It is 54 years since Tony O’Reilly, returning from the managerial world on short-term loan, arrived at Twickenham in a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce to play for Ireland. However, at no other time in the history of rugby has an Irish team moved so seamlessly into south-west London, or moved so widely to gain momentum from an England team currently positioned several places further down the grid.
The pre-match stats certainly point to a Max Verstappen-like parade: Ireland are chasing a fifth consecutive Test victory in this fixture and have won all three of their previous championship matches by 21 points, 36 points and 24 points respectively. They have lost just twice in the past 25 Tests (both to New Zealand). Apart from a painful one-point defeat against the All Blacks in the World Cup quarter-final, they are sweeping everyone before them.
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Back-to-back grand slams, a feat not achieved since France completed the double in 1998, will be a testament to their class unless England or Scotland (in Dublin next week) can throw some sort of wrench into the green machine. It seems easier said than done, but equally England have reached a stage where they desperately need a performance that will restore some public confidence.
Even within the England camp there is a clear recognition that the countless handling errors and turnovers that eroded their faith against the Scots at Murrayfield cannot be repeated. Raining on Ireland’s parade would be the perfect response, but in reality England are also longing for something more poignant: the renewed pride of their fans and the rosy inner glow that comes with playing to their full potential.
Getting the crowd roaring early and prompting Ireland to play an unconventional game of catch-up would obviously help. Another prerequisite for a change in this fixture is to keep 15 people on the field. Remarkably, England had a player dismissed in each of the last three Tests between the two sides (Billy Vunipola, Freddie Steward and Charlie Ewels respectively) and lost by 13, 17 and 19 points. The Irish constantly keep the scoreboard up to date, even if they’re not at their best, and they can be counted on for at least a few tries.
But in almost all of these contests England again showed at least the necessary stubbornness that the burden would require. Despite Ewels being sent off after just 82 seconds in 2022, they were still level in the final quarter, forcing Ireland to concede five penalties and a free kick in attack. A year ago in Dublin they were only 10-9 behind after 60 minutes until Ireland’s numerical advantage became apparent.
If you factor in the unusual troubles the Irish had against Wales, if you look hard enough into the late winter sun, it’s possible to realize that England has made life stranger than many expected. Kick the ball up the pitch, bolster their squad strengthened by Ollie Chessum, George Martin and Maro Itoje to make Ireland the Twickenham equivalent of a top three challenge and pin Andrew Porter’s side in attack; Ireland will have to solve almost the entire problem. for the first time in the tournament. “Ireland haven’t lost too many games, so you’re looking at tough games closely,” Steve Borthwick said. Digested reading? Stop Ireland at the source or pay the inevitable price.
But even then they still need to crack the coherent code on which Andy Farrell’s Ireland are based. As Dan Cole observed on the For The Love of Rugby podcast this week – even urban parochial props are busy building their digital brands these days – Ireland’s secret lies in the closeness of its connections. Those little passes to change the point of attack, the immediate numbers in hand to source breakdowns, the quick transfer from the back to the next wave of runners, the convincing dummy runners, the tilting of James Lowe’s left boot. If Farrell were selecting the British and Irish Lions team next week, there could be more representatives from Ireland than England, Scotland and Wales combined.
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If Ireland complete this season’s title with a run to spare, it will also reignite an oft-repeated debate. Borthwick rates Ireland as “the best team in the world right now” but what he really envies is the cohesive structure that supports their national team. “You look at it and it seems so unified,” he said this week, making clear that the current English equivalent is nothing of the sort. “There are 15 players from the same (state) team on the 23rd. I think every country will look at that with envy.”
Either way, the net result is that while players in Ireland have improved steadily, many players in England have plateaued in comparison. Bundee Aki, Tadhg Beirne, Dan Sheehan, barnstorming new lock Joe McCarthy… place them alongside Caelan Doris, Tadhg Furlong and Jamison Gibson-Park and the effect is like a shamrock-wearing octopus whose tentacles are everywhere at once.
Ronan O’Gara also offered his view from his vantage point in La Rochelle this week that the Premier League is collectively weaker than it was a decade ago, despite the occasional good win for Northampton in Munster in January, for example. He’s right in terms of forward strength, but that still doesn’t quite explain why so many talented full-backs get lost in the rugby equivalent of the Bermuda triangle when wearing an England jersey.
This, then, is an important match for George Ford and Ollie Lawrence, as well as the occasion of 21-year-old Manny Feyi-Waboso’s first start at Twickenham. If England are still in the game after the hour, perhaps it can leave the stage to Danny Care – who could make a well-deserved 100th appearance on the bench – in Harlequins’ familiar attacking triangle of Alex Dombrandt and the fit-again Marcus Smith. .
Are England creating good angles, getting the ball up to speed, making their opponents think and showing ruthless dominance in the red zone? Perhaps this means projecting the mirage too soon and too far, but in the end, what does England have to lose? “I’ve seen the England team get into situations recently where the opposition are ahead of us and they jump into the challenge,” Borthwick said. “I get that from them now.” Ireland should still return home with victory but can expect England to fire more this time around.