Schmidt targets improvements after nerveless Sexton rescues Six Nations campaign at the death Ireland must heed warning
BY NOW, the euphoria of the dramatic Parisian end-game has faded and the Ireland squad are firmly back on terra firma.
As they travelled back from the French capital yesterday, the key question in their mind was how they ended up having to play their get out of jail card in a match they should have put to bed comfortably.
That they didn’t will concern them, even if the refereeing of Nigel Owens played a big part in France’s resurgence.
The Welsh official made two big calls that went against Joe Schmidt’s side, and his policing of the breakdown didn’t suit Ireland, but the visitors also shot themselves in the foot at times and Johnny Sexton might have saved himself some drama had he nailed his kick to make it a nine-point game with 17 minutes remaining.
Instead, Ireland gave the sucker an even break and needed a heroic 41-phase effort and a long-range Sexton drop-goal to win it. after Teddy Thomas’ try.
It was a Reeling in the Years moment, a remarkable finish to an unremarkable game, and it keeps Ireland’s dreams of a Grand Slam intact.
However, if they play like they did on Saturday when they roll into Twickenham on St Patrick’s Day, then they’ll be in trouble. Indeed, the same again wouldn’t achieve much against Wales or Scotland either.
And yet, this is Paris. France may be the ninth-ranked team in the world, a team in the infancy of life under a new coach with a raft of inexperienced players, but Ireland’s history of failure in this city cannot be discounted. It seemed like a factor as the momentum shifted during the second half, just as it did two years ago .
That they arrested the slide and were able to rescue the result speaks volumes for their self-belief, skill and bottle.
“If you lose your first game, you are playing catch-up the whole way and it is so tough,” Schmidt said.
“We have a little bit of security being at home, and getting through something like that, I think it helps build the group together.
“It does strengthen the team bond and hopefully that will give them the resolve and the resilience that is required, because it is such a tough competition… we know we are going to be in similar situations, maybe not right at the end of the game, but similar situations that we are going to have to fight our way through.”
Their accuracy was superb, their clarity of thought remarkable given the fatigue they must have experienced.
Sexton epitomised that with his perfectly measured drop-out, pin-point cross-kick to Keith Earls and brilliant drop-goal; Conor Murray’s passing never wavered, and the ruck work was superb at times.
They shouldn’t have needed it, but now they know what they can do when their backs are against the wall and they can move on to the rest of the tournament with confidence.
Italy, Wales and Scotland visit Dublin the next three games, and home comforts will assist Schmidt and his team in growing their game.
There is plenty to work on, not least in attack where the shape and structure looked good but the end product was lacking.
They will need to score tries to win the tournament, but the visit of Italy – who are on a six-day turnaround after yesterday’s game against England – seems the perfect tonic.
For Schmidt, the lack of tries was not a concern.
“We would,” he said when asked if Ireland would expect to improve as the tournament progresses.
“We would certainly like to. The surface was unbelievable today – they have certainly improved the surface here, it was magnificent – but sometimes when the surface is really good and the grass gets wet, it becomes a bit