Today 6 Nations Grand Slam Champions Ireland lost 33-10 to France in a game full of tactical kicking, massive hits and an attacking nous Far beyond the ability of Les Verts to cope with.
Tomorrow’s papers will make for interesting reading. There will be praise for Marc Lievremont’s men – a team at last. Pundits will let on the knew all along what ‘the tinkerman’ was up to and will praise his foresight.
Conversely Declan Kidney’s men will be criticises as being underprepared, complacent or just physically not up to the job of containing a free-running attacking team with a streetwise back row.
Such analyses will vary from tough but fair to hysterical to borderline racist but there are five factors no one wants to tall about that explain exactly why Ireland were dismayled so effectively.
1) English referee
Never mind that Wayne Barnes, a barrister by trade, ran a tight ship, made sensible calls and let the game ebb and flow. No we all know the reason Ireland went down was because that Mr B. just didn’t have it in him to give us Paddies a fair crack. That forward pass that set up the sole Irish try? Race guilt pure and simple. The French scores? Sure weren’t they offside in defense the whole game?
Note this excuse works both ways. But not in the event of England losing with an Irish ref at the helm.
2) Corporate sponsorship
O2′s team talk campaign is fantastic PR but outsourcing motivational locker room rhetoric to the general public clearly has not worked. Best leave that carry-on to the pros.
3) George Lee
How can you expect the team to have their head in the game when the smartest man in Ireland has left public service? Truly upsetting. Combined with the team sponsor’s refusal to shell out on proper motivational speakers (see above) well…we just didn’t have a hope.
4) Lucozade Sport
Last longer. Finish stronger. I think not. Time to switch to Gatorade.
5) Atheism
How can Paul O’Connell put the fear of God into a bunch of cheese-munching, secular philosophers. Liberty, equality, fraternity. No God there. No ‘special place’ for the Catholic Church. For the love of Xenu they’re even picking fights with the Muslims. The fear of God is like…our thing. Humanism we just can’t deal with. We were doomed from the start.
Oh and we didn’t play as well as they did.