HENRY CRAICS
17 ● Sport
gairrhydd, Monday 11 February 2002
SIX NATIONS 54 10
IRELAND WALES
Match report by David Williams
WHEN WALES were dismal against Ireland in October, it was described as a one off. When Argentina humiliated the Dragons in their own lair, it was an upset in a meaningless match. But after the Lansdowne Road horror show, shell-shocked supporters offered no defence of their side. Ireland’s 54-10 defeat of Wales was total and absolute. Graham Henry though was resolute after the drubbing; “We work well together as a PRESSURE: Harris and Henry (Right) both feel it
group of people and the preparation and build up for this test match was excellent. We just didn’t seem to get the rub of the green.” Right-winger Geordan Murphy started the rout with only five minutes gone, capitalising on a defence splitting pass from David Humphreys. Pre-match optimism from the travelling thousands had already been dented when key line-out jumper Chris Wyatt limped off at the first throw. He was soon joined on the sidelines by young hopeful Jamie Robinson, but by that time Wales’ chances of winning were being blown away on the Dublin wind.
Punished Graham Henry must be sick of the sight of Humphreys. The Ulster stand-off punished Wales in Cardiff, and he was no less sympathetic at the famous Dublin ground, as Wales continued to infringe in the scrum and offer unforced errors. Stephen Jones chalked up three points with a solitary penalty, but a close-range try from debutante Paul O’Connell kept the deficit growing.
And indeed the points margin continued to widen after the interval as Murphy scored his second.
Ruthless Man of the moment Jones offered some hope as Wales finally pieced together some effective back moves, the Llanelli number ten forcing his way over the line. But the luck of the Irish proved as true as their passion, Hickie thanking the bounce of the ball for his score, leaving the Welsh fans to turn their attention back to the Guinness.
Mirroring the Cardiff match, Ireland scored three tries in the last ten minutes, showing the same kind of ruthless mindedness that only England normally possess. The 44 points margin is only second to the 51-0 hammering by France in 1998 in Wales’s record championship losses and skipper Scott Quinnell knows that the game against les bleus in a week will be a must win for Wales; “ The game against France in two weeks time at first looks very daunting but we must look to our inner belief and inner selves and look forward to that game”.
Chris Wathan wields the axe after Wales capitulated against the Irish last weekend. Who represents the future of Welsh rugby?
IN
Sinkinson
Charvis
Gibbs
Jones
Henson
15. Kevin Morgan
5 Has been consistent over recent games but is far too weak in the tackle this time. SAFE
14. Mark Jones
5 Not the right game for the Scarlet speedster. If shown space could fly for Wales. SAFE
13. Andy Marinos
5 Has potential but Bateman, Storey, Taylor and Leigh Davies are all better. SCRAP
12. Iestyn Harris
3 Will be a great player eventually but needs shelter ready for 2003. Put in the A’s. SCRAP
11. Dafydd James
4 Bridgend’s form not helping the Lion. Experienced player who knows where the try-line is. SAFE
10. Stephen Jones
5 Indecisive where Wales vitally needed an influential spark. Good club player but thats it. SCRAP
9. Rob Howley
5 Couldn’t perform behind pathetic pack. Nevertheless, still one of the world’s best. SAFE
1. Spencer John
2 Outscrummaged, out-thought, outdone. Club player dangerously exposed on higher stage. SCRAP
2. Robin McBryde
1 Disgrace. SCRAP
3. Chris Anthony
4 Possible future for the Newport man but lacked any real impact. Better players available. SCRAP
4. Craig Quinnell
3 Tried and tired formula of big hits. Not fit enough, poor handling and thinks he’s a centre. SCRAP
5. Ian Gough
5 Was ineffective in line-out but mainly due to McBryde’s abysmal arm. Good squad man. SAFE
6. Nathan Budgett
4 Virtually absent. There is an abundance of good back-rowers, Budget is not one of them. SCRAP
8. Scott Quinnell
6 No doubting SQ’s class but Wales’ game plan is too dependent upon him. Suffers as a result SAFE
7. Martyn Williams
6 Showed glimpses of prior form but still lazy in the defence. Sinkinson in better form. SCRAP
OUT
McBryde
Quinnell
Harris
Budget
John