How Irish heroes ended 111 years of All Blacks agony
IRELAND coach Joe Schmidt is prepared for an almighty backlash from the All Blacks in Dublin in two weeks after his side made history here.
Ireland ended a 111-year winless streak against New Zealand, after 28 unsuccessful attempts, with a demolition job at Soldier Field that was the first time the men in black had conceded 40 points since 2004. New Zealand had been targeting a 19th consecutive Test victory, now they will be aiming for revenge when the two sides clash again at the Aviva Stadium on November 19 with star lock Brodie Retallick, who missed the Chicago clash with concussion, set to return.
‘I would sympathise with the All Blacks because that wasn’t the team we have seen throughout the Rugby Championship,’ said Schmidt.
‘Retallick will be fit for them in Dublin and he will change what they can deliver at the lineout.’
In a historic week in the windy city, the Chicago Cubs lifted their own hex by securing their first baseball World Series since 1908 on Wednesday night.
The Irish squad received a police escort for their captain’s run on Friday as five million Chicago natives took to the streets to hail the victorious Cubs.
‘We went under the city, along the railway tracks,’ Schmidt said. ‘There’s some fantastic experiences, seeing all these millions of people above us while we’re sneaking underneath and when we were coming back some of them thought, because we had a police escort, that maybe there were some Cubs in the bus and were cheering us, or maybe they were just getting ahead for today; they were maybe more aware of how the game might turn out than we were.’
Schmidt’s decision to select Leinster stalwart Rob Kearney at full back was fully vindicated as the 30- year- old produced a stunning performance.
Kearney has battled hamstring injuries for the past 18 months and missed Ireland’s three-Test summer tour of South Africa, but he delivered a dynamic display against the best team on the planet.
‘I wasn’t sure if I was going to be selected this week,’ said Kearney.
‘I’m just glad I was able to repay the trust of Joe. I’m sure he will have lots for me this week — missed tackles and some coverage in the backfield. There’s still lots to work on, it wasn’t a perfect performance.’
Tries from Jordi Murphy, CJ Stander, Conor Murray and Simon Zebo had put Ireland into a commanding 33-22 lead with 20 minutes remaining.
Ireland would then lose their conductor-in- chief as Jonathan Sexton left the field with cramp. On came Leinster rookie Joey Carbery in his place. The 21-year- old was playing amateur rugby six months ago but showed maturity beyond his years to help Ireland seal this historic result.
So many Irish greats went through their careers without a win against the All Blacks: Keith Wood, Brian O’Driscoll, Paul O’Connell. Carbery managed to beat the men in black at the first time of asking.
‘Crazy, it’s unbelievable,’ Carbery said. ‘We were prepped throughout the week and ready for every situation. We knew what to do.
‘ It was easy when I came on because everyone was so clued in. It’s a dream come true to play against them... and to win, to win for the first time ever, I really can’t believe it.’