Another Loss; O’Sullivan to Go?

Irish Voice Sport

Another Loss; O’Sullivan to Go?

March 12, 2008

By Cathal Dervan

Ireland 12 Wales 16

FORMER Irish coach Warren Gatland had the last laugh as Wales left Croke Park with the Triple Crown safely in their possession and one eye on Saturday’s Grand Slam showdown with the French after a win that puts current Ireland boss Eddie O’Sullivan back into the bacon slicer.

Seven years after he was effectively sacked by the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU), Gatland made his first visit to Croke Park count as he left his one time assistant O’Sullivan for dead in the tactical warfare that showed up all of Ireland’s current limitations.

The visitors scored the only try of the game and looked like the only side with any initiative as Gatland even went so far as to suggest that Ireland didn’t challenge Wales in the “scrum, line-out and backline.”

Just to rub salt in Irish wounds, captain Brian O’Driscoll picked up a hamstring injury that has ended his season.

O’Sullivan will now bear the brunt of heavy criticism after the IRFU insisted he win all three home games in the championship after the World Cup debacle in France last autumn. The nature of the defeat has even led to calls for O’Sullivan’s dismissal.

“It’s understandable,” claimed O’Sullivan. “In this business it seems at the moment you are one loss away from being under pressure for your job. That’s the way it seems to work, I suppose. It’s easy to sit on one side of a laptop and look for somebody’s head on a plate.

“I’ve been here before. It is a game about results and every time you don’t get those results that question will come up. I just do the same thing, get on with the job.”

Asked if he still has the support of the players O’Sullivan added, “I don’t have any doubt that. It’s not an issue.”

He added, “It is a bit early to be judging the season but it is a disappointment because having lost two games means we are out of the championship.

“We were building towards a big performance but it wasn’t to be and that is tough because it all came down to one score over the 80 minutes. It is always tough to take when you lose by the odd score but this is a team in transition and transition is tough in the Six Nations.”

Ireland created little as O’Sullivan opted for a long ball game with only a Shane Horgan effort, when he touched down just short of the line at 6-0 up, threatening to break their try duck on the day.

Even when Wales were twice reduced to 14 men, after yellow cards for Mike Phillips and Martyn Williams, the hosts failed to build any momentum having led 6-3 at the break.

All the home players had to show for their efforts were four Ronan O’Gara penalties, and their woe was compounded three minutes from time when substitute Bernard Jackman conceded a needless penalty that allowed Wales to seal the win through substitute James Hook.

His penalty added to a quite brilliant Shane Williams try and two penalties, and a conversion from Stephen Jones wrapped up the Triple Crown against an Irish side whose lack of adventure has cost them any hope of silverware this season.

Vice captain Paul O’Connell admitted, “We performed only in patches. In the first 20 minutes, we did everything that we set out to do. But then we let them into the game. The trouble was, we played very well but only in stages.

“Even when they were a man down they got the ball and held onto it. When a team is down to 14 you have to make it count. Once they got their try it was tough and I felt we did well to get back into the game. But at the end, when we needed the ball, we lost possession in a turnover and we couldn’t get the ball off them again.”

Ireland: R. Kearney (Leinster); S. Horgan (Leinster), B. O’Driscoll (Leinster, capt.), A. Trimble (Ulster), T. Bowe (Ulster); R. O’Gara (Munster), E. Reddan (Wasps); M. Horan (Munster), R. Best (Ulster), J. Hayes (Munster), D. O’Callaghan (Munster), P. O’Connell (Munster), D. Leamy (Munster), D. Wallace (Munster), J. Heaslip (Leinster).

Replacements: B. Jackman (Leinster) for Best (71), T. Buckley (Munster) for Hayes (71), L. Fitzgerald (Leinster) for B. O’Driscoll (71).

Wales: L. Byrne (Ospreys); M. Jones (Scarlets), T. Shanklin (Blues), G. Henson (Ospreys), S. Williams (Ospreys); S. Jones (Scarlets), M. Phillips (Ospreys); G. Jenkins (Blues), M Rees (Scarlets), A. Jones (Ospreys), I. Gough (Ospreys), A.W. Jones (Ospreys), J. Thomas (Ospreys), M. Williams (Blues), R. Jones (Ospreys, capt).

Replacements: D. Jones (Ospreys) for A. Jones (72), G. Delve (Gloucester) for R. Jones (75), J Hook (Ospreys) for S. Jones (65).

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