Oct. 14, 2023 is a date which will live in infamy for Irish rugby.
The green machine was purring going into a Rugby World Cup quarterfinal in a setting more like Dublin than Paris, and they had the All Blacks right where they wanted them. Ireland was on a 17-match, 15-month winning streak and it had New Zealand’s number from winning five of the previous eight contests.
The Irish were confident enough after beating defending champion South Africa in the pool stage to tell the Springboks they’d see them in the final.
But the All Blacks humbled them 28-24. They came out of the gate faster, never trailed, and withstood a last-ditch 37-phase attack to extend Ireland’s World Cup curse to eight quarterfinals and eight defeats.
They meet on Friday in Dublin for the first time since the World Cup, memories fresher in Ireland minds than New Zealand’s. The Irish have 17 survivors in the matchday 23 and the same coach, the All Blacks only 10 and a new coach.
“We’ve moved on since the quarterfinal,” Ireland coach Andy Farrell says, and he’s right, to a point.
Ireland suffered no World Cup hangover. It retained the Six Nations title and didn’t lose a series in South Africa for the first time, an historic feat all the more remarkable without Bundee Aki, Jamison Gibson-Park, Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen or Dan Sheehan.
All but Sheehan will start against the All Blacks, against which Ireland goes to another level.
Ever since Ireland beat New Zealand for the first time in 2016 — under Kiwi coach Joe Schmidt — after 111 years of trying, the games have become fiery, grudge-laden matches. Ireland’s ability to talk the talk and back it up crashes against New Zealand’s desperation to restore dominance. New Zealand hasn’t won in Ireland in eight years.
There’s no doubt Ireland will be stewing from the World Cup quarterfinal, especially after some player exchanges following that game were revisited recently by the retired Jonathan Sexton to hype his book. Sexton has returned to the squad as a consultant.
Furlong and Barrett out
Ireland has also officially added a former Crusaders assistant of New Zealand coach Scott Robertson to its backroom staff, Andrew Goodman, but starts without injured tighthead prop Tadhg Furlong, a blow. But his replacement, Finlay Bealham, finished the win over the Springboks in Durban in July.
That match was a breakthrough for Farrell. He benched Peter O’Mahony, who captained the team in the Six Nations, gave Tadhg Beirne the blindside flank, and No. 8 Caelan Doris the captaincy.
“He’s calm, he’s taken it all in his stride and that puts everyone else at ease,” Farrell says of Doris. “On top of that, he’s not in bad form. He’s thriving in the (captaincy) now. He’s walking tall.”
Like Ireland with Furlong, New Zealand was dealt a blow by losing a concussed Beauden Barrett from last weekend’s win over England. He’d brought back assurance to the flyhalf role. Damian McKenzie, superb off the bench, was back as the starting 10 with question marks.
“When he’s on, he’s world class, shows great touches and keeps believing in himself,” Robertson says of McKenzie. And when he’s not on? “Just trust him.”
Benchmark win
The rebuilding All Blacks are still looking for a benchmark win this year. Unlike Ireland, they failed to beat the Springboks in South Africa, and Robertson compared this match to the odds facing them in Johannesburg in August. The Boks pounced on a late All Blacks yellow card to score two converted tries and win 31-27.
Robertson has fond memories of Northern Ireland from playing for a club east of Belfast at age 18, and was asked for his regard on the rivalry with the Irish.
“It’s a great story, great narrative,” he says. “Two countries similar in lots of ways. Small island off a big island, enjoy each other’s company, fierce rivalry on the field, lot of respect, two smart teams, they play a good style. That’s a big part of the storyline. They’ve had a little bit of success in our backyard and we’ve had some as well.”
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