Stockdale relishing the chance to go chasing tries against Samoa

JACOB STOCKDALE and Keith Earls have a running joke about the fact that neither of them has scored a try at this World Cup.

Two hungry wingers at different stages of their careers, it is the sort of competitive spirit Joe Schmidt will want to have in his squad.

By all accounts, yesterday’s training session included a few heated moments during scrummaging drills.

As the business end of the tournament rolls around, the players are evidently feeling that heightened sense of pressure and expectation.

Ireland haven’t yet delivered and if you are to go by Stockdale (pictured) and Earls’ in-joke, neither have the pair of wingers who are still seen as first-choice.

It’s not all about scoring tries of course, but as a winger you are expected to chip in with your fair share. Given that Ireland have to chase a bonus point against Samoa on Saturday, every back-three player in the squad will be chomping at the bit to be involved.

Conjuring

We have become so used to seeing Stockdale conjuring up magic moments and his try-scoring record since he broke on to the international scene speaks for itself.

Sixteen tries in 23 games is a superb strike-rate for any player, let alone for a 23-year-old who is still relatively new to this level.

He might not admit it, but Stockdale must be desperate to score a try at the World Cup. After all, that ruthless streak is what has helped him get to this point.

“I don’t really think about it,” he insists. “Me and Earlsy have had a bit of a joke that neither of us has scored a try yet but to be honest, as long as we’re winning and we’re doing well I’m happy not to be scoring tries. It’s not something that bothers me.”

One wonders how much of a marked man Stockdale has become over the last year. Opposition teams are fully aware of the threat that he poses, so it makes sense to pay particular attention to him.

The Ulster man doesn’t feel like that has been the case in Japan, but space has often been at a premium.

As he proved with his stunning try against the All Blacks last year, he only needs half a yard to strike and with Ireland chasing four tries on Saturday, Stockdale will fancy his chances of notching that first World Cup try.

“I suppose I’ve built up a bit of credit in that sense but at the same time if you’re not playing well enough a coach isn’t going to pick you,” he admits. “That’s the same in a World Cup, like if someone else is playing better than me then they’re going to get picked.

“But having that competition there and pushing each other on with a bit of healthy competition, I think it’s a really good thing.

“So yeah, you’re always worried that your place is going to be taken but you just can’t worry about that. You just have to train as best you can and play as best you can and hopefully you keep your spot.”

Such has been their rapid rise, it is easy to forget that three years ago, Stockdale, James Ryan and Andrew Porter were playing in an U-20 World Cup final.

“It has come really quickly,” Stockdale smiles. “I suppose I forget about the fact that I am not really an experienced international rugby player in that sense.”

As much as Samoa will be out to prove a point, so too are Ireland as they look to build momentum before a potential quarter-final clash.

The attack hasn’t fired on all cylinders yet, but Stockdale believes they are close to clicking.

“I think there’s just a few things we need to sharpen up on,” he maintains.

“I don’t think we’re at panic stations or anything like that. You can see we’re getting into our shape really nicely, there’s just the odd pass not going to hand or maybe we’re not making the right decisions, so those kind of wee one-to-two per cent things are making all the difference and they’re really easy to fix.

“We know how good we are as a team and we know our ability.

“Whenever we’re switched on and raring to go, we can do that, you know you can change from one week to the next and there can be a dramatic change in a week.

“We know how good we are and how we can turn that around pretty quickly. It’s not a huge foundational issue, it just needs a bit of tweaking.

Nature

“Obviously we’d probably rather that it (quarter-final place) was secured by now but it’s the nature of rugby and we’re really excited to go into a weekend where anything can happen. All we can do is focus on playing Samoa and do the best we can against them. Then, however the Japan v Scotland game works out we’ll see where we’re at.”

Stockdale hasn’t been involved in many games where his side need to go chasing tries and if he gets the nod, that attacking mindset will suit him perfectly.

“To be honest, it’s not something I’ve really experienced yet but you look at the way we won the Six Nations in 2015, we were away to Scotland and had to score as many points as we could and we went out and killed it,” he adds.

“This squad is perfectly capable of doing it. I haven’t had the experience of that but I’m looking forward to it.

“There’s that little change of mentality from just trying to get the win to trying to get as many tries as possible.”