RUGBY NO STOPPING JACK IN THE BOX
High five as Ireland side getting there NORTHAMPTON v MUNSTER Crowley continues to impress as Munster eye scalp
IRELAND’S loss to Italy was a performance as different as ‘night and day’ from the opening day defeat in France, insists Deirbhile Nic a Bháird.
There were many improvements, says the back-row/hooker currently sidelined with an ACL injury, pointing to five individuals in particular who are clearly of the standard needed.
“Sam was incredible for a woman who was coming back after nearly two months out from a concussion.
“She was physically just dominant in every carry, after one game she is second in the over tournament carries (with 30), incredible.
“She led with that physicality, you could see our attack was more abrasive, for sure. She is just such a strong character, the girls really stand around her, it was great to see her back.
“I don’t know if it can be stated enough how important Neve is.
“We all know she is a defensive rock, has an incredible work-rate and engine around the park.
“She is so professional, sets a really high standard, especially for the younger girls coming through.
SAM MONAGHAN: NEVE JONES: Smart
“She is a very clever player as well, I don’t think people credit her enough for how smart she is because she is maybe not the big talker.
“She is just so fundamental to everything we are doing.”
“Linda is a force of nature. She was dominant in her collisions and her carries, running lines allowing other people off-load and that’s an under-rated skill.
“The off-loading person might be cool, catching is just as important because otherwise it doesn’t work. She is on the shoulder of people making linebreaks showing she is putting in the graft and hard work.”
“After a year out, that was an unbelievable, standout performance. There were unfortunate finishes to phases that she was controlling, in which she produced some unbelievable passing.
“Definitely that one to Beibhinn (Parsons), seventeen-and-a-halfmetres, or something, a skip pass, pacey, with good vision.
“There was a couple of great cross-field kicks and she was physically dominant throughout in midfield.”
LINDA DJOUGANG: ENYA BREEN: KATIE CORRIGAN:
Definitely one to look out for, coming into her own and she had that intercept try which, looking for the positives those points could be incredibly important at the business end of these Championships.
“She stayed alive the whole way through and she had some incredibly good defensive efforts tracking back down her wing.”
MUNSTER great David Wallace would have been proud of the winning try, the one that cracked Cardiff last week, a medium-toshort range effort that required vision, footwork and power.
Credit so to out-half Jack Crowley who, wearing the no10 shirt, produced a clutch score of the type Wallace, who played all the slots across the back-row when needed, specialised.
Firstly there was jink past the first-up defence before, sights set on the line, a forceful drive through a wall of defenders to score.
Current Munster assistant coach Denis Leamy played with Wallace, won 2006 and 2008 Heineken Cup medals alongside him in the backrow, doesn’t disagree about the quality of Crowley’s try last week.
“Certainly in the ability to break through tackles, you can see that likeness with David Wallace for the try,” says Leamy.
“I would say what was really on show from Jack and probably people don’t highlight this enough, he is not a small fellah, he is physically strong lad, very well built and robust.
“He has that ability to be physical through contact with his legs and step and weave and there is definitely that to Jack - something, along with all the other
analysis that goes with it, gets missed a bit.
Right now Crowley is getting better month by month, working out as a perfect professional at the southern province.
Appetite
“Jack is a good example of a guy who has his head down, has the ability to learn, to take on information, an ability to bounce back in terms of making mistakes and he will continue to make mistakes and
TRY AS HE MIGHT: Munster’s Jack Crowley with Craig Casey after scoring his superb try against Cardiff last weekend his appetite for the game is tremendous.
“You saw a different quality from him the other night, that ability to find a way, weave his way through, showed a bit of physicality, to score an important try and that’s great for us.
“Jack has that, but he is a now a player who has played close to 10 Tests for Ireland and I am really impressed by not only the way he has played but come back into the group, quietly gone
HUG IT OUT: Craig Casey and Munster Defence Coach Denis Leamy during a training session ahead of the game about his business in an authoritative way and he has been excellent in his last couple of games.”
Munster are facing a tough Heineken Cup Last 16 task this Sunday afternoon at Franklin’s Gardens because as a force in English rugby, five points ahead of Bath at the top of the Premier, the Saints are coming.
“It is a great challenge, Northampton have a very, very good attack. We know that from playing them over the last few years, they are really well put together.
Power
“There are special players like Alex Mitchell, they have got power players like Juarno Augustus, Curtis Langdon, Courtney Lawes comes to mind, really good players who are handfuls.
“You look at the talent that Fin Smith at no10 has, they have pace in their backline, you think of Ollie Sleighthome and players like that, so there is quality all across the park.”
But Munster, as ever, will be far more interested in concentrating on themselves, imposing their game.
“We have been pretty good this season, we have the lowest amount of tries conceded in our own domestic league.
“We have to fall back on that, trust our principles, our decision-making and bring a little of physicality and edge to it and we will be well in the mix.
“Any sort of looseness, Northampton have the ability to punish it, there is no doubt.
“They just have the ability to make two passes, get to the edge, bring their power to the game, their off-loading ability, so we are very mindful of how we can control the game.”
The excitement at training at the HPC in Limerick, where RG Snyman took part in training although Calvin Nash sat out the session yesterday, ahead of European action has been palpable.
“There is great energy this week, you feel it, Munster players bond to how that feels. We grew up playing, most of us, cup competitions, it is not something that is not alien to us.
“It wouldn’t be unfair to say we are not being given a whole load of hope going over to play the best team in England with all their English internationals and all the ability they have
“But we have to trust in the players we have, the game we have and we are happy to do that.”