QF why because they think we are easy to beat.
Times have changed under Fozzie.

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@canefan learnings . Uruguay wasn’t a bad test for the ABs as they were super competitive at the breakdown (like Ireland) and disrupted ball. ABs had to work through and around it to be able to play.

Their overall play isn’t the same standard as Ireland, but they are similar in many facets.

ABs will need to dismantle the Irish line out or force them to have poor ball. Line out is a weakness of Irish in this World Cup. SA had lots of possession and territory as a result, but SA showed in Twickenham test and in Ireland test that they lack the ruthless edge to convert their many opportunities.

Grasping at straws. No weakness in the lineout against Scotland. Plus Uruguay similar to Ireland? Wow.

@The-Irishman read what I wrote. I think I said Uruguay aren’t Ireland’s level but in certain facets of the game, they are similar, e.g. how they contest the breakdown and create messy, scrappy ball.

Ireland’s line out was much better last night, but they threw to the front a lot (safer ball) and trusted their phase play rather than attempting more risky line out calls.

@The-Irishman you’re right.

Let’s not discuss it. Ireland are the bestest at everything ever.

We shouldn’t bother even turning up.

@The-Irishman you will admit that against a premier line out team, the Boks, your line out had a shocker. Right?

ABs aren’t bad at lineouts and will look to put pressure on Irish ball and neutralise their maul. Not that dissimilar to what they did to Boks in NZ earlier this year.

@The-Irishman as for grasping at straws, will Irish fans not point out where they will look to gain an edge in ABs. Or are you that confident that no analysis or thought is required?

@MajorRage the QF is Ireland’s final. New territory after that and all whole different set of challenges to maintain performance levels.

You can sense Irish confidence. And why shouldn’t they given they have won 17 straight games. Just a reminder to Irish fans that this is what you termed “Kiwi arrogance” when the ABs dominated and AB fans were confident of winning - against any foe, anywhere.

The team aren’t arrogant. No more than AB teams have been. Irish fans have the swagger right now.

Hope the crown feels good, you arrogant, cheating fluffy bunnies

Going to be a looooong week

For ABs sake, Foster, Schmidt and Ryan had better have been watching tapes of La Rochelle and Leinster finals

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

Going to be a looooong week

It is going to be a longer 4 years if we fucking lose the QF.
Painful too if we read the NH media.

@stodders said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

@MajorRage the QF is Ireland’s final. New territory after that and all whole different set of challenges to maintain performance levels.

You can sense Irish confidence. And why shouldn’t they given they have won 17 straight games. Just a reminder to Irish fans that this is what you termed “Kiwi arrogance” when the ABs dominated and AB fans were confident of winning - against any foe, anywhere.

The team aren’t arrogant. No more than AB teams have been. Irish fans have the swagger right now.

Hope the crown feels good, you arrogant, cheating fluffy bunnies

If fully fit and no injuries I think Ireland can do it. Why? Because of the pool games. Pool A was effectively over after the first game which was basically to decide who topped the group. Everything else after that was just filler.

You guys haven't been tested since that 1st game and I think that will be monumental.

@The-Irishman ABs weren’t tested in 2015 after the first Argentina pool game. Worked out ok

Yes, 2015 team were much better than 2023 vintage, but just pointing out that a lack of tough pool matches doesn’t always mean you aren’t prepared for the knockout stages.

Ireland will be playing their third big game in 4 weeks. It takes a fair amount of energy to maintain peak performance and mental edge. Just to counter the strong pool argument.

At the end of the day, we don’t know who has been best served by their respective pools. The battle hardened, potentially less fresh Irish or the battle light, potentially more fresh ABs? Roll on Saturday.

@The-Irishman where do you think Ireland have a weakness? Objectively if you can

@Bones said in RWC QF: All Blacks v Ireland:

Swap Havili for Kirifi and send him out on a mission.

Yep, call him up before this weekend's NPC semifinal. :grinning_face_with_big_eyes:
Just to let him hold the tackle pads though.

@Billy-Tell

That’s so bad it made me

NZ win coming up. Ireland look tired and the players don’t have the belief in the biggest arena yet wheels to come off in a spectacular way..