Key events
“New Zealand have a lot of growth still needed both in the playing and coaching staff, some decent baby steps this season but plenty to work on.” posits Bernards Ben on the email, “Ireland by some accounts view us as public enemy #1 these days, the arena’s going to be incendiary! One good thing about the All Blacks though, a win is never an outlandish prospect. And yet I still this is it Ireland’s game.”
Pre match reading
Andy Farrell has already had a good week with his big win on the Wigan RLFC monthly lotto!
Ireland fans will hope that hasn’t used up all his luck before this match.
Why not get in touch and tell me about your favourite character or storyline from Friday Night Lights? Was season 2 as poor as people said at the time (I don’t think so)? Or I suppose we could talk about the actual game if you insist. Whatever you fancy chatting about email me your thoughts or you could reach out on Bluesky @bloodandmud (I’m done with X these days)
Teams
Andy Farrell will be pleased to welcome back Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen and Jamison Gibson-Park; each of whom have been fundamental to the success of this side in recent years. Tadhg Furlong is out, however, which brings Finlay Bealham into the pack.
New Zealand will play tonight with the injured Beauden Barrett and Codie Taylor. This turn of events means Scott Robertson plays Damien McKenzie at 10 and Asafo Aumua continues at hooker, where he played most of last week v England following Taylor’s early injury.
Ireland: Hugo Keenan; Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Bundee Aki, James Lowe; Jack Crowley, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Ronan Kelleher, Finlay Bealham; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris
Replacements: Rob Herring, Cian Healy, Tom O’Toole, Iain Henderson, Peter O’Mahony, Conor Murray, Ciaran Frawley, Jamie Osborne
New Zealand: Will Jordan; Mark Tele’a, Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, Caleb Clarke; Damien McKenzie, Cortez Ratima; Tamaita Williams, Asafo Aumua, Tyrel Lomax, Scott Barrett, Tupou Vaa’i, Wallace Sititi, Sam Cane, Ardie Savea
Replacements: Gorge Bell, Ofa Tu’ungafasi, Pasilo Tosi, Patrick Tuipulotu, Samipeni Finau, Cam Roigard, Anton Leinert-Brown, Stephen Perofeta
Preamble
Welcome to Dublin, where Ireland commence their Autumn International fixtures by welcoming New Zealand. This should be quite the Test match, and that’s before you consider the men in green are facing the team that splintered their collective souls into a million pieces with that defeat in the quarter-final of last year’s Rugby World Cup.
This could bring as much drama as the TV show that shares the timing and illumination status of this clash – Friday Night Lights. Indeed the Ireland team is not unlike the Dillon Panthers of that serial. A serious but inspiringly dark eyed coach who’s been married for ages and has kids miles apart in age; key players in the team giving more than a hint they might be too old for the role by this stage of the series; a key playmaker still in the shadow of his more talented predecessor; and a suited back office director or sport type bloke behind the scenes who has a record of not treating women in the employ of his company very well. (Yes, I bloody love the show Friday Night Lights, what of it?)
All this is to say that Ireland come into this match with the nagging feeling that the squad is both overcooked in age profile and undergarnished in terms of preparation; especially matched against the two hit outs the All Blacks have absorbed.
It’s a tricky tie to call. New Zealand are nothing like the side they have been for most of their existence, with some fundamental issues still be resolved by Scott Robertson, not least their discipline. Andy Farrell’s men are as usual made from a core of a Leinster team that have coasted their way to an undefeated domestic season, will this plus the short time in camp be enough to have them ready to deal with an NZ squad giddy from a Twickenham win?
Stick around with me to find out.
