David Corkery on rugby: Ireland need to cast their eyes beyond Leinster net

Stick or twist. Is it time to panic or time to change?

This is a question that is loaded with risk and I’m not suggesting that this Irish squad are a team in decline, but if they continue to follow their current pathway of only using one province to select three-quarters of the national squad from, it won’t be too long before the descent down the world ranking table gets quicker.

I have no issues whatsoever in confirming that Leinster are by far the best province in Ireland and they have the best players. However, as all great business leaders will confirm, diversity is the best way to reduce your risks and right now Ireland need something new or something different.

When 11 of your starting 15 and 17 out of your match day 23 all have blue blood flowing through their veins, the probabilities of fatigue and repetitiveness become a real problem.

Now, before the Leinster army comes banging on my door and burning Munster jerseys at my gates, may I confirm that I am a big fan of how Leinster run their stables.

They are the envy of every club side in the world and its pathway is lauded by all those who are embraced by its mothering arms.

Last weekend as Ireland were dominating the opening 20 minutes of the game and hammering away at the French try line, you could see that the French players were very comfortable in how the game was going.

As if by design the Sean Edwards orchestrated defensive system was working a treat, but Ireland either refused or didn’t know how to change things.

A great man once reminded me that, If you always do what you’ve always done you will always get what you’ve always got, and the harder Ireland ran their lines of attack, the harder and quicker the French came forward and repelled anything that was thrown at them.

Such was their understanding and familiarisation of what Ireland were going to do next, it was as if the French had access to all of Ireland’s team meetings and play-books, and as for Ireland been able to out-muscle their opponents as they did against the Welsh, there was zero chance of that happening.

When you select a bench comprising seven forwards and one back, you are not looking to dazzle your opponents with mesmerising footwork, you are looking to run over them or through them and that’s exactly how things transpired.

DISASTER

Like him or loath him, Elon Musk once said, 'some people don’t like change, but you need to embrace change if the alternative is disaster'.

And if Ireland are ever going to win a World Cup we cannot be dependent on a single province to lead us to the Everest of the sport. I reiterate again that this is not a snipe against Leinster.

This is a suggestion that if Irish rugby doesn’t look to spend their investments more wisely and change with the times, which unfortunately is going down the road of enticing players to spend more time in the gym rather than on the pitch enhancing their speed and skill, we will never reach the promised land.

World Rugby also has a lot to do with this and as I’ve stated previously, unless they sort out the wellbeing of its players and the laws of the game, rugby union will soon be a thing of the past. 

I for one am very glad that I’m not playing at this time as the injuries sustained now seem to be more related to car crashes than playing rugby.

The chances of Ireland winning their third championship in a row are rather slim now considering their points difference and even if France and England do slip up against Scotland and Wales, Ireland must still see off the challenge of the never-say-die Italians.

If competitions were judged on the teams who brought the most effort and passion to the field, Italy would have won every match they ever played in and Ireland need to be prepared for another war of attrition.

VILIFIED

Sam Prendergast was somewhat vilified after last week’s loss, but if the truth be told he had very little to do with the result. He certainly didn’t have his best game ever, but it is imperative that Jack Crowley starts tomorrow.

Crowley, who did very little wrong in the build-up to this year’s competition, is fresh, full of vigour, and has a point to prove while Prendergast needs the rest and time to reflect on his last few outings.

Jack Conan is also another player who must start. Without question, he has been Ireland’s best forward of the tournament and he only started in one game.

On paper Ireland should win this game in a canter, but considering what happened last week, not only will the players be physically drained, much of their emotional reservoirs will be running on empty and that is the last thing you need when playing against the Italians.